Embrace The Failure!
Is that title a bit scary?
If you think so, then let me refresh and then reframe you a bit.
I have been stinking it up so far for my goals this year. I have lost money on Adwords doing campaigns for the Arbitrage Conspiracy and Clickbank. I have all but abandoned my exercise and diet program. My relationships with friends and family have come in second as I try to touch all my goals and barely scrape the surface of any of them. I am trying to do too much and by doing that falling into some of the very traps I have warned you about. Things seem to be going bad so far this year right?
Although I get a little discouraged at times, I don’t think so. The very first day I tried out some of the tips from Infomillionaire, I made a sale. Then it happened again the next day. I thought I was awesome. Then from the second sale came my first refund. I was ridiculously disappointed as if somehow I had something to do with someone being unhappy with a product I didn’t create. After a few days of disappointment on spending on ads and getting no sales, I had a breakthrough weekend: 4 sales, and my first 2-sale day. Since then: NOTHING. All things considered, I haven’t even broken even on what I’ve spent for ads on this campaign. But the biggest victory for me is that I have learned how to set up a campaign, and I have made SALES. The psychological barrier of making that first sale online is out of the way for me. Now I just have to continue to tweak and refine how I do things so that my business will go in the other direction and turn profit in this department. Another good note is that I’ve been discussing this business with a friend and he’s turned a couple of affiliate commissions already as well, which makes me happy that I can help someone.
As far as the Arbitrage Conspiracy goes, it’s got a similar theme. I haven’t been able to turn out as many campaigns as I would have liked so far. I have gotten a lot of VALUABLE information from them though. They have made this course very informative so far. I have learned a lot about writing ads and doing research. I can’t wait to see what the coming weeks bring. I have made a grand total of 3 conversions the last time I checked doing this program. NOT a lot. But I believe I can do better.
I feel like I haven’t put my best foot forward and I’m hoping to change all that by focusing a little more on one thing at a time. I’m stretching myself a bit thin between my commitments. In the beginning I thought I’d only play around with the Infomillionaire stuff and focus completely on Arbitrage. That’s what I want to get back to now because after the initial successful conversion rate I wanted to push harder. Now I know it’s the time to draw back and pay a bit more attention where it’s due. Arbitrage will be my biggest focus now.
I also have school to think about. I am back at The University of Phoenix after a brief stint away. I enjoy the classes and I think they really give me some great ideas. I’ve already taken away a few gems from my first week of class I can apply to my business and my life.
I also joined Bally’s Fitness with my wife last night. It will give us some quality time together to grow closer this year and reach our fitness goals in the process.
Why talk about all these mini-failures? I promised I would share my journey with you. I feel like after all these “how to be excellent” articles I’ve written, I should also share the other side of it. There’s a valuable lesson in this though: You have to be able to take the bad with the good, and keep moving FORWARD.
I don’t get too bent out of shape over my failures and setbacks. They are part of the game. If you are really trying to accomplish something, roadblocks will get in your way. It’s inevitable. The thing that will be necessary is to fight through the failure until the only outcome left is success. I truly believe that and that is why I persevere through setbacks, losing money, and spending every waking moment thinking about my goals.
Anybody who is familiar with Arnold Schwarzenegger knows his theory on the “pain period”. If you can push through the pain on your way to a goal, you will not only accomplish it but more than likely blow it out of the water. The thing is that most people move away from pain and/or towards pleasure. It’s the animal condition in all of us. Most successful people embrace pain and failure and realize it’s just a part of the road to success.
Another thing to realize is that through your efforts, you probably haven’t failed as much as you think or even at all. I realize all the little things my efforts have gotten me. My site is starting to get more readers. My SEO efforts have gotten me a Pagerank of 2/10. It was “No Pagerank Available” last year, so not too bad for a part-time blogger! I have learned a lot about the business and continue to do so. I was 220 pounds at one point last year and I am much lighter (around 195) now. My relationships have been through many ups and downs in the last 2 years and right now I feel very blessed to be in the position I am in with the quality of people I have in my life. Even though I am working my butt off to the neglect of those I love sometimes, they are still there for me with support and encouragement.
My message is this: Things are never as bad as they seem. Don’t EVER give up chasing your dreams. Do what you have to do. Refine your processes. Always try to do better, get better, be more. The things that may seem like failures in your life may be successes in more ways than you can realize. A year from now, how will I look back on this post? My best guess is as a step I had to climb to reach another level of success.
Don’t be overwhelmed when looking at the size of the stairwell you will have to climb on the way to your own personal success. No matter how you look at it, you will still have to take it one step at a time. Why not get started?
Are you ready for 2009?
First up, let me say that I hope you enjoyed your holidays as much as I enjoyed mine. I spent some quality time with my wife and daughters and the rest of our family and had more fun than I’ve had in a long time! As Christmas passed, the New Year loomed large in my mind and my goals, resolutions, or wants(pick your poison) came to the forefront of my focus.
I saw a very influential video that Frank Kern put out to promote his new Infomillionaire product. It was titled How To Get Rich: A Guaranteed Approach. After an entertaining Cribs-style video, Frank gave a 4 step plan on getting rich. It had some excellent points that really rang true with me. Most importantly:
1. Being specific about your goals i.e. KNOW YOUR OUTCOME
2. Developing a plan, sticking to it, and BELIEVING it will work
My favorite quote from the video: “Rich people believe that what they’re doing is going to work. Successful and wealthy people never begin a project and say ‘This probably isn’t going to work, but what the hell’!”
This really got me thinking about what I want in 2009. I determined that my goals for the big 3 in my life this year will be the following:
Health: Get to a weight of 180 pounds or lower while consistently going to the gym and eating a balanced diet.
Wealth: Create an internet marketing company that nets $500k this year through CPA arbitrage, affiliate commissions for digital products, creation and sales of digital products, ad commissions, and various other income streams.
Relationships: Build on and improve the relationships I have with the loved ones in my life while continuing to meet cool, inspirational, and successful new people to learn from and grow with.
Miscellaneous: Read 3 good fiction books and travel to 3 cool places this year.
I tried to be as specific as possible and it has really helped my focus and drive so far. My internet marketing efforts thus far have been met with a lot of failure, but I am learning a lot and I understand that failure is refining the way I do things so that I am moving towards success.
My wealth node is my biggest focus this year. I am in the Arbitrage Conspiracy to learn the best CPA tactics available and I also picked up the Infomillionaire system to get me started and moving in the right direction as far as my digital product efforts. Not to mention I am starting back with college again to round out my career aspirations just a bit more. I have specific goals in place, great teachers and knowledge to draw from, and the drive and motivation to push through failure and meet my goals NO MATTER WHAT.
Why am I telling you this? I am giving you a blueprint similar to what Frank discussed about getting rich. If you follow the 4 steps he gave in the video… (which are):
1. Know your outcome and begin developing a plan of action to go and get it.
2. Believe that what you are doing is going to work.
3. Work hard.
4. Sell what rich people are selling and do the same business they are doing.
….there is no way you can fail! If you have goals for your relationships or health, then just adjust Step 4 into: Model and do what healthy or social people are doing.
What are your goals for 2009? Have you clearly defined them? Are you developing a plan of action to get them? Are you willing to do WHATEVER IT TAKES?
Get going. I will share my successes and failures(learning lessons) with you as we go through this year together. Please don’t hesitate to drop a comment and share yours as well so we can learn from each other.
My best wishes for your successes and mine for 2009.
Clark
