Yes, we all know the typical answers we give. My answers are:

• I LOVE to teach
• I want to help people
• I want to Create Content that Inspires Others and Change The World.
• I want to equip people like YOU to do BIG things!

And if those truly are my answers, they will dictate every action I take.

Well, in this podcast episode, I talk about how I’m changing what I do to be able to accomplish more. I talk about my change in focus and my change in concept and I go into all the details.

Rather than explain those details in these show notes, I’m going to stop here. Why? Because I REALLY want you to LISTEN to it. Only then can you FULLY understand where I’m coming from.

So go ahead and have a listen, then leave a comment below and let me know your thoughts on the changes I’m making.

Looking forward to hearing from you.

Let me start with a story. If you don’t know much about me, I LOVE music. From the age of 12, I lived on the piano. Singing in and playing for different church groups was a regular part of my existence.

In college, I started to get very interested in recording and started purchasing equipment to help me learn about recording. At the time, I browsed around a bunch of blogs and forums learning a tip here, a trick there. It was awesome.

However, at a certain point, I decided to take things even more seriously and bought a course to become a certified Recording Engineer.

If I remember correctly, the cost of the program was $299. At the time, that was A TON of money for me to the point that it was almost painful, but I was ready to take things seriously, and that’s exactly what I did.

A package was sent to me in the mail. It contained all of the resources I needed to learn about becoming a Certified Recording Engineer. My path was clearly laid out for me, and I went at it like nobodies business. The Result: I’m now a Certified Recording Engineer.

There was something about being fully invested into that program that encouraged me to take it SERIOUSLY. I can almost guarantee that if I hadn’t invested, I would NOT be a Certified Recording Engineer today.

The Value In Free

If you’ve been following what I do here at Become A Blogger for a while, you know what I think about Free. Free content is a great way to offer value and attract people to your brand. It’s a great way of providing value for your target audience.

I do a FREE Podcast, post FREE Blog updates here, create FREE videos, run a FREE community, AND give my time for FREE by responding to comments right here on the blog. Then, there’s my Biology Blog where 99% of what I do is create FREE Biology Videos. Some (including myself), would say that I give away TOO much for free.

Why? Because in my Crazy mind, I have the notion that I can change the world by doing so. And I seriously believe it.

Free is not all bad. In fact, Free allows me to make money. Needless to say, I place a high value in Free. But sometimes Free is not Enough.

Are You Building A Business?

My blog is my business! That’s not always something I used to believe. However, I now look at my blog as a business, and that concept has changed the way I look at my blog completely.

Now, if you are building a business, you are gonna have to make money. Money to get things done, to pay people for services rendered, to grow and expand your business, and yes – to PAY YOURSELF. Isn’t that why you got into business in the first place?

Don’t let your altruistic mentality Stop you from taking your business seriously. Trust me. That’s something that has held me back in the past, but I’m learning and growing, and becoming more accepting of the fact that I am a businessman.

Do You Want People To Take You Seriously?

If you don’t value your time enough to put a monetary value to it, why should anybody else?

Your time is the most valuable asset you have. However, it’s the thing that gets wasted the most. If you’re investing a ton of time building your blog, you want to show that there is value associated with that.

Whether you’re creating products, providing a service or promoting other people’s products, treating it like a business indicated to others that you are serious about what you’re doing.

As I mentioned in the beginning of this post, I’ve been a part of a number of groups. From my experience, it VERY HARD to get a group of people together in a volunteer group, who are committed to being there on time, doing everything that they committed to doing and helping that group to grow.

However, whenever I’m a part of a Paid class, there is Significantly greater participation. Why? Because there’s a value associated with the class, people take it more seriously.

Help People Take Themselves Seriously

When I invested that $299 into my Recording Engineer course, I knew I had to take myself seriously. It was almost painful, and I needed to make sure that the investment wasn’t a waste.

So, as soon as I got the course in the mail, I went at it. I went through all of the written content, listened to the CDs and did all the exams. It was GAME TIME and I was invested, not only financially, but also mentally.

Paying that money really helps me to take myself seriously, and in MANY cases, it helps your audience take themselves seriously too. I didn’t want that money to go to waste, so I had to step up my game.

Yes, I know that there are some people who will pay for something and still do NOTHING about it. But hey, your job is to make sure you are providing value. It’s their job to Take Action. You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink.

Build Something Bigger Than Yourself

As I look at the kind of impact I would like to have on the world, I’ve started to realize that in order to have that kind of impact, I need to do more than what I can do on my own. It needs to involve other people, and resources will be needed to do big things (like changing the world).

In order to accomplish that, I know that my business will need LOTS of resources. I will need to have the right people in place to take care of the business and help it to grow.

The fact is, I’m NOT a good designer, I HATE dealing with financial records, I can’t code to save my life and the list goes on and on. I haven’t revealed all of my plans for Become A Blogger as yet, but lets just say that they’re big. I also haven’t revealed all of my plans for Interactive Biology as yet, but lets say the same thing there

If you have HUGE dreams, it will take money, and for your business to make money, you’ve gotta charge for SOMETHING!

When Should I Start Monetizing

Before I get into this, I want to emphasize something. Just because I say something, it doesn’t mean that you have to do it. You need to find what works best for you and then do THAT. In some cases, that will be exactly what I recommend. In other cases, it can be a modified version of what I recommend. And in other cases, it can be the complete opposite of what I recommend.

When I first start a blog, I try not to monetize. Why? Mostly because I want to focus SOLELY on content and providing the highest amount of value. Let me give you an example of how I’ve done this recently. Well, it’s how my partner has done it with my guidance.

In June of last year, I helped Cassandre Beccai start a Natural hair blog. I believed in her mission and decided to come to a partnership agreement. This is how we’ve built it to the stage where we are now going to be monetizing:

• We started the blog with the focus of delivering high quality, short videos on the topic of natural hair.
• She started reaching out to other bloggers in her niche, and as a result got a considerable amount of exposure.
• We set a goal of building her list to 1,000 subscribers and then monetizing with digital products
• She met that goal last month (January).
• She sent out a survey to her audience asking them what they were struggling with and got some GREAT feedback.
• Now that she knows EXACTLY what her audience is struggling with, we’re going to start creating that product and selling it from her blog

I predict that it’s gonna be awesomeness!

Now, there’s one thing I never mentioned about her blog before, and I’m not sure why. One of the things she does is that she creates hair products and sells them, and it only makes sense to sell them from her blog. And that’s exactly what she did, from the very beginning.

Guess what? She sells about $500/month now without significant promotion. Why? Because her audience is growing and the products are VERY relevant to them.

So when did we start monetizing? Day one. However, there was a HUGE FOCUS on providing value up front, while still having a business!

What Should You Hold Back?

Ahh man, the magic question. Ok, lets say you believe that you should charge for something even while living in this “everything should be free online” age. How do you decide what to charge for.

Well, that’s something that you have to decide for yourself, but here’s my philosophy. Yes, I give away a lot for free. However, I do have some set structured courses that help you get from point A to point B, with Video training that’s arranged in a sequence, audio lessons, an PDF downloads. In other words, it’s a fully thought out course that helps you accomplish a specific goal – to set up a blog, build it into an authority in your niche by driving relevant traffic, and then monetizing your blog in a number of different ways.

There’s a target destination and the course will take you through the steps to be able to reach that point.

However, on the blog, I talk about ANYTHING related to my niche. It doesn’t have to be as structured or as well laid out, but it’s still tremendously valuable.

In fact, if you want, you could actually go through ALLLLLLL the content here and get most, if not all of what’s in the course 100% free of charge. However, that would be a tremendous amount of digging. I’m not even sure what all you’ll find.

But there’s a balance to where someone could pay absolutely nothing, follow what I do here at the blog (which is what I want you to do either way) and get tremendous value. And if they want to take it one step further, they can choose to purchase my premium course – it’s a convenient option for MANY.

And what about my biology blog? I provide ALL of my videos 100% free of charge. However, I’ve decided to leverage the traffic I get there to be able to monetize using Adsense and will eventually look into advertising agencies with higher payouts.

I also created a study guide from the very same videos I give away for free. However, it organizes the content in a way that’s convenient for my audience.

Eventually, I will also add more products and services to my offerings, which will also include some level of private coaching.

The key lesson – People Will Pay For Convenience, whether that’s from a course that helps them reach their target destination, a repackaged, easy to consume guide to help them accomplish their goal or guidance from someone who is more experienced to help them do what they want to do.

So What About You?

What’s your perspective on Free vs. Paid. Should you give everything away, hold things back, or something in between?

Let me know in the comments below.

Click here to view the embedded video.

So yes, my blog is my business, and because of that – I take it seriously. Because of that, I will continue to work my behind off to create content that inspires others, and even change the world.

How seriously do you take your Blog? Is it your business?

Just in case you haven’t seen the video I referred to, here ya go:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Sometimes, I actually open my big mouth and say that I’m going to do things that are a bit out there, and then I get tired and am tempted to just not do it.  To take it even further, sometimes I actually give into the temptation to do nothing. I sit on my butt, watch some TV or just go to sleep without accomplishing the tasks I had set out to do.

However, there are some times when I feel that way and someone steps in and holds me accountable to the goals I set out to accomplish, and it helps me to push beyond the way I’m feeling in the moment and get things done.

This video talks about one of those days. Oh, and I have some guests on the video. It’s fun stuff. Check it out!

Click here to view the embedded video.

After you watch the video, you can head over to join the Become A Blogger Community so that we can hold each other accountable. It’s a beautiful thing

Transcript of This Video

Some people like to be able to read a transcript while watching the videos, or just read the transcript without even listening. If you are one of those people, not to worry – We’ve made the transcript available for you below.

The reason is quite simple – I’m a Seventh Day Adventist Christian and Saturday is my Sabbath – my day of REST! – YAY. Ok wait . . . don’t leave, LOL. It’ll be worth it. I promise

Well, this morning I woke up at 5am, did my morning duties and then went on Youtube. Well, I found a video that REALLY spoke to me this morning and I had to share it with you.

This picture gives a little bit of a hint as to what it’s about.

Ok, so here’s the real deal – Over the last few weeks, I’ve been getting A TON of email. Literally, HUNDREDS of emails. However, there are a few that REALLY stand out! I’ve gotten messages from people ALL OVER THE WORLD who are really struggling – financially, relationally, emotionally, and otherwise.

This morning, after watching this video, I thought of you and just HAD TO share this. Why? It really lifted my spirits and I think it can lift yours too. BUT, I have some VERY SPECIFIC instructions that you HAVE TO follow in order to experience Maximum Success.

7 Steps To Achieving Maximum Success

• Step 1: Pres Play
• Step 2: IMMEDIATELY change the view to FULL SCREEN
• Step 3: Turn up The Volume to a Good Level (but one that won’t disturb your neighbors)
• Step 4: Nod your head to the beat
• Step 5: Smile (this should happen naturally, but I included it just in case)
• Step 6: Leave a Comment letting me know what you felt
• Step 7: Share this with someone else who needs to feel that same thing

Click here to view the embedded video.

It’s on the topic of success.

What I’ve realized is that although we all have the ability to be successful, our mindset holds us back. If you suffer from that problem (and even if you don’t), I would HIGHLY recommend for you to watch this video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

If what Will had to say resonates with you and you want to explore it even more, check out my podcast episode where I break down the topic of success even more.

I want to hear your comments on this one, so leave them below.

- Leslie

Sometimes I sabotage myself in a way that I’m moving away from my goals. Do you ever find yourself doing the same thing?

Setting goals is one thing, but that’s not where the big things happen. It’s not where you set yourself up success.

If this is something that you struggle with, and I mean EVER, especially as you build your blog, I’d like for you to watch the following SHORT Video.

It’s the first in a series of action tips, and I hop it helps you get in gear to take action.

Oh, and when you’re finished watching it, leave a comment and share what Action you are going to take.

See ya in the comments!

Click here to view the embedded video.

So I decided to recorded this episode to help our relationship grow a little better

Actually, I NEEDED to record this one, because it’s been on my mind so much and I had to get it out there and share it with you. Today’s episode deals with the concept of Success.

First, I make two very BIG announcements:

1. The first is so big that you will have to listen to hear it.

2. I’m speaking at BLOGWORLD in New York (in 2 weeks). I know it’s short notice, but if you’re interested click here to register and use the coupon code PodLearn10 for 10% off. There’s also a Virtual Ticket Option if you just want the recordings of the sessions (SOO worth it).

Then, I answer two questions from Lynn about blogging about multiple topics and branding yourself.

Then I get into the main content . . .

I found this video with excerpts from interviews that Will Smith has done. I saw it floating around on Facebook somewhere and decided that I HAD TO share it with you and break it down in terms of what it means for authority bloggers.

I listen to the MP3 of this video every single day, at least once. Why? Because it helps me to keep things in perspective, and it helps me to push beyond any discouragement that might come up in my Blogging Business.

You can go ahead and watch the video below:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Here are some of the things I cover in this episode:

• Finding your Motivation
• Talent vs. Skill – which is more important
• Be willing to work your Behind off
• Your current situation doesn’t matter. Find out what does.
• The best way to build your business (one brick at a time)
• Forget being realistic. Everybody else will do that for you

However, only a small fraction of the people who join actually accomplish some level of success? Why, because most people go about it the wrong way.

In today’s episode, I give 10 ways to Maximize your investment in any coaching program, regardless of the topic.

Before I get into the meat of the episode, I make 2 announcements and answer a question from the hotline

Announcement #1 - Become A Blogger 2.0 is coming VERY soon. In fact, we’re holding a LIVE Webinar on Thursday to Kick it Off and will be giving away a TON of Valuable info, in addition to some gifts on the live webinar.

Announcement #2 – I’ve set up some easy URLs for you to connect with me on Social Networking Sites:

• LeslieOnFacebook.com
• LeslieOnTwitter.com
• LeslieOnPlus.com - in the episode I said LeslieOnGooglePlus.com, but that was the wrong URL
• LeslieOnYoutube.com
• LeslieOnPinterest.com

Butch Gibson called in to ask if it’s a good idea to target specific keywords phrases by using one of the keywords and not the others, or by using a different variation on the keyword. I answer his question in some detail, showing that it all depends on what you are targeting and how closely the content relates to the keywords. Listen to the episode to understand my explanation.

The Feature Segment

Alrighty, here are the 10 ways I talk about to help you maximize your investment in ANY Coaching Program:

Only take part in ONE coaching Program, especially if you’re a beginner. Avoid the Shiny object syndrome. There are always other programs out there, and other “gurus” out there encouraging you to buy their program, because it’s the best thing since sliced bread. However, you should choose a program that solves the problem you are dealing with at the time, and focus on that program.

Take Notes. Most coaching programs these days are video-based. It can be annoying to try to sort through a bunch of videos to find a specific topic. By taking notes, and doing so in an organized way, you are better able to keep track of the main ideas, and to focus on what needs to be done.

Take Consistent Action. Yes, if you’ve been listening to me for a while, then you’ve heard me mention this a Billion and a half times. In fact, I dedicated an entire episode (Episode 63) to the topic. Don’t just learn. Learn and act immediately.

Ask too many questions – Even the annoying ones. Yes, you can spend hundreds of hours trying to find the answer to a simple question, or you can just ask someone who knows. If you are in a good training program, there will be ways for you to ask questions. Take advantage of those systems.

Connect with others in the program. Building a business is hard work. Building a business alone is MUCH HARDER. No man is an island. We all need people to help us accomplish our goals, especially if those goals are HUGE. If you are in a coaching program, there will most likely be other like-minded individuals in that program. Seek them out, connect with them, share ideas and grow together.

Hold each other accountable. One of the best decisions I’ve made since getting into blogging has been to not only connect with other like-minded individuals, but to have a select few that hold each other accountable. That extra accountability has done wonders to increase my productivity. I would recommend for you to do the same.

Take one step at a time. Multitasking sucks. We think we’re good at it, but it’s not true. In 2005, a study showed that individuals who were multitasking during an IQ test scored an average of 6 points lower than individuals who were stoned on marijuana. Focus on one aspect of the program at a time.

Repeat the coaching program and see what you missed. This is something I still do today. I’ve been fortunate to go through A NUMBER of coaching programs on specific topics related to internet marketing and blogging. I have a folder of a ton of courses I’ve taken. Every so often, I find myself reaching back into that bag of goodies to find a way to tweak what I’m currently doing and make it better.

Systematize your actions. Taking action is great, but if you can systemize what you are doing, all the better. What do I mean by that? Instead of doing everything manually, put systems in place that can take care of certain things in an automated (or easier) way. For example, you can use autoresponders like Aweber for following up with prospects or subscribers. Another example is by using TextExpander.

Focus on the Essentials. In any program that you are going through, identify the core 2 or 3 things that will give you the biggest bang for your buck. Focus on those things. For me, that’s Content and Relationships (subscribers, peers, coaches).

Outsource mundane tasks. There are certain tasks that are essential for your business to run, but they don’t have to be done by you. Decide what they are and outsource them. Odesk is a great place for finding outsourcers. (answering emails, transcribing videos, posting to the blog, etc).

Resources Mentioned in Today’s Episode

• The Ultimate, Step-By-Step Guide To Becoming A Successful Blogger, Without The Complicated Geek Talk… (Live Webinar this Thursday)
• Become A Blogger 2.0

Who:

Have you ever known someone who just  can’t stop complaining about what’s happening in their life?

Have you ever known someone who always sees the negative?

Are YOU that Someone? If so (and even if it’s not the case), you want to check out this interview because it’s AWESOME, and it will help you to see beyond the negative.

Today’s interviewee has a very interesting story and it was great to sit down and chat with her.

Sibyl Chavis quit her job, sold her house, packed up her stuff (and family) and decided to switch things up a bit.

What I loved was a little experiment that she ran – to stop complaining for 40 days. Then, 40 days turned into 5 years and her life has never been the same.

Today, she blogs at Possibility Of Today – a very interesting blog teaching how to live today better than yesterday.

You should check her out on Facebook – Over 30,000 fans and over 10,000 twitter followers. It’s very clear that she knows what she’s doing, so I was glad to have her on the show.

Here are some of the points we touched:

• How she made the decision to leave everything behind and start a new life
• The challenges involved with that change
• What she learned from her days without complaining
• How She started and Grew her blog
• Why you won’t find ANYTHING for sale on her blog
• How to deal with failure
• How to grow a strong following

I know you are going to enjoy this one, so sit back, relax and just listen.

As usual, if you have any questions, comments or suggestions, you know what to do – Call the Hotline at (888) 835 – 2414

Take care, and God Bless!

- Leslie Samuel

Well, after listening to today’s episode, you will no longer have ANY excuses. If you still do, then I don’t know what to tell ya.

So, here’s what I cover in this episode specifically:

First, I take the FUNNIEST call I’ve ever received. John, from Ask John English calls the hotline to share something that happened to his wife (and yes, it relates to this podcast). If you listen to this episode just to hear that short 40 second feedback, it will be worth it. You WILL laugh, LOL.

Then, I take a question from Glen Steinson from the Stewardship Weekly Podcast about how to decide on what Social Network to target.

Then I get into the topic for today’s episode, where I talk about the 5 excuses I hear about why we fail to take action. But I don’t just tell you what the excuses are, I make them obsolete, by giving you advice on how to get rid of those excuses and start taking action.

After doing that, I give 2 tips that can help you overcome any of those excuses you might be using.

The key is this – I want you to take action. I want you to succeed, and I know that “Success is 95% Failure”. If we don’t take risks, if we don’t take action, we will NEVER accomplish ANYTHING.

So, join me on this quest to get rid of any excuse and to come out on top.

Questions? Comments? Suggestions? You know what to do – Call the hotline @ (888) 835 – 2414

I’m a Christian, and I’m an internet marketer.

One of the reasons I’ve been able to accomplish as much as I have online is that I’ve learnt from other internet marketers (although, that’s not the only reason, as you’ll see below). I’ve read a ton of blogs and books, gone through a number of courses, been mentored, listened to podcasts, watch videos, and done a whole bunch of other stuff to further my “internet marketing education“.

This has been a very rewarding process and I’ve learnt a lot about how to build successful websites, businesses and affect the lives of many people all over the world.

If there’s is one “take home message” I’ve gathered about building a brand using a blog it is this – One of the keys to building a successful blog is to let your personality shine through. This is something that I’ve heard from a number of marketers, especially in the interviews I’ve done for my podcast – Learning With Leslie.

I know that this is true because when I think about the people I follow online, I feel as if I know them. No, I may not know them personally, but I have a good idea of the kind of people they are.

In general, they are people who:

• Think big
• Are willing to put in the hustle that’s necessary to accomplish big things
• Like to have fun
• Care about building massive businesses
• Care about their subscribers, readers, listeners, audience, etc.
• Recognize that they don’t know everything

But there’s something that I’m noticing that is missing in the Internet Marketing scene, at least in terms of the people that I’ve come into contact with, and that is successful internet marketers who are committed Christians, and not afraid to let that aspect of their lives infuse everything they do online.

Why do I say that?

I remember doing an interview with someone (who will remain nameless). The interview was going great and the content was awesome. Then, halfway through the great interview that person, who I’d been looking up to for a while, just started cursing. At that point, my entire demeanor changed – not because I thought that this person was suddenly a bad person for cursing, but it brought up some feelings that I’d been having for a while.

I listen to a bunch of podcasts. In fact, it’s one of the ways I learn a lot about the industry. Recently, I’ve been finding myself extremely bothered by the fact that the podcasts I’ve been listening to have become more R-rated in terms of language.

Is this a big deal? I know that most people would disagree with me, but I would say YES! Why? Allow me to illustrate with a little story.

When I first went to College, I was very excited to be away from home. It was party time, and I was going to be the life of the party. I had a great time, but soon ended up realizing that I needed to get my life together. I wanted to become a “better Christian” but couldn’t seem to do so. I would try hard and then keep falling back into the sins I used to love.

One of the things that I struggled with was my language. I used to cuss up a storm, and I really didn’t want to continue doing that, because I didn’t feel that I was representing God the way I was called to do.

Eventually, I decided to try something different. I decided to change the music I listened to. No longer would I listen to Hip Hop. I was gonna listen to all Christian music (mostly Gospel and Acappella). Then after doing that for a while, I noticed something – I no longer cursed. Those words were no longer a part of my vocabulary, and it happened without me trying.

What I learned from that was the validity of the statement – By beholding, we become changed.

I realized that the more we let certain things into our minds, the more we become like those things. I realized that the shows I watched on TV so often, played a big part in determining who I would become, and that my actions were strongly influenced by the people I associated with. It’s like this unconscious thing that happens.

So, I’ve been listening to all of these marketers who are awesome entrepreneurs, and I’ve naturally been coming more entrepreneurial as a result. For that, I’m grateful.

However, I’ve also noticed some traits that I don’t want to see in myself, and when I sat down and asked myself where it was coming from, I started to realize that it was a result of what I was consuming on a regular basis.

So it lead me to ask the question – Where in the world are the Christian Internet Marketers?

Where are the men who are doing big things online that aren’t ashamed to let their Christianity shine through everything they do online?

Where are the ladies who care more about helping others than helping themselves?

Where are the men who do what they do in a way that people can see Christ in them and be drawn to Him as a result of the business we do online?

Where are the ladies who do what they do not just for the money, but because they believe that God has called them to do what they are doing, even online?

Where are the men and women who live according to what the Bible says in 1 Corinthians 10:31 – “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God”

Why do I do what I do?

I do it because I truly believe that God has called me to do it - to reach the world with this amazing technology called the internet. My success has not come because I’m some kind of Guru. My success is because God has been good to me, and it’s time for me to start acting like it.

I’ve rewritten my About Me page to reflect that, and from here on out, I hope that my blog, my podcast, and everything else I do will cause people to not only look to achieve more out of this life, but to look towards the life that is to come.

So where in the world are the Christian Internet Marketers? Lets stand up! Lets change the world! In our businesses, in our lives, let God be the one shining through us, so that as we build our businesses, we aren’t only helping others be successful. We are also showing them that there’s more to life than business, money and success. We will show them that true happiness doesn’t come from those things, but from a relationship the man upstairs.

Take care, and God Bless!

- Leslie Samuel

P.s. If you agree with what I said in this post, please feel free to Tweet it, share it on Facebook and on Google+

Who:

It was a pleasure to have Mitch Wilson back for a follow up interview.

I interviewed him almost a year ago, where he talked about how he built his blog, Sports Chat Place, into a massive blog.

In today’s interview, we talk about what has happened since then, how his blog has become more than just a blog, and what it takes to be successful.

Here are some of the things we cover:

• How important it was for him to take a Blogging Course
• How he gets his traffic
• The role of Content in his business
• The opportunities that appears when your blog reaches a certain level (and what that level is)
• What it takes to be successful online

Mitch uses HUGE numbers in this interview – numbers that are so huge that they can almost be intimidating. However, it’s something that I think is VERY important to hear.

Why?

Because it lets us know, and understand, what is possible, and how powerful blogging can be. By listening to interviews like this, it increases my motivation to do BIG things.

So go ahead and have a listen. And of course, leave a comment (or question) below, letting me know what you think.

Also, if you have a question you would like for me to answer on the show, make sure to call the hotline at (888) 835 – 2414.

Resources for this Interview

• Sports Chat Place (Mitch’s blog/MASSIVE enterprise)
• My previous interview with Mitch

Today’s interview is nothing less than a privilege.

One of the first podcasts I ever started listening to was Foolish Adventure.

Why? Because I heard that it was being launched by Tim and his former partner and the name sounded a bit weird.

I remember thinking to myself – “Foolish Adventure? Internet Marketing? What’s that about?”

Then I started listening to it and was amazed at the content. At first, I didn’t think I would learn a lot, but man . . . was I surprised.

Tim has been sharing a lot of knowledge that he’s accumulated from over 13 years of being a marketing consultant. This is one of the VERY FEW podcasts that I can say that I’ve listened to EVERY SINGLE EPISODE. That should tell you something.

As we start off the new year, I wanted to focus on the kind of mindset it takes to be successful online. That’s what the month of January will be about.

So I invited Tim on here to talk about his experiences, what he’s learnt over the years and to share what kind of mindset it takes to be successful online.

In this interview we cover:

• Why his first business failed
• What he learned from that experience
• How he moved on from there to become successful
• The one thing you NEED in order to have a business
• The kind of mindset it takes to be successful online

In fact, I had so much to say in this episode that I did it in 3 Parts:

Part 1: Answers to your questions.

At the beginning of the episode, I respond to 3 questions. . .

The first was called in by John from AskJohnEnglish.com. He asked me how I manage multiple WordPress sites. I run this blog and my Biology blog, and it can be quite complicated trying to manage it all. Fortunately, I’ve learnt a thing or two about making it work, and I share 3 tips with John.

The second was from an anonymous caller. She wanted to know what I thought about services like Blog Talk Radio and Talkshoe for doing a podcast. I gave her three reasons why I recommend to avoid those services like the plague, lol.

The last was from Rochelle Hanson from Simply Natural Ideas. She also wanted to know about podcasting. She’s interested in starting a podcast but wanted to know how to overcome technical hurdles. I give her 3 tips.

Part 2: The Announcements

This year is off to an exciting start, and there are exciting things happening here at Learning With Leslie. These things are so exciting that I’m not even going to mention what they are here in the show notes. You’ll have to listen, so that you can hear the excitement in my voice and feel it yourself.

Part 3: How to be Productive in 2012

I’ve made a decision that my word for 2012 will be “productivity” and I want you to join me in this quest. In order to help you along in that journey, I give some tips to help us all be more productive.

What do I mean by productivity?

Having something to show for the work you put in. If you’re working constantly, and not seeing a result, you’re doing something wrong.

This is the year where we move beyond being stagnant, and start to make things happen.

In part 3, I talk about what this all means for me, and what it should mean for you.

My Questions for this episode:

• Are you willing to join me in this quest for productivity?
• What does productivity mean for you?

Resources from in this Episode:

• My brand new relaunched 7 Day Bootcamp.
• The Insiders Club (this week only)
• The 80/20 Principle

As we draw near to an end of 2012, and welcome another year, along with it comes new plans to make this an even better experience for all of us, and part of it is making my business better. I believe that there’s always room for improvement in my online business.

I am so excited to share with you five changes that I plan to make with my business, and hopefully, you too will get something to think about. Don’t feel pressured though. This is only me sharing what’s in my heart, as usual. There are no rules to follow… only my thoughts to share, and in the hope that you might find some value in them.

In this podcast, I have elaborated on what these five changes are and what their effects would be. Also included are:

• A review on Episode 54
• The five changes I plan to make, and a discussion of each
• My challenge for you, at the end of the podcast.

Each of us will probably have different situations that we need to work on. But, knowing my side of the story may be a good start and guide for you to know where to start.

Resources Mentioned in this Episode

• 7-Day Boot Camp – my online free resource to help you with your business.
• Market Samurai – tool I recommend for keyword search
• GoDaddy – tool I recommend for getting a domain name.
• HostGator – tool I recommend for getting a host site.
• Aweber – tool I recommend for list building.

Truth is, in some ways, it’s just like any other job or business, online or offline, not everything is perfect as it always sounds. I’ve been doing this for three years now, and you probably are thinking that I should now be just sitting back, and relaxing, just waiting for all the money that I can possibly earn.

Well, I hate to break it to you, but, you’re wrong. Making money online, yes, is very challenging. There are definitely a lot of obstacles that we bloggers face. What makes me wonder is, what motivates us to move on and continue doing what we are doing? Why aren’t we giving up? What makes us go through everything and see a light at the end of every struggle, which leads us to becoming successful with this?

I’d like to be inspired about what you’ll have to say. I’d like to learn from you and be motivated to move on and pursue my goals.

This episode will not be your regular podcast episode here at Learning with Leslie, but hopefully, with some interaction from you, somehow, in the end, we’ll all gain from this experience.

In a lot of ways, this blog (and podcast) allows you to get inside my head and find out more about me. However, there are certain things I don’t talk about here that play HUGE parts in who I am.

Soooo, I just thought I’d help us take this relationship to the next level by telling you some things about me that you may not know. This post has NOTHING to do with internet marketing, so if that’s what you’re looking for, check out the archives.

I don’t usually do this, so consider yourself special

Ok, so here goes (and don’t laugh) . . .

Thing #1 I LOVE playing the piano

At the age of 12, I started taking piano lessons and guess what – I HATED IT. After a year, I asked my parents to stop, and they allowed me to. There was just something about the structure of piano lessons that I really disliked. I wanted to play what I want, the way I wanted to play it. I didn’t want some piece of paper telling me how I “should” play.

So I continued playing on my own and learned to play by ear. I’ve been playing now for 19 years and have been privileged to accompany choirs and various groups all over the U.S., Germany, and throughout the Caribbean – even on national television.

Music is more than just something I do. It’s something I Love. My wife and I do concerts every so often where she sings and I play.

Thing #2: I was teased A LOT as a child

No seriously – A LOT. Let me give you some background. Some of this you might not believe. When I was born, I was 4.5 pounds (VERY small). So small (and forgive me for getting so graphic) that when my mom was in labor, she pushed and I flew out. The nurse literally caught me above her head. You think I’m joking but I’m serious.

At the age of 5, I could sit in the palm of my mother’s hand. However, there was one part of my body that wasn’t small AT ALL, and that was my head. Because of this, my classmates made fun of me constantly – calling me things like Herman monster, Baboon, Never ending Forehead, and a slew of other creative names.

You know how mean kids can be sometimes. Every day, I knew that there would be a period of time when all of the guys would get together just to make fun of me. Fortunately, I had a strong mother, who would constantly encourage me not to pay attention. Her statement was always – “Don’t worry with them teasing you about the size of your head. Tell them it’s that big because you have a big brain” (hey . . . stop laughing).

Even more fortunately, later on in high school, that all changed. It was as if the rest of my body caught up with my head and I started looking normal (relatively speaking, lol). Don’t worry, if you laughed at all in this section, it’s ok. I hold no negative feelings about it

Thing #3: I was a TERRIBLE STUDENT

Yes, it’s true. Growing up as a child in St. Maarten, I NEVER did ANY homework (literally). Why not? Because they didn’t count for a grade. Your grade was only dependent on your Tests and Quizzes. Since that was the case, I didn’t see a need for doing homework.

Having me in class was not necessarily the sunshine in my teachers’ days. One of the things I enjoyed doing very much was talking – even when I wasn’t supposed to be talking, lol.

Fortunately, I did well in High School. However, my homework habits soon caught up with me. As a college student, I had a very hard time turning in homework. Let me give you an example . . .

When I took General Chemistry as an undergraduate student, we were given 3 homework assignments on a weekly basis. I turned in 3 for the quarter. Yeah, I know – not too smart there. Fortunately, I did very well on the exams and quizzes and was able to pass (but barely). In my first semester of college, my GPA was 2.0. In the second, it went down to 1.2.

I skipped A LOT of classes, and spent too much time doing things I shouldn’t be doing. My 4 year degree took me 6 years because of how many classes I had to take over.

Thing #4: I was a GREAT STUDENT

Yeah, I know what you’re thinking – “Leslie, you said you were a terrible student. How in the world can you be both terrible and great”. Well, things changed. For me, that change happened while sitting in a physiology class. I started learning about the human body and was utterly amazed at how intricate we are.

The first section in that class was on the Nervous System. That fascinated me so much that I wanted to learn more, and more, and more. From that point on, I was VERY passionate about learning. It turns out that I was never passionate about learning because I was never really challenged. So, I decided to challenge myself and I’ve never gotten anyt

hing less than an A since that day. Wait, no. I lied. I did get a B+ when taking a teaching course that I didn’t care too much for.

Since then, I went on to finish my Bachelor’s degree in Biology with an emphasis in Zoology, and a Masters degree in Neurobiology. Change is Possible. My Master’s GPA was 4.0 – much better than 1.2. In fact, my entire Master’s degree was paid for by my biology department at the time, which was a tremendous blessing. They even sent me to Germany for 2 summers to do research. Good times.

So how do I know that transformation is possible? Because it happened to me!

Thing #5: I have the most beautiful, amazing, awesome, loving, caring wife in the world

She’s the best wife I’ve ever had (yeah, I know – I’ve only had one), and I wouldn’t change her for the world. Seriously, I love her.

She supports me in everything I do, and she’s the exact person I needed. Marriage is very important to me. I can confidently say that we will be married till death do us part.

No, it’s not always easy, but life’s much better with her than without her. We are truly living the following words – “What God has brought together, let no man tear asunder.

So there you have it – now you know me a little better. From time to time, I’ll be revealing more things about who I am. I think it’ll add value to our relationship

Questions/Comments?

Are there other things you’d like to know about me? Go ahead and ask. I’m pretty much an open book – what you see is what you get. Also, I’d like to hear your feedback. Did you appreciate this post? Was it TMI?

p.s. You don’t have to tweet this one, nor do you have to share it on Facebook, LOL.

It is Thursday, October 6th, 2011. If you’ve been following my podcast, you know that on Thursday’s I post interviews with experts in Internet Marketing. However, today will be different, in honor of someone who has had a tremendous impact on the world.

(The regular scheduled interviews will continue next week Thursday)

I was in the Gym with a friend last night when we heard the news – “Apple confirmed – Steve Jobs is Dead!” Everyone gathered around the T.V. and stared at it as if we had lost a family member and couldn’t believe it.

Why was it such a big deal for a man we didn’t know personally? Great question . . .

Whether or not you are a fan of Steve Jobs, he is someone that has influenced you significantly. When I woke up this morning, I picked up my iphone and read a post on Seth Godin’s blog called A eulogy of Action. On that blog he said:

Everything in our world is different because of the device you’re reading this on.

This really spoke to me because I was reading it on my iPhone. However, if you are reading this, it should also impact you.

Steve was a College dropout who started Apple Computer in his Garage at the age of 20. In fact, he developed the world’s first successful Personal Computer in 1984.

When Bill Gates saw what Steve had done, this was what he said:

To create a new standard, it takes something that’s not just a little bit different. It takes something that’s really new and really captures people imagination. The Macintosh, of all the computer’s I’ve seen, is the only one that meets that standard

Steve Jobs pioneered the Graphical User Interface and had this weird device that people would hold there hand to navigate what happened on the screen – the mouse.

After co-founding Apple with his buddy Steve Wozniak, he was later fired by that company (very publicly) – a development that impacted him strongly. In his Commencement speech at Stanford graduation, Steve said that:

I didn’t see it then, but it turned out that getting fired from Apple was the best thing that could have ever happened to me. The heaviness of being successful was replaced by the lightness of being a beginner again, less sure about everything. It freed me to enter one of the most creative periods of my life

He was right. During that time, his other company, Pixar, went on to create the first computerized animation film – Toy Story.

In 1997, Apple was near bankruptcy, and P.C’s had their time to grow and dominate the computer industry. Steve was brought back on board and lead the company in the development of the iPod, iPhone and iPad – devices that, once again, changed the way the world worked.

Within a year – Apple was reborn.

Why am I writing this?

I know what you might be thinking – This isn’t a tech blog, you don’t come hear to read about technology.

No, I’m not trying to say that Macs are better than P.Cs or to make anti-P.C jokes (I will do that in later blog posts and podcasts, lol).

I’m not trying to get anyone to switch from Macs to P.Cs.

What I’m trying to do is to give an example of someone who has really changed the world. I’ve been talking a lot about using your blog to impact the world. Steve Jobs wasn’t a blogger, but he did use his passion for Apple to revolutionize the way everything is done. What a great example of doing what you believe.

What do you passionate about?

Are you passionate about Blogging?

Are you passionate about Teaching?

Are you passionate about Music?

Are you passionate about Life?

Are you passionate about Helping People?

Are you passionate about God?

What are you doing with your passion?

Remembering that I’ll be dead soon is the most important tool I’ve ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life. Because almost everything — all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure – these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart. – Steve Jobs

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA

There’s so much happening and the nature of business as we know it is changing.

This presents an opportunity for average folk like you and I to set ourselves up for success.

How do we prepare for the change? By Doing the following:

• Start A Blog. Blogging is becoming more and more essential for building a business in today’s economy, and is a relatively low-cost solution. You can establish a strong online presence with a blog. For more info, check out my Bootcamp Process.
• Nurture Relationships. In today’s “Thank You Economy”, relationships go along way. There are a number of ways to nurture relationships that can help you grow your business.
• Deliver Value. This is what it’s all about. If you want to have a solid business, you need to deliver value. By doing so, you are setting yourself up to become a trusted expert who people will buy from.
• Do it often. This is where a lot of people fail. They do the right thing, but not often enough. Don’t let that happen to you.
• Make Mistakes Quickly. If you are afraid to take calculated risks, you won’t reach your full potential. Accept the fact that you will make mistakes, do them quickly, and learn from them quickly.
• Build a List. You’ve probably heard the statement that “The Money is in the List”. Well, it’s true. This is becoming an essential part of any online business.

In the episode, I dive into each of these in more detail, so make sure to check it out. If you have comments or questions, leave them below or call the hotline at (888) 835 – 2414.

Resources Mentioned in this episode:

• Crush It
• The Thank You Economy

However, lets forget about all that Jazz for right now. I want to emphasize something much different in this post, because I truly believe that an an online business is the easiest and best business to have. Ok, some of you might disagree with me on the word “best”, but it’s still my reason, and here’s why:

Reason #1: Ridiculously low startup cost

I’ve been reading a lot about business lately and in many of the books, they talk about how to determine what the startup cost of your business should be. They take into consideration things like the cost of the office and furniture, the cost of manufacturing the goods that you are producing, the cost of marketing, and a ton of other details. These details can add up to be a significant sum, to the tune of tens of thousands of dollars, if not MUCH more.

Then I think about what it costs to start an internet business. Yes, you definitely need your hosting account, at the cost of $5 – $10 per month (significantly less than an office), you might use an autoresponder service, and that’s really it. You can start a business for as little as $5.

Ok, I don’t want to make it seem like you ONLY need $5 to start. In reality, a big part of internet business is education, and it takes money to learn. However, even the cost of good education is significantly lower than the alternative.

Reason #2: It’s All Digital baby!

If you want to develop a product to sell in the offline world, the manufacturing process can be extensive. Once the product is manufactured, it usually needs to be stored somewhere. This can be in a warehouse, store, office or a number of other places.

One of the biggest benefits to developing information products is that it’s all digital. If you are putting together an eBook, video training series, or anything of the sort to sell online, you don’t have to worry about those things because it’s all digital. Once your files are created, they can be downloaded many times over by thousands of people. It’s a beautiful thing!

Reason #3: You’re not tied down to any particular location

In my opinion, one of the best inventions ever made is the laptop, and I’m not sure what I would do without it. I can work on my online business from anywhere in the world, and it can function the same way it normally would even if I’m on a vacation in the caribbean. Because it’s all digital and all online, I have access to everything I need by just opening up my laptop and getting connected.

Reason #4: You don’t have to be an expert

This last reason is what makes it so powerful. More and more “everyday people” are coming online and experiencing awesome levels of success. This is because it doesn’t take a genius to succeed. All it takes is a good idea, some strategy and consistency and you can build yourself an online empire.

So why aren’t more people doing it and having success?

That’s a very good question. In fact, when a really successful marketer (who will remain nameless) was asked why he gave away all the secrets to his online business so freely, his answer was that he doesn’t mind sharing because he knew that 99% of the people who he tells all this valuable information won’t actually FOLLOW THROUGH.

Now, I’m not sure how accurate that statement is, but it does have at least some validity to it. People don’t take action. Are you one of those people? Well I’m here to encourage you and let you know that it’s not as hard as you think. Sure it takes a lot of work, but it’s definitely possible, and is the barrier to entry is much lower than building an offline business. I really believe that almost anyone can build a successful business if they really put their mind to it.

Your Comments

I know that I didn’t cover all the reasons why it’s easier to have an online business than an offline business, and I’m sure you have some reasons in mind. let me know by leaving a comment!

Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on how you look at it), this bubble burst for a number of reasons at the beginning of the year 2000 and a lot of companies ended up filing bankruptcy.

In my opinion, this is one of the things that have contributed to a vicious rumor that’s spreading almost like wildfire (at least, that’s the way it seems sometimes). So many people think that you can come online and make a ton of money quickly. People seem to think that having a website might be the thing they’ve been waiting for that will propel their businesses to the next level automatically. Yes, it does happen that way sometimes, but is it likely? Nope!

A Knack for Business

If you’ve been following what I’ve been doing recently, you probably know that I’ve been doing a lot of reading, and listening to audiobooks. Well, at the moment I’m listening to an audiobook to “The Knack: How Street-Smart Entrepreneurs Learn to Handle Whatever Comes Up“, written by Norm Brodsky and Bo Burlingham. So far, it’s been a great book and has been giving me a lot to think about when it comes to my business. It’s definitely one I would highly recommend!

The more I read, the more it reinforces the idea that in order for my online business to succeed, I need to treat it like a REAL business, and not just a website. Taking that into consideration, I also need to face the following unfortunate (or fortunate, depending on how you look at it) that:

• Approximately 40% of American businesses fail within the first year.
• Approximately 80% of all American businesses fail within the first five years.

These figures seem to vary slightly depending on which book you read, but the general idea holds true. MOST businesses fail.

One of the things “The Knack” brought out was that one of the main reasons why so many businesses fail is not because they don’t have the potential to be a great business, but because the business owner doesn’t have the determination to see it through the tough times that most businesses go through, especially in the startup stage.

I don’t want to make it seem like this is THE main reason, or a major focus of the book, because it isn’t. However, it’s one of the things that really stood out to me because I believe that it plays a major role.

As a High School science and Math teacher, I must be honest with you and let you know that I’m growing more and more concerned about the future of this nation. I’m not American, but I have grown to love a lot of what this country has to offer. That being said, I’m seeing more and more that students have been conditioned to give up too soon.

If I had a penny for every time a student jumped to the conclusion that they don’t know how to do something, but ended up showing me that they could definitely do it (with a little prodding from the teacher), I could probably buy myself a ticket to a nice Caribbean getaway (and I’m way overdue for that now).

The thing is, it’s not only our students, it’s even us adults. And by us, I’m even including myself. I’ve given up on doing a number of things in the past because they were too hard. This has to change!

Are you ready to work on your business for 5 years?

I’m starting to look at my Biology website as my main business, although I haven’t started monetizing it as yet. However, there are A LOT of stuff going on behind the scenes that are just really exciting and I can’t wait to share it with you guys, so that you can implement the same things to grow your business.

Since I’m looking at my online stuff as a real business, I’ve had to ask myself a few questions:

• Do I really Love what I’m doing?
• Am I ready to give it my all for the next five years?
• Am I willing to stare disappointment and challenges right in the face and still work my butt off to make it grow?

Answering those questions were easy? YES, I love it, YES, I’m ready to give it my all for five years, and YES, I’m willing to stare disappointment and challenges right in the face. I’m ready to be in this thing for the long haul. I don’t care how huge the mountains are that stand before me. I believe I can do it.

But the purpose of this post is not for me to answer the question. I already know my answers. It’s for you. So here goes:

• Do YOU really Love what YOU’RE doing?
• Are YOU ready to give it YOUR all for the next five years?
• Are YOU willing to stare disappointment and challenges right in the face and still work YOUR butt off to make it grow?

Here’s the thing. I know that you can do it. Do You?

I’m asking these questions now because I’m about to embark on a journey, as you may already know if you are a reader of my blog. As I take this journey, I will be sharing what I’m doing with you – what I’ve learned, the challenges I’m facing, what works and what doesn’t, etc. In order for you to take your business to the next level with me, you will need to make decisions. The sooner you make them the better.

Everything else is just details. The details will come, but the commitment needs to be made. Are you ready to take action? Are ya?

Let me know in the comments below. If you are reading this via email, click here to leave a comment.

Ok, let me tell you a little story, and yes, it’s a true story taken from the life of a guy named Leslie . . .

Once upon a time, there was a guy named Leslie. After having a rough start in college, he finally whipped his butt into shape and got serious about his studies. This lead to a decent amount of success and to make a very long story short, he ended up doing research in Germany for two summers as a part of his Master’s Degree.

But there was a significant problem – His department ran out of money and could not afford to support him anymore during his second summer. He needed to find a way to make money quickly. Earlier on in his college career, he took a “Computer tools” class, where he learned a little HTML, loved it and started designing little personal sites.

When thinking of a way to make money, he got the genius idea – “I’m gonna design websites for other people and companies”. So off he went advertising his new business. However, there was one potential problem – he was still a novice at website design. However, he didn’t care, because he needed the money.

In meeting with clients, he would ask them what they had in mind for their websites. They would start telling him of all the wonderful things they wanted, and the following question ALWAYS came up – “Leslie, do you think you can do that”. The answer was always the same – “If you can think it, I can do it”.

Then he would leave each appointment somewhat panic-stricken. He had no idea how to do half of the things that he was asked to do, and sometimes paid in advance to do. That is where the fun started.

Ok, I’m going to switch from writing in the third person now. I know I’m probably not supposed to, but it’s my blog, so I can do whatever I want, lol.

Doing the Research

This “web design company” I started was one that really opened my eyes to the possibilities that are out there and the power of the internet. Whenever I was faced with the problem of being paid to do something I never did before, I always knew that there had to be a solution out there. Then I went to Google and found the solution.

I was able to design personal websites for people with cool flash components. I did websites for companies and non profit organizations where they could take orders and make money online. I was also even able to design a website for a classical radio station and gave the option of being able to listen to the live stream of the radio station online in a custom player.

None of these things were things I knew how to do before actually doing it, but I knew that someone online knew how to do it, and I could find the solution based on what was already out there.

The Internet and available knowledge

The story above illustrates a very important point, which is the title of this article – “There’s no longer an excuse for ignorance”. Back in the day, if you wanted to learn something about a specific topic or find a specific answer to a specific question, you would probably end up going to the library, doing a ton of research, read book after book trying to find that answer. Or, you would have to ask someone who knows the answer, which can also be quite tedious.

Today, with innovations like Google Search, you can learn just about ANYTHING. Not only that, there are so many websites out there that provide training on just about ANY topic, and the number of sites are rising exponentially. In fact, at a techonomy conference in Lake Tahoe, CA recently, Bill Gates made the following prediction:

““Five years from now on the web for free you’ll be able to find the best lectures in the world,” He continued to say that “It will be better than any single university”.

We are already seeing a lot of that happening today. However, the problem that I’m seeing is that because knowledge is EVERYWHERE, people are becoming lazy, and aren’t putting in the time to actually acquire that knowledge. My question for you is – Are you one of those people?

If you honestly ask yourself that question and your answer is a glaring “Yes”, I would like to ask you to reconsider what you do on a daily basis. Remember, there is no longer an excuse for ignorance.

The Secret to success

I’m currently reading a book called “Time Power: A Proven System for Getting More Done in Less Time Than You Ever Thought Possible” by Brian Tracy. In the book, the author says something that I find to be very interesting:

“… the “guaranteed formula” for success and lifelong riches. It is this: Invest as much in your mind each year as you do in your car. That’s it. Simple. Guaranteed.”

When I first read it, I thought to myself – “Wow, that’s a bold statement”. Then I continued thinking, and thinking, and thinking some more and I realized that there was a significant amount of truth to that statement. Most, if not all, successful people have the right kind of knowledge and take action on the knowledge they have.

The mind is the greatest asset that you can have. What are you doing to feed your greatest asset? Are you filling it with knowledge that will help you accomplish your goals? Or is your mind constantly being fed a dose of “Sex in the city”, “Friends”, “Law and order” and “CSI Miami”? : )

No, I’m not bashing those shows. In fact, I get very much into “The Event” on a weekly basis. 2 weeks ago, they skipped an episode and I almost gave birth to a cow, lol. However, I’m desperately seeking to maintain a balance, by limiting my TV intake to maybe 2 shows a week (except when I’m on vacation), and spending time reading every day.

Since I’ve started reading consistently, I feel as if my mind is expanding right before my eyes. Not only that, but I’ve taken much more action on what I already know. There’s something about educating the mind that helps to take you to the next level. You are no longer satisfied with the status quo and become more determined to accomplish your goals.

According to the book I already mentioned – “If you read an hour a day, one book per week, you will be an expert in your field within three years. You will be a national authority in five years, and you will be an international authority in seven years. All leaders are readers.”

So what now

Yeah, I know – You are at this blog trying to learn about making money, and here I am telling you that “reading makes the world go round” – the same “crap” you’ve been hearing since Kindergarten. That’s where I first heard it too. In fact, I can even remember the picture of the globe with books flying around it.

The take home message is this – If you want to learn to be successful, learn from successful people. Whether that’s by reading or by going through training programs, the key is that you need to be be building up your greatest asset – your mind.

If you do that consistently, you will be moving yourself towards accomplishing your goal. No, it might not sound as glamorous as the usual “Make Money Online” hype, but I’m not here to feed you glamor. I’m here to whip your butt into shape

Comments

Ooo, I’m afraid of these comments today, lol. I probably hit a nerve that some people don’t like. Still, I want to know what you think about any aspect of this post. I’ll be anxiously holding on to my seat and waiting for your comments below. If you are reading this via email, click here to leave a comment.

The questions go something like this:

Leslie, I’ve been a part of many other programs and have spent a significant amount of money to learn much less than you are teaching free of charge. Why in the world aren’t you charging, and how in the world do you make money? Why are you not Selling more?

This is a very valid question, and I’m going to try to answer it as best as possible in this post. If you really take what I say to heart, then you will be on the road to success.

First, lets start off with a scenario . . .

Example – You’re In the Market

Lets say that you are in the market for a new camera. It’s something you’ve been thinking about for a while. You saved up a good $1,200 because you want to make sure to get a high quality Digital SLR (fancy name for a cool camera).

You know that there are hundreds of cameras out there within your price range (if not thousands). However, you don’t even know where to begin. You know what your end goal is – you want to have a good quality camera that can take some awesome pictures, but you are uncertain as to how to make it there.

Lets say you have two options for getting help choosing a camera:

• Option 1: You can go to your local Super CameraMart, where they have every camera option in the world. Their goal is to get you to buy a camera and they aren’t ashamed to let you know.
• Option 2: You have a very good friend who is a photographer. Someone you trust, and who knows a lot about the different camera options.

Which one are you more likely to go to first? I’m gonna make a wild assumption here. I’m gonna assume (and I hope it’s true) that you will go to that trusted friend. Why? Because you know that he/she would be looking out for your best interest, and that their primary concern is not to get you to buy something, but it’s to contribute value to your life.

The Nature of the Internet and the inherent problem

The Internet is an amazing thing. If there’s something you want to find, you can find it. If there’s something you want to learn, you can learn it. There’s nothing to stop you from accomplish your goal when you have a resource like the internet.

However, the problem with the internet today has to do with the fact that the people that use it are imperfect people – to the extent that there are A LOT of scammers out there, lots of spam, and people are getting sick of it. I know that’s true because I’m one of those people.

It annoys me to go into my Spam box, and see hundreds and thousands of unsolicited messages, many of which are obviously from scammers, trying to convince me that my dead relative in Uganda left me 250 Billion dollars and all I need was to give the lawyer my bank account info so that they can deposit it in there for me.

Becoming a trusted expert friend

If your goal is to become a successful internet marketer, you need to learn how to become a trusted expert friend. You want to be the person that people look to for information, because they know that you will provide them with nothing but value.

In order to reach to that point, I consider it to be extremely important to provide tons of value for FREE. Yep, I said FREE. Why? Because it lowers the barrier of entry for people getting onto your list, and that is what you want. This is a very important point. It is easier to get someone on your list than it is to get them for $1, because it takes a higher level of trust for someone to have a financial exchange with you.

However, it doesn’t stop there. That’s only where it begins. Once they are on your list, you need to work on nurturing a relationship by providing them with high quality information/resources to help them meet whatever goal they have that caused them to sign up to your list. I do not want to underemphasize how important that is.

Once you are a trusted expert friend, the chances are significantly higher that your subscribers would purchase something that you are selling or that you recommend.

The Higher Calling of Internet Marketers

Ok, this is where I go off on one of my rants, but bare with me. If you are to become a successful internet marketer (trusted expert friend), that means that you will be able to influence lots of people. This is something that I believe comes with a significant amount of responsibility.

People will be looking to you for guidance with problems they are trying to solve. It’s easy to look for products to promote because you know that you can make a lot of money with that product. However, it takes more time to really think about how you can contribute to enhancing the lives of your subscribers.

I truly believe that internet marketers have the ability to change the world. It’s easier than it has ever been to be able to influence thousands of people. With 6 Billion people in the world, and a rapidly increasing amount of individuals getting online, the world is literally at your finger tips.

If more Internet Marketers were dedicated to the goal of changing the world for the better, this world would be a better place. Am I dreaming? Maybe! But it’s something that I really believe.

How do YOU plan on changing the world?

So there you have it – my perspective on how I believe we can all work together to change this world. How do I plan on changing the world?

• By providing information and resources to help others meet their goals.
• By trying to inspire others to change the world
• By striving to be the person I know that God wants me to be
• By sharing what I learn with others and empowering them to do the same

The question now is – What are YOU going to do to change the world? Seriously! I’m not writing this article for you to sit back and think to yourself – “aww, that was really nice”. As usual, I’m wanting you to TAKE ACTION.

So take the first step right now by leaving a comment below and letting the world know what YOU are planning on doing as an Internet Marketer to make the Internet a better place and contribute value?

If you are reading this via email, click here to leave your comment.

The question then comes to mind – What does it take to make it to that level? Do you have to have a tremendously high I.Q, or are they just lucky? Are some people predestined to that accomplishing that level of success and others predestined to poverty? Lets take it a little further. Why is Tiger Woods so good at golf? Why is Michael Jordan DA MAN when it comes to basketball. Is it that their genetic makeup is so superior?

I’ve just finished reading the book “Talent is Overrated, by Geoff Colvin”, and it has opened my eyes to a new way of thinking. A way that can change the way you do business in a very good way, IF you really believe it and take action. In his book, Colvin addresses the common misconception that in order to become a high performer, it takes either hard work or natural talent. Based on an extensive amount of research, people who excel in different areas, business and otherwise, do so because of what he calls “deliberate practice”.
There are a few points I would like to share with you from the book about the concept of deliberate practice. It’s not as glamorous as what most people like to hear. It won’t make you an overnight success. In my opinions, most overnight successes are gone in the morning (figuratively speaking). However, as unsexy as it might seem, it’s what works and is the reason for the success of those gurus that you follow, and is why Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods are so good at what they do. So lets get into what deliberate practice is and how it applies to your online business.

Your actions should be designed to improve performance

If you are trying to build an online business, there are certain activities that when you perform them over and over again, they increase yourperformance because you get better at doing them. When I first started online, I had no idea how to do web design. However, I soon found that there were many resources online that taught how to do all the things I wanted (and needed) to learn how to do.

Since the web is full of this kind of info on virtually any topic, I spent a lot of time going through tutorials and teaching myself HOW to do basic web design. Not only that, but I did those activities over and over again until they started becoming easier and I got significantly better at it. So tip number 1 is to find resources to teach you to do what you want to do and repeat the suggested activities over and over.

This concept applies to every aspect of your online business. There are activities that a specifically designed to helping you do better. You know the industry you are in, and should have an idea of what you need to become better at. Remember that practice makes perfect. The more you exercise, the stronger you become.

You should be guided by a teacher/Coach

There are many people out there who know more than you (and I) do about every topic. Not only that, but these people have, at some level, been where you (and I) are. One of the things many people do is they try to find people who are trying to do the same thing they are trying to do. For example, if I’m a blogger trying to make it, I connect with other bloggers who are also trying to make it. Now, don’t get me wrong, this does have its own benefits and I also encourage doing this. However, this is not the way successful people learn most of what they know.

If you want to learn how to be a top chef, you need to learn from top chefs. If you want to know how to be a successful entrepreneur, you need to learn from successful entrepreneurs. Those who have accomplished more than you have and can guide you on your journey to success. This can be done in many ways, some of which is FREE. The great thing about successful entrepreneurs (especially when it comes to internet marketing) is that you will notice that many are VERY willing to share what they know. The ones I follow are very willing to share this info on their public blogs and email newsletters FREE of charge.

Another way of doing this is a little more pricey, but in many ways more valuable. When I started growing my business, I knew that I needed a blog. It is what works for what I’m trying to do. The simple fact that you are here reading this is a testament to that. Luckily, I stumbled onto Yaro Starak’s Blog Mastermind Coaching program, and joining it was one of the best decision I’ve made. In this coaching program, Yaro gave weekly lessons that really guided me along my path to blogging success, showed me what tasks I needed to complete and when, and eliminated all of the unnecessary stuff, reducing information overload and making me more effective.

There are many programs out there like Blog Mastermind, and I would encourage you that if you are interested in taking your business to the next level, and can afford to do so, give one a try and implement the things it teaches.

Feedback should be continuously available

One of the best ways to optimize your success is to have what you do scrutinized constantly. Yes, that’s what I said. Scrutinized! I know, you want to hear all the nice stuff like ohh . . . what you are doing is so great . . . everything you do is Awesome . . . Wow, that article was very well-written. Now, I get it! Whenever we hear those things, it makes us feel better about ourselves and gives us that warm fuzzy feeling.

Unfortunately, warm fuzzy feelings don’t necessarily translate to increased performance and success. Regardless of what we do, we can always do better. There are always going to be places where we fall short, and having someone to provide you with constructive criticism is invaluable.

Let me share something with you from my experience, and I hope no one takes offense to this. I’ve done a lot of different things online, especially within the Freebie Industry. Launching this blog, a Freebie Trading Forum and a Freebie Network. I’ve gotten into Affiliate Marketing and done a significant amount of Traffic generation. With almost every step that I’ve taken (up to this point), I’ve had many people let me know that they think I’m doing a great job. I’ve even started a website to help people who struggle in Biology and gotten tremendous feedback on that. When I get these compliments, they truly do make me feel good. I really do feel like I’m helping others, and yes . . . you guessed it . . . that warm fuzzy feeling comes to me.

However, that being said, when I want to improve what I’m doing, my tendency is not to go to the people who think what I’m doing is great. I go to the people who will tear my stuff apart. I post questions in places with people who are doing MUCH better than I am, and the feedback I get is exactly what I need to step up my game and take my success to the next level. I would encourage you to do the same. Many coaching programs have built in forums or other areas for discussion and feedback from mentors. This is a great avenue for such things.

You Activities should be Highly Demanding mentally

Uh ohh, I went there. Just because I do something over and over again, doesn’t mean that I am going to be successful. If what you are doing is not challenging you mentally, you probably aren’t learning much and as a result, your won’t reach your highest potential. In the world of internet marketing, there is SO MUCH to learn. This internet stuff is growing faster than anything else I can think of. Because of that, there are always going to be things you don’t know.

I’m not saying that you should go out there and try to learn everything. That would put you in a never-ending vicious cycle. However, if you are not being challenged, you are not going to reach your potential. If my goal is to get big and buff, and I am deliberately practicing lifting 3 pound dumbbells, I guarantee you that my level of buffness will be second only to Peewee Herman. If you are studying internet marketing and are thinking to yourself – “Man, this stuff is hard”, then GREAT, you are doing something right. Bill Gates did NOT make it to where he is today by doing a lot of easy, mentally relaxing stuff, and neither will you.

Your activities won’t always be a lot of fun

Here are a list of things I try to do on a regular basis: Deal with technical issues on my blogs, forums and other websites. Respond to support enquiries. Install new software on servers. Write blog posts. Watch training videos. Work on traffic generation. The list goes on and on. Do you think I enjoy all of those things? Heck no! I do them because I have an end goal. I enjoy learning, but some of the tasks are just boring andrepetitive. However, those are some of the tasks that have really taken success to the next level, and they are the things that will continue to help me to grow.

Yes, I know that you’ve seen a lot of glamor-ridden websites, videos, ebooks and so on that promise you a lifestyle of success, sipping on iced tea in the Caribbean while making tons of money. Yes, I know that it is possible to have a a lifestyle of success without having to do much work, and yes I know that it is possible. IF you these Five points of Deliberate practice to heart, then you can accomplish your goal. The road might not be easy, but the destination is AWESOME.

So Leslie, Where Can I Start?

I hope that by now you can see that my goal here is to help you. Why do I do it this way? Well, it’s really simple. I believe that when you help others it will come back to you. Not only that, I think it’s our duty to help others and to be honest, I have fun doing it (it’s one of the things that makes me feel warm and fuzzy).

Keep following my blog. I have a lot of great content coming your way. That’s action step number one. A lot of the things that I will be talking about over the next few weeks are going to be concepts that people pay lots of money to learn. Trust me, I know. I’ve paid lots of money to learn them. However, I will be sharing what I can for Free!

Leslie, what if I want more?

Yes, I know that I can’t give you everything, because I don’t have everything to give. So what I’m going to do is share with you some coaching programs that have helped me. They cost money, but are very much worth it because of the way they are arranged, the content, and the action steps. Please remember that a coaching program is only as good as YOU make it. Knowledge is no longer power. The power comes when the knowledge is applied.

Lee McIntye’s Point and Click Coaching
Yaro Starak’s Blog Mastermind Coaching
Yaro and Gideon’s Become A Blogger Premium

The switch has been made

We made the switch, and it went smoother than expected. We purchased a dedicated server about a week and a half ago with Liquidweb, because we’ve heard a lot of good stuff about their service and support. We can finally say that everything is on that dedicated server – a newer, much stronger version.

Because of the switch, we had to revert once again to the status as of Sunday the 17th. So, if you happened to do anything on CaliStyle101 over the last few hours, it doesn’t exist. Well, maybe it does somewhere out there in “cyberspace”, but not in a way that we can retrieve it.

For the New Members

If you registered between 1/17 and today (1/20), it’s possible that your account no longer exists and you might need to re-register for an account at CaliStyle101.com. Try logging in and if it doesn’t work, it means that this applies to you. This next part is IMPORTANT: IF YOU ARE SIGNING UP AGAIN, REMOVE THE CHECKMARK NEXT TO THE TEXT THAT SAYS “Get Free Quick Start Guide”. If you don’t, it might give you a signup error.

If you were referred by someone, PLEASE make sure to use the same affiliate link you used to sign up initially. That way they will be assigned as your mentor and they will receive credit if you upgrade your membership.

If you had previously chosen a mentor, please contact that mentor again and let them know that you still want to work with them. They will be happy to continue the process of getting you started.

For the Old members

We’re going to need your help. Because of the server errors, there might be some confusion around the forums, in terms of PMs that are missing, trades that no longer exist in the Trade Manager, posts that appear to be deleted, etc. Please provide them with guidance so that they can understand what has happened, move past it and continue on to complete successful trades. In other words, let us band together to help the new guys out, minimize confusion and maximize success.

About Recent Completed Trades

Since we had to revert back to 1/17, trades completed between 1/17 and 1/20 may not appear in your trade manager, and feedback left might no longer be there. You are free to set those trades up again, as long and complete them as usual.

We do appreciate all of the support that we’ve been receiving throughout this “interesting” process and look forward to the growth of CaliStyle101 in 2010.

If you have any questions about any of this, please feel free to ask them here.

When I look at the year 2009, I look at it as a foundation building year. If you have a weak foundation and a lot of traffic, everything will fall apart. I’m proud to say that we have a pretty strong foundation to build on, and it’s time to start building. It’s time to start networking with people who can make a big difference. So we’re going to start the year off right. With Giveaway 2010.

Giveaway 2010 – What is it?

Giveaway 2010 is an opportunity of a lifetime. Some top Internet Marketers have gotten together in a huge giveaway, where we’ve agreed to give away some of our best content. I’m talking about approximately $1,500 in content that can help anyone build a strong internet business in 2010. This content ranges from Freebie Trading (you guessed it) to traffic generation, article marketing to product development. Names like Kevin Riley, David Moskowitz, Tiffany Dow and yours truly.

This is an exclusive giveaway that we were invited to take part in. It’s not one of those “free for all” giveaways where anyone can get in with any crappy ebook. It’s quality stuff. I normally don’t participate in these kinds of things, but this one is different. There are only around 50 of us that have partnered together to bring exposure to what we are currently promoting.

Plain and simple, Giveaway 2010 is your chance to get TONS of value ABSOLUTELY FREE OF CHARGE. All of that stuff that you wish you could’ve purchased to further your online education at no cost to you.

http://www.becomeablogger.com/giveaway2010

How it Helps CaliStyle101

Because of the quality of this giveaway and the marketers involved, we’re estimating that we should get around 300 to 700 people to download the Freebie Cash Formula over the next 2 weeks – my ebook explaining what the Freebie Industry is about and HOW you can make money with Freebie Trading at CaliStyle101. This will give Freebie Trading and CaliStyle101 significant exposure to people who would not have heard about Freebie Trading. The more people use our link, the higher up we rank in the giveaway and the more exposure CaliStyle101 gets.

How it Helps You

I think the answer to this one is pretty obvious. CaliStyle101 is really about you. If we get more traffic to CaliStyle101, the result would be more trades to go around for the traders and awesome mentors at CaliStyle101. Our goal is to continue growing CaliStyle101 and this is one step in that process.

Do you think that’s a Good thing? I do. Keep reading . . .

How You can Help

So here’s what we need. We need your participation. This is an opportunity to grab a bunch of stuff for yourself that you would normally pay for. I know that you won’t download it all and consume it all, but I do know that it’s good to have these types of things in your arsenal to draw from when you need it. Think about it. Do you need traffic? More strategies for making money online? Resources to help you be more successful? Then you should head over there and get some free stuff. Not only that, but here’s what else we would like for you to do:

• Tweet about the giveaway. If you have a twitter account, it’s pretty easy to send out a tweet talking about the giveaway. Every tweet helps!
• Write Blog posts about it. If you have a blog about making money online, your readers can definitely benefit from this type of Free stuff. Why not share it with them?
• Got a Mailing list? Send a message to them about it. They will thank you for all the Free Stuff.
• Make sure to use the following link in your promotions – http://www.becomeablogger.com/giveaway2010. We don’t get a commission for it, but it does raise our standings there and helps us to get more exposure.

We’re excited to be a part of this and are glad to share it with you. Look out for some product reviews in the next few days. As we explore the free content more, we will be updating you. Also, I would love to hear your comments below, so feel free to share.

I remember when I first started having online success. I was literally attached to my computer whenever I had a spare moment. Since I’m a teacher at a boarding academy, it was indeed a challenge. However, since I’m the kind of teacher that likes giving the students assignments for them to practice on, whenever they would be working on assignments, I would be at the front of the class, monitoring what they were doing AND working online at the same time.

Eventually, I got to a point where I realized that I was just TOO BUSY. Yes, I was making money, but I often felt as if I was neglecting my students, and even my wife. Whenever I wasn’t working at school, I was working online.

Now, when I first started my online business, one of the main reasons it looked so appealing was because I had seen a number of people who were doing it and evidently they weren’t spending much time doing it. That sounded exciting to me. It was not just about making money. It was about the freedom of how the Internet Lifestyle could be.

However, this was not my experience. When my wife pointed out to me that I was spending much more time with my laptop than with her and that it was really having an effect on her, I knew that something had to change.

It was at that point I had to realize something very humbling, and it might be that you need to become aware of this too. Are you ready for it? Ok, here it comes . . . I CAN’T DO EVERYTHING! Yes, it hit me right smack dab in the face. In order to be successful, I had to let certain things go. This was something that applied to my teaching job AND my online business. I had to learn to say NO.

Here’s how it applies to what you do in life (online and off)

Choices

There were two important points to consider. The first begins with the following questions. What are you goals in life? This is a fundamental question that, if put in perspective, eliminates a lot of unnecessary junk. It’s pretty simple. Whatever you find yourself busy doing needs to be evaluated as to whether or not it is in alignment with your goals. If it is, then it’s something you should consider doing. If not, WHY ARE YOU DOING IT? STOP NOW!!! Say NO to those things, because they only distract you from reaching your goals.

Now, that’s just the beginning. This second point is equally as important and often overlooked. Just because something is in alignment with your goals, it doesn’t mean that it’s something you HAVE to do. The fact is that if you were to do everything that is in alignment with your goals, you would have NO time for yourself or for the people you care about. Remember that the ultimate goal is not just financial success but also freedom.

When looking at the things you do on a daily basis, it’s very necessary to prioritize that list, so that it becomes obvious what things you MUST do (necessary) and what things are just good to do (unnecessary). Make sure you can identify the difference between the two.

Since, my real job is a teacher at a boarding academy, I get to be involved with students on a deeper level than the average high school teacher. I love my kids. However, if I were to say Yes to every request I received from every student, I would be taking students into town to go to Walmart or McDonalds all day, everyday. Yes, it is great to spend time with them and get to know them better. However, it is necessary to have balance.

If you find yourself being extremely busy on a day to day basis, ask yourself the following question – What can I say no to and still accomplish my goals? Once you have answered that question, start saying no.

Ever since the dawn of the World Wide Web, people have been able to connect in a way like never before. Back in 1997 (when I started college), for every 100 people (in the developed world), there were 11 people on the internet. 10 Years later, that increased from 11% to 62%. This has allowed people to be able to connect in ways like never before.

One great benefit of the internet is that information is readily and freely available. Google has now become a word that’s listed in the dictionary. If you’re looking for an answer to a question, you can just “Google it”.

Leslie in Germany

In 2004 and 2005, I spent the summers in Germany doing research for my Master’s degree. This was a great experience. I met people from all over the world, got to do some traveling, made friends and even learned a little bit of German. I’m not fluent, but I can have basic conversations, order just about anything to eat, and find my way to the restroom anywhere in Germany. Everything was great the first summer. I had a decent place to stay, I was fully funded by a research grant and I basically had nothing to worry about.

The second summer was not as great. The research grant had run out and I had no money. I was supposed to stay by a “friend” over there, but when I arrived in Germany, it turned out that their plans had changed and I was somewhat homeless. I stayed with my professor for 2 weeks while looking for a place, and eventually ended up staying in a Fraternity House for $80 per month, which is another LONG story in and of itself. Stay with me . . . this is going somewhere.

Leslie – The Web Designer

Since I wasn’t getting paid anymore, I had to find a way to make some money. I had taken a Computer Tools class back in 1997 or 1998 and since then had dabbled in some website design for fun. At my point of desperation, I decided to become a “professional website designer”.  Now, remember . . . I had only designed personal websites up to this point. However, I was desperate and needed to do something, because I was starting to go without food, which was NOT a good thing.

So before I left to Germany, I started my web design company called The CWeb Alternative. I put together a website, put it online and got going. The news started to spread to some of my friends, who then spread it to some of their friends and within a short period of time, I had a few clients.

There was something that was almost inevitable in this process. EVERY SINGLE CLIENT had things they wanted done that I had NEVER done before. In every meeting, they would shoot out a bunch of ideas and at the end the question was always the same: “Can you do that?” My answer was always the same: “But of course. If you want it, I’ll make it happen”

What then followed was ours of research. I went to www.google.com and found out exactly how to do everything that needed to be done, and NEVER let on that I didn’t know how to do something and my clients were always very pleased.

The Online Entrepreneurs

As on online entrepreneur (or wanna be entrepreneur), you have a tremendous tool at your disposal – Google. It contains the answer to just about every question. When trying to figure out something, or learn something new, it’s easy to say that you don’t know how to do something. Yes, it is easy, but in my opinion, this doesn’t lead ANYWHERE.

If you need to learn HOW to do something, search for it in Google. If you can’t figure out how to put video on a web page, Google it. If you need to find out how to insert a contact form on your site, Google it. As an Online entrepreneurs, you have a tool that enables you to do just about everything. If you want to find an excuse as to why you aren’t doing something, you can probably Google that too

So no more excuses, take your success into your own hands. If you don’t know how . . . You guessed it . . . GOOGLE IT!

When I was in Washington D.C, I got some terrible news and was a little down. I didn’t really feel like writing. As a child growing up in the Caribbean, I grew up around a lot of people. Our house was somewhat of an open community, where people come in and out, sometimes spending months and even years in some cases.

There were two brothers that spent a lot of time with my family and we did a whole bunch of stuff together. Well, while on the way to the Air and Space museum, I got a call from my sister informing me that the younger brother died that morning from a Brain Tumor at the young age of 23.

This really hit me hard. I haven’t spoken to him in years, but after spending so much time with people, they always retain a special part in your heart. I haven’t dealt with a lot of death in my lifetime, so this was a pretty difficult one. I did not feel like writing. This short post actually took me 2 days to write, as opposed to the usual half hour.

So I’m supposed to learn a lesson here and I’m supposed to share this with you. I’ve NEVER shared such a negative message on my blog, but I’ll find a way to make it somewhat positive at the end.

Nothing Lasts Forever

This is an unfortunate reality that many people don’t like to think of. As much as we like to hold on to memories, events, people, projects and the like, all things will come to an end. If you look especially at the state of the economy right now, you will have clear examples of things coming to an end. Circuit city is a place that I liked very well – but it didn’t last.

I am a Freebie Trader (obviously) and I promote freebie trading for one simple reason – it is legitimate and you can make a substantial amount of money as a Freebie Trader. However, I would be stupid to think that Freebie Trading will last forever. Yes, it will continue to grow. However, a smart Freebie Trader is one who sets themselves up for success whether or not the Freebie Industry lasts.

How does one do this?

Well that all depends on the person. Some people blindly attach themselves to one industry that they think is the best thing since sliced bread. On the other hand, there are those people out there that try to diversify their portfolio so that they not only have a larger income, but they are well prepared in periods when one of the industries is going through a recession.

So, the take home lesson is don’t get stuck on one program. Perfect one, and then start branching out. When you have perfected two, add a third. Eventually, you will have a portfolio that is prepared for the worse case scenario.

So there you have it, my lesson learned. This will be the last post for the week and then I hope to start next week’s posts on a much brighter note.

The school where I teach is a very conservative Christian private boarding school. In other words, we have very strict rules that the students must follow or else they deal with the consequences. No, we are not some extremist cult or anything. However, we do have more rules than the average school.

When we go on trips, our rules follow us. Also, when we set schedules, we expect the students to stick to those schedules, or their grades are affected. In other words – To be early is to be on time, to be on time is to be late.

We stopped at a mall in West Virginia to get some food to eat at 11:00 am and were scheduled to get back on the bus at 11:45 am. So there we are, rushing to eat so that we can get back on the bus and head to our appointment.

So there we are in the mall at 11:42, and getting ready to head out to the bus. I turn to Subway and what do I see? A group of our kids, standing in the middle of a long line, waiting to order. To make things worse, they had Bags in their hands with clothes that they bought. In other words, on our limited time schedule, it seemed as if it was more important for them to go shopping than to fulfill the purpose we were there from – to nourish our bodies. Now we were behind schedule, and we (the teachers and administrators) weren’t too happy.

As almost any faculty at a conservative Christian boarding school would instinctively do, I went to the students and almost rebuked them for wasting time shopping when they should’ve been in line. Ok, rebuke is a bit harsh, but it sounds better for the story. I really didn’t rebuke them, but they could tell that I was not too pleased at what I had seen (or assumed).

At that point, I found out that the bags they had weren’t from going shopping and that they had been waiting in line all along and there just wasn’t enough time. My assumption had been wrong. In this case, it would have been more beneficial to ask questions first and draw conclusions later.

Things aren’t always the way they seem

So how am I going to apply this to Making Money Online? It’s pretty simple – Things aren’t always the way they seem. You are probably here because you are looking for a way to make money online. You hear about the freebie industry, affiliate marketing and the like and might be a little skeptical. You make judgements about the entire industry based on certain things you’ve seen in the past.

However, by doing some research you will find out that things aren’t always the way they seem. Ask the questions that will help you make an informed decision and come to a VALID conclusions. There are certain things that work and finding out what works for YOU is essential.

Now, this might seem like me just trying to convince you that what I do here is legitimate. To a certain extent, that is true. On the other hand, what I’m saying is actually a two-edged sword. On one side, you can get cut for making judgements against something without doing research. On the other side, you can get cut for blindly believing what you see.

As much as I would like to tell you that what I’m doing is legitimate, the truth is that I would be VERY disappointed if you just came here, read my blog, accepted what I said and jumped in head first. In my opinion, that is equally as bad. With whatever you decide to do in order to make an income online, study it first, ask the right questions, do a search for that term with words like reviews, proof and scam and see what other people have to say about it.

I know that a lot of you are doing that because when I check my statistics I see a lot of searches for “Freebie trading scam”, “freebie proof”, “the freebie guy scam”, which to me sounds bad, but I applaud you for that. One of my personal favorites was “does the freebie guy work”. That put a smile on my face.

The point is, don’t make blind judgments or come to blind conclusions. Do research and come to an informed conclusion. Come Back tomorrow for . . . “The West Virginia Lesson” or Tennessee or somewhere else (I don’t remember exactly where we are going to be).

Needless to say, it will be pretty intense. To make the task even more interesting, we will be supervising a group of 104 High School students. Some of you guys out there are teachers, so you know what kind of a logistical nightmare that can be.

The great thing about it is that I’m on a bus now in Ohio with my laptop and wireless card, so that I can be connected to you and to my business. It’s one of the great aspects of running an Online business. It will be business as usual. I have great assistants that will help my business to continue to run smoothly. To be perfectly honest, it runs better now that they are on board than when I was doing it myself.

I have decided that I will try my best to get one lesson that can be applied to my business every day from a different state. I HAVE TO find something in each city that correlates to my business – even if it is something really simple.

The Lesson for today – If you fail to plan, you plan to fail

I have a serious problem. I LOVE traveling. I do it quite often. However, I HATE packing. For some strange reason, before every trip, I convince myself to put off packing until the last minute – yes, I’m a last minute packer.

Now, if you are a last minute packer like myself, you have probably had those times where you forgot to pack something significant – something that will have a significant impact on your entire experience, usually in a negative way. For me, that thing is my Video Camera.

One aspect of this trip I have been anticipating is putting together a semi-professional video of the various experiences so that the kids would have something to remember it by. However, that will now be a little more difficult than anticipated.

In the same way, we all have big dreams (hopefully) of things that we can do to enhance our experiences, whether it be making a substantial amount of money, going on a nice long vacation, or simply spending a significant amount of quality time with our families. For me, all of the above are part of my goals. However, without significant planning an preparations, mistakes are bound to be made – mistakes that can affect you (and I) negatively.

However, there is a bright side to the story. You see, regardless of what happens (whether their was a plan or not), there is always a way to make lemonade when life hands you lemons. For me, this meant calling a friend and having them break into my house, find my video camera and overnight it to a friend in Maryland who will then bring it to me. Sounds like a lot, but it will be worth it in the end, and I will have it in hand by Tuesday.

The same goes for Affiliate marketing or any method of making money online – when things don’t work out exactly the way we planned (or when we fail to plan), it makes no sense to cry when the milk is already spilt. Figure out some way to squeeze as much lemon juice out of those lemons, add some sugar and water and you are good to go.

Take your failures, and analyze when, where and how you went wrong, decide on a course of action and then make it happen.  So, those are the lessons I learned from the Ohio part of my trip, stay tuned next time for . . . . . The West Virginia Lesson

People who make a lot of money online aren’t rich because they got lucky (for the most part). They worked their butts off developing a system that eventually started paying off well without them having to do much work today. The big secret is that “thee is no big secret”. If you want to make money online, you’ve got to do what other successful webpreneurs have done and continue to do on a daily basis.

The Take Action Club

First of all, I want you to know that this is NOT a sales pitch. I’m NOT trying to sell you something. You will NOT be paying me and I will NOT be teaching you. The idea behind this is that whoever wants to join this club is making a commitment to the other members of the club that they are deciding to take their future into their own hands.

The goal is to get a group of people together who are dedicated to being online success stories. Individuals who are willing to hold each other accountable by doing some reading and taking action on what they have read. This club is NOT exclusively for Freebie Traders. It doesn’t matter what industry you are in – as long as you are ready to learn, and willing to take action.

I WILL provide guidance and structure for the program, but my intention is also to learn from you as we learn from each other. My goal is to not only set myself up for success, but help as many people as possible so that they can succeed. I will be going through the information along with you, and providing you a full report of the steps that I am taking so that you can see the theory in action. I will also be reporting on the results of what I have implemented.

Who should be a part of this club

You should not consider this club if any of the following apply to your situation

• You are looking for a get rich quick scheme
• You do not want to work hard (and smart)
• You are impatient

You should consider this club if:

• You are sick and tired of the norm
• You understand the concept of delayed gratification
• You would like people to hold you accountable
• You believe that you can conquer the world if you put your mind to it

When I do so, you will also have the opportunity to do the same. You can post your thought, the steps you’ve taken and the results you obtained by doing what you did. So lets move on to our first project.

The 4 hour work week

Ok, so lets move on to some good news. I said before that it takes a lot of work to become an online success. Now, that is the truth. However, it is not the end goal – at least not mine. My ultimate goal (when it comes to my online income) is to set up a business that eventually runs on its own – where I can spend a few hours per week tending to my business and rely on the efforts that I already invested to generate a substantial income.

Because of this, I would like us to start with the book entitled “The Four Hour Work Week:” This book is one that has come highly recommended to me by individuals I really trust, who are very successful at making money online. I listened to the audiobook and thought it was really amazing. However, I decided that in order to get the full effect of the book, I needed to purchase it and go through it chapter by chapter, taking notes, and working on the action steps that it provides.

The entire premise behind the book is to teach you how to set up a business so that it’s very hands-off and so that it becomes a business that is on autopilot. I truly believe that if the principles taught in this book are applied to any online business in the right way, that business would thrive in a way that it doesn’t end up taking all of your time.

One of my MAIN priorities is to have my business run in a way that it doesn’t interfere with my family life. That’s a major concern of mine. Family is much more important than money. However, the two can coexist in a way that I believe can be mutually beneficial.

So, the task for this week is as follows:

Step 1: Sign up to the Take Action Club Mailing list. There’s no cost involved at this time. By signing up, I can keep you updated as to what’s going on with the club.

The second step is quite obvious – Get the book. You won’t regret it.

There are two options for getting the book (One of which is FREE):

Option 1 – (The FREE OPTION): Download the audiobook for Free and listen to it on your ipod or MP3 Player. To claim the FREE audiobook, use the following link (note you will have to register and search for the book in order to download it):

Option 2: You can pick it up at your local Barnes and Noble, Borders or some other local bookstore, or you can purchase it online using the following link:

The final step for this week is pretty simple – START READING. There’s some good stuff in there and in order to start taking the Action Steps you need to take, you need to know what’s in there. I will try to put updates on my progress once weekly, and will be looking out to hearing from you about what you are learning, the steps you have implemented AND the results you have been getting.

So, are you ready for the Challenge? Then go ahead and Sign Up!

Many Money-Making Internet “Guru’s” show you their bank PayPal and Clickbank accounts with tens of thousands of dollars in one month or even a few days and try to convince you that it is an easy process that you can do IF you just pay them some money and get their repackaged product that holds the “Key To Success”

However, the fact of the matter is that it took them A LOT OF WORK to get to where they are, in order for them to reap the benefits of being able to work less now and make more money in one month than many people make in one year.

I might not be telling you what you want to hear, but it is the truth. I’ve had MANY people contact me asking me what they can do to make a bunch of money now. I do have a simple answer to that. You can make a bunch of money now by winning the lottery. Otherwise, you will have to do what all other Money-making gurus have done – Use proven strategies and WORK to build a system that will pay off in the long run.

I fell for the hype a few times before. I got into High Yield Investment Projects in the past. I was excited because I could earn anywhere between 40 and 90% return in just one month. It was an awesome dream and I bought into it – so much so that I took half of my wedding money and invested it into that “sure thing”. Needless to say, I did not spend as much on my wedding as I thought I would.

Then there are those who are just lucky. Back in college, I had a friend who convinced me to get into investing in the stock market. They had put $1,800 into a penny stock and from one day to the next, it increased in value (luckily) from $1,800 to $25,000. When I heard about that, I could not believe my ears. I decided to take $4,800 of my tuition money and invested into stock. I remember the value of my stock fluctuating between $4,200 and $5,400 a few times.

Then, from one day to another, something terrible happened to the company and the value of my stock dropped about $2,000. Too emotional to pull out with such a loss, I decided to keep my money in until the value “came back up”. Unfortunately, that never happened and I didn’t pull out until the value of my stock was a whopping $136.

Was it just that I was unlucky? No, it wasn’t. It was that I was looking for a Get Rich Quick scheme at the time. I had been convinced that there was a trick to making money on the internet, and that some of these people knew the trick. If only I could get into what they are doing, I would never have to worry about finances again. I mean, just think about it – If he made $25,000 out of $1,800, can you imagine how much money I could make out of $4,800? I can, and the answer was $136.

So Leslie, what’s with all the Doom and Gloom?

Why am I telling you all of this? The answer is pretty simple. I want you to get the understanding that making money online (at least in the initial stages), takes A LOT of STUDY and WORK! That’s the unknown secret of Internet Marketing Gurus. Anyone can make a few hundred dollars. To be quite honest, you can make a few hundred dollars in your FIRST MONTH as a Freebie Trader. To be even MORE honest, it’s much harder to profit $2,000+ each and every month, which is the reason I built this blog, and so many other people have their blogs on Internet Marketing – To save you the struggles that we had in getting going.

So those are the cold hard facts, and I REALLY want you to be aware of that, so that you can know what to expect if you are looking to make a full time income online.

So then what’s the point of trying?

I’m glad you asked. Although it takes a lot of work to get stuff going online, if you do things in the right way, you can set yourself up for success in a way that you can eventually reduce the amount of time you spend working, and leverage what you already did to make A LOT of money while doing minimal work on your own. The more known I become in the Internet marketing niche, the more successful people I get to meet. I know people now who can work between 5 minutes and 2 hours daily and make anywhere between $10,000 and $70,000 in one month. However, it took some work and careful planning to reach to where they are now.

Right now, I’m starting to reap the benefits of the kind of work that it takes to reach that level. When I started as a Freebie Trader, I literally worked every free minute (considering I also have a full-time job) specifically on Freebies to build up to where I was making $2,000 in pure profit per month. Right now, if I were to work an hour daily, I can easily make that much and beyond. However, my plan by the summer is to be making at least $10,000 in pure profit on a monthly basis. So I continue to work, but in a strategic way, with definite goals in mind, while educating myself to where I understand what it takes.

So what does it take Leslie?

The first thing it takes is a CHANGE in MINDSET! I know, you’ve heard it before, but it’s the absolute truth. I’m not going to give you some sort of 5 step plan to online success. That almost makes it sound too easy. What I am going to do is provide you with resources. I’m doing it this way because I’m NOT trying to sell you some sort of dream. Actually, yes I am trying to sell you a dream. A dream that can only come through if you make the decision that it has to come through.

I would like to take you on a journey over the next few weeks. A journey to success. In actuality, I would like to ask you to journey along with me. I will be providing you with resources that I am using and will continue to use that have contributed to my growing online success and if you implement what is taught in those resources, your success will follow. DO not worry, I’m not talking about taking your money. I’m talking resources such as websites, books etc. Valuable information, that will not only save you time in the long run, but also help you take the first step of changing your mindset.

I’m not asking you for money in exchange for me sharing a bunch of information with you or promising to show you the steps to online riches. I’m asking you to walk next to me as I take my journey to online riches. You will be seeing what I’m doing, while I’m doing it and also be able to see the results of what I’m doing while they are happening.

It’s almost like a book club. However, it’s much more than that. It is what I believe will form the basis for your success. While we take this journey, we will have to hold each other accountable for the tasks that we will have to implement. I will check up on you, and hope you will do the same for me. 2 heads are better than one, and 5 heads are better than 2. So if you are willing to join me on this journey, let me know by leaving your feedback in the comments area of this post.

I would also be lying if I said that I’m not in it for the money. Obviously, I’ve invested a whole lot into this blog and the Freebie Industry as a whole. The same dream that I mentioned before is what is driving me to make this blog the best in the industry. However, In order for me to be motivated to keep everything going, I need to have a dream, one that goes beyond Freebies.

If you have been following American politics recently, you’ve probably heard Phil Gramm, one of McCain’s top advisors say that America is suffering from a “Mental recession”. This statement caught a lot of heat from many democrats across the nation. As much as I might not like McCain or his advisors, I must say that I do agree with this statement.

Unfortunately, as much as we all like the idea of being an online success, and as much as we might all want to make a whole bunch of money, the sad fact is that most of the individuals who come to this blog, or any other blog that teaches how to make money online, will not make a good income online.

Most Freebie Traders, bloggers, affiliate marketers, and even Small Business owners will not make enough money not to have to worry about bills, expenses, retirement and the like.

Now, I’m NOT saying this to discourage you. If I didn’t believe that you could make good money online, I wouldn’t be here trying to sell you this dream.

Why don’t many people succeed?

The answer to this question is pretty simple. The people who don’t succeed in online business fail to follow the steps that are necessary to be successful. Yes, there are steps that you can take that will make you successful, and for the most part, it has NOTHING to do with luck. Yes, there are some people who have just been plain lucky. They got in at the beginning of the dotcom boom (or had some other lucky streak) and rode the momentum to online riches. But for you and I, this probably won’t happen. In order for us to make a bunch of money, we need to be systematic in the way we approach online business and follow PROVEN STRATEGIES for success.

5 tips that will help you to be successful

What I’m about to share with you is nothing new. They are some basic truths that I believe are fundamental to success, whether online or off.

1. If you follow success, success will follow you. Every successful internet marketer that I’ve spoken to has told me the same thing – there are people that they follow closely. People who are where they want to be. There are a number of people that I follow, and to be perfectly honest, NONE of them make less money than I do. You can take my online income and multiply it many times over and you will eventually get to the amount that they make. Why do I do that? Because that’s where I want to be, and if I take the same steps that they took, I will eventually reach to where they are.

2. Invest in education. There is one fact that becomes clearer to me as time passes – I have a lot to learn. Yes, I understand the freebie industry. However, I have a lot to learn even within the freebie industry. Yes, I said it – the freebie guy does not know everything about Freebies. Also, the Freebie Industry is only one small aspect of Affiliate marketing. Because I’m fully aware of my limitations, I’ve made the decision (along with every other successful internet marketer) to invest in my online education. I’ve joined programs like Blog mastermind, Becomablogger, Wealthy Affiliate, Izzy Video, among others. Yes, it has cost money. However, it has made me better at what I do.

3. Network with others. You knew this would be one of them. The main idea behind this is that two heads are better than one, three or four are even better. Whenever I come up with an idea (which happens way too often), there is someone that I contact just to get another perspective. This person is Chrisdeals. I trust his knowledge and we work well together. We go back and forth, speaking about the ideas and refining them to make them better than we could’ve done on our own. In addition to that, I share this information with a small group of people to get even more ideas.

4. Stop wasting time. For this one, to a certain extent I’m talking to myself. There are certain tasks that we find ourself caught up in. They take a lot of time and don’t really contribute to success. For me, these tasks have been things like spending a lot of time on Social networking sites, forums, checking email and just browsing the internet. Don’t get me wrong, there are nothing wrong with these things. In fact, they play an integral part in helping you be successful if you use them well. However, if you use them inefficiently, they can steal a lot of your time.

5. Get help. When I first started as a freebie trader, I did everything myself: Design, coding, modifications, and a whole bunch of other stuff. I was eventually turned on to outsourcing and realized that there were many people out there who can do what I want, much better than I can for much less than I thought. Not only that, but when I invest money to pay people to do a great job, it ends up paying me back with interest.

These are a few of the things that I’ve learnt in my pursuit of success and I just wanted to share them with you, because I WANT YOU TO BE SUCCESSFUL. have you implimented any of the tips I mentioned. Do you have any tips that you would like to add? Please leave some comments below.

I decided that in order to move into the new year in an effective way, I needed to look back on 2008 and do a thorough analysis. It is always a good idea to look back before looking forward. By looking back, we are able to asses our successes AND, maybe more importantly, our failures. I’m a firm believer in the idea that we can learn much more from our failures than we do from our successes.

One measure of success, when it comes to making money online, is a pretty simple one – How much money did you make? However, in my opinion, a better measure of success (although harder to evaluate) has to do with how many people you’ve been able to help succeed. Since I can’t fully evaluate the second measure, I’ve decided to do an analysis of the first.

My Earnings:

I started as a Freebie Trader on January 18th, 2008. However, I didn’t really get into it FULLY until May 1. That was around the time when I had my first sticky at the Free Lunch Room. That really gave me the push I needed to really do some big things. So, here’s a summary of my Earnings for the year 2008:

• Freebie Trading (January 18 – April 30): $2,895
• Freebie Trading (Since May): 25,228.57
• Lunarpages: $3,230
• Commission Junction: $90
• ClickBank: $54.73
• DIYThemes: $28.71
• Hostgator: $50

Total for 2008: $31.577.01

Physical Prizes received: 40″ flatscreen Tv and an Ipod Touch.

All in all, 2008 was a very good year (especially for a relatively new guy on the block).

There were a few things that happened this year that really got me going and I would like to share those things with you:

1. Being introduced to Freebie Trading via Project Payday. It was this that really got me started making money online and formed the basis for this site.
2. Meeting Freebie Chris and going all the way to Virginia to meet up. We keep bouncing ideas off each other and it has been invaluable.
3. Being Introduced to Yaro Starak and starting his Blog Mastermind coaching program.
4. Joining Become A Blogger and learning from Gideon Shalwick.

Mistakes? What Mistakes?

Did I do anything wrong in the process? Did I make any mistakes? My answer to that question would be NO. Not because I think I’m perfect. I know that I’m far from it. However, I have a problem seeing mistakes. I’m sure there’s a lot I could do better, but in my opinion, the one of the most important things is that if you want to be successful, you need to start DOING. I would rather move forward in a direction that is less than ideal than to stay stagnant and do nothing.

Now that I have that out of the way, lets talk about the things I could’ve done better (some people might call these mistakes)

1. Develop my system sooner: If I had to do it over, I would’ve started my blog sooner. Many people get so caught up in the freebie trading forums (which is what happened to me in the beginning), that they find it hard to do anything outside of those forums. If I were to start over again, I would’ve tried to get out of the Freebie Trading Forums sooner. It might have taken longer, but ends up being more consitent.
2. Outsourcing sooner: One of the issues that affects a lot of beginning internet marketers is that they try to do too much on their own because of the cost associated with outsourcing. However, the sooner you outsouce, the better (in my humble opinion). The goal should be to be as efficient as possible, because that leads to an increased income in the long term.

I’m sure there are others, but that’s ok. Nobody’s perfect, but I will continue to strive for perfection.

Goals for the New Year

2009 is almost here and as much as it can benefit us by looking back, we need to look forward and set new goals. If you never set a goal, you will always reach your goal. However, I can’t let that be my fate. I have set a few goals that I would like to share. The reason for this is I believe that it holds me accountable and gives me something to strive for. So here are some of my goals:

1. Make Daily Goals – Whenever I do this for my business, I end up being much more effective. I plan on doing that much more in 2009.
2. Double my income for 2009 – 2008 was great, and I believe that 2009 can be much better.
3. Outsource more – I’m enjoying what I do right now, but it can get quite tedious. Since meeting Yaro, I’ve outsourced much more than I normally would. I have used designers, coders and writers. In 2009, I hope to get a virtual assistant that can help me out significantly with a number of tasks and make my business even more efficient.
4. Help more people – This has been the most rewarding part of what I do. When I get messages from people letting me know how much they’ve benefited from what I do, it gives me the energy to continue.
5. Pay off all my debt – In comparison to many others, I guess my debt isn’t that huge. But by the end of the year, I would like to pay off my car, student and personal loans. I’ve already paid off a significant amount and at this rate, I believe I can be debt free by the end of 2009.
6. Be able to Quit my Day job – This is the kicker. I would like to have the option to quit my day job. That will be a tough decision because I enjoy teaching. However, I think I’m able to do much more teaching online than in a classroom.
7. Start a new business – One of my dreams has been to take all of my Science background and create a tutoring website that is aimed at helping people who are having trouble in Science (especially the biological sciences). This has nothing to do with this blog, but I felt like sharing that. I might as well put my Master’s of Science in Neurobiology to work.

So that’s my summary of 2008 and projections for 2009. It has been great so far and I look forward for what’s in store for the future.

I would LOVE to hear what some of your goals are, so please leave some comments below. With all of you that read my blog, I know that there are some big thinkers out there.

Many people come to the freebie industry to make an extra few dollars a month. A lot of people think to themselves “If I can only make $1,000 a month, that would be GREAT!” They are trying to meet their basic needs and maybe provide for their family. Now, don’t get me wrong. There is absolutely NOTHING wrong with that mentality. However, it doesn’t work for me!

You see, I have this issue of not being able to settle for what is average. As you might already know, when I put my mind to something, I have a tendency to go overboard. The reason for this is that I believe that the mind is a powerful thing and we can’t even begin to understand it’s potential.

Leslie, the Scientist

Let me put it this way (and please forgive me for getting a little too scientific). What you might not know about me is that I did my Masters of Science degree in Neurobiology. My research for my Masters was studying a neuron in a cricket. A neuron (just in case you don’t know) is a nerve cell – the main type of cell that makes up the brain. My research was so complex that it took me all the way to Germany for 2 summers to study a species over there.

Now, you might be thinking to yourself, why in the world was I studying a cricket and what in the world does that have to do with freebies. To answer your first question – the reason I was studying a cricket is because I wanted to look at how individual neurons process information and how that processing can lead to a specific behavior. It is estimated that the human brain has over 100 Billion neurons. It’s close to impossible to study 1 of those individual neurons in as much detail.

One of the things I learned from studying that ONE neuron in a CRICKET is that neurons are super complex. It has taken labs in different parts of the world MANY years to study that one neuron and we still don’t fully understand what’s going on with it.

Ok, enough about crickets. Wait, maybe one more thing. If a neuron in a cricket can be so complex, can you imagine what kind of processing happens in the over 100 billion neurons in the human brain? That thing is so complex and intricate that it’s impossible for us to fully grasp what all it can do.

The Unfortunate Fact

Yes, it is very unfortunate, but do you know that we are conditioned to be underachievers? Come on, lets be real . . . bad things happen around us, we complain, and then decide that certain things aren’t worth working hard for.

As a child, we might study for a test and still do poorly on it and decide that studying just isn’t worth it.

As a grown-up, we might work hard at our job and get laid off and decide that we aren’t good enough to make a decent income.

TV is full of examples of people just giving up on life, to the extent that people think it’s cool to be lazy and do nothing.

So what does it take to get rich?

That’s the famous question. If you are reading this blog, it’s probably because you want to make money online. Unfortunately, the Freebie Industry is NOT the best place to start. The best place to start is with those 100 billion neurons that are right there in your brain. Start by working on you. Stop being lazy and start being an overachiever. Set goals and surpass them.

Like Henry Ford said –  ”If you think you can, you can. If you think you can’t, you can’t. Either way, you’re right”

Where do I start?

I’m glad you asked that question and that is the reason I wrote this post. One of my fellow Blog Mastermind students started a blog that answers those exact questions. His name is Steve Martile and his blog is called Freedom Education. I want you to go and check it out at www.freedomeducation.ca. Steve is a personal development coach and his articles are top notch. He even has a free ebook called The Genius Within YOU – How to unlock your inner genius, natural ability and life purpose.

So head on over and check it out.

Do you identify with anything I said here? If so, let me know about it!

Now, as you know, you cannot access freebie sites internationally (with a few exceptions). Actually, you should ONLY use your home computer to access freebie sites. Because of this, I will have to access my freebie sites using logmein.com. So if you find yourself in a situation where you are going to be traveling and you need to access your freebie sites, go ahead and read my article on How to Travel while doing Freebies.

That being said, I will be on vacation. I’m still going to try to keep my blog updated with fresh content for you. But if I skip a day or two (or three or four), don’t hold it against me. It’s currently 8 degrees in Michigan, so the change in weather will be DRASTIC! WOOHOOO. Then again, after being in the Bahamas for a little over a week, we are heading to Nebraska. Yes, we decided that we wanted to experience both extremes. Nah, just kidding. We are attending a wedding in both places. It should be fun.

So what are you doing for Christmas? I would love to know. Who has the wildest vacation planned . . . ???

In this same spirit of thanksgiving, I’ve decided to come up with a list of 10 things I’m thankful for from the aspect of Freebie Trading. Here’s what I came up with:

1. I’m thankful for the many wonderful people I’ve been able to meet and interact with. It has made Freebie Trading so much fun.
2. I’m thankful for Project Payday for introducing me to this opportunity.
3. I’m thankful for The Free Lunch Room and the community-like atmosphere it has fostered.
4. I’m thankful for Freebie Site Owners who take the time to address concerns at let their members know that they are highly valuable.
5. I’m thankful for all the awesome promos these sites have that make freebie trading even more rewarding.
6. I’m thankful for all the emails and comments I get from people thanking me for how I’ve helped them.
7. I’m thankful for the learning opportunities we all have as Freebie Trader because of the dynamic nature of the industry.
8. I’m thankful Freebie Traders who think outside the box. That really gives me additional motivation.
9. I’m thankful for My Blog Mastermind mentor, Yaro Starak, who has helped me to make www.becomeablogger.com one of the best blogs on freebie trading (in my opinion).
10. I’m thankful for what I see in the future of the Freebie Industry. It has grown a lot and will continue to grow in many different ways.

Those are my list that I’m thankful for. Of course, the system isn’t perfect, and even in the things I’m thankful for, I’m sure I can find some faults. However, that’s not what this post is about. Do you have thing you are thankful for as a freebie trader? Please share them here.

There are more and more individuals with full-time jobs that come to Freebie Trading with the intention of supplementing their income. Many of these traders end up at forums such as the CaliStyle101.com and see the potential in trading at such a forum, but also see that many of the successful traders spend all day at CS101.

For most individuals with a full-time job, spending all day at a forum is not feasible. Yes, some people do have internet access at their jobs and can spend time there. However, that is not usually the case. I am a science and math teacher at a boarding academy. Because of that, I can not be online at all times of the day.

What I would like to show you in this article is what a typical effective day for me is like on days that I am “working” the forum.

In the Morning

I wake up at 6am to prepare to leave for work at 9am. In the morning, I spend about an hour checking to see if I have any emails or private messages to respond to. I try to do respond to them all at the same time – what I like to call “batch processing”. I also complete trades and send payments to any traders that might have greened overnight.

When I finish with the above-mentioned tasks (if I still have some time left in the hour), I check the forums to see if there are any posts in the forums that I can respond to. The first place to check is in the Support and Questions subforum. If you see an opportunity for a post, immediately try to make an effective post. Actually, you should try to make as many as possible during the remaining time.

I then get ready for work and head out.

Lunch Time

Around noon, I get a lunch break. At that time, I log into the forum and my email account to see if anyone has sent me any messages, or greened since I last logged in. If so, I respond quickly (within 15 minutes or so). I have internet access at my job, so that makes it a little easier. After about 10 or 15 minutes, I log off and head to lunch.

Mid Afternoon

At around 3:15, I repeat the same process that I did at lunch time. The main goal is to see if anyone needs my help. Although I’m not always available, I try to be as effective as possible within the decided time-frame.

5pm-ish

I’m usually home by 5pm. And I try to spend an hour or two doing what I did in the morning – responding to messages, sending payments (if necessary) and posting to the forums. The main part to post to (as I mentioned before) is the Support and Questions subforum. Then I check around the technical support and other subforums to see if anyone has any questions that I can respond to.

One more thing that has proven to be very beneficial is that I usually try to update my trophy thread at this time. When people see success in a trophy thread, they are lead to ask themselves the question: “How in the world was he able to do that?” This can lead to potential trades.

Later On

At some point later at night, usually somewhere between 8 and 10, I get back online and try to tie up any loose ends. This usually involves posting in the forum, checking PMs and emails (as usual) and sometimes chatting with traders via IM – basically, anything that is left to be done.

So there you have it. That gives you an idea of what my day looks like. Now, this is not what always happens. This is the basic structure that I give myself. I set some daily goals and I try my best to meet those goals. One main component of it all is that I try to make 20 posts to the forums daily. The breakdown I normally use is 10 in the Support and Questions subforum, 5 in the subforums of the individual sites and 5 in other places. That gives me enough exposure for people to be familiar enough with me and want to work with me.

As a bare minimum (especially as someone that is starting out), you should be posting no less than 10 posts daily.

For more tips, check out my article on how not to waste time with freebies.

Do you have a full time job? Have you had success with freebies? If you would like to share some tips, feel free to do so right here. Or if you have questions, go ahead and ask. I’d be happy to try to answer them.

Ok, I’ll be honest. That was just my way of piquing your curiosity and getting you to click on the article. On the contrary, making money online does NOT suck. It can actually be quite liberating and enjoyable.

That being said, Making Money can suck IF it is at too high a cost. Many people spend fortunes in a pursuit of financial freedom – not just in terms of cash invested, but also in time invested.

They purchase every information product out there, spend countless hours in front of the computer. Their Spouses and kids seem to be a distraction from their computers. The most important thing in life to them is making a lot of money.

If you are finding yourself reaching a point where all of your energy is spent trying to make a dollar out of fifty cents, and would like a change, then I’m going to share a few things with you that I believe a very important and will (in my opinion) help you be even more successful.

Remember what REALLY matters

Many people start trying to make money online to try to correct their current financial situation. They are worried that with the failing economy as we see it today, they will not be able to provide for their families.

At the heart of it all, it’s all about the people they LOVE. However, in an attempt to provide for the people we love, it is easy to loose focus on what is really important.

Why are you here? Why are you reading about making money? Is it because of your personal financial situation? Maybe you don’t really NEED the money, but you would just like to enhance your situation.

If your end goal is Money and Money alone, then your goals are too low. When it’s all said and done, and your at the end of your life, what will really matter is NOT how much money you’ve made, but the relationships that you’ve nurtured.

Be disciplined

This is not something we enjoy hearing. The word discipline often has a negative connotation attached to it. However, it is something that is definitely necessary. There are some tasks that you have to do on a consistent basis in order to be successful, many of which might seem mundane. Do those tasks consistently.

However, that is not the discipline I’m talking about right now. This is a different type of discipline. It is the discipline to say that enough is enough. It is the discipline that warrants you setting aside time to spend with the people you care about. Your family matters, so make sure they know, understand and feel that.

Be Lucky

Many people believe that in order to make money online, you need to be lucky. I tend to agree with that. However, there’s a difference between my definition of luck and the average person’s definition of luck.

Luck is when Preparedness meets Opportunity

I’m not sure who said that, but it’s something that has stuck with me from my early college days. Many people look at others who are financially successful and say that they are “lucky”. They look at the idea of financial success as some distant goal that they will never be able to achieve. For the person that says that, it is a very true statement.

On the other hand, there are people like me, and hopefully you. We see financial success as a goal that can be accomplished. We do the research, learn the strategies, and take action. By educating ourselves, we change our reality. We take risks and implement what we’ve learnt. By preparing ourselves mentally and emotionally, we are ready for when the golden opportunities present themselves. We recognize those opportunities because of the preparation that has already taken place.

If you are that person, I commend you. You are on the right track. Keep doing what you are doing right now. By reading this blog, you are preparing yourself for the opportunities that will come your way. Continue doing your research. Your “Luck” will come!

People are your key to success

There is a lot to be said for helping others. The key to being a true success (online or offline) is to help others to succeed. This “giving mentality” is one that will pay off many times over. Remember, the people you help are people whose lives you have had an impact on. And when it’s all said and done, these are the things that really matter.

Treat people with respect. Every person has significant intrinsic value. Show them that you believe that they are worth your time. This is something that will pay off many times over – sometimes monetarily, and sometimes in other ways.

So lets get back to the title of this article. Making Money Online is Great! It really doesn’t suck. However, it is very important to have balance and keep things in perspective. Remember, at the end of your life, you can’t take your money with you. But your character can live on in the hearts and minds of others.

Making the Big Bucks
Yes, you can be paid $100 on one trade for going green on a 5 credit site. However, what happens many times in those cases, the referral gets discouraged because of how hard it is to meet the offer requirements and they end up loosing a bunch of money. I’ve had people contact me who haven’t made a dime, but actually spent over $200 trying to go green. With the amount of effort that it would take for you to complete the 5 credit site, you could’ve added 5 sites to your portfolio. Also, with a 5 credit site, it will be EXTREMELY difficult for you to get referrals! What’s more, by doing a 5 credit site, you get a iTrader Rating (TR) of 1, as opposed to doing five 1 credit sites and get a TR increase of 5.

Start Small
So, start with a site that pays around $20 – $30. Do a few of those. Get familiar with how to complete offers. Perfect method 1. This is very important because when you move on to method 2, you will have to teach others to go green. If you are inexperienced as to how to do this, YOU WILL NOT BE SUCCESSFUL, and you will end up with a bunch of unpleased referrals.

Get Your Running Shoes Handy
If you contact someone to be your mentor and they recommend you starting with one of these sites, because of the high payout – RUN!! RUN WITH THE WIND!! and find someone else. I strongly believe that when someone asks you to do that, in my opinion, they either have no idea what they are doing, or just want to make a lot of money with no concern for your success in the freebie industry.

So once again, let me emphasize: START SMALL, and START SMART!! Do you have a horror story about a higher crediting site? Feel free to share . . .