The one lesson you absolutely, positively, must learn and apply to make money online

It's not how to build a web site, how to grow a list, how to write copy, or set up a sales funnel.

No, this is at the root, the very foundation, of everything else you need to know about Internet marketing.

It's so basic, simple, straightforward, and non-negotiable that it should be on your mind constantly. If you do anything in your business that doesn't support or enhance your ability to do this - well, you're not focusing on the right thing.

You must sell something in order to make money. Everybody knows that, right? Apparently not.

Let me ask you a simple question: how much of your daily time do you spend on selling something, directly?

No, you can't count tweeting, Facebook sharing, checking email, spending time on forums, or surfing competitor's sites. (Of course, these activities may indirectly and ultimately be tied to selling, but for this discussion, let's not muddy the water.)

Many, many people that turn to Internet marketing in hopes of earning a full time income never seem to grasp this basic premise - if you don't sell you don't make money. It's that simple.

The fact is, most people don't like to sell . . . so they find other "tasks" in their business that they enjoy (or at least tolerate) doing.

Mark Ford, the author of Ready, Fire, Aim says

"Selling is the first stage of entrepreneurship . . . There is a direct relationship between the success of a business at any given time and the percentage of its capital, temporal, and intellectual resources that are devoted to selling."

There are a million reasons why selling is avoided. "I don't know how," "I'm no good at it," "I hate asking other people for money," "What if they reject me?" "What if my product isn't good enough?" and tons of other fears.

"Money is attracted to the individual operating free of guilt or shame. People with inferiority feelings about their information, expertise, or business activities are at a profound disadvantage. They subliminally communicate their guilt to others and unconsciously sabotage themselves." - Dan Kennedy

So folks work in their business all day long doing the things they do, staying busy, and appearing to be running a business. But are they selling? Are they making money?

Don't get me wrong - we must all spend time doing the tasks that only indirectly help our businesses. These tasks are necessary and important. But doing them all day long, every day, will not add to your bottom line.

If you truly want to be a full time marketer, as a goal, see if you can force all your indirect business tasks into 1 or 2 hours a day, at the most. Spend the rest of your day selling. Then report back and let us know how your business has become a successful money making machine.

The very best to all of you,

Steve