My aim in this blog post is to try and show you the reality of why so many people fail, even though they’re busting their ass for hours on end, day after day.
This isn’t a preach-fest, nor is it some obscure new-age theory.
Furthermore, it’s not exclusive to newbies.
We ALL “suffer” from this symptom from time to time, no matter how experienced.
But this is especially important for beginners, as well as anyone who’s never seen any kind of REAL results from this business.
If you read this and actually take it to heart (and take action) – I promise you this – your Affiliate marketing results will be drastically different for you…
It drives me NUTS when I get emails from people who I know are honestly giving this their best shot within the context of their abilities and situation…
And I know almost instantly based on the types of questions they’re asking (or whatever) that they don’t have a chance in hell.
And of course – I try to set them straight, put them on the right path.
But their mindset and “what they’ve learned” blocks it out.
The wheat gets lost among the chaff, and it all becomes a big, confusing (disappointing) mess.
Which is truly sad.
Because the real way to success in this industry is far, far easier and simpler than most think. And that “way” will become clear to you as I go through the following 3 “failure symptoms”…
So, what’s the Symptom?
Here it is…..
Perfectionism!
That’s it.
This is a silent killer because being a “perfectionist” can in many ways be a good thing. (It’s better than being a slacker).
But it becomes a problem when the constant improvements, “setbacks” and bar-raising is either a subliminal fear of action/failure/success – or perhaps indicative of a deeper issue, like a lack of confidence in one’s self; and therefore whatever you’re promoting.
Even though in most cases the product, or the site – or whatever – is beyond finished. (Just promote the damn thing already!)
We all know someone who’s been “working on their site” or whatever for what seems like forever.
Sure, they’ll tell you it’s almost done.
Just a few days left. Etc.
Ask them in 3 months, and you’ll get the same old song.
And they’re still broke.
And chances are, most of us have been guilty of it as well (I have in the past, for sure).
It’s funny how it’s more comfortable to keep things in “idea” mode or the development stage because you still have an “out” – isn’t it?
That is the root of perfectionism, folks: FEAR.
When I look back at all the stuff I’ve done in the last few years – all the sites I’ve built, all the crap I’ve tried doing, etc – the bottom line is that I ONLY got results when I finished something and rolled it out.
Period.
And what’s ironic is that some of my biggest performers were things that took a few DAYS to put together and promote.
5 page affiliate sites generating double-digit sales transactions daily.
Info-products that were assembled and produced in less than a week. And so on.
And inversely, I’ve also had stuff that took me forever to roll out, and by the time it was all said and done, I’ve probably made more money from my “simple and fast” strategies in the meantime anyway.
That isn’t always the rule.
But your mindset always applies.
And on top of that, there is no substitute for experience.
The more you actually finish, the more you truly learn.
And by the way, this is a GREAT book I recently read about mindset, it’s called “The Alter Ego Effect” by Todd Herman.
And it’s a lot easier to springboard from one experience into the next, learning from mistakes (and leveraging profitable discoveries) as you go.
So if you catch yourself continually adding to your tasklist… ask yourself why, and answer truthfully.
Getting big results doesn’t require perfection.
It just requires ACTION.
Just like Canadian hockey-legend (Wayne Gretzky) was quoted saying, “100% of the shots you don’t take won’t go in…”
