August 5, 2009

Do You Have What it Takes?... Overcoming the Hidden Root
of All Distractions... Breaking Free and Going Your Own
Way... Markup Languages and Info Marketing... and More.

I'll admit it; I'm a very competitive person. I think I've always been one. Maybe it's because I like that rush of excitement you get when you win. And maybe it's because I have confidence in what I'm doing and truly believe I have the ability to win.

Whatever it is that is driving me to compete, I accept it. It's my push to work to the best of my abilities and to work that much harder to become even better than I am now.

This drive, this push to always improve is what could help you achieve your plans for financial success. Sure, making money isn't exactly a competition. There's no moneymaking sport in the Olympics. There's no medal for padding your wallet and increasing your income.

But, there are certainly rewards. Making more money helps you become more confident. I'm sure it's very rare to find a very successful person who isn't simply beaming with confidence. That's why people pay big bucks to listen to successful people like Tony Robbins and Donald Trump. You can feel their confidence just pouring out from every word they speak. They make eye contact and talk with a boasting voice that never wavers.

Now, maybe you don't think you're a very competitive person. Maybe you've been let down once or twice and you're not ready to accept a new challenge. Well, then maybe today is your day to turn things around. Maybe today it is time for you to get back in the ring and practice your game face.

No prizefighter wins every match and no entrepreneur finds success in every venture they undertake. But they don't let that get in their way. They take those feeling of loss and disappointment and they use those as motivation to become even better.

When it comes to becoming a better business owner or a better moneymaker, you need that competitive spirit. You can compete against yourself, constantly pushing your goal further and further ahead, so you're always working towards something new.

I believe that you have what it takes, but do you?

I'm tempted to start by saying that fear is a funny thing. Although, since fear can be so limiting and work as such a deterrent to achieving your dreams, I don't believe it is very funny at all.

You see, you may not feel afraid, but when you strip back the layers, you'll often find that fear is at the root of many problems. Say, for example, that you have a big plan you're ready to put into action. But, every time you decide you'll get started, something else comes up. Sometimes it's a big distraction, but often just the slightest disturbance will sidetrack you for days, even weeks.

Letting these distractions interfere with your plans...well, that's fear in action. See, you may not feel afraid. Of course you don't; this isn't like the fear of high places or spiders. This is a deep down fear; quite possibly the fear of failure.

There aren't very many people who don't feel the least bit ashamed when they fail to follow through on their plans. It can be frustrating and many people seek to place blame for what went wrong.

Where this behavior comes from, I certainly don't know. However, there is some good news. You and I and everyone you know are capable of overcoming this fear.

The first step is to admit to yourself that you're afraid to fail. Simply say to yourself, "OK, I know that I'm afraid of not reaching my goal. It's just natural. Now, it's time for me to do something about it."

And the second step is just to power through your fear. When one of those small distractions pops up, just ignore it, because it can certainly wait. You've got your goals to work on and you've got your big plan to put into action.

I find that organizing plans can help you sort the important goals from the not-so-important distractions. At the start of the day, you can write down your biggest goal in all capital letters at the top of a page. And then below that, write down the less important tasks, using much smaller letters. Simply by looking at the large goal and the smaller tasks, you'll have a visual representation of how important that goal is in relation to how small those lesser tasks actually are.

Battling the fear of failure is something many people must face. But, by facing it head on, you'll be more likely to overcome it and move on to realizing your goals.

I remember when the decision was made to go into business for myself. I'd realized that if I was going to make the money and live the lifestyle I truly wanted, I was the only one who could make it happen. I couldn't rely on other people setting my goals and determining my worth, so I decided to get out there on my own to pave my own path to success.

I'm not going to sugarcoat it; it was tough. After all, when you work for someone else, you can rely on a steady paycheck coming in at the end of the week, regardless of whether or not you really worked your hardest for it. When you go out on your own, however, you must work your hardest to acquire business so that there is money coming in and you can afford to run your business and live.

If you've been considering getting out of your current job and starting to control your own goals and earning potential, now may be as good a time as any. Of course, before you make a move as drastic as quitting your current job to pursue your own dreams, there are a few important factors you should consider.

Two main ones are whether or not you know what you want to do, and why you want to do it. Before you make any big moves, it's important to have a clear idea of what you plan to get into so you can stay focused on your goal. After all, if you decide to up and switch your career, you'll need to be on top of things instead of sitting around twiddling your thumbs, wondering what you should be doing.

Next, you have to look at why you've decided to make the change. Is it something that you love and will make you happy, or is the sole motivating factor income potential? I can tell you right now that if the only reason you would like to start a new business is because you think there is a lot of money involved, you won't be much happier. Financial reasons, as has been proven time and time again, are not a strong enough motivator for success. After all, if you don't enjoy doing something, are you going to be able to stay focused and put in the effort required to run a business?

When coming up with your idea, get some help by looking into the activities, pastimes or topics that you truly enjoy. When you do this, passion becomes the driving force behind your business and your chances of long-term success will likely be much greater. When passion fuels your work, you'll rarely notice a shortage of motivation and there's a good chance the work you're doing won't feel like work at all; making the compensation you receive much more rewarding. It should leave you saying, "Wow, I can't believe I'm actually getting paid to do this!"

If you think it's time to start working for yourself and determine your own financial destiny, don't rush into it. Take some time and make the considerations that will help you the most in the long run.

** Markups and Info Marketing
By James Burt, Online Marketing Expert

Question for you: what is HTML?

What? You don't know? You live in the info age and you don't know what HTML is? Good grief!

I'm joking! Many people are still unfamiliar with HTML. So let's go over it and how it could help you in your info marketing endeavors.

HTML is Hypertext Markup Language. It is the code that is used for any sort of online published material, including web sites, content, and graphic material. In more simple terms, it's that tagging system with those odd <i> and <para> tags that make your content look the way it does online. To be absolutely truthful, I hadn't much a clue about it until I had to teach it to a former student who was taking a college course in computers. I had been using the Internet for seven years and had no clue as to what it was. I took the course material home and learned as much as I could on the fly to teach my student. It was a useful thing to learn and something I had to apply when I was working in the publishing field later on.

HTML is not the only markup language available to people creating Web material. More advanced ones like XML and XSL are now becoming the industry standard for people creating professional web site material. With the proliferation of advanced graphic material and high-tech content being put on the Internet, no doubt some of the older markups will become obsolete and Internet publishers will have to keep up-to-date with the changes.

Now, I know what you are thinking: "Great Jimmy. But why should you care about these markup languages?"

Well, being an info marketer, markup languages can be useful to you, especially if you are going to build a web site or post content online. Not only can you customize your web sites the way you want, but you will also save bundles of cash by not having to hire a web site designer to do it for you.

Here's how you can utilize markup languages in information marketing:

--- Learn the basics: Most libraries have a good chunk of books on HTML and other markup languages. The Internet has loads of info, too. Take some time at night or over the weekend to learn the basics of a markup language. This helps you understand what the language is and it can be learned very quickly -- I can attest to that!

--- Create your own web pages: Follow the tagging steps and create your own web pages in "Notepad," "Microsoft Word," or a web editing program like "Dream Weaver." It might be good to start with a basic system like HTML before using more advanced ones like XML. Be patient with this and be ready to use trial and error if you are unsure how you want your content to look online.

--- Test them out online: Take your pages to your online publisher and/or hosting system and see how they look online. Most Web publishers will let you see how they look first before making your site live, so you can make the appropriate changes.

--- Update regularly: When you update your web site content, take the time to update the tagging as well. This will help you give your web site a fresh look and practice your knowledge of whatever markup language you are using.

Working with markup languages is a fun way to use your writing and design skills to help make your online material look appealing to your client base. You can become more Internet-savvy and maintain your information skills all at the same time. Go and take advantage of it!