Make sure you keep reading to the challenges at the bottom. We need you!
I started building websites when I was 13. Back then – they all sucked, got no traffic and were useless. Fast forward 8 years and things are different.
I’m not saying that it takes 8 years to learn how to successfully build a website or an online income, but it sure as hell won’t happen overnight.
So are you ready for it….the number one most important tip to succeeding online:
Time
It really is that simple. There is no magic formula or get rich quick scheme.
The reason why most people fail online is time. Its not due to lack of skills (they pick those up along the way). They get all excited after reading about some incredible affiliate technique, build a website, sit back, close their eyes and hope for the best. After seeing no results immediately, they give.
The same can be said for many bloggers. They get excited, get off to a wonderful start but after a month or two, things start to slide. But look at all the top bloggers who actually make a living online. They have put months and months and more likely years, into developing their blogs and brands.
So I challenge you. I want you to stick with it. Keep your motivation levels at an all time high. Instead of just switching off and going to sit in front of the TV, why not write an extra article, make a new connection on Twitter or place a new ad…..or you could:
Real Practical (not airy fairy) Challenges You Can do to Stay Motivated
A lot of people tell you to be motivated, some even give airy fairy concepts to follow. Instead of that, I’m going to give you some solid activities that will motivate you to succeed. If you complete these challenges, I guarantee it will have a positive and noticeable impact on your business.
100 Articles in 100 Days Challenge (with prizes) – EzineArticles are holding a challenge to write 100 articles in 100 days. Its already started so you’re behind and need to get cracking. At the end, if you manage the challenge you get a certificate (lame) but also some cool swag (sweet).
Wondering why you might want to do this? Articles can be a huge source of traffic and backlinks. 100 articles would drive killer traffic to any affiliate site!
Go Complaint Free for 30 Days – This challenge I picked up from Tim Ferriss. He managed to go for 21 days without making a complaint. The idea is develop mind control and discipline, but more importantly get you thinking in a positive manner. Read this post by Tim to learn more and then pick up a bracelet here.
72 Hour Writing Marathon – Get pumped and ready for a huge sense of achievement, after you try and write as many quality posts in 72 hours. For an even bigger challenge, try and get the blog posts published as guest posts on your favourite blogs.
Plus you get to keep score – 5 points for a guest post, 2 points for a post on your blog, 1 point for an article submitted to an article directory. See how many points you can get, and post the results here in the comments. You only have 72 hours and no cheating.
Lets Make it a Team Thing
If you work alone it can be difficult to stay motivated. So lets team up. If you participate in any of the challenges above let me know in the comments. Let us know if you have your own challenges you’re currently undergoing as well.
I promise to tweet you along the way and kick you up the **** so you have the best possible chance of success.
Hashtags
If you post about updates to the challenges use these tags so everyone can see and motivate you:
100 Article Challenge: #HAHD (as set by EzineArticles)
Writing Marathon: #72HC
live a little
Photo by – cx33000
22 Comments
I suspect that it’s time + a sustained effort. Or rather, time during which you don’t give up, and keep improving.
yes absolutely. You can’t just site there doing nothing. It takes effort over a long period of time
all of these are pretty much scams
On the one I use adfly you can make some money on that I’ve had £100 after one month using it. but to seriously make any amount online takes a lot of time and effort and the people who make that money don’t share their secrets
I share my secrets – spend 2 years developing a unique web application and then spend every waking hour promoting it
There are no secrets. And yes I agree they are all those “money making programs” are all scams.
my advice to people is to build something unique and of real value
I think that the real most important advice to succeeding online is what you said in the comments:
“build something unique and of real value”
Spending a lot of time on the wrong things, such as trying out different get-rich-quick schemes, will ultimately end in failure.
Good point. Stick to one thing, focus on it. Sure it might fail but you would have learnt a hell of a lot more than if you were to jump around chasing opportunity after opportunity.
Hey Anthony.
Good call here about time being a big factor. This reminds me of a few things. Scott H Young said that one of the biggest factors for a site’s success in readership was based on how long it had been active. This is quite true.
Another thing that came to mind in addition to time was how Gary Vaynerchuk said patience was the deciding factor, as most are not patient enough to let their output and audience develop. This is important.
Cool ideas at the end there as well.
I think it’s not just time, but TIME well spent in developing your business. We all want to be efficient, do little and reap huge harvest of results. But that rarely happens. So it’s really about making sure every effort through time is worth it.
Working hard smartly and consistently is the way to go.
Absolutely – you can’t just do nothing and hope for the best. With “time” you do learn how to work smartly and efficiently
This is a great article and I agree totally with the fact that allowing your blog time to develop is of the essence.
On Christmas day 2009 I started a new blog and challenged myself to post an article of no less than 400 words every other day. So far I am loving it and all is well. I stay motivated by writing in bulk. When ever I am feeling particularly creative I will write 4-6 posts at a time, this way I do not feel pressured. Right now I could stop writing for a month and still have enough articles in hand to post every other day.
Feel free to stop by and give me a “kick up the ^&$$” every now and then. LOL.
Well i’ll make sure I keep checking out your blog so I can see these great articles.
One important element of success is patience. Patience means allowing time to take its course. Those who are able to grasp this simple truth can attain their goals in life.
I so need to start doing article marketing again, maybe I’ll try that 100 article challenge. Thanks for reminder:)
Was scannning comments before leaving mine and really liked how you said “create something unique and of real value”. So true, everything that comes from the heart, delivers value and has your own unique touch, has much higher chances for success.
Yeah I probably should have used that line in the actual post. Oh well now I have a new post idea.
Thanks for stopping by Lana
It’s the same for everything really. Put the time in a you’ll reap the rewards. Give up too soon and you won’t. Succeeding online is definitely a long term thing but I find you need to break things down into small tasks to stay motivated. Setting small challenges for yourself is the key for me! I gave up on my personal blog after about 3 months as I’m back in full time education training to become an IT teacher so I just don’t have the ‘time’ (it’s taken over my life
). After June of this year though I’ll definitely be setting myself some online challenges and pushing myself to complete tasks within a given ‘time’scale. I have one small target that I want to achieve before the end of 2010. That gives me 6 months to achieve this after June. I want to use that time to prove to myself that I can succeed online (by succeeding with that one small task i’ll have proved it… after that who knows… but if you dedicate the time to do something once.. you can do it over and over again)
It’s so funny that I stumbled across this post! I started a blog yesterday (ironic, huh?). I’ve been writing for a blog (not owned by me) for a while and it’s been going in a different direction than when I joined. So I started my own
Anyway, thanks for this. I might take a look at those challenge suggestions. I’m very competitive!
Hi Anthony,
My first time here, good article! “Time”–one thing noone can buy. Skills sharpen with time, so they can always be acquired. But to acquire those skills, you better learn to make that time. Catch-22
If you have a minute, please drop by and check out my blog. Thanks.
Time. I will remember this important principle. Also, I will need patience and perseverance to go with it.
Anthony,
You know, I’ve spent a few months now really getting into blogging. I’ve made not a single penny, literally, and I have no problem admitting that because it’s the truth. I’m a real person who’s trying to connect with people and help them in whatever way I can.
I like what you’ve said here because it is true and too many people are being mislead and doing all the wrong things: buying products and actually wasting time. I’m not at all saying they shouldn’t be learning new things and reading those PDFs and what not. I’m saying that what they think they’re getting isn’t in fact what they’re getting.
Time with effort leads to experience and that leads to something we all want if we just keep at it. Eventually money will come but as everyone knows it just takes time even for blogging and becoming the next big time blogger.
I absolutely LOVE articles like these. Good work man… Keep at it!
Hey Eric. Thanks for stopping by. I’m so glad you get “it”. Im sure in time your blog will make money (if you want it to) and the fact you’ve already spent a few months creating content, is a really good indicator. Good Stuff!
Great challenges. Time is crucial! My first six months I put in hours upon hours into my blog. Result: 100,000 visits a month in month 5 and 6. Then, I wasn’t able to put a lot of time in for the next 6 month. Result: 7,000 visits in month 11 and 12. I am now putting in more time into my blog and i look forward to seeing those positive results. Thanks for the reminder!
Hey Anthony,
Great suggestions and tips on how to keep motivated and keep going. I am struggling with time and productivity right now. I think I will attempt the 72 hour challenge at some point and also have a host of caffeine naps. Thanks man!