2011 – Perspective, Practicality, and More

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Reflections of the Year Past…and the New Year to Come

Greetings from a VERY snowy Atlanta, Georgia! The weather here has been crazy here lately and it seems we are all stuck inside for at least another day. I’ve put a picture of our new house in the post below. it was taken from our curb…and you can’t even see where the driveway is! Anyway, between the snow and the fact that it is 1-11-11, I figured today is the perfect day to wrap up 2010 and talk about 2011. So – let’s get started!

First off, I hope everyone had an amazing New Year! My hubby and I spent New Years in Las Vegas. New Years Day is our wedding anniversary and we really enjoyed being out of town – especially after all the craziness from moving into a new house and then holidays that we just survived. The weather out on Vegas was REALLY cold. We planned to go out on The Strip to watch the fireworks on New Years Eve, but it was just too darn cold. Instead, we opened the blinds in our room at the New York, New York and had a great show of the fireworks INSIDE.

As I’ve said previously in my New Years posts, I am not a fan of traditional New Years resolutions. I’m not quite sure what it is about human nature that causes us to wait to the start of a new year to make all these MAJOR changes in our lives in one big swoop when we have the opportunity to make small changes every day of the year.

EVERY day is a GREAT day to make a positive change – don’t you think?

Whether the changes are personal, health-related, or changes in your business mentality and/or productivity. Every minute of every day is a good time to make a small change that could end up making a BIG difference.

Reflecting on 2010

2010 was an amazing year for me – both personally and professionally. I kinda hate to see it go…lol! I started out the year in Las Vegas at the exclusive Wealthy Affiliate Super Affiliate conference, my hubby started his own business, we traveled a lot, went to Boise to an invite-only Clickbank Mastermind Meeting for top earners on Clickbank…. My family is all healthy and well…my granddaughter had a birthday…we found out we have another grandchild coming in the spring… Power3Marketing opened and has had an amazing response from the thousands of members that have joined us… we bought a new house AND managed to get moved in with barely any time to spare before Christmas so I could have our whole family right here together in our new home for the holidays.

And then, I let 2010 go while quietly watching fireworks in Las Vegas with my husband.

Earnings were very good in 2010….but the lessons learned were even more valuable to me. I’ve been doing this internet marketing thing since the start of 2007 and to say I’ve learned a lot is a HUGE understatement.

And the things I’ve learned are what I am going to let guide me into 2011 and through this year.

2011 – Looking Forward

Today is 1-11-11 – kinda, cool, huh? Feels like a day we SHOULD be doing something amazing, doesn’t it? I’ve been sitting here reflecting on 2010 – looking at my books and my notes and my stats…and making some decisions for 2011.

I’ve decided that 2011 will be the year of P+P+P+P=P

Let me break that down for you…

Perspective + Practicality + Passion + Patience = Profit

Make sense?

Let’s break it down further.

Perspective – I’ve been around long enough and opened myself up to new techniques, people, products, services, and all that good stuff to have my own unique perspective on this business. I’ve spent the past few years watching other marketers from all different areas of this business and took note of things I liked…and the things I didn’t like. For the things I didn’t like, I made myself think about WHY I didn’t like them…and did I not like them as a fellow marketer – or as a consumer (or both)?

I’ve also paid close attention to how others respond to certain tactics that have been used in 2010 – both by myself and by other marketers.

It’s crazy, but some things remain true…

1. People LOVE “free stuff” but the value of said “free stuff” is gone the moment the warm fuzzy feeling of getting a gift is gone. The more it costs, the more value is put upon it and the more seriously folks take that training or information.

2. People HATE to be sold to – but every one complaint tends to equal MANY sales from others.

3. Fear of loss is WAY stronger than desire for gain.

Does all this mean that in 2011 I will become a hard-selling marketer pushing time-limited over-priced products?

HECK NO!

What is DOES mean is that I’ve put all this into my own perspective and will continue to do all I can to help others in spite of our natural human instincts and reactions. I have a good grasp on what I believe people THINK they want, but will continue to offer the training and products that actually work and are NOT “flash in the pan” shiny things.

I am very picky about what products I refer to others – very picky… and I have no plans of stopping. Could I make more money by changing my perspective on all this? You bet! I have met many marketers with a totally different perspective on this business and they make tons. They simply keep offering their folks what their folks think they want/need.

It’s a simple concept…and it can make you very rich – but it’s not for me. I got to where I am today and have enjoyed the success I’ve had by KEEPING my own perspective on this industry and the great folks I work with. If I make less money because of it – so be it.

In 2011, I will continue working within my own perspective of this business and remembering how I got here. My story – my path – is doable by just about anyone. It’s all about hard work, dedication, and keeping true to yourself.

Practicality – This one is a bit tough for me…. I’m not always the most practical person in the world. I’d like 2011 to have more practical and efficient actions and much less time spent wasted on things that just don’t make sense in the big picture.

In short, I want this year to be the year I stream-line my business. Less busy work…more productivity and enjoyment.

Passion – I’d also like 2011 to be a year where I do a lot more of what I really love to do…and lot less of what doesn’t thrill me. There is such a sense of reward when you are profitable doing something you love. That’s the definition of success, isn’t it? I think so.

For example, I have a TON of little niche sites out there. I’ve been letting them sit and mature in Google’s eyes for some time now and it’s become time to start building them out. I’m one of those marketers who likes to start small and then grow out – not vice-versa – so all these sites are “micro sites” that are doing very well in their “micro” world online. They are ready to be put into a bigger pond and do better.

Thing is, some of the topics do not interest me at all. Yes, I can get content for these sites written and pay someone to do everything about those sites – but wouldn’t it be better to sell them off to someone who just might really care about the content and energy that site adds to the internet?

I think so… and those are the types of decisions I’ve been making.

I’ve spent the last years building and creating as many streams of income as I possibly could – and I did really, really well with it. The things that didn’t do so well are just waiting for me to come make them do well. Thing is, it’s just not practical for me to still be working 14+ hour days – and spending it doing things I don’t like doing. So – in 2011, I’m not doin’ it. I will sell it, stop it, or outsource it.

Patience – This is the one thing that I can’t seem to sell, give, or force upon anyone… Patience. If you’re practical, productive, passionate, and patient with the project/training/campaign/etc – it will work.

I’m going to go out on a limb here and risk getting fussed at, but I believe that 97% or so of the training programs out there DO work…but very few are patient enough to truly work them.

We want it yesterday. If not yesterday, then we want it overnight….lol!

My experience online has given me the gift of patience – calm patience, not forced patience.

  • I know I can get any page to rank for just about anything if I follow a specific strategy, give Google what they want, and then BE PATIENT.
  • I know I can build a list of any size in any market if I give that market what THEY want…and BE PATIENT.
  • I know I can make any amount of money that I want, if I give people what they want, be practical, be passionate about it, keep my perspective, and BE PATIENT.
  • I bet those all sound like very bold statements….but think about them for a moment. They apply to ALL of us.

    Profit – And that brings me to my point…that last “bold” statement I made:

    “I know I can make any amount of money that I want, if I give people what they want, be practical, be passionate about it, keep my perspective, and BE PATIENT.”

    No fancy tricks or loopholes required =)

    Know what’s best about it? Yet another “P” word… Pride.

    When you run a profitable business that is fueled by perspective, passion, practicality, and patience…. you suddenly find yourself having an amazing amount of pride in yourself.

    Internet Marketing has the ability and the potential to change almost everything about your life – not just your bank account balance.

    Yes, as I’ve said many, many times… money is cool. As John Carlton said, “Having money takes care of the problems that NOT having money creates” – but that’s about all money does on its own.

    And that is something I wish for everyone in 2011 – keep “money” in perspective.

    The most important thing I have learned these past few years is this –

    You have GOT to love this business. It’s easy to “love” the money and the good results, but ya gotta love the mistakes, the epic fails, the Google changes, the product launches, the complaints, the refunds, the mass copy/paste launch emails from 50 million marketers in one day, the hours spent trying to figure out ONE little thing… you gotta love ALL of it.

    Do you love it? Or are you just hoping to make some money online in the easiest way possible?

    Wrapping up

    In my travels since I’ve been back at work I came across 2 really great things to share (both are completely free).

    1. Trouble Writing Articles? This Free Software can REALLY Help

    Writing content is both one of the most important skills you can have to do well online AND the biggest thorn in our sides as we attempt to do it. I’ve been trying out some new software that really, REALLY helps with writing good content (and more).

    It is totally free right now as the creator is running the software thru the final stages of beta testing. I believe the opportunity to try it for free is over on the 17th or so, but since I’m not the owner, I can’t guarantee that. But it is free NOW….all you have to do is drop your email in and you can download it and use it to your hearts content.

    Watch the quick video demonstration – It’s REALLY good stuff.

    Get your free article writing software here.

    2. Project Mom

    My good friends Travis and Jeannie have released a new video to the Project Mom blog that has some super information in it about digging into a market and figuring out what those folks wants (so you can give it to them). Great insight as you are able to watch Travis and Jeannie dig into a market and talk through it.

    Video 13 on Project Mom Here

    Otherwise, HAPPY NEW YEAR to all of you!!!!! Thank you for spending another year with me! I’d love to hear each of your plans and thoughts for your 2011 – please feel free to share in the comments area.

    All the best,

    Jennifer
    ~PotPieGirl

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