35 {{ upvoteCount | shortNum }}
35 {{ upvoteCount | shortNum }}

STOP being unrealistic!

by BloggingPro
30 replies
I see a lot of beginners come on here and ask, "how do I make $X,XXX per month in less than 30 days!" Unfortunately for you this does not really exist, especially if you don't know your head from your ass when it comes to IM.

Nothing wrong with that of course. However, if one wants to be successful in anything they need to set reasonable goals, or milestones, to achieve that ultimate goal.

When I first started I had a goal of making $5 a day. That's it. I wanted to make that a day, for 30 days and then look at my big pile of $150 big ones and decide what to do from there.

Before I even reached that goal I had one $8 day and I was like "woah, I like that! I want more of that!" It took about two months but I finally hit my $5 a day for 30 days goal, all the while thinking in the back of my head that after this my new goal will be $10.

Today I still make just $10 a day, often times more, but $10 is pretty much guaranteed, anything more I consider a bonus.

But why stop at just $10 a day? Well I never started IM to replace my day job, I just wanted extra money. I never envisioned it would ever consistently pay for my car and insurance and the twice a year trip to Vegas--but it does.

And it does that because I took the proper steps to get there. I look at what worked for $5 a day and worked up to $10. Like I said some days its more than that, but I'm just speaking in general base numbers here. So if one really wants to make $1,000 a day doing this they need to understand that they have to crawl before they walk, and then run to the bank.

It certainly didn't happen over night, and I walked away from my computer frustrated beyond belief many times. If it wasn't for me sitting down and making a plan, with set out milestones I needed to reach, I would have never saw success.

It's very similar to losing weight. It's all about consistency. You can work out one day and see absolutely no results, but if you work towards milestones, over the course of time you WILL reach your goal. Internet Marketing isn't really any different.
#achieve #goals #reasonable #set #success
  • Profile picture of the author Avery Berman
    A good reminder about two important things...

    1) Goals are important as all hell.

    2) You have to set goals that are actually achievable for you.

    Now $5 a day is a pretty low goal, but just starting out with a day job, it's a wonderful idea to at least see that "this internet stuff" works. (And it certainly does!)
    Signature
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[4170658].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author magiclouie
      Originally Posted by Avery Berman View Post

      A good reminder about two important things...

      1) Goals are important as all hell.

      2) You have to set goals that are actually achievable for you.

      Now $5 a day is a pretty low goal, but just starting out with a day job, it's a wonderful idea to at least see that "this internet stuff" works. (And it certainly does!)
      I couldn't agree more.

      I personally set my goals and pursue them whatever it takes.
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[4174553].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author DavidTT
    goals are really important and although you are aiming high (10K+ monthly) you should be clever enough to know that its not gonn abe done overnight, not in a long shot.

    I know a few person who made over 100K+ in a period of 9 month. Well, she said that she worked like a slave for over 2 years in order to get those results. Definitely no 4 hour work week thats for sure.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[4170687].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author zannix
      I agree that a person (especially someone who is new to something) shouldn't put too much demand on himself because there's a good chance his expectations won't be met and he or she may very well end in utter disappointment.

      However, it is always good to have an inspiring vision for your future. A vision that you might someday even become a millionaire. Why not? I seriously consider it to be a healthy inspiration and a source of energy for every achiever.

      Internet Marketing is just one of the vehicles that offer the means for the accomplishment of such vision. But one should distinct goals from vision. Vision should be a long term goal, that you may never even complete, but you should strive towards.

      Goals, on the other hand should be something beliveable, something of practical means, they should be the 'stepping stones' to the fulfillment of your vision, but they should always be designed in a way that makes you stretch out of your comfort zone, to make you grow.

      To sum it up, I think one should be realistic in his approach to building the means for achieving more or less 'unrealistic vision'.

      However, this is only my view of life

      Kind Regards,
      Zannix
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[4170749].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author Brad789
        Originally Posted by zannix View Post

        I agree that a person (especially someone who is new to something) shouldn't put too much demand on himself because there's a good chance his expectations won't be met and he or she may very well end in utter disappointment.

        However, it is always good to have an inspiring vision for your future. A vision that you might someday even become a millionaire. Why not? I seriously consider it to be a healthy inspiration and a source of energy for every achiever.

        Internet Marketing is just one of the vehicles that offer the means for the accomplishment of such vision. But one should distinct goals from vision. Vision should be a long term goal, that you may never even complete, but you should strive towards.

        Goals, on the other hand should be something beliveable, something of practical means, they should be the 'stepping stones' to the fulfillment of your vision, but they should always be designed in a way that makes you stretch out of your comfort zone, to make you grow.

        To sum it up, I think one should be realistic in his approach to building the means for achieving more or less 'unrealistic vision'.

        However, this is only my view of life

        Kind Regards,
        Zannix
        Zannix

        Brad here. Just checked out your site - awsome. I have been jogging for nearly 40 years and your stuff is right on.

        Wish you all the best - you obviously know what your are doing !

        Cheers !
        Signature
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[4171972].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Dash Evra
    Good advice. I know understand where you're coming from. When you set small goals and reach it, it gives you a feeling of achievement. That will encourage you to do more and have a positive outlook on your plan.

    I just started a blog on May 16 this year. The goal was to make $5 a day with it through Adsense and flip it for about $1000 - $1500 in a couple of months. Guess what? It was averaging that in the first week.

    I felt so happy about what I was doing, I decide to spend more time at it and do it more. From June 1 to June 30 (today), it has made me over $520!
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[4170747].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author HelpingYouBeAnExpert
    Nothing you can do about people being unrealistic most people are and you CAN'T change them the change happens to 1 in a 100 of them from within but you can't change them. That's life!
    Signature

    Join Next Live Mastermind Zoominar 100% Real World Secrets to Get Up And Running. Are you Stuck? Don’t miss it www.MonthlyMastermind.org
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[4170837].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author BloggingPro
    I think everyone probably has that dream of being a millionaire, or for my nephew he might dream about being a billionaire since the dollar is essentially worthless anymore. Regardless, if you don't take the steps to make it to that point then you'll just be a "dreamer."

    I dreamed of making hollywood films, but I never once seriously attempted to even make an independent film to show off my skills. Guess what, I'm not a hollywood filmmaker, I was just a dreamer.

    When I first started internet marketing I was so determined to do something, anything. I wanted a piece of the pie and today instead of sitting there as a dreamer I can say that I am a successful internet marketer, one who makes a sizeable amount of income every month.

    Am I going to become a millionaire? Who knows. That's not my personal goal tract right now. However, all I would need to do is take my current income and increase it just like I did before.

    Bottom line is that you will get nowhere without the proper milestones to reach your goal. You could even start at one measly dollar a day and work up to $20. But just do it.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[4170941].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author thomarv29
    This post kind of depresses me because its more than possible to make a great living online if you have the right tools and money to put into it. I started out in IM back in 03 and had a great mentor, "Fran Tarkenton" He taught me a lot about online marketing but more importantly that with the right goals and know how i could achieve them. I think being realistic sets boundries that keep us complacent about reaching our full potential. Im sure when Buzz Aldren looked into space and wanted to go to the moon he didnt tell himself it wasnt realistic. We only achieve great things in life when we dont set boundaries for ourselves. If we believe anything is possible, we will achieve more, do more and inspire others.
    Signature

    Im president of White Label Links Inc. A leading SEO and Internet marketing company based out of Jacksonville FL

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[4171137].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author Dash Evra
      Originally Posted by thomarv29 View Post

      This post kind of depresses me because its more than possible to make a great living online if you have the right tools and money to put into it. I started out in IM back in 03 and had a great mentor, "Fran Tarkenton" He taught me a lot about online marketing but more importantly that with the right goals and know how i could achieve them. I think being realistic sets boundries that keep us complacent about reaching our full potential. Im sure when Buzz Aldren looked into space and wanted to go to the moon he didnt tell himself it wasnt realistic. We only achieve great things in life when we dont set boundaries for ourselves. If we believe anything is possible, we will achieve more, do more and inspire others.
      I think you miss the point. OP wasn't saying to limit your potential and aim to low. He was saying people should be honest with themselves. For instance, a beginner's goal should not be 7 figures by the next 12 months. That's just going to lead to disappointment.

      Start small first.. A good INITIAL goal can be like..$5/day or 10 visitors per day or 1 subscriber per day etc... Then, as you start to get the hang of it, try do a little more. Maybe $/day and so on... This way you won't feel overwhelmed by what you are trying to accomplish.
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[4171330].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author BloggingPro
      Originally Posted by thomarv29 View Post

      This post kind of depresses me because its more than possible to make a great living online if you have the right tools and money to put into it. I started out in IM back in 03 and had a great mentor, "Fran Tarkenton" He taught me a lot about online marketing but more importantly that with the right goals and know how i could achieve them. I think being realistic sets boundries that keep us complacent about reaching our full potential. Im sure when Buzz Aldren looked into space and wanted to go to the moon he didnt tell himself it wasnt realistic. We only achieve great things in life when we dont set boundaries for ourselves. If we believe anything is possible, we will achieve more, do more and inspire others.
      I think that you need to go back and re-read my post. I stopped at $10 solid dollars (sometimes and quite often more) a day because I'm not looking to replace my job.

      However, I take exception to your post. I wasn't saying aim low. I was saying that you need to set goals. I used my personal experience as an example.

      If you want to make your IM income replace your 9 to 5 job income that is perfectly fine. Just work in stages. Make your goal $50 a day, and then $75.

      But don't think you can show up as a complete beginner (or even be an advanced marketer tackling a NEW challenge) and replace your day job income over night.

      THAT is what I was saying.
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[4171440].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author alcarrerra
        It would be much wiser to set a conversion goal, than a money goal. At the end of the day, it comes down to conversion rate and that would determine your profitability line.

        If you have a 1% conversion rate @ $50 product / 1000 unique visitor = $500 ... So to double your income, you would need 2000 unique visitors. But ..... Most likely, your conversion rate is going to go down below the 1% and that's where your hard work begins.
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[4171500].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Claire Sharp
    This is a great thread i've read today. Everyone are sharing their thoughts and ideas. All are helpful... Thanks guys!
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[4171476].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author RevSEO
    This poster is spot on, far too many people have insane expectations. NO you won't make $5,000 in your first month of internet marketing. Unfortunately these expectations are set by a lot of the internet gurus out there with all of their insane financial claims.

    Reality is that it takes time to become successful online. I've been in the game for close to 10 years and really only started to make a profit five or six years ago. The rest of it, sure I made money, but nothing to write home about. During that time I was learning, trying, testing and figuring out my own online.

    In order to do well, you've gotta really got to plan on learning, testing and implementing to become successful.
    Signature
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[4171501].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Brad789
    BloggingPro

    Brad here. Great post and reality check. It really goes against the grain on the net with all the hype today - make $1 million by Thursday etc.

    More folks like you with true stories will tamp down the stupid talk and allow those of us in for the long haul to all realize this is a business and nothing short of it.

    I wonder if you have had an opportunity to look over Yaro Starak's Blog Mastermind? His blog has a free report that really lays out a logical executable strategy. If you do take a look I would be sincerely interested in your experience. If you drop by my site - no purchase necessary (lol) ;-) - leave a comment.

    Seems like a realistic guy like you would be able to do some long term planning and really make the project pay.

    Best of luck - all the best to you and thanks again for telling it the way you see it.

    Cheers !
    Signature
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[4171954].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author ladywriter
    So people shouldn't believe what people's sigs and the WSO forum tell them?

    You don't say!
    Signature
    Effective Content From a Nurse: Check Out my Warrior for Hire thread
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[4171989].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Mreese601@gmail.com
    Wow! Some Interesting post here! If you trying to figure everything out yourself, yes you want make job replacing income over night, but if you follow success, leverage success, you can make five figures in 90 days or less! The key is to have a plan! Work that plan and believe that you can hit any goals that you set.
    Signature
    Fastest Way To Making Sales On The Internet
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[4172587].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author John Romaine
    Ive used this analogy before and to me, it makes perfect sense.

    Expecting to make money quickly online is almost like walking into the gym at 120 pounds, and asking Ronnie Coleman ..."Hey man, how can I get as huge as you in a couple of weeks? I dont really want to follow a diet plan if I can help it, or lift too many heavy weights"
    Signature

    BS free SEO services, training and advice - SEO Point

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[4172639].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author King Louie
      I'm not really a goals guy. Sure I have some ambition to get rich from IM, but I don't write something like "Earn $100 a day by December 2011." I just work my ass off and see what the results will be.
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[4173004].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author CDarklock
      Originally Posted by ramone_johnny View Post

      Ronnie Coleman ..."Hey man, how can I get as huge as you in a couple of weeks? I dont really want to follow a diet plan if I can help it, or lift too many heavy weights"
      "Well you see, one day, I thought I'd do a few extra reps... and the next thing you know I was too big. And people told me to stay away from free weights, too - they all said I'd get too big, and I didn't listen. Three sets of ten, man. Don't EVER do more than three sets of ten."
      Signature
      "The Golden Town is the Golden Town no longer. They have sold their pillars for brass and their temples for money, they have made coins out of their golden doors. It is become a dark town full of trouble, there is no ease in its streets, beauty has left it and the old songs are gone." - Lord Dunsany, The Messengers
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[4173841].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author BloggingPro
      Originally Posted by ramone_johnny View Post

      Ive used this analogy before and to me, it makes perfect sense.

      Expecting to make money quickly online is almost like walking into the gym at 120 pounds, and asking Ronnie Coleman ..."Hey man, how can I get as huge as you in a couple of weeks? I dont really want to follow a diet plan if I can help it, or lift too many heavy weights"
      The exact same thing applied to a different life discipline. Setting milestones for yourself means that you will be working your way towards the ultimate goal. It's consistency and staying the course that separates the winners from the losers.
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[4174755].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author SteveJohnson
    Originally Posted by BloggingPro View Post

    I see a lot of beginners come on here and ask, "how do I make ,XXX per month in less than 30 days!" Unfortunately for you this does not really exist, especially if you don't know your head from your ass when it comes to IM.

    Nothing wrong with that of course. However, if one wants to be successful in anything they need to set reasonable goals, or milestones, to achieve that ultimate goal.

    When I first started I had a goal of making $5 a day. That's it. I wanted to make that a day, for 30 days and then look at my big pile of $150 big ones and decide what to do from there.

    Before I even reached that goal I had one $8 day and I was like "woah, I like that! I want more of that!" It took about two months but I finally hit my $5 a day for 30 days goal, all the while thinking in the back of my head that after this my new goal will be $10.

    Today I still make just $10 a day, often times more, but $10 is pretty much guaranteed, anything more I consider a bonus.

    But why stop at just $10 a day? Well I never started IM to replace my day job, I just wanted extra money. I never envisioned it would ever consistently pay for my car and insurance and the twice a year trip to Vegas--but it does.

    And it does that because I took the proper steps to get there. I look at what worked for $5 a day and worked up to $10. Like I said some days its more than that, but I'm just speaking in general base numbers here. So if one really wants to make $1,000 a day doing this they need to understand that they have to crawl before they walk, and then run to the bank.

    It certainly didn't happen over night, and I walked away from my computer frustrated beyond belief many times. If it wasn't for me sitting down and making a plan, with set out milestones I needed to reach, I would have never saw success.

    It's very similar to losing weight. It's all about consistency. You can work out one day and see absolutely no results, but if you work towards milestones, over the course of time you WILL reach your goal. Internet Marketing isn't really any different.
    Who are you to tell anyone what is realistic for them and what isn't? There are hundreds - if not more - examples of absolute newbies jumping in and building a business that generates 4 figures plus in the first 30 days. $10K isn't unrealistic if a person has the time, resources, and drive to make it happen.

    $5 a day is peanuts - a newbie could do that almost by accident. What I don't understand is why you think other people should be held back by your perceived limitations...

    So how about losing weight? Is 40lbs in a month unrealistic? A lot of people would say so. I know personally 9 people who have done that. What kind of inspiration do you think it would be to tell an extremely overweight person that should be 'realistic' and expect to lose 5lbs a month? Or even 10? Do you think they'd even start?

    So newbies, if you're reading this - don't pay attention to the drivel of being 'realistic'. Be UNrealistic! Find someone who made $6K-$10K their first month (there are at least a dozen on this forum) and persuade them to teach you.

    Filtering your ambition by what someone else considers 'realistic' is a guaranteed recipe for mediocrity - so don't. Unless, of course, mediocrity doesn't bother you. Then by all means go for $5 a day.
    Signature

    The 2nd Amendment, 1789 - The Original Homeland Security.

    Gun control means never having to say, "I missed you."

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[4173122].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author ladywriter
      Originally Posted by SteveJohnson View Post

      Who are you to tell anyone what is realistic for them and what isn't?
      ...

      What I don't understand is why you think other people should be held back by your perceived limitations...
      I also agree with this.

      Haven't some of us been told "Making money online? Stop being so unrealistic" ?

      The OP makes excellent points about having goals and sticking to it, though.
      Signature
      Effective Content From a Nurse: Check Out my Warrior for Hire thread
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[4173746].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author vok
        I disagree, if you have a dream you've got to protect it. If somebody can't do something themselves give them a great sense of pleasure telling others they can't do it. Entrepreneurs aren't realistic, flying tons of metal through the sky is "unrealistic".

        Instantly talking to people from another continent is "unrealistic". Limited beliefs are what hold people down.

        There's nothing stopping you becoming a millionaire in the next 5 years. You'll finally realise one day that your own mind is your own worst enemy, and these "unrealistic" ambitions are all in your mind.

        I know millionaires that would have no problems becoming millionaires all over again, because they just do not think with the grain.

        You want to be poor, go and hang out with poor people and they'll show you "realistic" is. If on the other hand you want to get somewhere in life, start getting "unrealistic", because that's the only way you'll move forward.


        Imagine what they world would look like without "unrealistic" people, we'd still be in a cave.
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[4173826].message }}
        • Profile picture of the author BloggingPro
          Originally Posted by chriswick View Post

          I disagree, if you have a dream you've got to protect it. If somebody can't do something themselves give them a great sense of pleasure telling others they can't do it. Entrepreneurs aren't realistic, flying tons of metal through the sky is "unrealistic".

          Instantly talking to people from another continent is "unrealistic". Limited beliefs are what hold people down.

          There's nothing stopping you becoming a millionaire in the next 5 years. You'll finally realise one day that your own mind is your own worst enemy, and these "unrealistic" ambitions are all in your mind.

          I know millionaires that would have no problems becoming millionaires all over again, because they just do not think with the grain.

          You want to be poor, go and hang out with poor people and they'll show you "realistic" is. If on the other hand you want to get somewhere in life, start getting "unrealistic", because that's the only way you'll move forward.

          YouTube - ‪Will Smith - Inspirational words of Wisdom‬‏

          Imagine what they world would look like without "unrealistic" people, we'd still be in a cave.
          Again, another person who seems to have simply read the thread title and SKIMMED over the actual post.

          Go back and actually re-read my post. If you actually did read it you would've discovered that I'm not talking about being un-realistic in the sense that you can't drive for greatness. I said that thinking you can achieve those big dreams you better believe you need to have GOALS.

          I used my own personal experience as an EXAMPLE. I wasn't saying that you should shoot for $10 freaking dollars a day and be satisfied. If you would have actually read the post you would have gathered this.

          Dream big people. Shoot for the fences, but if you don't realize that you need to set goals and milestones to reach the bigger then I don't feel you will ever be successful in the long term.

          It's one think to make thousands of dollars a day for a short period of time and its a completely other thing to make thousands of dollars a day for years.
          {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[4174737].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author BloggingPro
      Originally Posted by SteveJohnson View Post

      $5 a day is peanuts - a newbie could do that almost by accident. What I don't understand is why you think other people should be held back by your perceived limitations...
      You can't be serious. STOP focusing on the damn numbers I used in my post. I was simply saying that it is unrealistic to have grand expectations and NOT have any goals to reach them.

      Again STOP focusing on the numbers. Those were my numbers, used as an example on how you can scale up if you have the proper goals in place.

      How you don't understand this is beyond me. GOALS is what my post is about, not the dollar amount you wish to make. Whether you find $5 or $10 a day mediocre or not is really none of my business. There are people who would simply love to be making that much side income. And there is NOTING wrong with that.

      Your post is maddening. Nowhere in my post did I say you need to be held back. I was simply saying SET GOALS FOR YOURSELF so that you can achieve all you want in life.

      From the tone of your post it would seem you obviously read the thread title, SKIMMED over the actual post and then replied. It's unrealistic to not have goals, in ANY form of life or business.
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[4174699].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Simu :P
    Well said, buddy...

    I have too seen many.

    They don't want to work, just want $10,000 per month for just sitting.

    I think it's not mistake, but the sellers who sell their hyped product, convincing people that you can make $XX,XXX per month with X clicks or 10 minutes.

    Just my 2 cents!
    Simu
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[4173834].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Mark Kostic
    I think what the op is trying to say is that unless you are aware of your limitations, you won't know what you are truly capable of.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[4174748].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author BloggingPro
      Originally Posted by Mark Kostic View Post

      I think what the op is trying to say is that unless you are aware of your limitations, you won't know what you are truly capable of.
      No, I don't think the OP is trying to say that all. What in the world do GOALS have with limitations.
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[4174763].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author Mark Kostic
        Originally Posted by BloggingPro View Post

        No, I don't think the OP is trying to say that all. What in the world do GOALS have with limitations.
        Well, let me think. You tell a kid that's just getting started that they can make a million dollars in a week and they'll believe you and think they can do it.

        But a man that truly knows what he can achieve will definitely think twice and set a real goal that is achievable within a specific time period like... one week. So yes, goals do have A LOT to do with knowing what your capabilities/limits are.
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[4174791].message }}

Trending Topics