Affiliate Marketing - The SMART Way

Reality Check: Should You Be “Investing In Your Business” If You’re On the Verge of Bankruptcy?

Before I get into this, let me just state up front that it’s a loaded question.

The answer depends on a lot of things, most of which only you can answer (if this in fact applies to you)…

Yes - a lot of people in this industry (myself included) have “success stories” that involve years of struggle, poverty, and so on suddenly being obliterated with an alleged ”tsunami” of traffic of sales, and then building further and further on top of the initial momentum.

John Reese somehow got himself out of $100K worth of bad debt that was spent on “opportunities”, marketing courses and other related stuff - and of course now he’s known as the “Million-Dollar-Day Guy” and likely uses $100 bills for toilet paper.

Armand Morin started out with next to nothing in some crappy little apartment, and now runs a phenomenally succesful internet business that makes mine look like a lemonaid stand.

And apparently Jeff Walker (the product launch guy) also had his “back against the wall” before his first big breakthrough. And on and on it goes.

As for me, well, basically I just ran out of money and had to figure out a way to bring in more if my wife and I wanted to have more freedom, purchase real estate, etc. There was some pressure, for sure, but it wasn’t like I was going bankrupt or anything. I was just sick of not having options.

So what does this mean, then?

Well, I don’t think it means anything.

I don’t think that being “under pressure” is a requirement, or a prerequisite, to success at all. In fact, from what I’ve seen at this point from interacting with literally thousands of customers from this business (”TheLazyMarketer.com & Friends”) , it’s become very clear to me that situation really has nothing to do with it.

What matters is attitude and perseverance. And if you ask me, both the latter and the former are a lot easier come by when you’re not in “panic mode”, with your back up against the wall.

This isn’t a hard business.

Build a site that sells shit. Preferably the kind that people like buying. Get traffic. Make money, and then do it again. And again, and again - etc.

Yes, I’m simplifying it a bit for the sake of effect - but it’s definitely not rocket science.

What it takes is focused effort and logic.

And what’s obvious to me is that people who have previous business experience are - not surprisingly - the most likely to succeed. Becuase they treat this like a task, and they get the job done - or have someone else fill in the blanks on things that they themselves can’t do (like technical stuff).

I think that a lot of the marketers who’ve made it to celebrity status in our little “IM” world have done so as a result of the passion that comes with starting out with nothing, and making it big. They’ve likely all been a part of “IM” since their humble beginnings, and so it makes sense that they are vocal within it when business starts doing well.

So you can rest assured that for every one ”rags to riches” story out there, there’s probably TEN instances where someone with resources, business acumen and drive got online with a project and made it crank out some serious numbers.

But to put things in perspective, no matter what, the money goes to the entrepreneurs. Those who dream AND do.

Not the “opportunity seeker” crowd. (Those who dream, buy stuff, skim, complain, “almost give up”, dream again, buy again… etc.)

Therefore, to answer the initial question, this is what it comes down to…

If you’re in a hard spot right now - and if your NUMBER ONE goal is to generate cash however you can, this is what you need to consider (carefully) before buying, or “investing” anything right now into your internet marketing education:

1. You Need the TIME to Make This Work

I do pretty well at this stage folks, but to be honest - I’m still at the office every day, with hours that are not unlike a regular JOB. (Yes, we travel lots, and yes, we have much more freedom, but it still takes work to keep things growing, to make progress, etc).

So if you’re on the verge of bankruptcy… and you’ve got a fulltime job that at least keeps food on the table… and you’ve got kids and/or a spouse that require a lot of your time…

…then it’s time to get real.

Don’t buy stuff that you know you don’t have time to implement.

I know it’s a lot more exciting to dwell on things related to HOPE - but honestly speaking, the smarter thing is likely to focus on your current financial state - DEAL WITH IT HEAD ON - and then, once you’ve enacted a sensible and logical plan with the help of someone who knows what they’re doing, then you can move forward, taking steps to make time to learn the ropes of this business, and most importantly, work at it.

Okay, on to the next point…

2. To Build a Business in Addition to Working a Job, You’ll Need to Sacrifice Something

You know that little saying “do today what others won’t so tomorrow you can do what other’s can’t”. That’s completely true.

It can be hard at first, but there WILL be sacrifice on your part.

And in addition to making time, you also need to carefully monitor your capital when you start out. It’s much easier to get things going if you’re not “house poor”, proverbially or literally.

Get rid of stuff in your life that racks up pointless expenses, or needlessly occupies your time.

Forget about “ego” and what your peers think if you have to temporarily “lower” your standards of living. (Nobody really cares what you do anyway - as humans we’re all so damn preoccupied with what others think about us that it doesn’t really matter).

And furthermore - don’t be deceived - most people who live a so-called “lavish lifestyle” are in so much consumer debt it would make your head spin if you saw their real financial picture. So don’t fall for the trap. It’s all smoke and mirrors, and most of them cry themselves to sleep at night (or get divorced over the stress of it all).

If you can, try to live under your means while you’re building things up. If you stick with it, and if you play it smart, eventually you’ll be able to live like a rock star and still be way under your means.  

Sarah and I travel lots, and I have a nice little 2002 BMW M3 (bought used, in cash for a great price), I have a fairly nice office to work out of, and we have relative freedom to do whatever throughout the day. But the vast majority of our after-tax take goes into investment properties (real estate).

Yes, we could blow everything. I could lease a Lamborghini. We could live in a $1M home. We could buy tons of pointless “show off” crap for the sole purpose of making a statement (to people who really don’t care).

But soon enough you reach a point where your expenses match your income - and then you’re back on the treadmill again.

And for what?

I don’t know about you, but I’d far rather live under the radar for a while, avoid bad debt and liabilities like the plague, play it smart and end up with a business (and assets) that would allow for a lot of options over the long-term.

It doesn’t matter how much money you have, or how much you currently make - what matters is your mindset.

If you’re blowing your whole paycheck on a $40,000 annual salary - trust me - you’ll blow it just as easily if your business starts churning out $40K a month.

So take a close look at your track record, and ask yourself - “am I really cut out for running a business?”

If you’re only in this for the cash, or the “image” that you can pseudo-create with that cash - then I would say that you probably don’t have the right disposition to hunker down, treat this like a business and build long-term success. That’s because your business is going to need a lot of the cash that it generates at first.

Which is why if you’re “desperate for money” or intent on spending everything you make on yourself, then you’ll just end up starving your business to death, ending up right back where you started.

The people that succeed with IM are fascinated by the business model itself. As much as they love the lifestyle and rewards of a successful online portfolio - they’re equally in love with the process. Like I said, it’s the entrepreneurs who will make it big online.

That’s because sacrifice for “the cause” comes naturally to entrepreneurs. It’s not a constant struggle; it’s a default setting.

And finally…

3. Do You Finish What You Start?

When I first got into this business, I would deliberate and “plan” stuff endlessly. Everything had to be perfect, and leveraged for maximum results. In reality, all of this back-and-forth doddling was exactly the reason why I wasn’t seeing much in the way of results.

Because focused action = results. That formula will always work for you. Even if the “action” isn’t perfect, or taking advantage of every possible form of leverage, etc.

Everything that detracts from you taking action (such as endlessly “learning”, planning too much, researching too much, etc.) directly competes with your available time to do what is actually profitable.

So if you find that you constantly deliberate, over-think stuff, take a long time to make decisions, and in general have difficulty getting stuff done and completed - then you WILL struggle with this business.

But if you treat this like building a deck in your backyard, where you do the necessary research, obtain a deck building plan, get the supplies you need and then just get out there and DO it - you’ll see results.

Most people’s proverbial “deck projects” go something like this:

- See their neighbor’s deck, get really excited about it

- Go online and read up on deck building - even more excited now

- Get wrapped up in the whole world of “deck building”, buying lots of How-To guides, blueprints, etc.

- Eventually buy high-end deck building tools

- Become unsure about the deck, start to question themselves and start to deliberate

- Buy even more how-to guides and tools, to “reassure” themselves that the deck was a good idea

- Finally they start building the deck, but it’s hard work, so they give up after an hour

- Complain about decks, deck-building “gurus”, etc. to make themselves feel better

- See their neighbor’s porch swing, get really excited about it….

What’s the problem with this picture?

It’s insanity!

Just build the damn deck already! Struggle through it and get it done! Quit stalling, “learning”, deliberating, perfecting… and get out there and pound some nails.

But as ridiculous as this seems, it is a rampant pattern in the business world - particulary with newbies who are attempting their first self-employment project.

So if this is a pattern that seems consistent with your own track record, then you either need to make some serious mindset adjustments and dedicate yourself to action…

…or you need to realize that maybe your personality type is simply not cut out for this.

Especially if you’re doing it out of desperation.

Conclusion:

Should you be buying stuff if your “back is up against the wall” and it’s a last ditch effort prior to bankruptcy?

All I can say is that if you don’t have:

1. Time

2. The Ability to Sacrifice Activities/Expenses, and

3. An Action-Oriented Personality

Then you probably shouldn’t be spending any money right now on anything - since it’s just going to go to waste anyway. At least until you’re in a better position.

Now, please don’t take this article as being a “doomsday” prophecy if you happen to relate to one of the negative attributes I’d listed above.

The fact is, I think everyone deals with procrastination, image-dwelling, the desire to “dream” rather than act, etc.

I know I do - and I used to overthink things to death (I called it “planning”). Over time, things changed (and I changed my mindset, attitude, etc.) because it’s undeniable that action breeds results. And when you see results first hand, it becomes addictive. You get your research and “info” for a project as fast as possible and then focus on actually DOING it.

So wherever you’re at, you definitely can change your mindset, your attitude and so on so that you can be action-oriented.

But if you KNOW, deep-down, that right now you’re simply buying stuff in this industry on “hope”, or because it’s entertaining - then don’t waste your time, or your money.

If your TRUE intention isn’t to ACT, then don’t invest in yourself.

You’ll only end up disappointed, and in worse financial shape than you were previously.

Just some food for thought…

-Chris