Brian Luebben had soared to the top of the corporate ladder, landing a prestigious position in a Fortune 500 Sales Organization in his mid-twenties and earning a substantial salary.
But then, a startling truth hit him: he did not want this life.
He didn’t just want financial success, he wanted to quit his corporate job and travel the world full-time with the freedom to shape his life and career as his own boss.
With the success of his podcast, which evolved into his growing media company, Brian turned his vision into reality.
Today, he lives his dream, traveling the world, earning passive income, and pursuing projects close to his heart — like his Action Academy. Brian’s story epitomizes entrepreneurial success fused with personal fulfillment.
Brian recently sat down with Pat Flynn to share his story on The Smart Passive Income Podcast.
Determined to align his career with his ideal lifestyle, Brian transitioned from corporate life to full-time traveler by following this gameplan:
Determining his ideal vision for the future
Establishing a solid financial foundation
Creating content and collecting client data
Developing a product tailored to his audience’s needs
Pivoting his business strategy in response to customer feedback
Generating recurring revenue
Seeking out growth opportunities for the future
Planning Your Job Exit
Establish Your Ideal Vision for the Future
So how do you determine your next steps after quitting your job to travel? How do you even start to replace a corporate salary? With so many unknowns, there was one thing that Brian was certain of: instead of running away from something, he wanted to run toward something.
This meant crafting a three-year “vivid vision” for both his personal and professional aspirations. By committing his dreams to paper, he gained a clear roadmap.
Here’s the picture he painted:
“I wake up in the morning and I can feel the hot cobblestones of this balcony on my feet and I look out and I can see the ocean. I don’t have calls all morning, but in the afternoon I’ve got meetings with my team. I can make money anywhere in the world with a Mac and a mic.”
A Financial Foundation for Full-Time Travel
Now that Brian had a clear destination in mind, he needed to map out the route to get there. His next step, which he calls “building a financial foundation,” involved investing in real estate.
Brian developed a portfolio of single-family rentals, generating enough passive income to cover his living expenses and begin replacing his corporate salary.
Although Brian was able to essentially live for free, he aimed for something greater. Taking a bold leap, he decided to sell his properties, allowing him to “swing for the fences” and focus on his true passions: his podcast and online business.
“What is the worst possible case scenario that happens if you quit your job and you go all in on yourself, right? “You run out of money. Now what happens? You go and get another job. So your worst-case scenario is your present-day reality, right?”
Turning Your Side-Hustle into a Thriving Online Business
Start to Create Content
Now that you’ve established your vision for the future, built a financial foundation, and are willing to take risks to pursue your passions, it’s time to start building your online business. But where do you start?
Brian explains that the first step is to simply start producing content in any format that showcases your skills and interests and see what resonates with your audience.
Brian accomplished this by hosting his podcast, The Action Academy, where he provides insights for people who share his desire — to build a business around their life, not the other way around.
Gather Client Data
To increase his revenue and better cater to his audience, Brian wanted to learn more about their needs. He offered 100 listeners a free 15-minute coaching session each. During these sessions, he asked them about the challenges and obstacles they were facing in achieving their business goals. This approach allowed him to collect a wealth of valuable customer data.
Why offer this free service? According to Brian, many entrepreneurs encounter a common pitfall: they create solutions for problems that don’t truly exist. To avoid falling into this trap, Brian aimed to connect directly with his audience to determine exactly what the market demands.
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Create a Product that Your Audience Really Needs
Now equipped with this useful client data, Brian decided to create a course tailored directly to the needs of his audience. He developed a comprehensive 12-week, 52-hour program and reached out to the original 100 clients from the free coaching sessions, offering the course to them at $1,500 each.
Within just 48 hours, Brian made $100,000.
Pivot the Business for Growth
The business you envision for yourself might end up looking different in reality. This is because continued business growth relies on the ability to identify opportunities for expansion and to make adjustments when necessary.
Brian experienced this when he created a Facebook Group for his course participants to connect. Members began forming partnerships and making deals within the group. Eventually, discussions arose about the value of the group surpassing that of the course itself.
Brian recognized this as an opportunity and reassessed his strategy, embarking on a new phase for his business: community-building.
“The key is to just start step after step after step and iterate, change as you take customer feedback, and ask your customer, what do you want?”
Generate Recurring Revenue to Fuel Full-Time Travel
So, what came next for Brian after making this realization? He adjusted his business model to focus on building and monetizing the community. The course transformed into a 30-day onboarding process, now offered for free within the community.
This shift led to community members finding greater success by connecting with peers at similar stages as them or those who had overcome similar challenges. These connections provided valuable guidance and support, helping members navigate their journeys more effectively.
This business pivot also opened the door to recurring revenue for Brian, the key to unlocking full-time travel. Unlike the one-time transactions of individual course sales, the community’s annual memberships promised ongoing financial stability and engagement.
Today, the community boasts around 200 active members and is overseen by Brian and a team of five. In its first year, Brian’s business is projected to reach $1.2 million in annual recurring revenue (ARR).
“The reason I made that pivot was the course material wasn’t the answer. People were the answer. People have always been the answer.”
Living Life as a Full-Time Digital Nomad
Looking Ahead
Brian’s upcoming plans include preparing for membership growth by considering adjustments like expanding his team and distributing responsibilities among his employees to ensure sustainability.
He also plans to introduce a referral program within his community to encourage member engagement and stimulate organic growth.
Additionally, Brian aims to increase his business’s visibility and attract new members by creating short-form content. With an Instagram following of over 200,000 users, he demonstrates a strong ability to engage and retain a significant audience.
A Vivid Vision Realized
Brian is now living his initial “vivid vision,” traveling the world as his own boss while continuing to expand his online business. He states that his aim was never to retire and simply relax on a beach somewhere. Instead, he advocates for building a business around something you love: quitting your job to travel full-time, not wander.
When your business is enjoyable to run, revenue and profit become natural byproducts. It’s what he calls “passionate income” as opposed to passive income.
Brian’s central message is clear: there’s no need to postpone happiness. Joy and fulfillment are available now, and anyone can realize and achieve it with the right guidance and resources.
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