Following a rather unceremonious exit from his former profession, the head of a large commodity trading firm, Todd Snively was in a massive financial hole in the early to mid 2000s. That hole equated to a debt of around $2.2 million, and naturally, required a lot of initiative and skill to dig out of that hole and begin making money. Todd was determined to work his way out of the situation. Because of his entrepreneurial spirit and knowledge of ecommerce sector, Todd made the switch to Amazon selling as a way of making money. Since 2009, Todd has been generating millions on Amazon and is now one of the most popular, well-recognized sellers on the platform, largely because of his educational company, Expert University, that he co-founded with another Amazon millionaire, Chris Keef.
Thankfully for us, Todd answered a few questions we had about his career, sharing his wisdom of the industry.
Hi Todd, was Amazon selling something you imagined you’d be doing at the beginning of your career, or was it a decision out of necessity?
Early on, when I started my first business back in 1983 my attitude was that I would do my best and just see what would happen. I didn’t have any aspirations other than to try and make some money, so I simply took advantage of the first opportunity that presented itself. I kept following what I perceived to be better and better opportunities as they presented themselves. I felt if I was always putting myself in a better position, then I’d always be moving forward. I did so with no idea of where it would ultimately lead me. Selling on Amazon resulted from no other reason than taking advantage of what appeared to be a better and better opportunities at the time. Here we are eleven years later now as an Amazon seller and it is what continues to be the best opportunity.
When did you start Expert University and what are the goals of the organization?
Chris Keef and myself started Expert University almost six years go. Our goal at that time was to provide access to training and tools to help people sell on Amazon the right way. Our continuing goal is to add additional courses on other online profit centers. Selling physical products on Amazon is an amazing opportunity, but the true online entrepreneurs know that diversification of profit centers is necessary. Therefore, once someone is secure with their Amazon business, it’ll be time to launch other online profit opportunities and we hope to be mentoring our students for years to come in other legitimate online profit centers. These additional profit centers will be complimentary to the Amazon business, and will allow members to leverage previously developed skills.
In your opinion, how do you develop and foster entrepreneurial skills? Do you need organic talent, or can it all be taught?
It all starts with learning about mindset and getting your brain prepared to think a way it maybe never has before. Once your mindset is correct, the other skills are fairly straight forward. The great thing about being an entrepreneur is that if you’re not an expert in any one aspect, there’s someone out there that is. Early on, when funds are tight, you might need to be willing to perform some tasks that you’re not overly excited about, but as your income grows, you’ll learn that you’ll be using your wallet more and more to get things done. I believe it can all be taught and I’ve learned to never pre-judge anyone. It’s usually not lack of a specific skill that prevents someone from becoming successful as an entrepreneur, it’s their mindset and attitude.
When you’re not working, what do you like to do in your free time, in terms of hobbies?
Well, I am lucky enough to have two homes, one in the hills of Las Vegas overlooking the Strip, and one on a beach in Puerto Rico. Exploring the natural beauty of both places is one of my favorite things to do. Not sure it’s a hobby, but my wife and I love walking on the beach. We watch the pelicans dive into the water looking for a bite to eat and we’re constantly looking for all the different species of fish as the surf rolls in. I am a life long pilot, and flying used to be my main hobby, I was an avid golfer and would grab a few friends and we’d pick a golf course to fly to and play that day. While I still enjoy golf, I decided to hang up the private flying some years back. Now, I have been working on learning how to play guitar for almost 18 years now. There’s a lot of satisfaction from learning something new and experiencing the fruits of your efforts. My wife and I love trying new foods as we travel around, probably one of my favorite hobbies, and we both love seeing new places and revisiting old ones.
For you, how important is having a work life balance? Is it achievable in your industry, or do you suffer from long working hours?
There’s this old joke that says because I am self-employed I only have to work half days, and the best part is I get to choose which 12 hours that is! A true entrepreneur will admit that they would work 24 hours a day if it was possible. Thank goodness it’s not. Now, I am at the stage in my life, 58 years old, where I’ve really accomplished what I’ve wanted to. I’ve “won the game” if you will. Therefore, now it’s all about life balance. I make sure that everyone I work with understands that I am not plugged in 24/7 so while some 20 year old might answer your email from the bathroom, that’s not me. Is that sort of time freedom achievable for anyone? Oh yes, one hundred percent, and guess who it’s usually up to? Yup, you! Now, fortunately, generating profits online, especially with Amazon lends itself quite nicely to the goal of a proper life/work balance.
What are some of your future goals with Amazon selling and how do you hope to achieve them?
Well, my middle Daughter runs my core Amazon business. I’ve been mentoring her on the financial side of the business and I would expect in the next couple of years she’ll be ready to “pay me off” and take over fully. Maybe she will even keep me on as a consultant. While that may be more of a personal goal, it’l come to fruition by continuing to do the things we’re already doing. As Amazon continues to mature, it provides more stability for the third party seller. We will continue to nurture our brand supplier relationships and allow our members to leverage those relationships for their own businesses.
Todd, thank you for your time!
You can follow up with Todd Snively at https://courses.ExpertUniversity.com or https://toddsnively.com
