One of my favourite quotes is by an unknown and goes a little something like this;
“If Man is to discover new oceans, he must first have the courage to lose sight of the shore”
What I like about this quote is that the metaphor is a perfect fit for my move to attempt to make a fulltime living online because it translates to the basic idea that if you want success then you need to step outside your comfort zone, but there is another reason this quote is a perfect fit and it relates to the endless ocean of information that is available online.
A friend and mentor once told me about the stages that every business goes through when it starts and one thing that stood out more than anything is this: The average time between the business plan being drawn up and action actually being taken is more than triple in an online business. This fact of course relates to the gamut of information and distractions that are available online. When you decide to start a bricks and mortar company there is not much to distract you from your original idea. It’s not like you are going to open an Italian Eatery, see an Ad for a tanning salon franchise and think ‘Now there’s a much better idea’. If your business is online however, then this can actually happen – as ridiculous as it may sound, so making sure you know exactly what you are getting into and having the staying power to steer the course is THE most important skill to learn if you are to succeed.
I love Greek Mythology (and digressing it seems) and one of the more popular stories is that of the Sirens. For those who are unfamiliar, the Sirens were three dangerous bird-women, portrayed as seductresses who lured nearby sailors with their enchanting music and voices to shipwreck on the rocky coast of their island. Over the years things have changed a lot,including the mythology of old and these three Sirens are still among us – only now in the form of millions of web pages promising to do what you are already doing online, but better, faster, shinier, newer, and of course easier.
I thought the Sirens sounded quite nice.
I build niche sites around longtail keywords, market them through various means and then generate revenue from Adsense and various affiliate streams. I have been doing this for only about 3 months now but in that time have managed to create my own little system that so far has been working quite well, at least in the sense that I am making money from the sites that I build. So I was sailing along quite smoothly really – following a set course to reach the goals that I had set myself originally and doing a good job of it too, but then I heard the Sirens, and they really did sound quite nice you know.
The Sirens in question were a PLR site that offered niche sites with prebuilt templates so you simply uploaded the theme and then away you went with whatever you would have done previously except with a theme that looks much nicer and is more appropriate to the specified niche. On the surface that looked fantastic and so I spent a few hours playing around with various themes and changing some of the sites that I had to look ‘better’ and only after this did it hit me that I had been suckered into the shiny lights and was no longer sailing my own course.
What’s the best way to avoid the Sirens’ call?
When I installed and tinkered with the themes the problems were not just those of principle that said I should not be distracted from my own course. The amount of problems I had with the backend of these new themes was insane and the changes I made not only took time, they took even more when I decided to put it all back how it was. When you have decided on a course of action it is important that you stick with it and do not get distracted by the Internet Sirens along the way. These are the questions I now ask myself before even looking at something new and shiny.
- Does this fit with the goals I have set myself this week? (because it never does
) - Is this going to fit in with what I am currently doing or will it overlap and contradict? (Am I going to have to change things – like themes!? Or is this a tool I can try using in tandem with what I already use?)
- Will I feel good about not seeing the current project or goal through to completion? (Because guaranteed, if I try something new it will distract me for a while)
- Is it really worth it to take even more of my time away while I learn and implement something new (especially when I am doing that in at least three places already!)
Obviously these questions are what help me avoid the distractions of amazing claims and pretty lights and may not be the best guide for yourself, but then the idea here is not to give you a guide, it’s to remind you that your online marketing journey takes you through the biggest distraction in existence- the internet. But then you already knew that didn’t you.
Now Click Here.
No Click HERE!!
Alex Whalley is the author of Alex Whalley.com where he writes about blogging, niche site marketing, and keyword research techniques. Alex recently quit his fulltime job to tackle niche marketing fulltime and uses his blog to catalogue and document his experiences with making money with niche sites and search engine marketing. If you’d like to see how easy it is to build, market and monetize niche sites check out his blog. You can also Follow him on Twitter or subscribe to his RSS Feed.
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Hi Alex,
I think so many people can relate to this Sirens of the Internet. You are determined on a course of action, but get waylaid, as you say by something esle that is ‘better, faster, shinier, newer, and of course easier.”. It’s tough to have focus and stay the course on what you set out to do because we are attracted to the “better, faster, shinier, newer, and of course easier.” ways of doing things. Especially when you are just starting out and you want to be successful (or at least have figured things out) as soon as possible. No one wants to waste time when there is something “better, faster, shinier, newer, and of course easier” out there. I think you’ve given some great advice on the four questions that you should be asking yourself before being waylaid by a new shiny path or object.
Karen
Karen´s last [type] ..Small Ways To Make A Big Difference
Thanks Karen, always glad to hear that I am not the only one.
Now if I could only heed my own advice…
… oooh look, a shiny thing.
Alex Whalley´s last [type] ..How do you Squidoo
Alex,
I think we have all been swayed by the Sirens from time to time and I think it is great that you pointed this out to people. I say this because for some people, myself included, until someone explains to you what is happening you don’t even see it until it is too late. We don’t want to end up like the sea captains from long ago. Look out for your friends and rescue them before it is too late. I know I am thankful for mine!
Vynn Credible
Vynn Credible´s last [type] ..Engagement Party
Hey Vynn,
I see you have chosen a very wise man to assist you in your online venture. Nice work my friend.
My brother is a magician actually, blows my mind with some of the things he can do. anyway, …
Thanks so much for your comments Vynn, I love that you continued the analogy into your reply, respect.
Thanks again for stopping by Vynn. (nice stage name btw
)
Alex Whalley´s last [type] ..How do you Squidoo
Alex,
You are absolutely right, it can be hard to break the siren call. Sometimes all you can do is put wax in your ear or have your men chain you to the mast like Odyseus. It is good that you pointed out the perils of the sirens call, because the do truly hide the dangerous shoals of the internet that people can get lost in. Thanks,
Steve
Steve Scott Site´s last [type] ..Steve’s Sunday Selections- July 25th- 2010
Steve mate!
What an awesome reply, talk about knowing your history and continuing my story… love it.
You continue the analogy well and I wish now that I had thought of something so eloquent to finish the post with. lol
Alex Whalley´s last [type] ..How do you Squidoo
Hey Alex,
This is a great post – I think that we all suffer from succumbing to distractions in our lives.
You nailed one of the things that always seems to get me in trouble. The question about questioning your need to learn something new & weighing the time commitment involved is one that I really need to ask much more often.
I have been getting better at this by choosing what I want to work on and then forcing myself to not open any other browser windows.
Have a great day Alex!
mark´s last [type] ..Time Management and Your Goals
Hey Mark!
I love that idea of not opening any more browser windows!
That gives me a great idea for a post, I just thought of another analogy…not that I’m a fan of them or anything.
Thanks for stopping by as you always find time to do Mark, respect.
Alex Whalley´s last [type] ..How do you Squidoo
Great post Alex. There’s too many distractions out there (and too many great websites!) which stop us achieving our full potential.
Matthew Needham´s last [type] ..Don’t rely on the CV
Hey Matthew,
How’s fatherhood treating you my friend?
You bring up a great irony of online marketing. You need to focus on the task at hand to get things done but you need the distractions in order to get the information in the first place.
I give up!
Thanks for commenting Matthew
Alex Whalley´s last [type] ..How do you Squidoo
I really like the quote you shared at the start of the post Alex.
I think that similar to sailors, we should keep moving to the right path, and find the best course, and pay little attention to the sirens. Sometimes a map, (i.e. a mind map) is also useful in our blogging journey.
Hey Julius,
Thank you for your generous comment my friend, I think you have brought up an important point in that it is important to have a strong vision (map) of where you want to go and how you are planning to get there.
Thanks again for your comments and for stopping by.
Awesome
Alex Whalley´s last [type] ..How do you Squidoo
Awesome post Alex. The sirens are something that everyone in on-line business needs to follow. I know personally that multi-tasking can be a real kick in the gut if you don’t stay on track and finish one product at a time.
-Joshua Black
The Underdog Millionaire
T.I.P. Team Member
Joshua Black | The Underdog Millionaire´s last [type] ..Happy 1st Birthday Underdog Millionaire Blog-A Year in Re-Cap
Joshua,
That’s good advice coming from the man who has created more than a dozen products, so thanks for the kudos on the post man.
Alex Whalley´s last [type] ..How do you Squidoo
How ’bout that? I rationalized crashing upon the shoals as “spending money to make money”, “getting booked up” and “emulating the pros”.
I like your definitions and metaphor much better, Alex. The biggest problem I had with the Sirens is that, besides sounding good, they were deliberately hypnotic (remember all the mumbo-jumbo by Joe Vitale and neuro-linguistic programming?) but also deliberately vague. The materials always had earnings disclaimers and what I called “commonsense disclaimers.” You know what those are:
*This won’t work if you don’t take action!
*This is not a get-rich-quick scheme!
The stuff was only rarely ground-breaking. Most of the time, it was just the same old hash, mixed with ketchup.
In my opinion, you only learn from your burns; all the admonishments in the world can’t protect someone from being led astray.
Thanks for sharing your story. Full Speed Ahead!
Cheers,
Mitch
Mitchell Allen´s last [type] ..Agility or Ability – Which Is Better?
Hey Mitch.
Awesome comment man! You penned my exact sentiments to the whole scenario and did it quite well I might add
It’s so true that you never really get anything new, but …
“same old hash, mixed with ketchup” … that’s just an awesome way of putting it LOL!
Thanks so much for your comments Mitch
Alex Whalley´s last [type] ..How do you Squidoo