My Name is Scott Polderman and this is my story.
I started my first business at age 17, the name of it was Cotton Time. I sold cotton candy before you could buy it in stores. I set up 19 accounts in gas stations, convenience stores, and movie rental places. (yes, those use to exist)
That was the beginning of my entrepreneurial journey that has lasted 31 years, and still going strong.
I won’t bore you with all of the businesses but I will name a few industries just to give you some background. I’ve owned businesses in Martial Arts, Wholesale Import Export, Clothing Store, Cell Phone Stores, and an ADT Franchise just to name a few.
The longest running business that I have owned is U.S. Martial Arts, which I started in 1994 and continues today.
I have been in the online marketing space since 2007.
I originally became interested in teaching martial arts online so I spent hundreds or even thousands of hours learning the online world. I don’t do much with that business niche anymore but here is my Youtube Channel with over 800K views. Here is the website in that niche as well http://KarateClassesNearme.com
Covid-19 Changed Everything
So you might be wondering, with all of these businesses why are you starting a blog from scratch? Actually, you could sum it up in one word, Covid-19. This virus has changed the way we all interact and go through our day. From a business standpoint, it hit me really hard.
Let’s go back to the beginning of March, 2020. At this point I was having my best year ever as an entrepreneur. I had 5 Martial Arts Schools, hundreds of students, and doing what I love every single day. Martial Arts has always been my passion, I love working with kids and adults and helping them achieve their goals.
I’ve also had a Marketing Company for the past 9 years. I have been able to work with small business owners from around the country. I have also been fortunate enough to work with a few large corporations in the medical field such as Stryker Medical, Styker EMS, and Emsar, just to name a few.
Oh yes, back to Covid-19, once this hit everything changed! I currently have 1 martial arts school that has managed to survive. Unfortunately group classes are not allowed in Michigan right now (Dec. 2020) so we are just teaching online.
Who Moved My Cheese
I believe in focusing on what you can control, staying positive, and working hard. If you haven’t read the book, Who Moved My Cheese, I highly recommend it. Well, I now find myself in the position of needing to pivot and since I love online marketing, here we are.
Who Moved My Cheese is a great book, and a very short one, about two mice. They basically wake up one day and where they normally went for food (their Cheese) it was suddenly gone. I think this has happened to a lot of us in 2020.
Their story goes through how they learned to adapt and a few life lessons along the way. I would certainly say this book is very relevant today due to Covid-19. If you decide to read the book, please let me know what you thought about it. I hope no one has moved your cheese but if they have, we must all learn to adapt and then excel.
Here are My Goals for 2021
- Start a Blog
- Learn as Much as Possible about Affiliate Marketing.
- Get to 1000 sessions per day as fast as possible.
- Don’t try it on my own, model success instead.
- Learn from Successful Bloggers like Adam Enfroy.
- Do whatever it takes to be successful.
- Share my story and my journey with you.
I’ve started this blog in December of 2020 as a case study. Here are the 14 Steps to Start a Blog in 2021 that I took. My goal is to help new bloggers get started, join me, and have a successful year in 2021.