Anne's Blog
20Mar/110

February and the ‘Farmer’

Well, February frankly caught up with me and passed me.  I was nearly there, but not there.  I got put off by the cost of getting set up to do a WSO and decided that I should give my finished product away on the blog here.  Just it ain't finished yet.  I am getting too involved in detail and need to sign it off.

I am still reading about the recent algorithm change that is still making waves.  The debate still carries on as to whether it was aimed at 'content farms' or particular areas (niches).  The Squidoo shake-up in 2009 springs to mind.

What is certain is that lots of marketers who do a variety of SEO and produce consistently good quality content have said they felt no ill effects.  So content is still king - did we doubt it?

Article marketing is dead - long live article marketing! 

AM works great as part of an all-round healthy internet lifestyle.

5Feb/112

Eating Elephants

My revelation at New Year was that I needed to have my small steps in place in order to move forward.  I was looking at the mammoth (or elephant) task and didn't know where to start.

It is a little like the difference between watching a movie and making a movie - you have to work out how to move the story to that final scene you can picture so clearly.

For too long I was fixed on the ending of the film (seeing my new lifestyle).  It was important for me to know my destination, but I also need a script or map to get me there.

I have shorter and longer-term projects, all helping me towards my larger goals.  What I was missing was the little goals within the small projects.

I have been writing each week, but need to move three small projects forward together.  Distractions have to be fought against - these steal time from family and friends time as well as from work time. 

So there weren't any New Year's resolutions this year - I had to work on my planning.  Just do it.  Slowly, inch by inch, I am doing it.

8Jan/112

First Goal Reached!

I was fortunate to have a call with a marketer through a product bonus, and I was looking back at what I had done since I began. This was before Christmas, near the anniversary of my online quest, and I was thinking gloomily that I had not made any money.  But wait - I logged on to Squidoo and found that one of the pages I created two years before had realised a little commission from Amazon!  Not enough to qualify as an income, but I had got something to show for my efforts; a page which other people were vistiting, not just me, and where someone had taken action!  It works, it works!

Having done the call, I came away with my plans firmer, and resolved to write some PLR to sell in order to bring in some relatively quick seed money.  Putting theory into practice means I not only have to write it, but put it in the correct format, get traffic to it and do the techy bits I find slow and hard - create download pages and so on.  It's called gathering momentum, and it is going slowly for me this time of year!  Going back to the plan and remembering how positive I felt at the time of the call helps me get back on track.

Now I have written about it on my blog, so I'll have to do it!  This reminds me of another tip I learned from Helen, whose blog I wrote about last time.  Many of you will know what an Accountability Partner is; for those that don't, you simply tell your partner (who could be a  friend, family member, colleague or someone you know through an interest or hobby) what you are going to do and achieve, and they tell you about their goals too.  Obviously there has to be something measureable, and preferably some dates!  I'm going for the end of February.  You then keep in touch at regular intervals and reveal whether you have met your goals and deadlines, then set new ones.  It's one element of mentoring, for free.  Works for some people! 

Happy New Year to you all, and best wishes with your plans, whatever stage you are at.  May your momentum build and bring you the results you desire.

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27Nov/101

An Encouraging Word

Back at my blog after an absence of many moons... how did I overcome the inertia? I am trying to spend less time reading emails and more time doing, but today I spent some time on a blog I had not visited for some time, and realised what a great resource it was for those days when you need a bit of inspiration.

The author of the blog entered a prestigious competition, Armand Morin's 'Better your Best' contest, this year, and despite being new to internet marketing, won second place, the first going to someone who had been online for ten years.  So the Action Habits are working! 

Things that I picked up on which resonated with me:

The value of doing things you're scared of

'Playing the Movie' - what will your life be like in five or ten years time if you carry on doing the things you are doing now?

Finding when your prime time is - when is your best time of day, when you should work on your most important projects.

Motivation and organisation as well as inspiration are there in neat little bundles on the blog of Helen Raptoplous. Think of it as a little oasis where you can stop by and get refreshment.  Recommended!

14Jul/1011

Keep your hands in your pockets, you marketers

They say you have to lay out some money to make some money - but first you have to learn where to invest it.  The great thing about working online is that the overheads are peanuts compared with a conventional business, and it really is possible to start up on a shoe-string budget.  Trouble is, it is a great big market place, full of people trying to sell you products to help you succeed in your business.

A great piece of advice I read said 'Stop being a buyer, and become a seller'.  That's it, you have to cross that line.  But, of course you want some information to help you along the way. 

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15Jun/106

Where Does A Journey Start?

Hello!  Here's my first blog post and I am wondering where to start.  I'm very glad to be a student on Dave Nicholson's course, because it offers what I need - a course of weekly tasks with video instruction to get me over the technical bits, which I find great as the computer is so visual.  My journey started over two years ago with a desire to work from home, slowly finding out the options and the people to watch.  I was daunted by all the skills I needed to put together; excited by the possibilities.

This is a new phase for me; I've realised I need some assistance and contact with people and that working it all out for myself is not for me.  Some people can do it, but I need some instruction and some feedback.  At first, I was not keen on writing a blog - I don't mind writing, but what was I going to write about? 

A blog is simply another way to communicate, so I will try to write the things that I like in a blog - useful information when I have it, inspiration and most of all a story.  I find that I gain from hearing what other people are doing, not just because I learn tips but because I think to myself "Here's a human being not that different to me doing this thing, so I can do it too". 

Here's to finding and fitting together the pieces of the jigsaw and earning an online income!

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