Episode #06: Nomad Summit Founder Johnny FD on Overcoming Insecurity, Becoming a Professional Muay Thai Boxer, and Making Over $200K/Year Online

Episode Summary

Nomad Summit founder Johnny FD shares his story of how he decided to quit his corporate job in Los Angeles and move to Thailand to live on the beach, work as a dive master and eventually become a professional Muay Thai kickboxer and an online business owner. He opens up about his personal journey overcoming insecurity and developing the confidence to pursue a location-independent lifestyle. Johnny then talks about his online business journey through drop-shipping, affiliate marketing, blogging, podcasting, and explains how he grew his online income to over $200K/year and got featured in Forbes, Business Insider, Fast Company and Entrepreneur Magazine. He explains the content-monetization strategies he uses and the specific ways he created multiple streams of automated passive income online. He then tells the story of how he founded the Nomad Summit in Chiang Mai, Thailand which has grown from a small local gathering to a major international event attracting over 400 digital nomads each year from around the world. Johnny talks about the evolution of the digital nomad scene in Chiang Mai, describes the cost of living, quality of life, and the social scene in the world’s largest nomad hub. He then discusses how the broader digital nomad eco-system is growing and developing globally. Finally, he pulls back the curtain on how he invests his personal net worth and what percentage he keeps in real estate vs. other asset classes, and shares the biggest lesson he has learned from his hundreds of guests on the Travel Like a Boss and Invest Like a Boss podcasts.

Get The Maverick Show's

Monday Minute Newsletter

Unsubscribe at anytime. You can read the
Privacy Notice and Terms of Use here.

Kick off each week with 3 personal
recommendations from me that
you can read in 60 seconds.

About the Guest

Johnny FD

Johnny FD is a location independent entrepreneur who quit his corporate job in 2008 to begin traveling the world working as a scuba diving instructor and fighting professionally in the sport of Muay Thai kickboxing. Since then, he’s made hundreds of thousands of dollars building and selling online businesses and has been featured in Forbes, Business Insider, Fast Company, Entrepreneur Magazine, and the BBC. He’s the author of two books about his experiences. The first one is called “12 Weeks in Thailand, The Good Life on the Cheap”, and the second is called, “Life Changes Quick, Simple Tips to Getting Rich, Fit, and Even Finding Love.” Johnny is the host of two popular podcasts – “Travel Like a Boss” and “Invest Like a Boss”. He’s also the founder of the Nomad Summit, an annual event in Chiang Mai, Thailand that attracts over 400 location independent entrepreneurs and digital nomads from around the world.

What You'll Learn

The cost-of-living to quality-of-life ratio in Chiang Mai, Thailand is about the best in the world, which is one of the main reasons it is among the largest digital nomad hubs.
The digital nomad lifestyle is rapidly evolving into an eco-system that is highly organized, both professionally and socially, and increasingly easy for people to plug into and learn from others.
How drop-shipping and affiliate marketing techniques have enabled Johnny to generate over 200K/year online while traveling the world.

Links From the Episode

Disclosure: This page contains affiliate links. If you click through any links and make a purchase, you should assume that Maverick will receive financial compensation (at no additional cost to you). We greatly appreciate you using our affiliate links because it helps to support the show and cover production costs of the podcast.

JOHNNY’S COURSE (TEACHING THE TECHNIQUES HE USES TO MAKE OVER 200K/YEAR ONLINE)

Get $100 OFF Johnny’s “Income Boss” Course Using the Code “MAVERICK”

NOMAD SUMMIT (EVENT JOHNNY FOUNDED):

Get 10% OFF Tickets to the Next Nomad Summit By Using the Code “FRIENDS”

MERINO WOOL DRESS SHIRT THAT MATT AND JOHNNY WEAR:

Libertad Apparel

JOHNNY’s BOOKS:

EVENT JOHNNY RECOMMENDS

Tony Robbins “Date With Destiny”

MATT’S PRESENTATIONS REFERENCED:

Matt’s Video Training on How to Travel the World with Carry on Luggage
Matt’s Talk from the 2018 Nomad Summit in Chiang Mai, Thailand – Nomad Summit Talk, Chiang Mai 2018
Matt’s appearance on Johnny’s Travel Like a Boss and Invest Like a Boss Podcasts

ARCHIVAL VIDEO FOOTAGE OF JOHNNY’s FIRST MUAY THAI KICKBOXING MATCH

Johnny FD vs. “Big Boom”

PODCASTS JOHNNY RECOMMENDS:

JOHNNY’S FAVORITE TRAVEL DESTINATIONS:

JOHNNY’S BUCKET LIST DESTINATIONS:

OTHER LOCATIONS MENTIONED:

Check Flight Prices to Any of These Destinations

EVENTS MENTIONED:

Nomad Cruise

PRODUCTS MENTIONED:

Libertad (Merino Wool Dress Shirts)

LISTEN TO JOHNNY’S PODCASTS:

CONTACT AND FOLLOW JOHNNY:

Read Johnny’s Blog

Time Stamped Show Notes

[02:11] JOHNNY AND MATT TALK ABOUT TRAVEL HACKS AND MINIMALIST PACKING

How Matt carries his podcast studio in his carry-on luggage
How to remain stylish while travelling the world with carry-on luggage
The travel conducive properties of Merino wool clothing

[11:50] JOHNNY’S JOURNEY FROM A U.S. CORPORATE JOB TO THE BEACH IN THAILAND

Los Angeles Materialism and Feelings of Insecurity
Johnny’s First Trip to Thailand and First Time Scuba Diving
Matt and Johnny talk about Scuba Diving in Thailand with Whale Sharks

[21:00] JOHNNY’S JOBS AS A DIVEMASTER AND PROFESSIONAL MUAY THAI KICKBOXER

Johnny’s job as a Divemaster
How Johnny became a Professional Muay Thai Kickboxer
Living in a Bamboo Hut on the Floor

[25:06] HOW JOHNNY BECAME A BLOGGER AND PUBLISHED HIS FIRST BOOK

Why Johnny Started Blogging
How Johnny Monetized your Blog
How Johnny Published His First Book

[28:36] CHIANG MAI, THAILAND: THE #1 DIGITAL NOMAD HUB IN THE WORLD

The Real Cost of Living in Chaing Mai
The Quality of Life in Chiang Mai
How the Digital Nomad Scene has Evolved in Chiang Mai Over The Last Decade
How the Digital Nomad Social and Professional Scene is Structured in Chiang Mai

[43:30] HOW JOHNNY STARTED HIS DROP SHIPPING BUSINESS

How “Drop Shipping” Works as a Business Model
How Blogging Publicly About the Business Model Built His Authority
How Johnny Enhanced His Blog-Monetization Strategy
How Johnny Runs His Coaching Business

[55:11] HOW JOHNNY STARTED MAKING OVER $200K/YEAR ONLINE IN PASSIVE INCOME

How and Why Johnny Started Selling Information Products
How Johnny Incentivizes People to Use His Affiliate Links

[59:25] HOW JOHNNY STARTED THE “TRAVEL LIKE A BOSS” PODCAST

How Johnny Decided to Start the “Travel Like a Boss” Podcast
The Global Impact of the “Travel Like a Boss” Podcast

[1:04:30] HOW JOHNNY CURRENTLY STRUCTURES HIS TRAVEL AND LIFESTYLE

How Matt and Johnny Structure Their Travel and Designs Their Lifestyles
Johnny’s Transition from a Thailand Base to Being an Itinerant Nomad
The Increasing Number of Work/Travel Companies Coming That Serve Digital Nomads
The Importance of Surrounding Yourself with Positive People with an Abundance Mindset

[1:12:15] HOW AND WHY JOHNNY FOUNDED THE NOMAD SUMMIT

Johnny tells the origin story of how he founded the Nomad Coffee Club
Johnny shares the behind the scenes story of how he founded the Nomad Summit
How the nomad summit has evolved over the years
Why people buy advance tickets for the Nomad Summit each year
Matt Talks About Some of the Entrepreneurs He Met at Nomad Summit

[1:18:31] JOHNNY TALKS ABOUT HIS SECOND BOOK AND SECOND PODCAST

Johnny documents how went from $0 to 30K/Month of online income
Starting a podcast because you want to ask for investment advice from experts
The biggest lesson Johnny learned from his podcast guests over the years

[1:23:30] THE LIGHTNING ROUND

Johnny’s Biggest Take Away from the “Travel Like a Boss” Podcast
Johnny’s Biggest Take Away from the “Invest Like a Boss” Podcast
Johnny’s personal investment portfolio breakdown and how much he has in real estate
Johnny’s Top Podcast Podcasts He Recommends
Jonny’s top Live Event He Recommends
Johnny’s Top 3 Travel Recommendations
Johnny’s Top 3 Bucket List Destinations
Matt’s Experience in the Galapagos Islands

[1:32:43] HOW TO CONTACT JOHNNY