Do You Want This To Be Hard Or Something?

[Joseph Ratliff]

People are funny sometimes.

It's almost like they want something to be hard to accomplish in order to validate the fact they are in an affiliate business (or any business for that matter, but I'll keep it focused on affiliate marketing here).

Folks, this business isn't hard at all...but you can make it hard if you choose.

Examples...

---> Trying to figure it all out beforehand. This is a big hot button for me, as it represents a large percentage of the questions newbies ask me boiled down to this one topic.

Folks, this business cannot (and will not) be figured out before you take risk and attempt to start testing offers to make to a market...there are simply too many variables (copywriting, SEO, marketing, testing, PPC, etc... etc...) to try and figure out, not to mention each variable is WAY too deep.

If you're trying to figure it all out beforehand, quit doing it and just try to execute something, and keep executing, using the data you get (even basic data) to figure out yourself how to make things better. If you don't have the resources, find someone who does and partner with them.

---> You already know enough to get started. All the ebooks in the world will NOT, repeat NOT start a business for you. In fact, they can actually steer you off course if you're not careful.

As grown ups, you already know enough (even if you're young) to help a group of people solve a problem with an affiliate offer of some type. But you have to develop one other thing...

---> You must have the fortitude to put yourself and your offers "out there." You will make mistakes, you probably will make a type of mistake where you'll look like a complete fool, so know that, get over it, and go make more mistakes. Eventually, you'll fail less and less, and succeed more and more. No one said that a solid affiliate business could be built overnight, or everyone would do it successfully.

The concern about putting your offers out there in front of people who might give you a hard time needs to be put to rest. Everyone seeks acceptance, but you will not, repeat will not get it from everyone.

In fact, if you don't reach the part of your market where someone complains in some manner, you aren't marketing your offers effectively enough.

Quit trying to impress people, and get out there and make some dang offers!

Quit wanting this business to be hard, it does take time to build, but it is all easy to do if you just start testing offers and driving traffic (in other words, quit talking about it, and "researching it", and start executing).

Use this forum, find out the information you need to get started, then start!

[Cindy Bidar]

Funny, I was just having this discussion with a friend of mine. She - and a lot of other people, I suspect - feels *validated* when she makes something more difficult than it has to be. For example, rather than buying a cake mix in a box (just add eggs and oil) she buys the ingredients and bakes it from scratch. This gives her a much bigger sense of accomplishment, as if she tackled something huge and won.

Then there is the learning part, and this is what I fall victim to. I have a hard time just blindly following directions. I need to know why I'm doing something. It helps me troubleshoot problems later, but it also cements the process in my mind and makes it much easier to remember. So it's not (always) about procrastination by education. Sometimes it makes good sense - but only if it doesn't get in the way of actually *doing* something.

[Joseph Ratliff]

Originally Posted by Cindy Bidar

It helps me troubleshoot problems later, but it also cements the process in my mind and makes it much easier to remember.

So long as this is the real reason someone (or you) are learning something, that's why you have to learn. Although on the troubleshooting later, you can troubleshoot after "blindly following directions" too...because really, the issue may in be confidence you have in yourself, not the directions themselves.

We're all a lot more intelligent than even we give ourselves credit for.

For most people, education seems to replace action, because of a comfort zone thing, not because they truly wanted/needed to learn. It's easier to stay in the learning process, than it is to actually break out and do something.

What if it was your first baseball game? You HAVE to play in the game...sure you could practice beforehand, even get a mentor, but in the first time out, almost nobody is a natural.

So, you fail your first time out (strike out at the plate, make an error on the field etc...). But you learn from that, by actually doing it, which even Major Leaguers will tell you there's nothing like actually doing it.

Baseball forces you to take action because there is a deadline that you cannot avoid unless you make yourself look like a fool and not show up for your team.

Now equate baseball to affiliate marketing...what if you HAD to take action on a certain date you weren't in control of?

So there was no more time to "educate" yourself...and no matter what you thought you knew (which you know more than you give yourself credit for)...you HAD to move ahead...what would you do? Stop?

But there aren't any forced deadlines in affiliate marketing are there? Unless your back is against the wall in some fashion (i.e. money is short, bills to pay, going to get evicted etc...).

And it's that "back against the wall" where the magic seems to happen...when you've run out of time to be comfortable, and you MUST move forward...

If you look back on the most successful people, almost all examples had a period where they were forced to take action, no more time to "educate" themselves...they just had to do it. And as a result, Microsoft was born, Jack Welch started on the path to the top of GE, a super-affiliate was born, and on and on.

Sure, there is education in that mix too...but Bill didn't have time to figure out Microsoft beforehand...before walking into that room at IBM and setting up a licensing deal that would spawn a 50 billion dollar company.

I rambled on for a bit there, but I hope it helps

[Cindy Bidar]

Originally Posted by Joseph Ratliff

And it's that "back against the wall" where the magic seems to happen...when you've run out of time to be comfortable, and you MUST move forward...

If you look back on the most successful people, almost all examples had a period where they were forced to take action, no more time to "educate" themselves...they just had to do it. And as a result, Microsoft was born, Jack Welch started on the path to the top of GE, a super-affiliate was born, and on and on.

That is absolutely true. And sometimes you have to make your own "back against the wall" moment. Quit your job, move to a new country, blog about it for all the world to see - whatever it takes to light a fire.

[wingman]

Just wanted to say I liked your posting but at the beginning there is so much to choose from, its only by travelling that we discover our purpose.

[john43]

I think it's easier to figure something out if you go through it yourself in first person.