Do You Get the IM Blues?

No, you have these feelings and no one else. You are different - and that's bad!

Seriously . . .

what you're feeling is the realization that online business has so many advantages over offline that it makes you wonder if trying to keep both kinds of business makes sense. For some, maybe it does.

I choose to do business online exclusively. You too can choose what types of business you want to be involved with. So why let yourself get the blues? Do what makes you happy and forget the rest.

Steve

Thanks Steve.

As you and several here are exclusively working online, that is the impart the end goal, and all the while to survive by it finacially would merely be a beginning for me.

Of course, I don't feel guilty in my choice to move towards this goal. In fact, I think my desire is forcing me to choose one or the other.

However, nobody I know offline is in fact, even remotely interested in online marketing, thus, the blues of rarely expressing or communicating anything marketing related takes place, outside this forum, and occassionally on a handful of other sites where such discussion is welcome.

Hence, while I am still operating offline as a means of earning money demands... I hate it!

I often question; "If I sell everything I owned right now, and invested it (and my time) and devoted myself exclusively to my online business... Am I ready?

Full well knowing, my wife, kids, friends, etc... Think the idea is nuts, for little do they know; I have the tools & the knowledge... Just lacking that one ingredient, faith!

Most recommend earning your way in, and as money comes in from the online business...ween off from the offline titty.

I think working offline... Is the splinter in my eye so to speak, and though risky... removing it, may force the action, I have hesitated to take online!

Clearly, nobody (especially my wife and kids) thinks it's a sound idea... Yet, they said the same thing when I went from quitting a job, to self employment and provided for them for 20 years

More expensive? Time draining? Restricted?
It sounds more like the choice of the off line business.

I get that a "traditional brick and mortar" type business COULD have all those problems, but there are tons of other business models which don't come attached to those headaches. Here are a few examples:

Steve DiMarco (a Warrior) had 10 nut warmers set up at golf courses and bowling alleys. He serviced all ten on Sat. morning. They avg. 100 each in profit, so Steve was taking in 1000 a week for a few hours of time.

Before the Internet, I sold books. And all of the books were dropshipped by the publisher. I ran small ads in magazines and a few newspapers, spent only a few hours running this business. It made as much as most guys working in the Rubber Companies.

There was a company in town which sold imprinted golf tees, and golf accessories, a one man band who did this business a few hours a week, he had tens of thousands of customers and also used drop shipping.

My friend Pat Prinzo had a specialized catering company, the Spaghetti Dinner Fund raiser, he could have worked as much as he wanted, but was able to make a significant income doing only a few a month.

There are many off line businesses which don't require a location, which are mobile and or in a small room, or back office and some of these produce substantial income.

Former Warrior Don Alm had many off line projects and businesses which were profitable and required no bldgs, nor had any of the headaches you mention.

Just depends, many Warriors set up complicated and messy ON line businesses too, and they have their headaches too.

To each his own, but a well thought out and managed operation could contain the best of both worlds without all the problems.

gjabiz

Don't get the IM blues. If your business is primarily online, then it is what it is. Get the money, live a great life, and get the women.

As gjabiz states above, I do believe my perception of offline businesses may be influenced largely impart by the industry I am/was in, no doubt about that!

When I was 17, about to turn 18 - I attended an Amway convention in NC where I heard Zig Ziglar speak on stage.

Honestly, I cannot recall a word he said.

However, the 'vibe' of nearly 80k people was so powerful, it changed my perceptions of money, and thinking beyond limitations of a job.

Never did much with Amway, but I quit my job within 90 days, sold my first car (1980 Camaro) for 1/3 of its value, and bought a $400 postal truck at auction.

I painted that truck with house paint ($10) put about $300 out for a speaker box, hand painted some artwork on the truck, bought freezers, and $300 in supplies from local wholesalers.

For $1350 I built an ice cream truck!

Everyone said I was stupid, it wouldn't work, blah! Blah! Blah!

Within 7 days, I had $1200 of my investment back working part-time.

By week 2, I was in profit nearly $1000 after supplies.

From that point on I averaged, $1200 - $1500 per week CASH!

The average mark-up was 500% gain, upwards of 900% on pre-packaged ice cream.

I met my (woman) of 23 years and counting driving that ttruck at age 19. Then she managed to get herself pregnant with our son, when I was 21. (she did that 2 more times after him)

My perceptions changed, being a daddy scared the hell out of me, and I felt to be wasting my intelligence driving an ice cream truck... So, I changed hats.

15 years, I successfully sub-contracted swimming pool construction, renovations, and repairs, and made just over $2M... Busting my ass... Working like a madman.

Thinking back, the ice cream gig was fun, I was free, and unless the truck needed repair or maintenance, I never worked hard...the product sold itself, I made damn good money.

To this day, I have questioned; "Why didn't I scale up, and put more trucks on the road?"

In fact, my best friend - my main 'heckler' when I was building the ice cream gig, eventually bought his girlfriend a van, we set it up as an ice cream truck... And she was making over $1k per week.

So yes... I agree that there are some inexpensive offline start ups that do not require the time, energy, or cash others do.

The only business model I have found since that ice cream business that returned over a 500% return, IS THE INTERNET!!!

Now, I gotta prove it!

I am the same way, I'd much rather do online. Use to do offline clients and just one PITA client can give you the blues.

I did affiliate marketing my first 10 years and it was so nice that I did not have to deal with one person. Such a low level or responsibility.

@Art72 - stop thinking this way and start thinking "How can I make money?"

Advertise a CPA offer in your local newspaper directing people to your website. Print flyers looking for home workers and get them delivered for next to nothing, again direct to a CPA offer.

Making money is actually pretty simple when you keep things simple, it's this: find a bunch of people looking for something, find a product that you can make a profit from and combine them together.

Don't think offline/online think...who is interested in this and where are they? How can I get to them? SEO isn't always the answer, sometimes it's Facebook groups or Bing (for things like EMD's). Sometimes it's the local paper or the local college or disgruntled unemployed!

I've been doing this now for 7 years and I struggled for years and got hit by everything Google threw at me before making this simple realization but now I don't have to work anymore having earned a great passive income, I just choose to cos I find it fascinating.

There's a saying: don't get paid from the neck down.

It means get paid to think smart and don't get paid just to do what others tell you to do.

Hope this helps you work it out.

I definitely get the IM blues, but in a different sense...

Working on the Internet for the most part, has been an isolating, and downright lonely experience. That is however until I got plugged into what is called a co-working office. Basically, a bunch of entreprenuers share an office space with each other to sort of create an artificial working environment. This place has been huge in beating IM blues and encourage any other Internet Marketers that are feeling down in the dumps and look into something similar.

Yes getting the blues is part of this game. There are good days and bad days. It takes time for great things to happen.

And...

It makes it worse if the people closest to you don't believe in your vision.

However, if your vision is big enough and your desire is strong enough, it will keep you 'focused' long enough to succeed.

I find that it's better to get involved in a community like WF and the like where you can find 'like minded' entrepreneurs to 'grow' with.

And we are always growing.

Remember to always 'leverage' your offline income and to take small steps but to take them often (consistent daily action).

Lastly...

We can get down when ever we feel like things aren't moving fast enough. Maybe the results aren't coming just yet.

But one of the best ways to keep the BLUES away is to look at all the good in your marketing (and in your life).

Gratitude is very important.