Attitude and Action

Hi - sorry it's been a little while since my last post, and believe it or not, here on April 27 it's snowing again in Colorado! Yep - another six inches on the balcony here on Green Mountain.

But, in my work and travel over the last ten days I've not only heard repeatedly from my colleagues, but found again and again in my reading that setting your mind on a positive image of yourself and visualizing yourself doing and being what you plan for is an essential basic element to your success.

In "The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari" it was described as the Secret of the Lake - an exercise of looking into a still lake and envisioning one's dreams as reality. In truth, a lake is not necessary. You just need to take some quiet time in your own head and truly envision - feel - experience what you will be and have. Make it a reality to your subconscious so it can assist you in making it reality.

This not only feeds your attraction system to develop this reality in your life, it strengthens your underlying "why" to be doing what you do - be it sports or your business. Then - you take ACTION, with confidence and purpose as you proceed to write a letter, compose an ad, post a blog, make a call, hit the trail or whatever.

See yourself as who and what you want to be, and get going. Make it a great day!

Getting Leads

Hey - here it is after Easter, after tax day, supposedly solidly into Spring and I've got a foot of snow outside my place here on Green Mountain! But, the dogs love romping in it, and it's a fair excuse to sit inside & blog.

So - if you're not gonna chase your family and friends about your business - who are you gonna talk to? How about other people who are interested in marketing on the internet? Yup - you want to look for the lookers. And, especially in light of the current economic mess, there are plenty of folks looking for alternatives to the old j-o-b. But what if you don't know many of those folks yet?

Well, as I expect you already know, there are social networking sites on the web, and through them you can get in touch and acquainted with people who are just friends of friends. Or - maybe just related by a common interest. To tell the truth, it was quite a while after my kids got me onto Myspace and Facebook that I was introduced to the options of searching for groups - such as folks specifically interested in web business and marketing. Then I got turned on to Twitter and found that people I was interested in were following other people of interest to me, and then people were following me, and . . .

I'd say one of the most important things I've learned about these various associations is that, along with all these people interested in associations and affiliations and such, there is a huge wealth of information about how to increase your connections. Sure, many folks have a program they want to sell, but there is an amazing amount of free information to be picked up, too.

There's even a free service for making lots of email connections with other web biz afficianados - consider:
http://vur.me/Sundance03

I've gotta rest up for more shoveling, but I hope Spring is springing and blooming for you!

No List of Family & Friends

I just started talking last time about the similarities and differences between the old MLM and modern internet marketing styles, and how the age-old principles of positive thinking and visualization still are taught (and of course are applicable). Then, after going through pages of email solicitations and lotso tweets on Twitter it came to me - there were and are folks who just want a bunch of customers, and there were and are folks who want to build a business enriched by many real and valuable relationships.

The old MLM marketing strategy had a big foundation in one's list of friends, family, co-workers, neighbors, etc. etc. as supposed prospects for a home business. And MLM marketers drove millions of people crazy, and away from them, by trying to sell an opportunity to people who weren't looking to buy one!

Sure, lots of on-line businesses today still suggest shooting an email to everyone in your address book to promote whatever opportunity, but those who work on building real businesses head in a different direction - a focused direction. And interestingly - marketing to people they don't know at all - who may be across the world! But - they are people who are looking . . .

Man, it's gonna be a while before I get to any of the fine points of Google, but you know (and must be mindful) that people use the net to look for things, and modern internet marketing is about getting yourself found by the lookers!

Here's where the difference between out-and-out selling and attracting customers comes in. It's like the difference between being a hunter and a fisher . . . think about that.

And then notice the difference between what looks like a glitzy quick-buck deal (scam) and what has a real feel of truth and value. You know when you're dealing with genuine and honest people in a genuine and honest business. "The Greatest Salesman in the World" by Og Mandino holds many nuggets of positive philosophy and attitude including this: "today I will multiply my value a hundredfold". That's bound to help your business, and in my next one I'll get more into the subject of content. But, on that note, I can't help but give some props to the most valuable and "attractive" guy I know on the web - Mike Dillard. If you're not already following him, you better check here: http://vur.me/Sundance03/7day

Until next time - don't forget all the greatness you have within!
Best regards,
J.J.

Marketing in the 21st Century - same old?

Yes sir - it's a whole different world from the old Amway days of pushing soap and drawing circles! Sure, one must always have a good product that fills a need, and there must be good profit to make it worth one's while to do the business. But the number of people who want their own business has increased phenomenally, and the internet has taken us all far beyond our neighborhoods and personal phone books.

The opportunities and potential are skyrocketing! And, even though there are scoundrels and scams in the internet realm, as elsewhere, there are many, many honest geniuses and philanthropists, too. I'll talk later about the refinements in marketing methods and vehicles, but I must note at the start the common thread which goes back decades, if not longer. It's attitude or mindset.

If you haven't read Napoleon Hill's "Think and Grow Rich" - get a copy, it's still a regular reference for today's top leaders and trainers. If you are one, you're very familiar with the visualization principles. Perhaps better known in today's society is "The Secret" - available as a book or a DVD. What's the common thread? Thoughts are things. You make or attract what you think about. You actually can create your own reality!

So - how do you direct your thoughts, and toward what? More in the next one.