Let’s not beat about the bush here, setting up your own online business can seem a challenge at first, but sometimes you get to a stage in your life where you need a new start and a new direction. This is where I was just a few years ago and what a change to my life it has made!
Once you’ve made the decision to pursue the lucrative world of online business, then, though it might seem obvious, you have to decide how you’re going to achieve this and what it is that you have to offer! A woman working from home (or man for that matter!) must have some kind of focus, something to sell.
Are you familiar with Internet Marketing? If not, it’ll become integral to your business, because if you are to sell anything to anyone, then people have to know about your products or services. Without Internet Marketing, how will anyone know to visit your site?
Just what is happening here then? Allow this woman working from home to explain
Picture the scene: you run a shop on the High Street and every day you open your doors, you’re hoping you’ll see a sudden influx of customers. However, you and I both know this won’t be the case! It’s no use just sitting there waiting for customers, you have to work, you have to entice them in! A woman working from home has no choice but to be proactive 🙂
The Internet is just a big high street! And by big, I mean very big. Over two billion people search the web daily on the hunt for goods and services, and it’s up to you to ensure that your customers can find you! An online presence is crucial to your success, and it’s important that everything is polished and attracts potential customers or clients!
So what do you have to do?
Tools – Ensure you have working, relevant equipment! Too much unnecessary equipment can be just as unhelpful as something that packs up on you as you start to use it. Shop around – there are countless deals on computers and Internet connections, so make sure you’re not duped. I’m a MacBook Pro user having used a PC for years. However, I’m well and truly converted!
Workspace – Everyone knows that distractions can be disastrous for working, so make sure you have somewhere private where you can get on with your work! Set some ground rules so your family know to leave you in peace.
Allocate Time – Juggling a family life with your business can be difficult at times so ensure that you plan your time well! Remember, you are now your own boss, so you have the freedom to do as you please! Furthermore, you’re not restricted to working during ‘normal’ hours. If your life dictates that it’s better to work late at night, or perhaps you even function better at that time, then go for it – you can now!
Perseverance & Discipline – You’ll need both in running your own business! Not everything will go your way all the time, so stick at it when times get tough, and try to discipline yourself to have a good work ethic and to do so regularly! Motivation is key here.
Focus and Goals – Setting yourself realistic but worthwhile goals will keep you on track and make you feel good about yourself when you achieve them! Focusing on something means you’ll be more productive, and the end product will be better still.
I’m a woman working from home and these five tips have helped me so much – allow them to help you too!
Internet Entrepreneurship – It’s An Exciting Journey
The journey to Internet entrepreneurship is very rewarding, challenging too and I’ll be the first to admit that I sometimes find it difficult to keep on top of everything, so I have to be disciplined and I’ve had to develop habits.
We all tend to procrastinate (even if we think we don’t) and if you can successfully have your own daily routine that becomes habitual, you’ll achieve much more and remaining focused will become easier.
I work from home and have a family to look after and in addition we care for my elderly invalid mum Andy. Mustn’t forget our border collie Ben too. Life is hectic and this can often mean that I have a thousand things on my mind and when I’m working, I can almost guarantee that someone will want me for something.
I’ve learnt how best I can really crack on and focus and I hope my tips will help you too.
The absolute key is to develop habits for your daily routines and when your daily tasks become habits, you will find them all a whole lot easier to do. Might take a month of hard slog to get into those habits, and make no mistake, you’ll resist, but once you do develop habits for these daily actions, you’ll be raring to go, motivated and productive!
1. Internet Entrepreneurship – Start With Enough Sleep
Sorry for stating the obvious but you have to get enough sleep in order to cope with the demands on your own journey to Internet entrepreneurship. It’s essential and without enough sleep, you’ll really struggle. I know from my own experiences only too well what an impact lack of sleep has. During the first eighteen months in my own business, I was working late several nights of the week (largely due to my family and caring duties by day) very often until 1 or 2 am then getting up at 7am. Not a good idea in the long run. Take it from me. Only you know how much sleep you need so just make sure you get it.
2. Internet Entrepreneurship – Exercise
Start your day with some exercise. Honestly, this will wake you right up and make you much more alert. Your energy levels get such a boost from exercise and you’ll be able to think better, feel better and you’ll get loads more done as a result. Try it, it works. I take Ben every morning for his walk up on the Canal Banks near my home (here, take a look) and it’s the best start to my day for sure. Wouldn’t miss it for anything!
3. Internet Entrepreneurship – You Need Energy
Take food and drink into your office with you. If I’m hungry or thirsty, I can’t concentrate properly then my focus is gone. Worse if I get low blood sugar and feel weak and shaky (know the feeling?). Then nothing gets done. Take enough to keep you going while you intend to work. Don’t keep flitting in and out of your office to the kitchen, that just wastes time and allows you more time to procrastinate! Not good for productivity!
4. Internet Entrepreneurship – ‘Do Not Disturb’
It’s really frustrating when you can’t work in peace and quiet so make sure your family and friends know that they mustn’t disturb you when you’re working. Great if you have an office, just shut the door and keep it shut. Tell them it’s important not to disturb you. After all, they stand to benefit when you really get to grips and master Internet entrepreneurship.
5. Internet Entrepreneurship – Switch off all gadgets and distractions
Don’t idle away time by flicking through emails, chatting on Skype or browsing the social networks. Turn off your phone (or at least put it on silent), switch your Skype profile to away (busy tends to be ignored!) and close Facebook and Twitter. Those of us who say we can multitask will quickly find ourselves coming undone when it comes to these. You just have to be disciplined about this.
6. Internet Entrepreneurship – Clear your work area
It’s very simple really, you’ll get a lot more done if you aren’t working in a huge mess. Tidy up at night, ready for the next day and keep it that way. This helps you to stay organised. Remember, if you work in a muddle, your thoughts are going to be muddled too. I try and file all my papers away so I’ve got space to work and this ultimately helps me to think clearly.
7. Internet Entrepreneurship – Organise your work and prioritise
Allocate blocks of time to do specific tasks. Maybe you want to do your income producing activities first each day while you are fresh. That’s how I operate. Stop here for a moment and just ask yourself if you really know what your income producing activities are. The things you do that will advance your business and bring in customers. Then set a specific time aside for this and once they are done, you’ll feel great. You’ll feel like you achieved something. Also set aside time for emails and all the other daily tasks associated with running a business. You can catch up with your social media once the priorities are out of the way.
8. Internet Entrepreneurship – I keep lists
I don’t know how I’d cope without my lists. I have lists for my work, my family life, shopping, you name it, there’s a list for it. Because I commit everything to a list, nothing is forgotten so I work more efficiently (you’d be surprised at how much more you can get done this way) and what’s brilliant is that you can sleep at night because you can tell your brain you don’t have to worry about forgetting something. It’s just a psychological thing, once it’s on a list your brain can switch off and think about other important stuff or just wind down if it’s bedtime. It works, try it.
9. Internet Entrepreneurship – Personal development
It’s really important to commit to personal development each day, even it it’s only thirty minutes. Make sure you schedule some training in. There’s so much to learn in the world of Internet entrepreneurship and unless you are consistently keeping abreast of what’s happening or the latest developments etc you’ll never keep up with it. If you aren’t learning on a regular basis you are stagnating and that isn’t going to be good for your business in the long run.
10. Internet Entrepreneurship – Mindset training
Mega important, this one. If you want to be successful in your business, you MUST have the right mindset to go with it. Successful people tend to think in similar ways. I really advise you to go and start reading some books or listen to audios, maybe watch videos on YouTube. I’m reading the book ‘Think & Grow Rich’ by Napoleon Hill and it gives you the formula that successful business leaders have used over centuries. It will help you to think differently for sure.
So that’s it! A lot of these may seem surprisingly obvious, but I promise you, from personal experience on my own journey to Internet entrepreneurship, these daily actions have made all the difference to me. Realistically, the more you can apply as you get started, the better and the easier they will all become.
If you’d like to know more about the Internet business I run from home, just click here. It’s called PRO U and it’s an entrepreneurial mentorship programme where I’m being taught and mentored by the top earners of the company in Internet marketing, business and mindset skills. You can register for a FREE Internet Lifestyle Webinar hosted by the Founder Jay Kubassek. I met Jay recently at the PRO U Peak Mastermind event in Costa Rica in April 2012, click here to see more about the event and to get tips from Jay.
I have posted the video of Jay and I at the event below:
Jay explains how this is the best time to start your own business on the Internet due to the 4 trends affecting society (under-employment, massive shift in online purchasing, government debt and retirement of the baby boomers(those born between 1946 – 1964), causing what’s known as a Mega Trend). This is now and it’s affecting us all – this is why Internet entrepreneurship is the way to go!.
Internet Entrepreneurship – Are You On Your Own Journey?
Tap Into The Power Of Positive Thinking
Then a positive and motivated attitude is going to be essential to your success.
Are you a cup half empty or a cup half full person? Do you see the best or worst in a situation? Are you a pessimist or an optimist?
Have a think about it for a minute. Be honest with yourself. Do positive thoughts dominate your mind or do those negative ones creep in all too often? You might need to work on developing a mindset shift to a more positive one and my tips might help you do just that. Did you know that we have the power to influence our subconscious mind? Did you also know that our thoughts govern our actions? So knowing that, you've got to do everything in your power to keep yourself positive and this will help to position you for success.
I've got some tips to keep you going when the going gets tough. And it will at times. We none of us get something for nothing and if you are serious about stepping into the ranks of Internet entrepreneurship, then you're going to have to work hard. So let's start by getting to work on the way you feel. You need to feel good and stay feeling good no matter what.
Sleep – This one's a no-brainer. We all need a certain amount of sleep and if you aren't getting enough, how are you going to cope and if you can't cope, guess what? You won't cope, then you'll feel hopeless and your business will suffer. Before you know it, it'll drag you down. It's a downward spiral so don't get into that one.
Exercise – Vital for so many reasons. It energises us and provides us with a natural high. It also keeps us fit, helping us to stay healthy. Start your day with whatever exercise you like to do. I go for a long brisk walk with my border collie on the Canal Banks near my home in Devon, England early each morning (you can take a look here if you like). This really wakes me up and makes me feel good.
Food & Drink – Make sure you eat good nutritional food to keep you alert and full of energy. Drink lots of water (or drinks with water) to keep you hydrated. I find that if I get hungry or thirsty, I start feeling weak and shaky and this not only affects my mood but my productivity too.
Are You Grateful? – Do you wake up each day and feel grateful? Are you grateful for your life? Your family (if you have one), friends, or others that play a supportive role? Your health, their health, your happiness, their happiness, your home, having a roof over your head, where you live in the world? Do you live outside a war zone? Do you have clean air to breathe, food to eat, water to drink, warmth and a comfortable bed?
p with a list of 100 things you might be grateful for? Recall these on a daily basis and you will find that as each day goes by (that's the power of tapping into your subconscious) you will find more things to be grateful for and once you can develop deep feelings of gratitude, you'll realise how lucky you are and this will help to keep you happier and more positive and motivated.
Help Others – Do you help other people? Would you say you were an unselfish person? Go on be honest with yourself. If you do help other people, you'll know how good it feels to help someone less fortunate. Let's face it, we can all find others less fortunate than ourselves no matter what our circumstances are. There's something very fulfilling from helping someone else. Try it if you don't believe me. You'll be glad you did and it might just spur you on to making it a regular thing. One thing is for sure, it'll help to keep you happier and more positive and motivated.
A favourite saying from a former colleague of mine (and I try and live by this)……….”Do Something For Somebody Today But Do It In The Knowledge There Is No Way They Can Ever Repay You”……John Jackson.
Voluntary Work – Do you help out in a local organisation in some way? Maybe you help in your community. Do you train a team, help in a charity shop or just help an elderly person? It's good to do something that you expect nothing in return for. Maybe you think you are too busy to do any of this but it's always the busiest people that can find the time to help someone out when needed. You'll find that if you do find time to volunteer for something or fetch some shopping for an elderly neighbour, you'll feel happier and more positive and motivated as a result. Again, try it if you don't believe me. You'd be amazed at how good you feel when you know you've just made someone's day.
Vital For Internet entrepreneurship – Visualise Your Goals Daily
Daily Visualisation Of Your Goals – Spend time each day visualising your goals. Know exactly what you want to achieve in the short and long term and keep them fresh in your thoughts. Say them out aloud and picture them in your mind. This is a great way to harness the power of your subconscious especially if you tell it what you are working towards. You'll be surprised at the information that will pop into your head to help you solve a problem or find ways to run your business as you journey towards Internet entrepreneurship.
I was lucky in finding a company called PRO U around 18 months ago. You can take a look at my own journey towards Internet entrepreneurship here if you like. They're the number one online business mentorship company for individuals aspiring to become online entrepreneurs. Jay Kubassek, the Founder (meet him here) and the other top earning leaders of the company are teaching and mentoring me in everything I need to know about Internet marketing, business systems and mindset skills needed to be successful including how to be positive and motivated.
Want To See For Yourself?
Jay does FREE Live Webinars each week so why not click on the link here and register to take a closer look.
Internet Entrepreneurship – Property Development Is Where My Entrepreneurial Journey Began
Hugh Riding Doris On The Farm
It started a few years ago when I attended a weekend course in London on how to buy property for the ‘buy-to-let’ market. To become a property owner and landlady, finding properties with the right criteria in areas of high rental demand, with good potential for capital growth and just as importantly, to learn how to avoid the pitfalls.
At the time, friends and family thought I was crazy to consider such a scheme but since then, my husband Hugh and I have bought several properties in different locations in England. We had to develop some of these properties ourselves which has been quite a departure from our dairy farm that Hugh was running at the time and my job in new business development for an advertising agency. We did love farming and the way of life and the freedom and quality of the lifestyle we had.
Internet Entrepreneurship – The Farm Had To Go
But in 2001 we had to give up and leave the farm. BSE (otherwise known as Mad Cow Disease and yes, we did have a cow with BSE sadly) AND the dreaded Foot & Mouth Disease put paid to that and we had to sell our most precious dairy herd that Hugh had bred very carefully. The cow that Hugh is sitting on was called Doris and she would let us ride her (that’s not an optical illusion or clever photo-shop – Doris was a real Fresian and gave loads of milk). Hugh then spent the next three years travelling the world engineering before opening a business selling hot tubs in our home town whilst I worked in a new job I’d found in marketing in a further education college nearby. We moved in with my mum as an interim plan while we figured out where we wanted to live in the long-term.
Internet Entrepreneurship – The Hot Tub Shop Had To Go
An unscrupulous supplier and a faltering economy saw Hugh’s dream shatter and the hot tub shop had to go. Problems caused by the economic downturn coupled with non delivery of pre-ordered, pre-paid goods from the supplier meant the business wasn’t viable. We didn’t just lose our business, we lost a lot of our savings into the bargain. Our mistake was to be too trusting resulting in our supplier playing some very dirty tricks on us. We’d assumed that others would be honest like us.
Internet Entrepreneurship – Hugh Started A New Business
Ever the optimist, Hugh started another business as a swimming pool and hot tub engineer, moving into exciting areas of sustainable energy which he’s currently doing. He’s in huge demand and has finally reached a career that he can feel confident in keeping. He’s repairing equipment but he’s also working on new builds (swimming pools mostly) which he loves. While all this has been happening, I was heavily into my marketing role but towards the end of 2010, was made redundant with 100 or so colleagues during enforced governmental budgetary cuts due to the economic downturn. This came as something of a shock I have to say. Never in my life had anything like this every happened to me. Employers had always negotiated better terms to keep me, appreciating my loyalty and conscienciousness and the quality of my work with many ending up as friends – so being made to go was something that was alien to me.
Internet Entrepreneurship – Being Made Redundant From A J.O.B Was A Blessing In Disguise
I was horrified at being made redundant but soon realised it had been a blessing in disguise. It didn’t take me long to work out that there was no way I’d ever go back to working for a boss who called the shots. Someone who didn’t appreciate the fact that I consistently over-delivered on targets and objectives and who didn’t appreciate me. I never wanted my family life compromised ever again by being at the beck and call of a J.O.B. I was never able to drive my daughter to school or other things that many parents take for granted. I was also looking after my elderly invalid mum making sure my caring duties didn’t affect my job. All in all, my family could never be my number one priority because of my job and I can’t believe I stayed stuck in the employee ‘rut’ for so long. Mindless. What was I thinking of? I was brainwashed and I’m not proud of that.
Internet Entrepreneurship – I’d Have To Find A Solution
So to be made redundant was a wake up call and I knew I’d have to find a solution and I just knew I’d find my answer on the Internet. It was a gut feeling. And I did find the answer on the Internet. You know something like 2 billion people are searching the Internet everyday looking for goods, services and solutions. So it was the obvious choice. It’s the way everything is going now. It was a no-brainer.
Internet Entrepreneurship – I Got Lucky, I Found PRO U
With the skills I already had I knew I wanted my own business so I was answerable to nobody but myself and it had to be a business that would fit around my family commitments. These were my priorities. I also knew I’d need a good Internet marketing education and that’s when I found PRO U, the premier online business mentorship company for individuals aspiring to become online entrepreneurs. And what’s great is that PRO U have since become the number one incubator for many of the successful online entrepreneurs today. A variety of world-renowned experts, best-selling authors, gurus, business and thought leaders deliver mentorship to thousands of members in over 200 countries and I feel very lucky to be one of them!
Starting out on my own as a newbie to Internet marketing in October 2010 and finding PRO U was the perfect solution. The leaders of the company are teaching me everything I need to know about Internet marketing from basic and intermediate right through to advanced techniques and strategies along with the essential mindset skills needed to be successful. They provide all the custom built websites, business systems, tools, resources and support necessary to set up and run a business on the Internet.
Internet Entrepreneurship – Being Mentored By The Top Earners Of PRO U Is So Powerful
What an incredible learning curve it continues to be as I tune into the many live webinars, recordings and training sessions with the leaders, all of whom have achieved in excess of a minimum of $1 million in sales (in order to become a mentor) and I attend live events worldwide where we get to mastermind with these highly successful professionals (the top guns as I like to call them) that I’m being mentored by. Take a look at the most recent event I attended by clicking here (I went to Costa Rica in April 2012).
Vital to my own success is the mentorship I’m getting where the leaders are guiding me on the same path they’re treading in front of me, effectively showing me the way, thereby eliminating the possibility to stray off in the wrong direction (there’s loads of those for sure!). It’s the most exciting challenge I’ve ever faced, running my own business on the Internet and I’m keen to share what I’ve learnt with others following in my footsteps.
So if like me, you are looking for a positive shift in your life, then why not take a closer look at PRO U. It’s been life-changing for so many of us and could be just the answer to your problems too.
Internet Entrepreneurship – Want To Attend A FREE Live Webinar To See For Yourself?
The Founder, Jay Kubassek, does a FREE Live Webinars each week so why not click on the link here and register to take a closer look. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain.
Here’s a video of Jay and I at the event, take a look if you like……
Internet Entrepreneurship Gets Turbo Boost From Jay.
I was privileged to attend the PRO U PEAK Mastermind Retreat held in Costa Rica from 12th to 15th April 2012. My colleague, Anita Patel from Brisbane had invited me to go and it was an offer far too good to refuse. We were going to be masterminding with some of the top leaders in the industry including PRO U Founder, Jay Kubassek no less, mega superstar in direct sales. Nobody more successful than Jay in the industry. This was seriously going to be a game changer for sure. Click here to view a previous post about the event.
Jay’s company – PRO U – is the premier online business mentorship company for individuals aspiring to become online entrepreneurs and has since become the number one incubator for most of the successful online entrepreneurs today. A variety of world-renowned experts, best-selling authors, gurus, business and thought leaders deliver mentorship to thousands of members in over 200 countries. What was really awesome was that most of them were in Costa Rica with us at the PEAK Mastermind.
Internet Entrepreneurship – Getting Advice From The Leaders Makes A Huge Difference
During the mastermind sessions Jay had some great advice which made perfect sense to me. I know it’s going to have a positive impact in everything I do which is why I want to share it with you.
Jay said we need to attach a mental zipwire to our goals and focus on them. Let me explain ……..
Internet Entrepreneurship – An Afternoon Spent In The Costa Rican Forest Helped Change My Mindset
A group of around thirty of us went out in the Costa Rican forest zipwiring one afternoon, and, come to mention it, that was where I started to have a mindset shift.
Just imagine if you can, being up in the canopy of the forest, seeing a terrifying ravine ahead of you which you’re about to traverse with nothing more than a clip or two on a thin metal wire anything up to 40 metres above the forest floor between you and certain death if you were to fall. Just a helmet on for safety, no safety nets. Nothing.
When standing on those wire mesh platforms high up in the tree tops waiting for your turn, you realise you have no choice but to place your trust in the Costa Rican guides that hook you up to the zipwire. They’re confident, they do this every day. They’re not terrified (not like me – I was shaking like a jelly). They know the zipwire is securely fastened to the trees on the other side of the ravine.
However, how better to sum up our goals in what we do in our businesses? Jay Kubassek, during a presentation the following day, likened the zipwire to succeeding in our businesses.
Internet Entrepreneurship – Jay Says We Need To Have Crystal Clear Goals To Be Successful
Jay says we need to have crystal clear goals in our minds, set a mental zipwire to them and focus our thoughts and energies on achieving them. Simple as that. Without clear goals, how can we know where we are heading or what we want to achieve?
He says we wouldn’t get on a plane or a zipwire if they didn’t have destinations so it’s the same in our businesses. We have to have that mental zipwire firmly attached to our goals.
Jay went on to say that we need to face our fears and limitations head on and overcome them. Trying to solve problems using logical, rational thinking isn’t always the best option as it’s our powerful subconscious mind that will work out what we need to do and invariably will come up with the solutions. We need to face our fears just the same in both our businesses and zipwiring. Just like taking a leap of faith.
Internet Entrepreneurship – Attach A Mental Zipwire To Our Goals
Jay says if our mental zipwires are attached to our goals very clearly in our minds and we focus on them daily, our subconscious will help us find a way of getting there.
Think about it for a minute……….Think back to a time when you were trying to remember something and it just wouldn’t come to you – then the next day the answer pops into your head and you have what is called an ‘AHA’ moment. Well that’s the power of your subconscious mind at work and our subconscious brain in much larger than our conscious one (something like eight or nine times the size). When we have a problem to solve, we need to think about the problem or talk about it and our subconscious will delve down deep and usually find the answer. Go ahead and try it if you don’t believe me. I use this technique all the time now thanks to Jay.
P.S: Why not go and meet Jay yourself and find out more. Click here to go to Jay’s FREE webinar where he reveals his three secret tips to success online.
So – I’ve been back a week already and I’m still on a high, want to know why?
Flying out to Costa Rica in Central America this April 2012 to learn from the industry gurus of PRO U, those super successful leaders at the very pinnacle of success in Internet Entrepreneurship proved to be a life-changing experience for me. A real turning point in my career as an Internet Entrepreneur, I had the unique opportunity to network, mastermind and socialise with some of the biggest names in the business (doesn’t get any better than the PRO U Founder, Jay Kubassek himself no less!), while having a fantastically good time to boot!
This was PRO U’sfirst ever PEAK Mastermind Retreat event, held at the sumptuous Hilton Papagayo, Guanacaste (the Pacific side of Costa Rica) surrounded by stunning rainforest and incredible scenery amidst a backdrop of tropical splendour. You might be surprised that I managed to learn anything at all with all the excitement, but when you have powerful, respected speakers and leaders such as Jay Kubassek, David Bach, Michael Force, Jay Kilberg, Justin Woolf, Aaron & Sophia Rashkin and Chris Daigle (friend and business associate of Ryan Deiss & Mike Dillard) to name but a few, can you blame me for being captivated?! What really set these few days apart as being totally unique in every sense was the opportunity for them to not just be speakers, but to socialise and integrate on a one-to-one basis too! David Bach, 9 times New York Times Bestselling Author was equally at home during his presentations talking about his vision as he was in the swimming pool over a cool cocktail at the swim-up bar, and our small group of around 40 facing their fears on the zipwire was a true networking experience I’ll always treasure.
Lindsey with David Bach
Zipwiring, come to mention it, was where everything came together. Just imagine being up in the canopy of the forest, seeing a terrifying ravine ahead of you which you’re about to traverse with nothing more than a clip or two on a thin metal wire anything up to around 40 metres above the forest floor between you and certain death! However, how better to sum up our goal in what we do in our businesses? Jay Kubassek, in his address the following day, likened the zipwire to succeeding in our businesses. Jay says we need to have crystal clear goals in mind and set a mental zipwire to them. He said we need to forget all the baggage which is holding us back. We need to face our fears and limitations head on and overcome them. Trying to solve problems using logical, rational thinking isn’t always the best option. Our subconscious usually knows exactly what we need to do (even if our conscious mind doesn’t) and can come up with the solutions. We need to forget our fears both in business and zipwiring and take the plunge. Jay says if our mental zipwires are attached to our goals and we focus clearly on them, we’ll find a way of getting there and before we know it, we’ll be heading in the right direction!
With Internet Entrepreneurship, dreaming big and believing in yourself is KEY
Inspirational sessions and presentations took place in between the more casual networking over candlelit dinners and pool-side chats. David Bach spoke at length about the four types of people that exist in today’s society – survivors, strugglers, strivers and thrivers. David’s main market is strivers and he impressed upon each and every one of us of the importance to decide which one we are targeting with our businesses!
Looking from the pool to the Pacific Ocean!
We were treated like kings too, a whole myriad of the most delicious food available at any time of day or most of the night from as many restaurants as you can imagine, and similarly the bars were open at all hours, even in the swimming pool! Every evening we had the privilege of dining with a different guru, each of whom shared their life experiences in an informal situation. What a fantastic way to learn – when we weren’t in sessions we could continue to socialise and absorb, almost like a drip feed, as we were able to mastermind on often a one-to-one basis with these true masters of their arts! This really was a truly transformational experience, where being able to have invaluable, personal contact was more than I could have ever wished for.
So how would I sum up my Internet Entrepreneurship experience?
Lindsey with David Wood
Apologies for those of you who are bored of the zipwire analogies, but this one is my own. This unique opportunity gave me a fast track to far greater understanding in my businesses as I look towards Internet Entrepreneurship. Thanks to the leg-up that I got from PRO U (in the same way the Costa Rican guides helped me into the harness for the zipwire) I was ready and raring to go (although sick with fright), eager to learn as much as I could. Spending these few days was a rip-roaring adventure, and just like when I was speeding through the sky at speeds I thought impossible dangling from a zipwire, I was speeding through the content at speeds I thought impossible too! My notebook is full and my brain now full of ideas, and as Jay Kubassek said, my goal is clear in my head. I’m not yet off my zipwire, but believe me, when I get there, I’ll be a better person because of it.
Hold your horses! Learning Internet Entrepreneurship from the masters
Looking towards the Pacific Ocean
One last thing – saving the best to last.
I was incredibly lucky while I was there to not just chat and hang out with the masters, but also to get some video time with them too! Follow the links to see my interviews with PRO U Founder Jay Kubassek and David Wood from the Empower Network who dropped in as a special guest (David lives in Costa Rica), this really is Internet Entrepreneurship at its very best.
P.S: Take a look at what I’m doing with PRO-U and how I’m able to run my own PRO U business from home by either clicking here or on any of the pictures, which will take you to an entirely FREE webinar where Jay reveals his three secret tips to success online.
To find out about joining my team with David Wood’s Empower Network, take a look here.
Life doesn’t always turn out as you expect, but even when everything went wrong with my career and I experienced what I thought was my mid life crisis and I needed a career change, Pro-U offered me a solution which has turned my life around!
Just over 18 months ago towards the end of 2010, out of the blue I was made redundant from my job as a Marketing and Schools’ Liaison Officer at a Further Education college in the South West of England. I was one of around 100 that we’re made redundant that year, others before me had suffered the same fate in previous years and others have since – due to ongoing budget cuts in the downturn in our global economy.
I’d spent a lot time advising students on the importance of transferable skills and flexibility with careers, and suddenly I found this advice applying directly to me! I’d told them that whilst the majority of our forebears had the luxury of one career throughout their lifetime, this day and age was different and many of us could expect to change careers several times.
In a dismal job market, I realised that it could be extremely difficult for me to find a new job, and besides, I’d had enough of working for a boss from 9-5, ending up putting my work before my family, almost always – can you blame me? So, I took the plunge, and became my own boss. So what I thought was a mid life crisis actually turned out to be a blessing in disguise
Pro-U has been instrumental in transforming my life. Pioneered by the wildly successful Jay Kubassek, Pro-U is a mentoring scheme, providing members with more than 10 hours of live training a week in varying areas of leadership and marketing. Members can access a myriad of tools, coaching sessions, resources, webinars and more, and it’s an ideal online education platform where you can learn at your own pace, meet likeminded individuals and above all, to live your life as you please. Why is that? The opportunities with online marketing are limitless, and Pro-U helps give you the relevant skills, tools and support that you need to be successful.
I met Jay and other top industry leaders at an event in Costa Rica recently, you can take a look here if you like. What an awesome experience that was!
So what do you have to do?
New users are entitled to a free webinar to see what this is all about. Just click here to organise this at a time that suits you, where you can learn from Jay Kubassek himself. He’s helped thousands of people over the years to become successful online, and if you’ve come to a crossroads in your life just as I did, then perhaps this is an opportunity for you to start something new!
Pro-U offer various packages based on the metaphorical ‘mountain’ of online success – Gear Up, Base, Ascent, Summit & Peak – to suit your own needs in terms of levels of mentorship and commitment.
Rest assured, you’ll receive a first class education, unparalled opportunities to learn and mix with the best of the best online and an unrivalled skill-set to help you achieve your true potential online.
Pro U can really allow you to live life as you choose, earning the salary you choose! So if you are in a mid life crisis, why not take a leaf out of my book and turn your situation around? If I can do it, so can you.
Internet Entrepreneurship Needs Social Media Marketing
Why?
It’s an inescapable fact that social media is becoming increasingly more integrated into our lives on both a personal and business level, and for those entering the ranks of Internet entrepreneurship, it’s a really important element to include in your marketing. Having ventured onto my own journey of Internet entrepreneurship, I have developed a much deeper understanding of how important social media marketing is – and how powerful it is too. What I’ve learnt, I’d like to share with you.
Your customers and future customers are using social media and it’s a great way to engage with them. In addition to maintaining an online presence with your website, you need to be visible with a social presence also. It’s not enough just to have a website anymore and by using social media marketing, you will reach a lot more people and faster. Have you heard the phrase, going viral? Well that’s exactly what social media marketing can do for you and it means that your messages spread very quickly. And that’s what we all want for our businesses right? To reach ever increasing numbers of customers that are going to want what we have to offer.
Internet Entrepreneurship Is An Exciting Journey
The worldwide recession is forcing us to add value to our businesses, so if you embrace social media marketing, the benefits will help to keep you trading in the future. Get your social media marketing right and you’ll be able to keep the costs of your marketing down.
If you’re on a limited marketing budget, social media marketing is the most cost effective way to reach customers with information about your products, product news, sales, deals and more and you’ll find that if you devote your time (or an employee’s time), even on a part time basis, to setting up and running your social media marketing, you’ll have the ability to reach millions of potential customers that otherwise may never hear about you.
If you use some of the most popular social media marketing methods including blogging, you’ll have a very powerful program that will raise awareness in your brand which in turn, brings credibility for your company.
Internet Entrepreneurship – Connect Directly To Your Customers
Social media marketing will help build customer relations and if your consumers can easily share frustrations with products or customer service directly with you and get feedback, they will feel more confident in your brand and have a better connection to it.
Likewise, if consumers feel you value their feedback and you implement their suggestions, for example, what to name a product or a perception of a product, they are far more likely to remain loyal to your brand and act as ambassadors on your behalf.
Social media can also generate high traffic to your business and in turn, increase sales which increases your ROI – your return on investment.
It’s become an invaluable and necessary set of tools to add to your tool-kit and given the many ways we access the Internet including mobile phones and other devices in addition to computers, social media is set to continue the upward growth trend.
We may as well face it, it’s here to stay and we have to move with the times and best of all, it’s FREE.
Global Internet users top the 2 billion mark of which almost 300 million are in North America, 800 million in Asia, 450 million in Europe, 70 million in Africa, 200 million in Latin America & the Caribbean and 20 million in Australia and New Zealand.
Business owners are starting to wake up to the fact that they need to actively engage in social media marketing but many are unsure how to go about it.
There are over 30,000 social media sites but this number is increasing by 300 each month and where do you start? Where do you focus your time and energy to get a return on your investment? It can seem like a minefield.
Whatever industry you’re in, you can create useful information in the form of blogs, articles and videos to share that others will find value in and learn from. You don’t blatantly sell your products or services in social media. Your valuable content that is informative, educational and entertaining, enables consumers to get to know and trust you first. It then leads them from your social media sites to your website and that’s when you do your sales pitch. That’s how social media marketing works.
Internet Entrepreneurship – You Can Be Sure Of A Vast Audience
The three top giants that have become household names that I would recommend are Facebook, YouTube and Twitter.
Facebook has over 700 million active users and these people are logging in for an average of half an hour each day so you need to get your messages in front of them. This represents a massive marketing opportunity so you’ll need a Facebook Page.
Another giant is YouTube, the second largest Search Engine to Google and owned by Google, streaming over 2 billion videos each day. Every minute, twenty-four hours of new video footage is uploaded and the average person spends fifteen minutes a day on YouTube viewing content, representing another massive marketing opportunity.
Twitter has been around for over five years amounting to over 10 billion tweets sent which equates to around 50 million tweets each day and this number is rising rapidly. It’s the place to find out what’s happening in the world. It provides instant updates on almost any topic.
If you implement some of these strategies on your journey towards Internet entrepreneurship, you’ll be heading in the right direction for sure.
For the very best education in Internet entrepreneurship, I would suggest you register for a FREE Webinar hosted by my mentor and friend, Jay Kubassek of PRO U. Click here to register. You can also read about my own journey to Internet entrepreneurship by clicking here and here. (Check out the great advice Jay gave me)!
