Today, joining me is Leif Babin. Leif is a former U.S. Navy SEAL officer, co-author of #1 New York Times bestseller Extreme Ownership: How U.S. Navy SEALs Lead and Win, and co-founder of Echelon Front, where he serves as President, COO, leadership instructor, speaker, and strategic advisor. In this episode, we will chat with Leif about how he launched one of the most successful books ever published.
A graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, Leif served thirteen years in the Navy. During his last tour, Leif served as Operations Officer and Executive Officer, was again deployed to Iraq for a second time with Special Operations Task Force. He is the proud recipient of the Silver Star, two Bronze Stars, and a Purple Heart. Upon his active duty departure, Leif co-founded Echelon Front, a premier leadership consulting company that helps others build their own high-performance winning teams.
Leif served with Jocko Williams, another author, in sustained combat regions as Navy SEALS. They talked and realized there was a real need for leadership training in companies. “Everything we learned in combat applied to any team in any organization and any situation.” As they started working with companies, many of their clients and followers were looking for a reference manual. “We wanted to get the message out about leadership from Navy SEALS that can humbly speak about this, reflect well on the SEAL teams, and pass these lessons onto others.”
“We launched the Echelon company in 2012, and our book was published in 2015.”
He had talked with people and found out he didn’t want to go with a ghostwriter because once they had given over their story, they completely lost control of the end product. Leif notes two examples of fallen servicemen who were written about as “bravados.” However, in reality, they were two humble men who gave their lives for our country.
On writing their story, “We didn’t want to write a memoir, we wanted to write something that talked about leadership lessons learned and gave the application of those leadership lessons learned so that people could take and implement them in their professional and personal lives.”
Listen in to find out how Leif and Jocko decided to tell their story when they co-authored their book, why you shouldn’t let your ego get in the way, and how Leif and Jocko marketed their book.
Show Notes
[03:38] How Leif decided to write his book and his process of creating Extreme Ownership. [07:34] His experience shopping for a literary agent and sending out their proposal. [10:30] Why Leif decided to write this book himself instead of hiring a ghostwriter. [13:51] The daunting process of pitching publishing houses. [18:33] Co-author process pros and cons for Jocko and Leif. [21:43] How the two authors were able to keep each other’s voice when editing the other’s manuscript. [23:25] Marketing their book and how many months before their sales started to climb. [27:01] When Leif decided to send an advanced copy of the manuscript to the press. [30:26] Publicity elements authors want to consider when marketing their book. [31:46] When did their book make an impact for their business? [34:34] Why Leif feels it's more important to be an Amazon Best Seller than be on the New York Times Best Seller list. [35:01] How his book has increased and expanded his business. [43:48] Stories of readers loving the concept of dichotomy. [46:56] Leif’s advice to upcoming authors.Links and Resources
Visit Self Publishing School Online SPS Free Training Course Circle of Profit Author Advantage Live 2020 for Writers Leif Babin - Echelon Front on the WebSPS 158: Lessons Learned In The Trenches Helping 1,000’s Of Authors with Brett Hilker
SPS 157: How To Write & Publish A Memoir That Makes A Difference (Behind The Scenes Of The SPS Coaching Process) with Kerk Murray
SPS 156: Enneagram For Authors: Using Your Enneagram Type To Write & Publish A Better Book with Ian Morgan Cron
SPS 155: The Happy Hustler’s Guide To Writing And Marketing A Book Without Burning Out with Cary Jack
SPS 154: Publishing A Faith-Based Book That Inspires Action & Spreads Your Message with Aaron Schafer
SPS 153: Writing A Children’s Book For Your Kids - How To Do It & Why You Should with Josiah Fogle
SPS 152: Let It Be Easy: Using Publicity & Instagram To Sell Books & Grow Your Business with Susie Moore
SPS 151: Growing Your Influence & Selling More Books Using Instagram with Jordan Lee Dooley
SPS 150: Speak & Write With No Fear with Mike Acker (From Speaker To Author)
SPS 149: The 4 Tendencies of Bestselling Authors & Writing Great Books with Gretchen Rubin
SPS 148: Growing Your Real Estate Investing Business Using A Book with AJ Osborne
SPS 147: From Reading “Published.” To 50,000+ Copies Sold (How I Did It) with Rachel Richards
SPS Is Taking on Author-ity Figures: Who They Are & Exciting Announcement!
SPS 146: Stop Asking Questions. Book Writing For Podcasters with Andrew Warner
SPS 145: What I’ve Learned Talking To 4,657+ Aspiring Authors with Matt Emmorey (Becoming an Author-ity Figure)
SPS 144: Start Writing Your Book TODAY with Morgan Gist MacDonald
SPS 143: How To Sell Books As A Podcaster & Speaker with Ryan Hawk (The Learning Leader)
SPS 142: How To Land A TEDx Talk As An Author with Corey Poirier
SPS 141: Creating A Genre, Writing Interesting Books, And The Craziest Marketing Ideas You’ve Ever Heard with AJ Jacobs
SPS 140: Everything Is Figureoutable & How To Be A Time Genius While Writing Your Book with Marie Forleo
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free
The emPOWERed Half Hour
Bank of America Treasury Insights
How I Crushed It
Pharmacy Podcast Network
The Ramsey Show
Planet Money