Month Two, and Reality Sets In.

It was when I started noticing my ranking going down little by little every day that I knew something was up. Something was different! Reality was setting in and I needed to make a change. The question is, what was I, going to do about it?

The First Month

Just a few weeks ago I wrote a post called An Amazing First Month on WA. I shared about the various lessons I had learned and about how excited I was to be here. I'm assuming I'm not the only one who got caught up in all the new things there are to do here at WA. I am new to affiliate marketing, and the whole idea has really shifted the direction that I am going. I am having a blast meeting new people, learning new ideas, moving up the ranks. Somehow I even made it up to 466. Then it happened...about the time I was feeling pretty good, reality set in.

Month Two

I call it the moment where I heard crickets chirping in the background. In clearer words, it was the moment where everything seemed to stop. Literally! The following are some things I have experienced, in hopes that if you can relate to them, they can be helpful to you too! I am thankful that we can learn not only from our successes here on WA but also in areas where we struggle.

Meeting People- One of the first things that I noticed was that I was no longer getting several message on my profile page. In the first few weeks I was on WA I had dozens of people writing me to welcome me to WA. It was a lot of fun. Now there were none, or very few. I guess once you've been here a few weeks people probably feel awkward writing you and telling you welcome to WA!

What did I learn and what can I share? -At this point we need to do the work ourselves. Don't rely on others to contact you, contact them! Find people that click with you and write on their profile and get things rolling. Include a comment about their bio page and strike up some possible interaction. I realize that it's going to take more work but it will be worth it. Writing to people on WA will not make us rich, but it is teaching us how to interact with people so that when we are on the Internet and social media we hopefully draw them into visiting our websites where we can profit.

Time- Another obstacle I faced in month two was time. Let's face it, time is one of our greatest challenges. Becoming successful at affiliate marketing takes time! I can't say this from personal experience yet, but I can see it in posts from other people. WA is not a get-rich-quick scheme. It is a legit business that honors those who put in the Time and effort. Like many of you, I still have to work a full time job to help pay the bills. I hope that someday this will change and affiliate marketing can be my only job. But, until then, I have to manage my time. The past few months have been my slow time at work to the point where I even took some vacation days to work on WA. Now things are picking up and will likely keep me busy for the next several months. I am struggling to get my affiliate work done.

What did I learn and what can I share?- You obviously can't make time, but you can manage it! I created a chart of when I have to work and when I have time at home. I took time out family responsibilities and determined that the time I had left was to used for WA work. This can be hard when I'm tired from work and wanting to relax. You definitely need down time to do whatever it is that energizes you. But, you also need to set aside time to work your business or it isn't going to go anywhere. The people who are at the top of the ranks are putting in significant time into their business. If we make it a goal to do that, then we too can be successful.

Training- This is where I really failed. When I started my training in the first month I was able to pick a domain name, create a website, and write my first content, and then I got stuck. I began to second guess the direction of my website. It's almost like I took off without thinking of where I was going. If this is you, take a moment and figure out where you are going. What will your website look like? Don't just push through a few content pages to complete an assignment. Know your direction.

I also got intimidated by a number of comments going around about poor reviews on site comments. This was one of my next assignments. I get that people can be really frustrated when members do a sloppy job offering feedback. On the other hand, I hope people can offer grace considering that we are being asked to offer feedback when we have barely started the training. I hope that when I do it I can do it right. If anyone out there has good suggestions for making site comments please send them my way. It would be really helpful.

What did I learn and what can I share? The main thing is not to give up. It can be easy to feel overwhelmed and simply shut down. They key is to keep moving forward even if it's not perfect. It's going to take time but each lesson brings new insight into how to do things.

Month Three I am now a little way into my third month and the thoughts mentioned above are certainly moving within my thinking. I know that wanting to succeed is a nice thought but it won't get me where I want to go unless I am doing something to make it happen. As I shift from a euphoric first month, to my shifting second month, to my hopeful third month, I hope that I can develop a rhythm that is doable and that I can begin moving forward once again.

**How was your second month at WA? Did you notice any differences from your first?

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Thanks so much!

-Bruce