It's Time To Break Free Of The Shackles...

by danr62
7 replies
Did you know that the only thing that keeps an elephant from running away from the circus is a chain attached to a tiny stake in the ground? The elephant could easily use all if his weight and strength to pull the stake out, but he doesn't.

The reason for this is that baby elephants are chained to a stake that is driven much deeper into the ground. A baby elephant doesn't have the ability to pull this stake out, no matter how much they struggle against the chain. In time, the baby elephant will realize that he is stuck and will stop pulling the chain.

As the elephant gets older and bigger, he doesn't realize that he could now easily pull the stake out with minimal effort. The elephant is kept in place only because it does not understand his true strength.

I feel like this has been me for the last year of my life in regards to IM. That's when I first got started in IM. I've bought a handful of IM products and domain names. I have even managed to make a few dollars here and there.

The problem is that I have been stuck in the newbie mindset for far too long. I know how to do keyword research, I know how to find affiliate products, I know how to build websites, I can write well, and I know the basics of SEO.

With all of this knowledge I could be making much more money right now if only I had been producing consistent and focused effort.

So, as of right now, I must stop thinking like a newbie and start thinking like a professional. I must realize that I know enough (for now). What does this mean?

  1. Take action everyday
  2. Stop jumping around from method to method
  3. Do something long enough to test, analyze, and tweak
  4. Scale it up
  5. Learn something new and go back to step 1 while continuing to do the stuff that has been working.
Does anyone have any strategies they'd like to share for getting out of the newbie mindset and starting to see real results?
#break #free #shackles #time
  • Profile picture of the author AmandaT
    The biggest problem a lot of people have is they learn and learn but don't use their techniques.

    For instance, you hear people talking about how to get traffic. They all know about posting up articles, blog commenting, and forum posting... but how many of them do it? Not nearly as many as most would think. Too many people sit around looking for a new or better technique.

    Here is what I suggest for anyone new:

    1. Pick a method and stick with it. For instance, promoting ClickBank products with a list.

    2. Set up the minimums. For this you will need a basic squeeze page, basic thank you page, blog, and autoresponder with at least 4 messages loaded.

    3. Start driving traffic. Yes, your site is not the best, but that isn't the point yet.

    4. Focus 3/4 of your time doing basic traffic generation and the other 1/4 improving your website.

    5. This is when you start learning again. For instance, do some research into good email marketing or how to make a better squeeze page. Don't focus too much on this, you need to be taking action!

    6. Profit!

    You will start gaining traffic, your site will be getting better as you go, and when you are ready for a new site you will already know how to do all of the things needed to make a great site. The key is the site is up and running so you can make money while you are learning and applying what you learn.
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  • Profile picture of the author danr62
    Thanks Amanda, this is a great outline to get started.

    People love to over complicate this stuff. The truth is that newbies need to learn the basics and take action on them. The basics really do work if implemented consistently enough.
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    • Profile picture of the author xohaibx
      That's actually a great analogy there danr62.

      Breaking out of the newbie mindset requires you to stop thinking that there's a magic pill out there. Understand that experience is the best teacher and it's OKAY to make mistakes.

      Many times we create catastrophic fantasies in our head, even before taking action. This leads to fear, and fear can be paralyzing.

      The solution is simple: Instead of looking at the big picture, focus on taking small, dedicated steps. Each step you take will bring in more confidence to help you take the next one. And before you know it, the whole staircase lights up.

      Aim at achieving those small successes as they are enough to give you the motivation to do big stuff and take up huge challenges.

      All the best!

      - Mustafa
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  • Profile picture of the author johnneil
    good thread ....
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    • Profile picture of the author PLRExpress
      Nice thread. I think that sometimes the issue is that people think that they're missing something. They think that they need something else that someone's not telling them in order to get started and make profits.

      The truth is, they usually already have what it takes to get started, they just don't stick with it long enough in order to see the results.
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      • Profile picture of the author Chrismiksen
        It really is all about doing and learning. It's very easy for anyone, and especially ambitious people, to fall into the trap of having too much on their plate. I've had it happen to me several times in the past.

        The problem with that, of course, is it's impossible to key in and focus on one area. As you said, Dan, you need to take time and find out what works and what doesn't, and that involves testing, analyzing and failing.

        I think it's the failing part that ends up preventing a lot of people from reaching their goals. At the first sign of failure, it's natural to stop and look around for another method -- a promise that things will get better. No one likes to fail, but it's our failures that shape our successes.
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  • Profile picture of the author RobBritt
    So much of what we have to do is about marketing. Driving traffic - marketing, sales pages - marketing, customer relations - marketing.
    If people don't know about you, you can't succeed (monetarily speaking) And I don't mean about you personally. That you could mean your campaign, your website, your product -- whatever.

    Taking action and getting the word out. Constantly and with consistency. That's tough to do, but no one who puts forth ongoing effort fails. I think failure comes only with giving up.
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