In my previous article, I discussed finding a mentor and what it means to your business, whatever business you choose.  In this, my final article in this three-part series, I’m going to talk to you about taking care of your down-line.  Just as you need to find an up-line that will support, so too must you be that up-line for people you bring into your organization.

There is a ton of failure in MLM.  Though it’s not MLM’s fault…at all…it still gets blamed.  The main for many of these failures is lack of support for folks in down-lines.  Many get involved with a company, go gang-busters for six months, bring in people, and then burn out because they’re drive and energy aren’t duplicated.  This is bad news for the person busting their tail, but it’s also bad for their down-line.  There are so many of these abandoned, in fact, that they’ve got an industry term: orphan.

But you’re not going to do that, are you?  You’re going to build a business rather than a statistic.  How do you do that?  You take what you’ve learned from top performers in your company and share it with your down-line.  When you bring a person into your organization, you should expect to spend a month training them, motivating them, getting them their first associates, etc.  Remember, you make money ONLY when they make money.

In short, you’re building a long-term relationship, here.  This is a partnership your building with real people.  Your down-line isn’t a number or a list of bonuses.  They’re real people with families and aspirations – just like you.  It’s critical that you keep that in mind as you decide to go down this path.  These relationships will be worth it, but they will take work.

There you have it.  Three keys to success in network marketing.

• Choose your company wisely
• Find a mentor in your up-line
• Take care of the people in your down-line

That’ll do it for this series on acheiving success in MLM.  I hope it was useful to you, and I hope that it will help on your journey to huge success in this industry.  I’d love to hear from you on what you think, so leave a comment below.  Have a good one.

In the last article, I talked about the importance of choosing your company wisely as the first step toward success in network marketing.  Today I’d like to talk about the importance of finding a good mentor, someone in your up-line that can show you how they acheived success in your company.

There are thousands of success stories out there.  Guess how those people became the success stories they are.  It wasn’t by luck, by chance, or by accident.  Success in this industry is intentional, no matter what some “marketers” try to sell you. 

Successful people are created by successful systems.  What’s more, it behooves the successful marketer to teach you how to succeed.  That’s one of the strengths of the MLM business model.  People above you are incentivised to help you succeed because they make money when you make money.

The thing is here that you need to be willing to listen and to learn.  Don’t waste time trying to figure online marketing out.  Go to someone who already knows what the heck they’re doing…and do that.  It’s that simple.  Remember, success in MLM isn’t an inate talent that only a few possess.  It’s a skill that can be learned like anything else.  Just be sure you find a good teacher.

In the end, whichever company you choose to join, seek out that company’s top performers.  It doesn’t matter who you came in under.  They’re going to be really happy if you succeed anyway, so they very likely don’t care how you do it.  You should already know some of the big players through the research you did in selecting your company.  You did run through all four questions I gave you, right? <grins>

My final article in this series will be on Taking Care Of Your Downline.  Just as you need to find a good up-line to support you.  It’s critical that you support people you bring into your organization.  Catch you next week.

MLM usually conjures up two images for most people. The first image is of the sleazy, pushy “marketer” working hard to convince you that all you have to do to make millions is push a few crates of juice or nutritionals or household chemicals to your friends and family, and their friends and family, and so on. The other is of a stay-at-home mom or home-maker hosting parties to sell Tupperware or cookery or make-up.

The truth is that neither of these is actually true. A true marketer isn’t sleazy or pushy. A marketer simply introduces people to services or products they’re already in the market for. On the other end of the spectrum, you don’t have to order vast quantities in hopes of selling it all or host a bunch of parties in homes. That’s good news for the vast majority of us who aren’t sleazy or interested in Tupperware parties. The question is then, how do you succeed in this industry?

Over the next week, I’ll explain three critical attributes of any successful network marketing opportunity. Make sure you cover each of these bases, and you’ll be well on your way to creating a successful business.

Tip #1: Choose Your Opportunity Wisely
It seems obvious, but success begins with the company you choose. Examine every opportunity you consider by answering these four questions.

1) Is the company stable? Make sure it’s been around for a while and has some brand recognition. There are plenty of “great opportunities” that wind up being smoke and mirrors. If a company’s been around for a while, you can count on its legitimacy…and its profitability. A company that has staying power has earning power. Plain and simple.

2) Does the company offer quality products that people want? Some people can sell ice to Eskimos, but you shouldn’t have to. Marketing is about helping people find the products and services they want. Joining a company that offers these things gives you the opportunity to be a legitimate marketer.

3) How does the company compensate its distributors? How much of every dollar you sell is returned to you? Furthermore, is the distribution of those dollars fair to both old and new members? You have to watch out for “opportunities” that milk your efforts for a few at the top.

4) How well does the company support its distributors? The key to having any success in network marketing is a simple system that’s easy to duplicate. Without one, you’re dead in the water. While you may be excited and willing to work your tail off, most others aren’t. You’ll eventually run out of steam and fail. It’s essential that your chosen opportunity offers a system like this and also the training and materials you need to succeed.

That about covers Choosing Wisely. Keep these four questions in mind when choosing your company, and you should be OK. In my next article in this series, I’ll talk about the second critical attribute of network marking: Finding a Mentor. See you then.

If the measure of a man is what he does in private, then the measure of a Tweeter is how interesting he’s found to be by the public.

The public will praise you in many ways. Throwing you a mention on Follow Fridays. Giving you a shout out. Telling their followers that you’re an interesting Tweeter. Some may even give you money. But the greatest praise of all starts with “RT @.” Yah, that’s the stuff.

Think of your re-tweetability like Twitter street cred. When you consistently post things that are worth re-tweeting, others will take notice and begin seeking you out on Twitter. Everyone thinks that your follower count is what elevates you above the pack on Twitter. While your count is important for social proof, it’s really how often you’re being re-tweeted that tells you how relevant and interesting your tweeps find you.

So how does one get re-tweeted? Simple. Just be more re-tweetable. <– In case you’re wondering, that right there is why I get paid the big bucks. Genius, I know. But seriously, here are a few things you can do right now to move towards re-tweetability perfected in human form.

Turn off your TweetLater and TwitterFeed. These services are fantastic, and I’m not suggesting we storm their offices with pitch forks and torches…necessarily. Heck, I’m not even suggesting you never use them again. What I am saying is that these little time savers quickly become a crutch. I say this because I’m guilty as sin of doing this myself. It’s like having that 13th cookie when you know you should stop at 12. “If they add tweets for me, I can focus on people and whatever.” Lame. Don’t by it. People won’t care that you’re focusing on them because they don’t care what you’re saying. If Google’s doing your posting, then why do they need you? Fewer, RELEVANT posts will go a lot farther toward developing a solid (don’t necessarily read HUGE) following than filling your wall with crap. Get off your butt and find something cool to tweet about.

Ask good questions that demand answers. How often are you asking questions in your tweets? Questions are like catnip for the brain. They’re irresistible, and once they’re rattling around up there, they get the brain running around in circles trying to chase down answers. You want this. This gets you remembered, and it also gives you something to talk about so you can…gasp… ACTUALLY converse on a social network site! So then, the trick is in what to ask. “What’s your favorite color?” is a stupid question. Who cares? Think of something provocative. Something that gives people something to talk about. Something a little polarizing is always good. A little example from my own life. I’m a staunch Creationist. One of my best friends in life is a staunch Evolutionist. We have titanic battles over the merits and challenges in each theory. We’re totally polar. But you know what, we’ve grown to know and respect each other’s view point while simultaneously strengthening our positions in our own minds. Controversy isn’t a bad thing. Provocative isn’t a bad word.  Ask questions that people will be forced to answer, and you’ll be more memorable and more read.

Advertise that you’re the most amazing person on this planet. Now, I know what you’re thinking, but you’re wrong. I share our culture’s openly venomous reaction to the braggart. What I’m saying rather is that you need to impress your amazingness on me through your tweets. Believe it or not, your bunion surgery isn’t all that amazing to me. Telling me about the weather is just so much fluff. Give me something of substance to read. Rock my world at least 70% of the time. That’s tough, I know. Even the guy who invented Twitter probably can’t do that. I can’t sing either, but that doesn’t stop me from singing my heart out every morning in the shower in preparation of my big debut. You need to make me want to know more about you because you must be the coolest cat around. Once you do that, I’ll start paying attention. Perception defines reality every once in a while.  Mold my perception of you and your greatness.

Quote yourself like you’re the only narcissist in a room full of monks. The person most likely to quote you is you. Period. I want to know what’s going on inside that 3lbs of miracle in between your ears. What thoughts go through there? Engage me. Say something meaningful, or whimsical, or funny, or even crude. Crude is the new black. It’s always in style so long as it’s not overdone. Overdo it though and you’re just goth. Goth isn’t funny, or whimsical, or even particularly interesting…but I digress. Don’t be afraid to put yourself out there and see what happens. Here’s a little secret your mom never told you because 1)there was probably no Twitter when you were a kid, and 2)she wanted you to turn out nice: In the 9 million+ people on Twitter, chances are you’re not alone in ANY belief you hold. Don’t be afraid, be honest, and put yourself out there like you believe you’re the most interesting person tweeting in this or any other age.

Don’t make every post a link to something else. I’ve been guilty of this one for sure, but think about it. What percentage of the linkage you’re sent are you actually reading? I’m guessing somewhere between hardly any and next to none. You’re not alone. So before you send me that link, think about it. Will I actually find this useful? Some things you gotta share. For instance, I once found a YouTube video on a full scale Gundam model that was built in Japan. I had to share that because Gundam is freakin’ cool. But if you’re linking to something else in every post, then why am I reading what you’re saying in the first place? I can go to Google myself, look up some key words, and get the same thing if I care, which I don’t, statistically speaking. Use links for marketing, getting people to visit your blog, or for things of great interest to your target market. The rest should be your words.

Channel your inner Barry White and facilitate some love. People want to feel good about themselves, so help them do that. They’ll love you back. You can do this by re-tweeting their thoughts and telling them why. It gives them the exposure they want, and it makes you look like a sweetheart. Win-Win. When you help people to feel good about what they’re doing, they WILL respond in kind. The one caveat is probably that you want to make sure you’re spreading the love to people you actually like. If someone re-tweets you often, and they club baby seals on weekends, other tweeps may assume you also like to club baby seals on weekends. If you do actually like clubbing baby seals, then this example was not for you. Oh, and what’s the matter with you? Anyway, inspire people and encourage those around you, and you’ll get a return on that in spades.

Mind your P’s and Q’s. When someone pays you the courtesy of re-tweeting something you offered, you owe them a thank you. Period. I don’t care how many re-tweets you get. Re-tweets are a gift, and we always say thank you for gifts. When you show your gratitude, it makes people feel special, which will then compel them to re-tweet you more often. It’s a vicious cycle of manners, I tell ya. Watch out!

The final, and arguably most important component of being a re-tweet superstar is…

DON’T USE ALL 140 CHARACTERS! If you don’t leave room for people to add “RT @JoshNikle ,“ then how will you ever get re-tweeted? It’s a simple thing, but it gets missed all time. We’re a verbose society, and it’s tough to fit a thought into 120 characters, but you need to do it. You have 120 characters to bare your soul, convince me you’re awesome, or whatever it is you’re trying to do.

I hope this has been helpful for you. Throw me a follow on Twitter. I’m always looking for something that is actually interesting to read. Hit me with your best shot.

I believe very strongly that the sum total of the Human Experience should be the betterment of one’s self.  We are born, here for a short while, and then we die.  BUT, the things we can do and be and accomplish in that short time!

We all have circumstances that we deal with and hands we are dealt that must be played, but one constant for every soul on this planet is that they have the ability to do good for others. 

I have a good friend who’s fond of saying “The only constant in life is that it can always be worse.”  I believe that.  Absolutely.  There’s no shortage of people who could use acts of kindness, and no shortage of people who could perform them.

Be the person that makes a difference in someone’s life.  Even a tiny gesture on your part can make a huge difference in someone else’s day.  Here’s a story I found that illustrates this beautifully.

WET PANTS
Come with me to a third grade classroom….. There is a nine-year-old kid sitting at his desk and all of a sudden, there is a puddle between his feet and the front of his pants are wet. He thinks his heart is going to stop because he cannot possibly imagine how this has happened.  It’s never happened before, and he knows that when the boys find out he will never hear the end of it. When the girls find out, they’ll never speak to him again as long as he lives.
The boy believes his heart is going to stop; he puts his head down and prays this prayer, ‘Dear God, this is an emergency! I need help now! Five minutes from now I’m dead meat.’

He looks up from his prayer and here comes the teacher with a look in her eyes that says he has been discovered.
As the teacher is walking toward him, a classmate named Susie is carrying a goldfish bowl that is filled with water. Susie trips in front of the teacher and inexplicably dumps the bowl of water in the boy’s lap.
The boy pretends to be angry, but all the while is saying to himself, ‘Thank you, Lord! Thank you, Lord!’

Now all of a sudden, instead of being the object of ridicule, the boy is the object of sympathy. The teacher rushes him downstairs and gives him gym shorts to put on while his pants dry out. All the other children are on their hands and knees cleaning up around his desk. The sympathy is wonderful. But as life would have it, the ridicule that should have been his has been transferred to someone else – Susie. 

She tries to help, but they tell her to get out. You’ve done enough, you klutz!’ 

Finally, at the end of the day, as they are waiting for the bus, the boy walks over to Susie and whispers, ‘You did that on purpose, didn’t you?’ Susie whispers back, ‘I wet my pants once too.’

With the huge rise in interest in internet marketing, I’ve started seeing more and more of these campaigns promising untold riches without any work.  They usually come in two varieties: “Make A Gazillion Dollars In 20 Minutes A Day!” and “Buy My System And Wealth Will Find You Automatically!”  The reason these things annoy me so much is because 1)they simply aren’t true, and 2)they serve only to discourage those that are new to the industry by very likely giving them a bad experience out of the shoot.

First, you don’t get a fortune through miniscule effort.  You have the chance to create a fortune through Herculean effort.  You need to put in your time, give up that favorite TV show or at least set the Tivo, lose the negative relationships and influences in your life, and set yourself wholeheartedly on your ultimate goal.  That’s the real price of financial freedom.   Nothing in life worth having comes without effort.  Don’t get sucked in by the promise of easy riches.

Second, there are not huge piles of cash aimlessly floating around the Interwebs looking for a suitable home to bless.  You can not make vast sums of money “on autopilot,” at least not in the sense it’s usually portrayed.  There are certainly tools that can help automate tasks.  Take Twitter for instance.  Through free services and tools, you can fill your account with updates and follow thousands of people without ever even visiting the actual site.  However, although these tools serve as great aids to your marketing efforts there, unless you actually participate in the community, you’re not going to be a John Chow, TheEntertainer, or a GaryVee.  These guys are huge on Twitter because they spend time interacting with their followers, and that makes their marketing attractive…and effective. 

Likewise, any system that you opt in to will require effort, no matter how simple it is.  I’ve found the MLM Mastermind system is remarkably simple to use, but there are hours of training videos that you should watch, miles of blogs to read, and a forum to go through…and participate in.  Time well spent, but a lot of time and effort nonetheless.

Wealth is very possible on the Internet.  I don’t want to discourage anyone in any way from pursuing business ownership on the Web.  But it’s important to have it firmly set in one’s mind that it’s a business being built, not a fantasy.  Success comes to those who earn it.  Wishes and laziness will only result in dissolutionment and failure. 

Dream Big.  Believe Faithfully.  Achieve Incrementally.  Succeed Wildly!

If you’ve reached the point of exhaustion trying to keep up
with answering the mountain of emails that threatens to
bury you alive every single day, you’re ready to learn
about autoresponders.The bad news is that people expect prompt replies to their
email inquiries. However, unless you can figure out how to
work continual twenty-four hour shifts, or hire enough
people to constantly monitor incoming emails (while they’re
eating up your revenue), you have a problem. The good news
is an autoresponder is an inexpensive – or even free -
method of quickly responding to emails. What these programs
do is automatically respond to incoming emails as soon as
they are received.Emails are essential to your business for many different
reasons. Most importantly, these invisible email voices
give you their feedback about your website – for free!
However, if you spend all your working hours answering
these emails, how are you supposed to run your business?
The answer is simple: use autoresponders. Autoresponders
are programs that automatically respond to your emails
without you so much as having to click on your mouse.There are a number of good reasons why you need an
autoresponder besides just answering your email. For
example, autoresponders can be used if you need a way to
send information about your services or products, price
lists, or if there are repeated questions asked across
large numbers of emails. Maybe you want to offer your site
visitors a special bonus of some kind, such as advice or
relevant articles. All of this can be handled by an
autoresponder. Additionally, you can advertise your
business and then build stable relationships with your
customers by using autoresponders.Autoresponder programs vary from software that runs with
your email program to a specialized script that runs on
your web hosting company’s server. This kind of script may
use a web page form or simply operate with your email
account. This kind of script is programmed to send out a
standardized message whenever an email is received. The
message is sent to a particular script or email address.Some autoresponders can do more than simply send out
standardized messages. They can send out an unlimited
number of follow-up messages sent at predetermined interval
of time. For example, you can set your autoresponder to
send out a new message every day for as long a period as
you desire.There are numerous companies who offer autoresponders free
of charge. Your website hosting company often provides
autoresponders as a free service. If this is not the case
with your web hosting company, there are numerous companies
who offer this service for a small fee, or free of charge,
providing you attach an advertisement for their company to
your emails.

To personalize your autoresponder messages, you can attach
a signature. Signatures in this case are much like business
cards. You can include your name, company, all your contact
numbers and addresses, and a brief message.

It’s a good idea to attach a signature to every email that
is sent out. This works as a repeated reminder of your
business identity every time a customer sees it. The more
they look at your signature, the more likely your company
will spring to mind when your particular service or product
is needed.

You can create a standardized signature that every employee
in your business uses, or you can go wild, and let every
staff member create their own personal signature. Of
course, like everything in life, there are some rules and
guidelines to creating a personal signature.

Keep the length of your signature between four to six lines
of text, with no more than 70 characters in a single line.
Make sure that your email program does not cut off your
text! The content should include your name, your company
name, your email address, fax number, and any other contact
details, such as 800 numbers. Lastly, always include a
short personal message about your company. It should be a
subtle sell of your services or your products, and possibly
your company’s reliability and longevity.

Another specialized use of autoresponders is to create
courses that you can then offer your site visitors for
free. You must choose a topic in which you are an expert
and that precisely targets your potential customers.

Once you have carefully chosen your subject, divide it into
a number of different sub-topics. Then offer your site
visitor a free 10 or 15 day course, each day offering a
different sub-topic. The first topic should always be a
welcome message to your site visitor and an explanation
about what is to follow. Your explanation should be
enticing, getting the point across that you are offering
free, quality information that your target audience will
find of great value.

With every lesson, include the number of the lesson, the
topic title, information about your company and its
services or products. At the end, include a few blurbs
about the next lesson to entice the subscriber to continue
on.

Make sure each topic is packed with essential and valuable
information, and leaves the visitor lusting to know more.
Otherwise, you may lose them in the very beginning.

Of course, you have to write up your course before you can
offer it. Once you have done this, and gone over the
material carefully, employing a professional writer or
editor if necessary, you must transfer your text to your
autoresponder.

There are a number of free autoresponders you can use. Try
http:/www.getresponse.com or http://www.fastfacts.net. Or
go onto Google and you will find a long list of free
autoresponder companies. Then sign-up for your chosen
autoresponder. Once you do, you will receive instructions
as to how to set it up and transfer your text.

Email is an excellent marketing tool; it is inexpensive and
it is fast. Use it to advertise your business by choosing
your email address carefully. Your website should contain
different email addresses for different contact requests.
For example, use info@yourdomain.com for information
requests, or sales@yourdomain.com for questions about
sales. It’s a good idea to set up one for the owner, such
as president@yourdomain.com. This presents your company in
a personal, approachable light and insures that direct
contact is provided.

Autoresponders are an effective and powerful marketing
tool, allowing you to make contact with thousands of
potential customers. This is an invaluable asset
considering how many potential customers you usually have
contact with before you make an actual sale. Essentially,
an autoresponser allows you to automate part of your
marketing campaign.

An interested visitor who has been strolling through your site has finally come to just what she is looking for and is about to make a purchase. It’s a sunny afternoon, and her cat, who happens to be sitting on the moss under the visitor’s large fifty-year-old snow-rose bonsai tree, suddenly jumps down, and the priceless tree topples over.   In the blink of an eye, your visitor exits your site, and your sale is dust – unless you have had the foresight to utilize an autoresponder that has captured her email address. If you have installed an utoresponder, you can then follow-up with her, and in all probability, make the sale when the poor woman has finished repotting her precious bonsai.

Autoresponders are remarkable, versatile programs that do so much more than just automatically answer your email.  Here are a few ideas that will help you to creatively and actively use your autoresponder to transform the casual visitor into a profitable customer. Use your autoresponder to: 1. Publish a newsletter. Certain quality autoresponders will manage subscriptions and follow-up with interested prospects. Your newsletter can keep your visitors informed about your services or products, while building your reputation as a credible expert in your particular business.

2. Publish a newsletter only for your affiliates. Inform them of current sales you are running and of promotional material that your affiliates can use themselves to increase their commissions. Include tips, advice, and techniques that your affiliates can use to successfully go out and promote your business.

3. Write reviews. Cover books, software, music, e-books, movies, etc., and put each review in an autoresponder.  Review your affiliate programs, using a link to your affiliate’s page in your autoresponder.

4. Distribute your articles. Writing and distributing targeted articles is a powerful tool to build your business credibility, bring traffic to your site, and increase your sales potential. If your articles contain valuable information, many editors will print what is known as a resource box for you. A resource box contains your bio and a brief description of your service or product. It can also contain your autoresponder address. Let’s say you’ve written fifty articles. Put them on separate autoresponder accounts and create a master list that contains the titles of each article, the autoresponder address, and a brief abstract. Then promote your master list. Additionally, include your publishing guidelines so your affiliates can add their articles to your list, increasing the number of writers who are represented in your article list.

5. Create mailing lists. Inform subscribers to your articles when you’ve written new ones that they may want to publish in their own newsletter or website. 

6. Automate your sales process. Use an ad to insure repeated exposure of your message, which has been proven to effectively increase sales. In your ad, put your autoresponder address where a visitor will be exposed to numerous marketing materials. This multiplies the chances of converting visitors into customers. For example, if you’re selling a particular product, put testimonials about how spectacular it is on your autoresponder, and add a detailed, enticing description of your product.

7. Distribute advertising. Let’s say you sell advertising on your website or in your newsletter or e-zine. Set your autoresponder to send the information about rates and how to place an ad automatically to all prospects’ email addresses. Then have your autoresponder follow-up. It can also send notification of any special deals you are currently offering.

8. Distribute an email course. Each day, have your autoresponder send out another lesson. Just be sure that each lesson has quality content – not a sales pitch. Your content will do the selling for you, and will do it much more effectively. You can include tips centered on a different topic for each lesson, illustrating how your product will benefit the reader.  Include the tangible benefits the visitor will reap by purchasing your product.  Make sure to include a paragraph or two at the end of each lesson enticing your prospect to consider making a purchase.

9. Automate a reminder about your service or product after a visitor has completed your course. This will increase the possibility of sales from visitors who have taken your course but are dragging their feet about actually making a purchase. You can also use these reminders to promote new products or services, and the products and services of your affiliate programs.

10. Distribute free reports. This gives your visitor an idea of the type of information you can provide and the quality of your product or service. Make sure these reports are not sales letters or you will more than likely lose a potential customer than gain a sale.

11. Create trivia quizzes on your site and place the answers in an autoresponder. Your visitor will then be motivated to request your autoresponder, and you will have a record of the visitors’ email addresses who took your quiz. Or create a contest and have any visitors that enter send their responses to your autoresponder. Your autoresponder can be set-up to send them a confirmation of their entry.

12. Offer a trial version of your product. Give your prospects a sample of your ebook, course, software, membership, etc. People who are exposed to a little taste often end up wanting the whole pie. You can also capture their email addresses when you offer them a free trial from your website. Set up your autoresponder to give instructions on how to obtain their free trial, and then make sure to follow-up to try and close the sale.

13. Link to hidden pages on your autoresponder. For example, a hidden page could be your affiliate page that contains graphics, promotional articles, and text links that interested affiliates can make use of. Inform visitors that they may have free access to your affiliate page by simply requesting your autoresponder. You will then gather a list of visitors who may be interested in becoming your affiliates.

14. Use an autoresponder on your order page. Post a request form for visitors to be notified of special offers or discounts in the future. This creates a very effective mailing list that contains the names of people who are already your customers.

15. Put your links page on your autoresponder. It should contain up to fifty links that would be of particular interest to your visitors. Make sure to add your own promotional copy at the top or bottom of this page.

Now that you have proof that autoresponders can be used creatively, see if you can come up with some brilliant ideas of your own!

The Internet is truly vast. It offers opportunities that have never existed before for people like you and me. For the first time in history, the individual actually has an advantage over the Big Corporation because we can tap into niches that simply aren’t affordable for large companies to go after. You and I have unlimited potential to build, create, and grow wealth.

You can market for little or nothing. You can drive traffic for little or nothing. You can even find your product or get into a business for little or nothing. What most get hung up on is their website. Enter XSitePro web design software.

I love XSitePro, because even the non-tech savvy can create an amazing, professional looking website with a few mouse clicks.

You’ve all seen the cheesy capture pages, the horrible sales pages. Design is an important factor as to whether or not a prospect will take you seriously. What do you think of someone who slaps a page up that they’ve obviously just stolen or spent 10 minutes on? Are you even going to give them 10 seconds, much less your money?

XSitePro’s web design software also saves HUGE amounts of time. Not only do you not have to spend time learning html, how to buy domains, how to host domains, and how to publish pages, but they even provide many pre-made pages for you. Things like terms of service, privacy statements, etc. Who wants to write that stuff, right?

SEO is an art form, but XSitePro goes a long way toward getting you there with built-in RSS feed applications. This means you can effortlessly create a mechanism for getting other sites to link to your content, which helps your search engine rankings. It even provides automated feeding of your content to the internet, which allows you to easily put your message in front of millions! Again, all of this with simple mouse clicks.

These are just a few of my favorite things about this service and why I think you need to check them out. Anyone who wants to be anyone these days needs a web presence. Period. If you’re stuck on how to get started, just go to XSitePro’s website. They’ve got great video demos and overviews that will help you decide if they’re the right service for you.

So go get a site, and get out there and start marketing the heck out of it! You can do this. Every success story in history was written one page at a time. See you out there.

Whether you’re just wondering about starting a business or already building one, it’s important to consider the difference between financial security and financial freedom. One is not necessarily better than the other. It just depends on your value set and point of view, but you should firmly grasp which one you really want. Knowing that will carry you through the up’s and down’s of this process.

Everyone says they’d like financial freedom. Freedom from debt. Freedom from their boss. Freedom from worry about which will run out first: their money or the month. Why is it then that as soon as you mention your sincere (and apparently naïve) desire to achieve this goal that you’re met with patronizing smiles or outright hostility? Ever hear “Not in this life” or “That’s not possible for normal people” or the ever classic “Whatever”? Maybe you’ve been accused of greed or selfishness, maybe even shallowness? I’ve heard them all, plenty of times.

People are generally discouraging because they simply lack what it takes to attain financial freedom. As much as we tout our independence, the simple fact is that most people feel more comfortable putting themselves in a box so long as they have the illusion of choosing which box confines them. It’s a value judgement, really. For the vast majority freedom is good, but security is better. In financial terms, security comes in the form of a steady job with benefits, while freedom comes from starting your own business.

I would like to make this very clear. Financial security and freedom are vastly different approaches to life. Read those last few words again. Approaches to life. Pursuit of one over the other speaks to particular value sets, and they are mutually exclusive. You just need to decide which value set you have and then work within that.

Security

Are you master of your of your financial future, or slave to it?

A job will give you money. Maybe even a lot of it. Jobs provide security in that you know that at very specific time periods you’re going to get a specific sum of money. You know that over time that amount will increase, and that if you learn new skills you may be able to increase that amount of money even more. As an added bonus, you even get some retirement planning and healthcare. All great things, but they come at the cost of freedom.

Your employer owns you for eight hours a day. You show up when they say to, do what they say to and how they tell you to do it, break when they say to, eat when they say to, stop when they say to. In fact, if you break this agreement they can end your employment and take away your security. Play the game though, and you’ll probably be fine…barring any unforeseen circumstances or other things that may be out of your control.

Freedom

Starting a business will give you money. Maybe even a lot of it. When you start a business, you’re free show up when you want to, do what you think you should do, decide how you’re going to do it, break when you want to, take a three hour lunch if you want to. You’re completely free to run your business as you see fit and work on what you feel will bring value. However, you don’t have much in the way of security, particularly in the beginning stages of your business. You might run out of capital, you might mess up your taxes and get fined, no one may want your product, someone else may offer a better a product or provide a better service. In short, you may pour in a ton of work and in the end have nothing to show for it.

You can see now why most seek out security rather than freedom. Freedom is scary, to be honest. A job pays you every Friday. A business might pay you this week, it might not. Some of us thrive though in this unknown because of the potential, and we turn that fear into the motivation that propels us to fulfill our potential and reap success.

If you’re going to seek financial freedom, then you need to seek out others that share your values to encourage you on your journey. Take a look at my Blog Roll at the bottom of the page. You’ll find links to all kinds of knowledge, advice, and most importantly encouragement in your pursuit of financial freedom.

Work hard, put in your time now, and eventually you will find the freedom you desire.