A 6-figure online business? 🔥

Conversations with some are quite enlightening! ✨

And yet they’re not limited to life-altering conversations — they’re also what we enjoy and have a good feeling later on. We’re bringing your way one such chat we’ve had with Dr. Melvin Varghese — a psychologist turned podcaster and creator. 🎙️

Dr. Melvin says he quit his psychologist job for a six-figure online business around his family, and writes about courses, podcasting, and the creator journey. 💪🏻

Who is Dr. Melvin Varghese?

Now, let’s dive right into the conversation! 👇🏼

Thousand Faces Club: When did you decide to become a full-time creator and diversify your income?

Dr. Melvin: We all grow up thinking a stable job is a must; but our understanding of a job has often been trading time for income. In private practice, I used to see 25 clients and do test assessments weekly. And if a client canceled a session or I fell sick, I wouldn't get paid as I was independent, not salaried. I figured this wasn't sustainable — soon, a massive snow blizzard hit Philadelphia, where I lived, and I had to cancel 22 clients. Uncertainty and the need to save up lingered, and I thought there should be another way. On connecting with colleagues, who were in group therapy, we realized none of us took business or marketing classes seriously. So we started learning through books, videos, and conversations, and that’s when I took to podcasting. I thought I had all these years of experience listening, asking questions, deep dive into topics, and decided to apply all that to a different medium. So, I applied clinical skills and create courses, too.

Thousand Faces Club: How did you identify your voice as a podcaster?

Dr. Melvin: When I started the podcast, I interviewed successful therapists and folks in marketing and businesses. Over time, I've done solo podcasts, too. But something I've maintained consistently throughout is to avoid surface-level conversations. I prefer diving deep into topics and having those profound human moments, which helped me crack my voice as a creator.

Thousand Faces Club: Interesting! How did you monetize the podcast?

Dr. Melvin: This was my biggest fear, and in 2015, I wasn't a full-time creator. I was still practicing, so podcasting and blogging were my side hustles. Months later, I launched my online course, and while it wasn't making a lot of money, people were still buying it. That's when I started taking brand sponsorships, and in the first year, it was at $2,000 and doubled down the following year. And then there was affiliate marketing — but it was high-value content led to monetisation.

Thousand Faces Club: Right! That makes sense. Now, many creators struggle with work-life balance. Were you able to nail it?

Dr. Melvin: Very early on in my creator journey, I decided to have a structure in my life. So, I do my deep work early in the morning and usually move on to interviews or content production later. I also include 45-minute hikes and power naps and wrap my days up with a sacred writing or learning time. After 5 pm, it's only family time.

Thousand Faces Club: Last question: is there something you'd do differently if you could go back in time? 👇🏼

Check out Dr. Melvin’s podcast. 👇🏼

If you found this insightful, you’ll find the entire conversation even more useful. Check it out here. 👇🏼

That’s it for this week! We’ll be back with another story next Tuesday. 👋🏼

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