Category: Be Your Own Boss

    Let Go of Your Ego That Says a Spotlight Is On You

    Finding yourself in a room full of people and suddenly getting the sinking feeling that every eye is on you is a nightmare that most of us have lived through. You instantly begin to doubt how you appear and begin to examine yourself for smudges on your face or a clothing malfunction.

    It’s likely that you were mistaken that everyone was suddenly looking at you. It was actually a form of self doubt that creeped in at just the right time to make you feel you were in a spotlight of scrutiny.

    You might react in a couple of ways during a scenario like the one above. Panic might make you instantly doubt yourself and frantically begin looking for the problem others are seeing.

    Or, you might wonder, but decide to dismiss everyone else and return confidently to the conversation you were once enjoying or whatever you were focused on at the moment. Rather than your fear of failure, it may be your ego that’s causing you to think everyone in the room is looking at you.

    Your ego may also be detrimental in business, too. You might worry that even success will bring more people to the table to watch you – which means even more self doubt creeps in.

    The same ego that assumes people are watching your every move is the same one that fears ridicule if you happen to falter or fail with a project or idea. Until you let go of the ego and self doubt that accompanies it, you’re wasting precious time and energy on worry or frustration.

    One way to bash the downside of your ego is to stop the need to win every battle and be successful with every venture. When you’re winning, there’s no need to consult your inner voice about the actions you’ve taken to get to the finish line.

    Losing, on the other hand, makes you stop and think about what you need to do next time to make it happen. Competition is always present in Internet marketing ventures, but you don’t have to think you need to knock it out of the ballpark every time or else people will make fun of you.

    Losing a challenge or being wrong about a product or person is a learning experience which can help your future success. Rather than letting ego take over and ruin your life and your business chances, focus on improvement in all that you are and strive to be. Be happy with what you’ve accomplished so far and take action to improve and grow.

    Categories: Self Doubt

    Look Around You and Notice How Imperfect Everyone Is

    While it isn’t always good to compare yourself to others, it can be a boost to your self esteem and give you a true picture of marketers in a way that lessens your own anxiety. Some of what you see will be good and encouraging and some might be eye-opening to your own struggles.

    At the very least, you should learn that no one is perfect or always experiences success. As a marketer, it’s likely that you follow many other marketers. Dig a little deeper into some of those you subscribe to and try to pick out a few things they might be doing wrong.

    Maybe they have some gaps in their products or their video marketing could use some polishing. It could be that even those you admire constantly have some ideas and strategies that you don’t agree with. No one is perfect and gets it right every time – even the most successful of online entrepreneurs.

    All suffer from failures and setbacks, but you’ll soon learn as you peer into the online lives of your fellow marketers, that the failures don’t define who the successful ones are. The successful marketers view failures as a chance to learn, pick up the pieces and try again.

    The successes will likely far outweigh the failures. And some marketing strategies may appeal and work for others, but not for you. When you see your fellow marketers as humans who have different tastes, ambitions and talents than you, perhaps you won’t compare yourself unfavorably to them.

    Online marketing is no different from any other part of life – different strokes for different folks. Striving for perfection can undermine everything you want to accomplish and set you up for failure because absolute perfection doesn’t exist.

    Chasing it can only add to your sense of failure and inadequacies and cause unhappiness and great disappointment in your life. It’s best to think of your efforts as striving to be the best you can be.

    If you can view your self worth by knowing that you’re living up to your own standards rather than someone else’s, you can live the life that was meant for you rather than seeking perfection, which is only an illusion.

    You may be waiting for the perfect time, place or scenario in your life to begin seeking success. You’re poised and ready, but the world isn’t – so you’re stopped in your tracks. Realize that there’s never a perfect time or place and move forward where you are right now in life.

    The most successful entrepreneurs among us have begun on a small scale – refusing to wait until they had time, money and energy to begin their venture on a larger scale. Each success gave them more confidence to try something bigger and better until true success – not perfection – was within their grasp.

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    Self Doubt Is Understandable, But Crippling

    Even the most confident person you can think of has an occasional bout of self doubt. The trick is to recognize it for what it is and then get on with the business of being successful.

    That’s how successful entrepreneurs beat the self doubt plague. Consistent self doubt is as crippling as clinical depression and you may soon find yourself in a rut that’s difficult to extract yourself from.

    As a fledgling – or seasoned entrepreneur, you have a lot riding on your ability to stay focused. Your ultimate level of success and satisfaction with your chosen career depends on it.

    It’s imperative that you develop the resilience to overcome self doubt you’re sure to experience and replace that negativity with other thoughts designed to build your confidence rather than bringing it down.

    Self doubt can cause indecision and procrastination – both lethal detriments to your ultimate success. Yet, every challenge you face in your quest as an online entrepreneur brings with it old hauntings from your mind that may prevent you from overcoming the challenges and achieving your goals unless you can get a grip on them and see them for what they are – lies.

    The higher you climb on the ladder of success, the more self doubt you’re likely to have. What can you do to alleviate some of these obstacles and direct your energy in a more productive manner?

    It begins in your mind and progresses to taking action as you learn you really are capable of facing and overcoming any challenges that come your way. First, you should know and be comforted that you’re not the only person (successful or not) who has suffered from self doubt along the way.

    Acknowledging that others have felt as you do and became successful in spite of self doubt can alleviate your worries and help you get past the feelings more quickly. If you haven’t already set some personal and business goals for yourself, do it immediately.

    It’s part of the plan that you’ll use as the map to the magic kingdom of success. It’s perfectly okay to set lofty, long-term goals. Just make sure you set attainable, short-term goals, too – so you can experience success in small increments along the way.

    Short term goals are important because they provide continuous realization that you are moving along quite nicely and are well on your way to meeting those long term goals. It lets you bask in the sunshine of the smaller wins, while waiting for the big payoff at the end.

    Some things will happen along the road to success which is beyond your control. It’s important that you recognize this and keep from blaming yourself. In all lives, a little rain must fall. Be prepared in every way you can and press onward to your goals.

    Categories: Self Doubt, self-doubt Tags: Tags:

    Self Doubt Stems from a Lack of Belief in Your Abilities

    If you don’t believe in yourself, who will? Successful entrepreneurs have all experienced moments of self doubt, but also have an amazing ability to move past the lack of confidence and force themselves to go on.

    That ability comes from experience and knowledge that even failure provides an advantage of knowing that you tried. Newbies to online marketing can sometimes find themselves in a perpetual state of self doubt.

    They lack the experience to know they can overcome obstacles on the way to becoming a successful entrepreneur. That self doubt can make or break even the most successful entrepreneur and paralyze him or her so that no action is taken and failure is imminent.

    Remember your school days? You were required to sit at a desk, learn, turn in homework and take tests to see what you’ve learned. Now, you have to take that initiative on your own.

    Learning, experimenting and brainstorming new ideas is a bit like learning to ride a bicycle. You’ll likely fall several times, but eventually you’ll get on that bike one day and move on down the path like a pro.

    After you’ve ridden the bicycle a few times, you don’t even think about how it works – you just do it. As an entrepreneur, you know there’s always something new to try or think about.

    You can either choose to give it all you’ve got – or leave an idea by the wayside and move on to something else. An idea may work for some, but it may not be for you. You’ll learn to be discretionary in latching on to new ideas or different ways to do things.

    Eventually, that ability will be so innate that you won’t even have to think about it as you move forward to meet your goals. Sometimes, you’ll try something that backfires or simply doesn’t work out the way you thought it would.

    Rather than doubting your ability and becoming paralyzed by the situation, take a step back and remember what got you where you are in the first place. Even newbies can think back and remember what decisions led them to take action and become a marketing entrepreneur.

    It’s likely a decision based on goals you’ve achieved in the past or a deep interest or appreciation you have for the possibility of making more money and having a business of your own.

    And then forgive yourself for any mistakes you may have made. These mistakes give you the advantage of knowledge and you can now move ahead knowing you won’t make that mistake ever again. Your ability to succeed has just increased.

    Categories: Self Doubt

    Start Small to Take Away the Power of Self Doubt

    Beginning an Internet marketing business with a product launch that’s much less expensive than some of your successful colleagues (who love to post their earnings from one launch that would pay your bills for months) can help alleviate some of your self doubt.

    Starting on a small scale – perhaps a $7 product instead of a $97 one – can mean less work to get it off and running and a launch that can teach you a thing or two. The feedback and knowledge you get from beginning with a small launch is invaluable to help you move up to higher ticket items.

    You’ll likely build your list with each small launch, too – meaning that when you do get to the big ticket launches, you’ll have more marketers who will buy from you. With each small launch, your self-confidence will build and self doubt will begin to wane.

    Even the small launches may fail, but that’s a good thing, too – when you use the knowledge you gained to set your focus on something else or to use another strategy because the current one isn’t working.

    You won’t have lost much time and energy if you discover these truths from a small launch. Self doubt is often made up from failures of the past, but your small successes can provide positive thoughts about the positive outcomes you’ve realized.

    The positive feedback you receive from small successes may serve to set you up for huge success. There’s always something new to learn in Internet marketing. Beginning your business or venturing out in a different direction in small increments helps you sharpen your skills and become more confident in future business situations.

    You’ll soon discover if something works – or not – and can quickly tweak or discard it at your discretion. Little will be lost if you haven’t invested a great deal in something you lack knowledge about.

    Correcting your course along the way is the same thing pilots do when they’re approaching a bit of unexpected bad weather before reaching their destination. Look at the charts again, learn from the experience you’ve gathered during the small ventures and correct your course so that you’re firmly on a safe and steady path again.

    Learn from other marketers. Follow the business path of others to possibly discover more ways you can promote yourself and become successful with your own enterprise. It’s sometimes easy to get lost in your own little world of strategizing and promoting, but you may become stagnant if you don’t allot some time for learning from others.

    Trust your instinct and values when making decisions about your business. There are many shady marketers out there who might turn your head with promises of fast money, but if you stay true to your own values, self-confidence will become the antidote to any self doubt you may have.

    Categories: Mindset, Self Doubt, self-doubt Tags: Tags:

    Translate Your Excuses When Self Doubt Rears Its Ugly Head

    Excuses stem from self doubt and may occur when you least expect it. For example, you may be on the verge of a big launch that you’ve worked on, thought about and strategized for a very long time.

    All of a sudden (maybe in the middle of the night), you break out in a cold sweat and thoughts of failure that you can’t squash. Fear can take over your mind, body and life before you know it – unless you can weed out the legitimate fears from those originating from unfounded doubts about your abilities.

    Although the groundwork of journaling, affirmations and meditation is helpful to assuage these doubts, fear is bound to occur. Rather than giving in to doubts right away and slinking away in the night, be honest with yourself.

    How much of the self doubt is real – and how much of what you’re feeling and thinking are right out lies? When your thoughts and fears are legitimate, you should automatically start thinking of ways to turn things around.

    By getting your fears out into the open, you can carefully examine them for legitimacy. Your fears may stem from thinking you’re not an expert in what you’re trying to accomplish.

    If there’s something you don’t know, it’s fairly easy – with all the powers of the Internet – to find answers. Many times, it’s the experience you get from trying (and even failing) that pushes you toward the status of expert.

    And even the thought of being an actual expert in your field may cause you fear and concern. What if you fail or let people down? Think about the worst that can happen if your latest venture fails miserably.

    You may lose money and your time and effort may fall by the wayside, but you may also have learned a huge lesson. Try to look for the positives in any failure. They can help ensure your next success.

    It may help you quiet your own fears and doubts by realizing that everyone has them. Even the most successful among us have been humbled by negative thoughts that creep into their minds. How they handle the fears and how long it affects them separates the true entrepreneurs from the wannabes.

    The best way to stop making excuses and get on with the business of being successful is to replace those self doubting thoughts the minute they enter your mind. Experiment with what method(s) work best for you.

    Categories: Mindset, Self Doubt, self-doubt Tags: Tags:

    Trying to Predict Success Sets You Up for Failure

    Some of us tend to doubt ourselves right out of future success with “what if” predictions we make. It could be named the “what if” syndrome. It’s when you’re mired in self doubt so much that you begin to imagine and predict obstacles and outcomes that aren’t even there.

    The “what if” syndrome is especially prevalent after you’ve hatched up a brilliant idea for an online project that’s going to make you lots of money and help your fellow entrepreneurs.

    You’re sure everyone will love it and want it. Then, self doubt sets in and you begin to think of all of the reasons why it won’t succeed. You walk on the shadowy side of your ability to make things happen and talk yourself down or out of even trying.

    You were so excited about the idea at first and it fired up your creativity to a point where you could hardly wait to begin. That lull – somewhere between the excitement of the idea and taking action to make it happen – is where self doubt takes root.

    You may begin to think of past failures and how they made you feel or become highly sensitive to the fact that you’ve never endeavored something like this before. If you keep thinking about past failures or what “might” happen, you may come to a point in the project where a big wall is placed in your path.

    Since your self doubt has already been growing in your thoughts, the wall may seem insurmountable and you simply give up. Just another failure to think about next time you have an idea.

    Or – you can take another route – one that doesn’t ensure success, but that at least gives you a chance. Rather than giving in to self doubt, trust yourself and try it again. You’ve likely practiced this scenario many times before in your life.

    Some attempts may have failed, but you’ve probably succeeded many more times. Bring a new attitude into the mix and think positively rather than giving in to the hauntings of past failures. Also, bring in positive people to surround you who encourage, rather than discourage you.

    Don’t compare yourself to others whose successes may be greater or more profitable than yours. You may even learn from their stories of success. They’re bound to have had failures along the way – and overcame them rather than feeling defeated.

    When you find yourself become mired in self doubt about your future success, mute the negative voices by focusing on the positive and living in the present moment rather than projecting yourself into a future of unknowns.

    Categories: Mindset, Self Doubt, self-doubt Tags: Tags:

    What Kind of Online Businesses Can You Launch?

     

    Starting an online business can be one of the most exciting experiences of your life. It can also be the most confusing if you’re not sure what kind of business you’d like to have. There’s a popular saying that says, “Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.”

    That means you need to make sure that your online income doesn’t all come from just one source. A way that you can diversify that source is to start selling info products. You can create an information product in as little as a day, depending on what the product is.

    One of the best info products to sell is to write and sell your own eBook. You need to write an eBook on a topic that people are searching for information about. The topic can be one that you’re very knowledgeable about or it can be one that you become knowledgeable about by researching the information you need to know. Other than eBooks, you can also create online courses or workshops sharing your expertise.

    You can also promote products as an affiliate. You find a product that you believe is good and will sell well and you begin to promote it for a commission. Promoting just means that you’re raising awareness about a product by driving traffic to it.

    You can promote products without cost to you and many people find this type of an online business one of the easiest to break into. You can promote products by writing articles about it and submitting them to article directories, or you can blog about it, promote it on your own website or on any of the common social sites such as Twitter or Facebook.

    Many budding entrepreneurs create membership sites. A membership site means that you get paid to pass your knowledge onto others. Here’s an example:

    Let’s say you’re an expert on how to fix computers. You set up a site where people can log in and get access to answers to their questions, they can participate in a forum there, etc.

    Once you’ve gotten the hang of how to set up and profit from your membership site, you can turn around and teach others how to do it by writing a how-to eBook or by setting up a course!

    Another way you can launch an online business is by offering freelance services. Freelance just means that you are your own boss – you can take on the gigs you want and turn down the ones that you don’t.

    There are so many ways you can branch into having an online service business. You can do graphic design work, build websites, edit what other people wrote or you can write articles from scratch for other people.

    What’s great about all of these businesses is that start-up costs are often cheaper than buying a meal out! To get started, you need to set up a website and you need a way to accept payment (PayPal is a great way to do that).

    Once you begin to get to work and build your reputation, you’ll be able to take your pick of the kind of jobs you’d like to take on. One word of caution, though – if you don’t take a freelance job through an online service that matches jobs with those seeking them, make sure you define the work you’ll be doing in email or message board documentation so that there are no surprises down the road.

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    Who Is Starting Their Own Online Businesses?

     

    Starting an online business is one of the smartest moves you can make to invest in your future. Now more than ever, people are putting their ideas into practice and becoming first time entrepreneurs.

    Beginning a new business owner in today’s world is much easier than it was even ten years. Booming online businesses make up a huge percent of products sold. It’s evident that e-commerce is here to stay.

    The beauty of running an online business is that the start up costs are very low – you can even start some businesses without having to come up with any money at all. Young or old, people of all ages can create a business they love from whatever they’re passionate about. Whether it’s selling antique pieces of history, gift ideas or selling services, there’s a niche tailor made for your talents.

    So who are the people who are breaking free from their ordinary routines, or from their cubicles and taking control of their lives? Many of the people who are first time entrepreneurs are moms. Whether they’re stay at home moms or currently work in an office, mothers make up a large majority of those running Internet businesses.

    Putting their years of expertise from both life and business to work for them, many baby boomers are stepping out and taking the plunge into a new endeavor of starting their own online business.

    Sometimes in a tough job economy, baby boomers are some of the first people to get laid off. Employers aim to keep the younger, less experienced people on the job because they can pay them less.

    No, it’s not fair, but it does happen. If you’re in that category, losing a job can be the springboard that catapults you into an adventure that can bring so much good into your life as you start working for yourself.

    In certain jobs, there are government mandates in place for when people must retire from that job, which is unfortunate in many cases because it’s those years of experience on the job that make them better employees than the newly hired.

    Thanks to smart financial planning, most retirees aren’t forced to work due to needing the income after retirement, but many choose to in order to keep their minds active and to give themselves something to look forward to.

    Changing from a life of active work to being home all day can be quite an adjustment and running an online business can make that adjustment a lot easier on the one retiring and his or her family. Plus, for those wanting to retire but who want to stay busy, there are plenty of opportunities available online to start and run a successful business.

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    When Will You Find Time to Work an Online Business?

    How many times have we all said, “If only I had more time then I could get more done in my online business?” The solution is not getting more time – we all have the same amount. The key is to manage the time we do have and make it work more effectively for us.

    Even if you think you don’t have time to take on anything else, you might be surprised to discover how much time you’re actually wasting during the day. You can start an online business whether you hold down a full time job or not.

    Sometimes when it comes to starting a business, many people have the mental picture that it’s all or nothing – that in order to be their own boss, they have to take the plunge, quit their day job and put all of their effort into building an online business.

    If you have a day job that pays the bills and provides you with health benefits, keep the job while you work on launching and growing your business part time. You can get up an hour earlier in the mornings to work on your business.

    You can spend your lunch hour working on the business. Since your job will be online, you’ll be able to access it anywhere. If you commute to work via train or other method where someone else is in charge of driving, you can work on it then, too.

    You can also temporarily give up the hours you used to spend sitting in front of the television. You can give up one hour of sleep at night to work on the business and work two weekends a month.

    It seems like a lot of time, but if you work it around your day job and stick with it, you can steadily increase your income with the online business until you can comfortably afford to let go of the job you now have.

    For some reason, let’s suppose you’re in a position now where you can no longer wait to leave your day job – it’s become unbearable, the stress is going to wreak too much havoc, or there’s something to cause you abandon your current career now.

    Suddenly, you find yourself having the same forty plus hours you gave at the office to work on your online business. Always begin right away. If you start out working your online business when you feel like it, you could lose valuable initiative. Let the excitement drive you and propel you forward.

    With the benefit of working your online business full time, you’ll be able to devote the steady attention the business needs to continually grow. Rather than squeezing it into the schedule, you’ll have the time you need.

    It’s not so much about finding the time as it is taking the time and if you’ve always wanted to start your own online business, there’s no better time than this moment. Today will soon be yesterday and you won’t ever get that opportunity back.

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