Newbie seeking mentor

Ok, I've seen two or three threads like this here this morning.

A few comments:

1. You need to be more SPECIFIC. What area of IM exactly do you want to be mentored in? IM is actually pretty broad, so you need to narrow it down. If you're not sure, then dig in and learn, try some things out. Sometimes, just dabbling will help you narrow your focus.

Just deciding on what area of IM you want to focus on can be challenging. And it's not fair to ask someone to mentor you if you're not clear about WHAT you want to be mentored in.

Even if you had the money, you need to study on your own and get clear about your IM focus BEFORE you get a mentor. You need to have a basic understanding of IM and be clear on your area of IM interest before you invest in a mentor. Otherwise, you won't get as much out of it as if you did your homework (self-study) first.

If you're looking for someone to help clear the initial confusion or just be a sounding board to help you find your area of interest, well, that's what the WF is for.



2. Warning: rant ahead!

I get really sick of hearing people say that they'll pay someone out of their profits if someone will mentor them for free. That's the wrong way to go about it. And that's not how real mentors generally operate. And it's not fair to ask someone to mentor you for free and promise to pay them out of YOUR profits.

First, no mentor can GUARANTEE your profits. They might mentor you, but if for whatever reason you don't produce profits, they're out their time, expertise and money. How do they know you'll stick with it? How do they know you'll take action? How do they know you'll listen to them? Nevermind profits.

Think about it: colleges and universities (which presumably train you to also make $$$$) don't allow students in for free.

First, you pay and THEN someone mentors you. There's something about that exchange of money which separates the wheat from the chaff. It makes you more committed and serous. Why should a mentor who's worth their salt waste their time mentoring you for free???

There are truly so many things wrong with this... (Expecting something for nothing and all that jazz....)

I think a couple of Jim Rohn's quotes apply here:

"Don't wish things were easier. Wish you were better."

I don't have this quote exactly right, but he also said something about working hard, not for money or what you can get but "...for what it will make of you."

He also talked about being pleased to pay a fair price for a fair product or service (instead of freeloading). Paying a fair price for something brings you a dignity that freeloading robs you of.

Ok, enough preaching.

I DO understand what it's like not to have enough money to hire a mentor. I'd never invested in a mentor until this past year. I didn't have the $$$. (And I couldn't have done better. She was FANTASTIC! I'm SO PLEASED with my experience with her...on Cloud 9, really. )

It can definitely be frustrating when you don't have enough money to hire a mentor. But the experts have already thought of that. That's why there are:

1. $20 books
2. $200 - $500, etc. courses
3. Free newsletters, videos and podcasts.

I know that this is exactly why Carrie Wilkerson, the Barefoot Executive, puts out a web TV show (BarefootExecutive.tv). (And she is FABULOUS! Follow her to get GREAT IM advice!)

4. Actually, you CAN do what you're thinking of (get free mentoring), but not quite the way you think. Here's how you do it:

Find someone who's doing what you want to do and offer to work for them -- FOR FREE. In exchange, they mentor you. Usually, you're selling THEIR products or services. You get to learn the ropes and your mentor at least gets something in exchange for their time and effort.

Finally, there's a LOT of help here if you get stuck.

Ok, some points to help you get started:

My guess is that you're not even sure what you want to do in IM. So figure that out first. And don't make the mistake of picking a marketing METHOD (i.e. CPA, article marketing, etc.). Those are just marketing methods. Before you even think of that, you first need to decide:

1. What are you interested in? What do you like to do? Pick an area of interest or passion.

Pick ONE.

2. Pick a business MODEL. There are just three basic types of business models: 1) Product-based, 2) Service-based or 3) Membership-based.

Pick ONE.

3. Pick a target market. Who will buy from you? (Hint: it's NOT everyone! Drill down and get specific.)

Pick ONE type or category of customer.

4. Once you have all of this and you've set up your site, THEN you focus on marketing methods (article marketing, CPA, PPC, etc.). But you can't know what marketing methods are best until you know what you're selling and who's supposed to buy it.

There are 101 ways to market online. Success usually comes from picking a few that work best for your market (5 or so) and just repeating them over and over again. Don't worry about traffic or anything else until you've picked a niche, a business model and a target market.

This might all sound simplistic, but it's really key to getting going. Too often we put the cart before the horse, get distracted by all of the bright shiny objects and end up broke and depressed.

Once you've answered questions 1-4 above, just FOCUS!

Follow
One
Course
Until
Successful

When you get stuck, just come here for answers. There are a lot of very knowledgable, helpful people here. They can certainly point you in the right direction.

Good luck!

Michelle