Let’s Talk About Hard Work
Let’s talk about Hard Work, shall we?
I wanted to post about this last week, but I hadn’t finished formulating my thoughts around it quite yet - until this morning… when I received a blog post from Cristina and she just added fuel to my fire 
Cristina and I are definitely on the same wave-length and I ADORE her post. She talks about an info product that she purchased for $97, and it had typo’s… and some other issues.
Anyway - the person she bought the product from is a 6 figure entrepreneur (way cool), but Cristina’s point is - if you are someone of that caliber - shouldn’t you produce QUALITY?? Um - yes, IMO, you should.
This is probably going to be a long post - so settle in… got your coffee? Good!
I am having issue lately with some pretty heavy-hitting Internet Marketing Gurus. I’m not going to name names, but I’m sure you’ll know the type… you know - the people out there who constantly talk about how much money they make and how little they work.
I simply MUST take issue with this… because my clients come to me after reading all of the “stuff” from these gurus, and they are completely frustrated because they are STILL working non-stop - which seems incongruent, because these gurus keep saying that they only work 2 hours per day and they make $50,000 per month…
So let’s delve into it and de-mystify it a bit, shall we?
I have two problems with this type of promotion.
1. If I am a customer - I am paying to have exposure to the expert. I do not want to spend my money with someone who is telling me how LITTLE they work. If I’m giving you my money, and you’re telling me that you never work - how on Earth are you going to help me if I have a question with your information?
By telling me how little you work, are you saying to just expect you to not ever get back to me if I need a brief moment of your time? And have you seen the cost of some of these products?? You want me to spend WHAT? to not have access to you?
2. I believe that these “gurus” are just causing way more frustration. Entrepreneurs are definitely delighted by the idea of barely working and making tremendous money. But I don’t think the entire picture is presented… it can’t be - because I have many clients come to me at the end of their rope. They’ve purchased $1,000’s of dollars worth of these types of products, followed the steps and STILL they are working 40+ hours per week to make their business happen.
Or - they come to me not understanding why they have to work so damn hard and all of these other people seem to just coast by.
Ok - let’s shed some light on this…
First off - to build a business - it takes work. You are not going to start your business today, and be making 6 figures in 6 months - UNLESS - you already have a pretty big audience.
Your business is where your passion, your purpose and your ability to connect with your niche combine.
And that last piece is the money piece - your ability to connect with your niche.
What that means is - you must be in front of 1,000’s and 1,000’s of people in order to be making 6 figures.
It’s a numbers game. The statistic on the street is, a 1% response rate for your marketing efforts is a good response rate.
Sobering - isn’t it.
Think about that - if you only have 300 people on your list right now, 1% is THREE people. And that’s considered a good response rate.
So - the bigger you build your list - or - the more exposure you have - the better your 1% looks.
So, yes, some of these guru’s only have to work a few hours a day to make a killing - but how big is their list, and how long have they been in the game??
The longer you’re in business, the bigger your list, right? So, sure, you too can be making a boatload of money and not breaking your neck, but it takes building that list first. And that is going to come with consistent action, time, and the right mind-set.
Yes, I have seen all the success stories and testimonials on these sites. But, I always question - how far along were these people in business BEFORE they took this class? How big was their list at the outset?
Yes - I know - I’ve seen the testimonials where they say “oh - I JUST started my business and I took this program - I went from 0 to 10,000 on my list in 6 months.”
Ok - but how many people did that person know already? How aggressively did they market themselves to get to that point?
What I don’t like is that there is an impression here that hardly any work was done from day one… and I just refuse to believe that is possible.
After working with many, many entrepreneurs, hearing their stories, listening to what REALLY goes on in our home offices - what I have found is that it takes work.
No if’s and’s or but’s about it - you MUST work your business. You must consistently do 2 to 3 hours of marketing PER DAY to get your name out there. And you must get yourself in front of larger and larger groups of people.
You’ve got to do the work. There is no other way to go about it. You have to take action - and it does not happen over night.
Can you have a money-making business within a year? Absolutely. I believe that, no question. Will it be 6 figures in that amount of time? That depends on your exposure. It takes a well thought-out plan, and consistent, massive action in your business.
I want to say that I work hard in my business and I’m proud of it. Why has “hard work” gotten such a bad wrap lately?? I just don’t get it. Yes, when I was in a corporate job, I worked hard and it sucked. I worked long hours away from my family - and it was stressful.
In my business now, I do not work 2 hours per day. I work about 30 hours per week - give or take. And I LOVE it. I adore what I do. I love my clients, I love the contacts I’ve made through my business, I love what I create - I love it all!
The difference in my mind is, I don’t stress, I don’t strain, and I don’t agonize. My schedule is flexible. I can come and go as I want - I can take days off to be with my daughter, I don’t have to ask permission to stay home when she’s sick…
Now - I have to make up that time in my business - but again - I LOVE what I do and WANT to spend the time doing it.
As an entrepreneur - it is not my goal to NOT work. It is my goal to do what I love and be prosperous in ALL areas of my life.
So, anyone that’s ever been frustrated by these claims of not working and making a boatload of money - you are not alone.
If you are interested in a program like that, really take the time to see what bang you get for your buck. Really take the time to read between the lines. If you have questions, please, feel free to contact me. I’ve spent time with lots of entrepreneurs who have tried just about all of them.
WHEW! Now that I’m done my rant - what are your opinions on this? Have you tried any of these programs? Have they worked? Also - if you seriously built your business from nothing to mega-bucks in a short amount of time, I want to hear about it. And, I want the REAL stories. If you’re going to share a story like that, I want numbers and proof to back it up. I’m willing to be schooled on this subject, but you have to have proof.
October 16th, 2007 at 2:10 pm
An Internet marketer is someone who sells a product to create income by getting someone else to become an Internet marketer who sells a product to create income by getting someone else to become an Internet marketer by getting someone else to become an Internet marketer by . . . You get the idea.
From what I’ve seen when going through these sites, they want you to buy their product or system so you can make money marketing it to other people who are as eager as you to buy someone’s “secret” to making $$ for doing nothing. I’ve seen a number of “make money from home” and “own your own business” ads on Transit TV (on a number of bus lines) all of which promise scads of income without having to do much work. I’m rather skeptical of this sort of hype, yet there’s a little part of me that keeps whispering, “What if it’s all true?” I usually quell that by reminding that part of me that if I’ve got that much cash to spend, there are more important things to invest it in.
A lot of times when I find that what I believe in heart & soul is going against the current of ‘popular’ view, I just sort of keep quiet and drift with the current without saying anything. Sometimes it’s easier than trying to buck the tide of ‘popular’ opinion. And this is especially so when you’ve grown up constantly being told that you’ll never amount to anything, that you’re pretty much worthless, and that everyone else will always be better than you.