The Most Valuable Lessons I've Learned

bykmuhovic

127 followers

8 years ago

As we approach the end of 2016, I want to share the most valuable lessons I've learned from my short journey in the online business world. Even though it has only been a few months, I feel that I've learned some very insightful lessons that could be of great use to both new and seasoned online entrepreneurs.

I remember first hearing about niche/content marketing back in the summer of 2016. A friend of mine was reading a book about the topic and he felt that I would be perfect for it, so he lent me the book. As I read and began to understand the power of niche/content marketing, I was awestruck by the enormous potential. As somebody who actively shared niche expertise in the off-line world through seminars, I knew that this was the perfect opportunity to scale my content and create a global business.

After doing tons of research, I decided that WA would be the best platform to help me get started in the online business world. I went premium on August 1st 2016 and during my first month, I just focused on learning the fundamentals and creating my website.

September eventually came around and I was off to university to finish up my Masters degree. While I did finish the first two certification programs, my website was far from finished. I kept switching from one free WordPress theme to the next as each theme fell short of functionality, customization, or support. I eventually contacted a friend who offered to design a theme for me and while this was very generous of him, it turned out to be more of a hassle than a favor as I had to familiarize myself with PHP and CSS coding.

Enough was enough. I had spent way too much time focusing on one of my weaknesses (website coding) instead of focusing on one of my strengths (content creation). I eventually decided to purchase a fully customizable premium theme and boy, was this a smart decision! This brings me to my first lesson.

Lesson #1: Invest in a premium WordPress theme.

While some may argue that there's no need to invest in a premium theme as a beginner, my experience begs to differ. The amount of time you will spend researching "best free WordPress themes" on Google and the long waiting time you will face when asking theme support questions on free forums FAR outweighs the cost of investing in a fully functional premium WordPress theme. Combined with the fact that you will MOST LIKELY have to insert PHP and CSS coding to alter the layout of these free themes to your liking, it is more than worth it to invest in a premium theme that allows you to freely customize your layout with a drag-and-drop function.

Most importantly, many of these free themes do not look professional. I believe that one of the biggest reasons most people fail in creating an online business is because they create extremely unappealing websites. While content is king, the first impression will determine whether your visitors actually read your content.

At this point in time, we're in October and my first exams are coming up. Unfortunately, I had to put WA and my online business on the back-burner over a few weeks. In hindsight, I can only realize that this was detrimental to my progress. As the old saying goes: "Out of sight, out of mind."

As I was no longer working on my website for a period of weeks, I began to lose the fire that got me started. I believe this happens to all of us, not only in our business, but in many areas of life. As soon as we stop taking steps, even baby ones, we begin to lose momentum and ultimately, that idea, habit, or resolution that "was going to change our life" eventually disappears. This brings me to my second lesson.

Lesson #2: Being committed means sticking to what you said you were going to do long after the mood you said it in has left you.

This is one of my all-time favorite quotes. When we begin something, whether it's a new habit or an online business, our motivation is high. At this point, we begin to set goals and make promises. However, as time moves on and we begin to face obstacles, our motivation gradually decreases, making it more difficult to draw up the will power to continue.

This is where the power of consistent, daily action comes into play. Progress isn't made in leaps and bounds, it's made in baby steps that are compounded over time. If you are serious about creating an online business that will truly change your life, then no day should pass without taking at least one small action that will get you closer to your goal. Whether it's writing a blog post or just finding a competitive keyword for a future post, every action matters.

One of my mentors says it best: "People like to say 'This doesn't matter'. Of course it matters! Everything matters. Just some things matter more than others, but everything matters."

Exams are now over and we're in November. This is where I realize that I've been wasting too much time by trying to create the perfect launch. I realize that it's impossible to launch my business with 100% of the content finished. I identify the core components of my business and focus on completing those by November 22nd so that I can "officially" launch my website the following day. This brings me to my third lesson.

Lesson 3#: Don't wait for perfection. Launch. Test. Review. Improve.

I'm a perfectionist, so it was difficult for me to grasp this. But then I truly understood that if I waited for the perfect moment to launch my business, I would never launch it! Instead, by launching an "imperfect" online business, I could see how the market would react to my core elements and then adjust accordingly; a much better strategy for an ever-changing marketplace.

With my website online and my business officially launched, I was ready to rock! I wrote my first post on leadership and received great feedback. Several people shared my article and within 24 hours, my article reached more than 2000 people on Facebook. Not a bad start!

It has been 5 weeks since I launched my website on November 23rd 2016 and since then, I have stuck to my rhythm of one article per week. While my articles continue to be viewed, the initial reach that I received with my first post did not carry over to the latter articles. However, this is not surprising nor discouraging because I'm in this for the long-term. This brings me to my fourth and final lesson.

Lesson #4: This is a journey. Be here one year from now.

While there are plenty of success stories in the online sphere, none of these happened overnight. Even though too many "gurus" market the online business world as a quick and easy way to earn residual income, the reality is that an online business is still a business.

Running your own business is hard. Any business takes time to nurture and develop. Nevertheless, even if people "get it", I continue to see the same outcome in all my entrepreneurial ventures: 80% of people quit within their first year.

My hope is that you understand that if you want to create an online business that will truly change your life, it will take time. Be in this for the long-haul. Be here one year from now on December 28th 2017.

To recap, here are the four most valuable lessons I've learned so far:

Lesson #1: Invest in a premium WordPress theme. (In general, invest in quality when necessary, businesses require investments!)

Lesson #2: Being committed means sticking to what you said you were going to do long after the mood you said it in has left you.

Lesson 3#: Don't wait for perfection. Launch. Test. Review. Improve.

Lesson #4: This is a journey. Be here one year from now.

I hope that you can gain some insight from my experience so far and I look forward to sharing some more lessons in the future! In the meantime, let me know what lessons you've learned so far in your online business journey.