Number 1 on GOOGLE "TOP OF THE WORLD MOM!"

Today while on the phone with my web (evil) genius Matt McKernan from Mosaic Interactive, I couldn't believe my eyes, after four years and countless hours The Self Defense Training System is ranked number two on google (behind wikipedia!). This is a banner day for The Self Defense Company. This is one of those moments that snaps you back to a pivotal time in your life.

October 2007 I had someone else handling the marketing and distribution of my products. To tell you the truth, I felt our business relationship as well as our "friendship" had run it's course a few months earlier. But, I figured that I'm not going to be best friends with everyone I'm in business with so as long as we're making money, no problem.

Personally, things couldn't have been better. I was making a ton of cash, training and teaching everyday. We just purchased our dream home in the town where my wife grew up. I was rubbing elbows with celebrities, professional athletes, rap stars, successful entrepreneurs, doctors, lawyers and masters of finance. Life was good but I felt something wasn't right, so I started squirreling away some extra money to set up a new business just in case things went wrong.

Then it hit. First my "friend" and business partner offered me pennies on the dollar for my talent and expertise. After consulting with my attorney and long time real friend who told me "Dude, if you sign this deal I'm never talking to you again" the ride was over and just like that I went from making a lot to making very little and I only had enough cash to literally last me 6 months!

After that dream house GONE, new lifestyle GONE, Mercedes GL450...GONE. It's funny, the Mercedes was the first real "splurge" item I purchased. What was once a source of pride was now a symbol of things I might not have.

It was as if the world turned on me and my wife. People who I thought were friends started posting slander on forums. That business partner had a fire sale on my product without my permission (oh yes, we are in active litigation). My reputation was dragged through the slime and the years and years of doing the right thing, training, sacrificing, blood, broken bones, late nights and double shifts shattered by a few measly posts by people with their own agendas. The world didn't want the truth, just the gossip.

I remember staying up late nights wondering what I was going to do. How the hell was I going to pull this off. I didn't sleep, if it wasn't for Pete and Roger handling the teaching load, the Training Center would have closed.

Listen to me and listen good. When times are good, everyone is your friend. When times are tough, you discover who your real friends are but when you're truly proverbially and literally fucked, you're on your own...unless you've made the wise choice of choosing the right partner. Marrying my wife was the hands down 100% best decision I have EVER made. The only thing she ever wanted from me was my time. It also helps that she's REALLY hot.

That was only temporary. The cream always rises to the top and the truth is revealed in time. Now, all of those people are gone and what remains is the truth. Listen, I don't care what you say, when people post stuff about you...you get pissed. In some cases I was blocked from forums and I couldn't defend myself. I quickly learned not to care. The right people will find you, no matter what.

In the end, it's all just "stuff". No big deal, they are just things, the real issue was providing for my family, putting food on the table, health care and education. It was tough. But thanks to my friends Pete and Roger (whom you meet on the Self Defense Training System) and Will and Ian whom you meet on 60 minute Self Defense, I would have been sunk.

I want to acknowledge the Self Defense Company Instructor Corp and especially Mike Archangel. They provided inspiration and support to keep moving forward and gave us some influx of capitol to continue to live while my wife and I built the company. They served as the inspiration to provide the best possible product and the Instructor Program will always be a priority.

The Self Defense Company was launched by my wife and me in 4 weeks. One month was all it took from concept to launch. We spent 12 to 14 hours a day in front of the computer building sites, writing copy and creating a brand and a business. I spent thousands of hours writing and filming the Self Defense Training System. Some of those scenes in the modules were shot in the middle of the night after a full day of filming.

NOTE: Before you go run off and launch your site, the Self Defense Company is the culmination of literally hundreds of years of technical expertise and a decade of successful marking and distribution experience. I say this to "keep it real". If you want to be successful in any business you better have a good product and know someone who knows how to launch a product...and some money. Nothing worth anything is free but, money should never get in your way. But a word of caution, not everyone is meant to be rich beyond their wildest dreams (people who promise that should be thrown in jail) BUT...EVERYONE CAN BE HAPPY BEYOND ALL EXPECTATIONS.

Providing a product like no other was and is the most important aspect of the Self Defense Company. When producing The Self Defense Training System, the cornerstone of the Self Defense Company, we spared no expense. We brought in a top notch sound and camera crew and had post production that rivaled some movies.

At the same time I had to get the SDTS out and I needed to generate income. Failure was not and option. We would film three modules over the course of several days and in a few months, film a few more. It was crazy. I didn't have time to be sick (though in modules 1 through 3 I'm running a fever).

During this critical time my wife and I met Matt. I had been marketing online since 2003 and I could separate the "shit from the shinola". You could throw a rock on the web and hit some one who would promise you first page on google and a ton of traffic. NOTE: they first page on google are for keywords no one searches and the traffic is from people you don't want.

Ironically, Matt and I were in the similar positions. He quit his job and was working out of his house wondering how he was going to make ends meet. Do you remember 2007 and 2008? It was the lowest of the low. The economy had hit rock bottom and NO ONE HAD ANY MONEY. It seemed like every other month, Matt and I would be on the phone consoling one another. One month I would do well and he would do lousy, the other month vice-verse. It wasn't until 2009 that we started seeing any light. Now Matt an office and a full time staff of 12 people.

From the beginning Matt told my wife and I realistically what it was going to take to be on the first page for our key words: a well constructed site, a lot of work, time and a decent product. Let's put it this way, if you're not who you say you are Google is not going to let you hang around.

I remember my wife and I sitting in front of our computers throwing key words at google and drilling down to see where the SDTS site was ranked. Each week we climbed up, then we would get booted back. Sometimes we would hit page one and then a few hours later BAM, back to obscurity. It was painful! Not once, but twice we had to prove the we could claim the title of "Most Lethal Self Defense System in the World". We also had to provide verification of our testimonials. It was a long row to ho, but we did it, not because we wanted to, but because we had to.

There is something liberating about burning the bridge behind you. Once you make that decision and commit with every fiber in your body, the lack of options is quite invigorating. It forces you to put all your energy into one task and one task only. The way I approach defensive tactics is the same way I approach life. Make a decision, commit and adapt along the way.

Reaching this coveted spot on Google brings me right back to those extremely difficult times that I would not like to revisit...EVER and I'm not going to. Through the SDC Instructor Program, we're helping others do the same.

The one thing to take away from this is times get bad for a reason. I think the saying "things happen for a reason" is one of the most annoying things someone can say to another person in a time of grief. It's also annoying because it's true.

The universe is a funny thing. It will tell you exactly what you need to know you what you need to do, you just need to pay attention to it. The harder it gets, the more difficult the times, the more the universe is shouting at you to pay attention.

Everything and everybody are connected. It's the way of the world. If you introduce a drug into your body, it has side effects. If you introduce a new species of fish into an ecosystem, it has ramifications. This is the way the world works. It will allow you to find your place in it is you let it. Most times we waste too many times trying to force our place in it because we think we ought to be someone or something. Miller's Death of a Salesman is a great example of this.

Take my life for example:
When I was a senior in High School I blew out my need a decided NOT to go to Annapolis and was no longer recruited by major athletic programs. If I hadn't blown out my knee, who knows what would have happened. I might not have met my wife or even discovered the SDTS Training.

My Custom Motorcycle Shop failed. But it showed me how to set up a business and it was where I started teaching people the SDTS.

I opened a dojo, which lead to an online business.

My father died and father in law died exactly one year apart. This told me while it was their time to go, it was my time to step up.

I had a falling out with a business partner and thought I lost everything, which was only the universe telling me that I shouldn't be with that person and to build something far better and honest.

Today, Number 1 on google is cool, but it symbolizes more than that. It's justification, it's validation and it's proof that what I believed deep down is true. Sure, we could be booted to obscurity tomorrow, but for right now, we're number 1.

Train Honestly,
Damian Ross, CEO The Self Defense Company


Damian Ross is CEO of the Self Defense Company and developer of The Self Defense Training System, the most lethal and effective self defense system in the world, The Guardian Defensive Tactics Police Combatives Program, 60 minute Self Defense and the Family Safe Program. Mr. Ross also founded the Self Defense Instructor Program that helps people develop their self defense careers from the ground up. Mr. Ross is originally from Ridgewood, NJ where he was a High School Hall of Fame Athlete in football and wrestling as well as a varsity wrestling coach. He then went on to Lehigh University where he was a varsity wrestler and football player. Mr. Ross has 3 black belts, 4th Degree in Tekkenryu Jujutsu, 2nd Degree in Judo, 2nd Degree in Tae Kwon Do. In addition to his martial arts experience, Mr; Ross spent 8 years in the professional security and personal protection business. He is internationally recognized as one of the foremost authorities in reality based self defense.