Dear Newbie or Struggling Marketer,

You sent me an email that I’m finding difficult to answer.

I read every word. Every single one.

But…I get hundreds of emails every day – some are a quick “how to” question about something specific, which I can answer, and some are similar to your case – a person in need of guidance, reaching out for help.

I know what it’s like to be in your shoes. I once had no answers, either. Some of it, the technical “how to” stuff, I found out through a kind person willing to teach me.

But the broad, general stuff like what you want to know – topics like:

  • Is this niche a good one?
  • How should I choose a niche?
  • Which domain is better?
  • Where should I begin?
  • Which business model should I follow?
  • How can I make money fast?

Those are things I have difficulty answering. Oftentimes, people will send me a complete backstory of their situation – the personal details, the career obstacles, their strengths (like writing) and weaknesses (lack of money, for example) and then ask me a question like:

“So where should I begin?”

I can’t answer those kinds of questions. I don’t do personal, one on one mentoring for a reason – in order for me to guide someone in broad decisions, I have to take a ton of time getting to know them on a very deep level. Kind of as well as I know myself. Much more than a simple email exchange can harness. There simply is no “one size fits all” answer.

And what if I happen to say, “Write an eBook?” You get started and realize you HATE writing eBooks! It’s better if you research all the ways to do something and then pick your best option – go with your gut.

Even if it’s a detailed question, like:

“Should I get this domain or that one?”

It’s not fair for me to give you a quickie answer. To feel comfortable doing that, I’d have to spend a couple of hours digging into your niche – seeing what the competition is, the keyword search volume, and so on.

Since it’s not a service I offer, and it takes up so much time with as many emails as I get each day, I can’t make those decisions for you.

Right now, you’re not feeling confident. There are times when I STILL don’t feel confident in my day-to-day business. I’m constantly making mistakes with niches, keywords, business models, etc.

That’s part of learning and growing – and it HELPS you in the long run because you learned from DOING, not from someone just telling you to do something.

While I can’t give you specific help, I can offer some advice:

  1. Stop buying everything and start using blogs and forums as a way to learn initially.
  2. Alleviate the pressure you feel to launch this online business perfectly. Like the tooth fairy, there’s no such thing. I’ve had so many businesses and niche sites that have come and gone – some make money and I later delete them – it’s all part of finding what propels you with personal satisfaction!
  3. Realize that even if a program tells you to “do this, do that” or “use this tool, and that one,” it doesn’t mean you HAVE to. I much prefer to do things my own way and use free options many times rather than paid ones.
  4. If you don’t know something specific, or want more feedback than what I have to offer, go to WarriorForum.com and create a profile and ask your question. There are thousands of helpful people there – it’s how I personally learned and grew. And it’s how I give back to this day – along with my own blog.
  5. Remember that proverb: Fall down 7 times. Get up 8. (This one too – “Do it afraid – the courage will come later.”)

I am not closing myself off to you – I’ll be here if, for example, you run into a snag while doing a task and can’t figure something out. But I’m kicking you out of the nest for the broad answers you’re searching for and I want you to have the confidence to fall flat on your face a few times. It builds character!

Here’s what I do advise as someone who strongly believes in NOT having all your eggs in one basket:

  1. Start a service business first. That can be ghostwriting, backlink building, virtual assistant, or anything. Marketers who are already succeeding need help with the sheer volume of tasks they need to complete.
  2. Then create your own product. That can be an eBook or your own PLR store or WordPress templates or whatever.
  3. Then add in the mix of affiliate marketing. Most people do all of this backwards. Not me. Affiliate marketing takes longer to get going in my opinion. But it’s worth learning.

Tiff 🙂

P.S. – Do you remember your math teacher forcing you to “show your work?” Well keep track of what you’re doing so that if you DO get stuck, you can go on the Warrior Forum and say, “Hey guys, here’s what I’ve done and what I’m thinking – and I’m stuck. Can you help?”