2014 Success Guide Part 3

Be Open To New Ideas

Alright for the sake of transparency, let me start off by saying this was not one of my best skills starting out.

I like familiar things. I’m a lover of vintage American culture, be it advertising signs and memorabilia, books, old movie posters, lunchboxes…you name it, I collect it. I made my first dollar online selling a “Munsters” lunchbox and thermos for over $300 bucks on eBay.

So given a choice between “old” and “new”, I’m the kind to lean towards old first and resist the new.

One thing I learned early on though when I got into Internet marketing, was successful Internet marketers need a willingness to try new things. There’s nothing wrong in studying how to be effective in Internet marketing, especially when you first get started. After all there’s a whole lot to learn and it’s understandable that most people want to feel like they've got their feet planted on the ground before they start their online business.

The problem is, there comes a point where it’s time to stop reading and just jump in the pool with both feet and start doing. When that time comes you have to push down those feelings of staying with the familiar and embrace the possibilities (yes and possible pitfalls) of the new.

Think of it this way, you could read a hundred articles that explain how to ride a bicycle. They might have very detailed information on how to pedal, how to steer with the handle bars and how to balance yourself to keep from falling.

Until you however, are willing to risk a few skinned knees as you learn to balance, steer and pedal simultaneously,you’ll never know the feeling of joy that comes from a leisurely Sunday ride.

You can study Internet marketing till the cows come home, but it’s all for nothing if you are not willing to put the skills you learn out in the marketplace to actually be tested under pressure.

Ask 5 successful online business people the best way to make money on the Internet and you may get 5 completely different answers about what direction to take. The maddening part about it, is that they are probably all correct, in that their approach can make money online.

Truthfully, there isn't just one way or some perfect recipe for success when it comes to Internet marketing. The approach some successful entrepreneurs take in building their online incomes would make me want to go slam my head in a door. They may say the same about my approach.

The point is, after you've been studying Internet marketing for a while, you’ll most likely come across something that appeals to your way of thinking or doing things. When you get to that point, here’s the most important thing. COMMIT to it and dive into the whole mess. Bite into it like a bulldog and don’t let go until you have seen a certain level of success.

Focus, so you can learn faster,

and be able to find out what works and what doesn't in your particular area. Forget about getting everything perfect before you start. JUST START! Let me give you a book that might help you in this department :

READY, FIRE, AIM by Michael Masterson. No, I did not get the title wrong.

Just read it when you get the chance grasshopper! (I told you I like old things, there’s the evidence. An obscure KUNG FU reference from the 70’s! ) LOL ;)

Will you screw up? Yup. Might you feel foolish at times? Yup. Will your friends or family make fun of you and tease you when those things happen? It’s certainly possible.

The thing is it’s a matter of perspective. Even your mistakes cannot be considered as failures if you learn from them and use that knowledge to better yourself.

We'll talk about that a bit more next time.