My Seventh Anniversary at Wealthy Affiliate

Wealthy Affiliate - Then and Now
November 8th 2007 is my anniversary date here at Wealthy Affiliate. A lot of things have changed since then. People who were active back then have mostly moved on with their businesses. Some are still here.

I learned about Wealthy Affiliate from Travis Sago. Remember the old Bum Marketing technique? His wife coined the phrase. His method of article marketing worked for a long time. With all the changes in SEO it is no longer advised to use that method. Travis is now a product owner with several products and a business of his own.
There are other names I could mention that you would probably recognize in the IM world but this is not about them. It is just to say that a lot of them were here. They learned things here then moved on with their own unique businesses.

I remember the training back in 2007 too. (or some of it) It taught the basics that anyone could understand. Of course, back then there were a lot of things that were basic to affiliate marketing that just won't work now. You have heard me say a lot of times that Kyle and Carson keep us up to date with what is working now. That is so true and is one of the most valuable parts of this community.
Website hosting was available back then too but it really was confusing for a newbie like me to understand. I already had my own hosting elsewhere and just kept it. Now the hosting here is simple to use, fast and secure. It is also world class. It is definitely a lot better from the way they started out. The support is also fast. Have a problem? contact support and they will get you fixed up.

When I joined, I stayed pretty much in the background. I did not follow the training all the way through but picked out bits and pieces that fit what I was doing. Let me tell you right here that this is NOT the way to succeed with affiliate marketing. I was busy in network marketing which is a far cry from affiliate marketing. That was a lot of wasted time.
Bit by bit, I learned more and more in spite of myself. Wealthy Affiliate changed, then changed again, then changed again. Their basic premise was always to serve and provide the best training and educational platform online. I believe that it is now the best in the world either online or offline. How I now wish I had simply followed their training and left everything else alone.
I quit Wealthy Affiliate...for two whole days back in 2011. At the time I was having to cut back on expenses and was removing every unnecessary thing. Wrong move. WA had become my lifeline. No matter what it was that I was working on, WA was my resource center. Every time I came across something I did not know how to do, I could look it up here.
I quickly rejoined and have been here ever since. My life has had it's ups and downs which took a lot of my time away but regardless of that I have still managed to learn quite a bit. I also have had to "unlearn" old methods that no longer work.

Have I made any money from things learned here? Yes I have but not a killing. It would be a little here and a little there. It is only in about the last year that I started making a consistent income. Could that possibly be because I finally took this place seriously? I think so. The training is here, the tools are here, the support is here. For most of that time I was distracted elsewhere. Hind sight is 20/20.
Everybody has to make their life choices. During my time here there were months at a time when I maintained the membership but only logged in maybe once or twice a month. All that has changed. I am now here every day for at least a little while. I believe that Wealthy Affiliate has made me a more successful person in ways that can not be counted in dollars.
The old forum contained some good information. Now outdated. Kyle and Carson made an excellent move by moving it into an archive. The platform we have now is the best in the world. It has enabled me to make some good friends here. We are able to communicate with like minded people and get help immediately. We have a family atmosphere that is far superior to any other forum.

If you are new to WA I would like to encourage you to dig into the training and follow it exactly. You may not know what you are doing but you will be learning while creating. If you do like I did and take it bits and pieces because you already know a few things, then bits and pieces will be all you get. Forget those shiny objects out there! You don't need them.
Everyone here has the same opportunity for success. What you do with it is up to you. I am now seeing people who have only been here a short time getting sales while they are still learning.
Yes Wealthy Affiliate has changed a lot. I also have had a lot of changes in my life and in my thinking. I am so grateful for this place. It really is a lifeline in more ways than just resources. Thank you to all those who have befriended me. You are very special people and I wish you all the best. Love you all.
Glenda

Thanks to the WayBack Machine for the photos. I could not insert them all. you guys ought to look them up.