Why Isn’t EVERYONE Making Money Online?

If you are here, you are probably interested in the answer to the question,

Why Isn't EVERYONE making money online?

Let me guess, the reason you are interested is probably due to one of the following three reasons

• You tried making money online and gave up

• You are involved in making money online but have not achieve your goals

• You are curious because you may be interested in making money online

The two groups of people who would ignore this question completely are:

• Those that have absolutely no interest in this subject

• Those that are already already making money online successfully

I will not discount that some from the above two groups may stumble to this blog. If so, thank you for stumbling here.

To all, thank you for reading and you are welcome to comment and share your views.

In order to answer this question, we will ask another question.

Why Are You Here?

You, Yes, You… Why are you here?

I have both an online and offline income stream. However, when I mentioned this industry, let's call it the “make money online” or “internet marketing” industry, I tend to incite a broad range of emotions.

On one end, you will get a group of believers, who swear this is the best thing since slice bread and won't trade any job for the freedom of working from anywhere, sometimes in their pajamas, only with a laptop and internet connection.

One the other end, you have the other group of extremes, they will give me a strange and surprise look that I am doing this and swear that this business is full of scams and get-rich-quick schemes looking for their next victim.

The reality is most people in the business are somewhere in between the two extremes and I do know many who are earning a regular income in an ethical manner.

If you are one of those super diligent people and you know exactly what you want, you would have done the following before you start this business.

You would have research this industry, interviewed people who are in the business, find out who are the successful ones and study them. Then you will decide if this business is for you. If so, you will choose a successful entrepreneur that you can emulate, find a way to learn from this person, even willing to pay money to learn from the person himself/herself.

However, most of us are not like that. Our story would be more like the following:

• We spend so much time online so it was the natural thing to do

• Our circumstances led us to consider building a business online. eg. setting up on eBay, then an online store to complement existing business etc.

• We love the freedom lifestyle and expressing ourselves through blogging, and a growing industry in Affiliate Marketing and Online Advertising provided the opportunity to make money online

• We stumble upon this and felt good and hang around hoping it will work out

Regardless of the reasons above, you are here and this is all that matters.

If you pondered on the above question… the million dollar question really is no longer,

Why isn't everyone making money online?

The right question then would be,

What will it take for me to be successful at making money online?

You know that. Business failures are in the news all the time. Let's take a quick look at the small business failure rate.

• 20% of small business fail in their first year

• 30% in their second year, and

• 50% of after five years in business

• 70% of small business owners fail in their 10th year in business

The other fact is every successful business will make the different amounts of money. Therefore, I am sure the statistic does not differentiate businesses that are closed due to reasons other than failure.

This reality is becoming very important because you want to be in a business that complements or enhances your lifestyle today.

Asking the right question is very important if you want the answers that matter.

Why are you here?

The answer to this question will provide the PURPOSE & DIRECTION that is necessary to be successful.

“Efforts and Courage Are Not Enough Without Purpose
And Direction”

John F. Kennedy

Once you have established a Purpose and Direction, we will be able to answer the next question.

What Does It Take For Me To Be Successful At Making Money Online?

The Critical Success Factors to be successful at making money online are:

• Attitude and Motivation

• Knowledge and Skills

• Platform and Tools

“What are the critical success factors of your job? What must you be absolutely, positively excellent at doing to be successful?”

Brian Tracy

Attitude and Motivation

In every business, making money online included, having the right attitude and motivation is a critical success factor.

If you are in business, it is your job. If you are employed and earn an income, it is also a job. Therefore, as in Brian Tracy's words,

• What are the critical success factors of making money online?

• What must you be absolutely, positively excellent at doing to be successful?

Edward Deming created the quality movement and made Japanese manufacturing world-famous for quality, used a simple process for continuous improvements that lead to success.

It is called PDCA, which stands for Plan, Do, Check, Action.

You,

• Plan (the work you need to do)

• Do it

• Check (review what you have done)

• Action (Take corrective action to fix what is wrong and improve on what you can do better)

Repeat the process. You will make continuous improvements, getting better each time as you progress towards your goals.

However, if your attitude is to look for the secret password to the Make Money Online ATM (automated teller machine) so you can just push buttons and money comes out. I am sorry to disappoint you.

Sure, many of us wish that this magical formula exists and if we find it, we would be printing money.

FYI, only governments can print money and the whole world is upset with them for doing so and creating inflation which requires us to have to work harder. Anyway that is material for another blog!

Some principles on doing business are helpful to remove the myths that exist online. It will do you good having the right expectations in your online business.

• There is nothing FREE in business, because if it is free, you won't be making money.

• Your TIME is not free, it is an INVESTMENT

• Every business have COST. Stop fantasizing about zero cost, learn to manage it instead.

• You need Strategic Focus, as JFK says “Purpose and Direction” above.

• You must be marketing a product. If you don't sell anything, you won't make any money.

The right attitude will motivate you in your make money online journey.

Knowledge and Skills

Knowledge and skills are necessary n life, especially in business.

It does not matter what you do. Whatever you do, you need to KNOW what you are doing and HOW to do it.

Knowledge and skills can be acquired, however they have different characteristics

• Knowledge can be realized immediately

• Skills need time as it takes practice

Therefore,

• If you want to cook, you need skills to know how to cook

• If you want to write, you need language competence.

• If you want to build something, you need to know how to design and construct

No one guarantees you money just because you have a skill. Therefore skill does not equate income. However, it does make you capable and more marketable in the job market or in business.

Therefore,

• Knowing how to cook does not make you a Chef

• Knowing how to write does not make you an Author

• Knowing how to build something does not make you an Engineer

Skills are necessary for living. We ALL NEED SKILLS. People acquire skills for more reasons than just earning an income.

Skills have many purposes. As an example, cooking skills,

• To a chef, it is an income

• To a parent, it is to feed a family

• To someone who loves food, it gives them joy and makes them happy

Knowledge empowers us. It enables us make decisions.

Skills gives us ability and capacity. It makes us ABLE and CAPABLE.

REFLECTION: Do you have the knowledge and skills to make money online?

“Man often becomes what he believes himself to be. If I keep on saying to myself that I cannot do a certain thing, it is possible that I may end by really becoming incapable of doing it. On the contrary, if I have the belief that I can do it, I shall surely acquire the capacity to do it even if I may not have it at the beginning.”

Mahatma Gandhi

Platform and Tools

In any business, you will need a place to do business and tools of the trade. Making money online is no different.

Your business address online is a domain name and your place to do business is your website. You have tools that you use to build your website for the specific online business you are building.

Today these tools can be stand-alone or on a platform.

A platform combines various elements together in one place for you to do business. Examples of platforms are:

• Amazon – famous online bookstore that is now the world largest marketplace with the largest affiliate marketing program

• eBay – a marketplace which started by bringing together buyers and sellers of owned goods

• Facebook – social media platform now trying to move into e-Commerce

• Google – world largest search engine which all information flows through

• and now seller almost everything and also have a marketplace for businesses and more.

• Wealthy Affiliate – Affiliate Marketing platform for entrepreneurs with education, WordPress hosting, and community.

“As long as you're true to you, you believe it and you make others believe it, then what you're doing is just art. If you give everybody a blank canvas and some paint, not everybody's picture is going to be exactly the same, but it's still art. I just do what I do.”

Jake Owen

There are many more types of platforms.

Platforms are like canvas, brushes, paints and easel for the artist. You are the artist and you can choose which platform to build your masterpiece.

A good platform should make it easy and effective for you to make money online by building your business. When choosing a platform, you need to consider.

• the capabilities of the platform for your specific business

• the tools and ease of use

• education to help you acquire the knowledge and skills for your business

• products for you to sell so you can make money

• support group for feedback, collaboration and networking

Many choose to make money online because of the freedom that the medium provides. You can work from anywhere, at anytime and have time, space and cost leverage.

However, you may have notice the success factor are very similar to business in general. So, if you want to be an entrepreneur, you have to think and act like one. As the saying goes, “there is no shortcut to success.”

A key point to note is that all may be at different stages in a similar journey Therefore, if you commit yourself to it, I am sure you will achieve the goals you set for yourself in your journey.

“Whatever it takes to finish things, finish. You will learn more from a glorious failure than you ever will from something you never finished.”

Neil Gaiman

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