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Learning to FOCUS so you can Earn More & Work Less!

Linda Buquet

New Member
affiliate
Focus is especially difficult for those of us that work online. We get hit with so much information and such an overwhelming bombardment of distractions, that sometimes we think we are developing ADD! How much can you multi-task before you come unglued?

Staying focused in our business is REALLY hard - especially for affiliates. You get bombarded by new offers, from new merchants and you can get distracted by new coupons and tools from existing merchants. There is always some hot new idea to chase, new merchant to research or new software to learn.

Do you ever find yourself looking for new and better programs all the time? It's easy to get distracted by searching for new ones, which you then forgot about the next day - instead of working on the existing programs you've already joined and going for the results there. <strong>Sometimes allowing distractions in or chasing new programs is a way to avoid the real work - tricking us into feeling "busy" instead of having to admit we are just procrastinating.</strong>

<strong>Ask yourself the following questions:</strong> How many sites do you have in the air, all in some state of development right now? How many things can you concentrate on at once - EFFECTIVELY? Does multi-tasking ever take it's toll on you? How much is lack of focus costing you today?

<strong>Sometimes by focusing and actually doing LESS you can achieve more & work fewer hours.</strong>

You've heard of the 80/20 rule of business. Well lets look at the <strong>80/20 rule of focusing on your affiliate business</strong>. 80% of your results and income will come from 20% of your daily tasks. Think about what those all important tasks are and prioritize them, then focus on those tasks. Some would call this simple self-discipline, but it really has more to do with eliminating all those outside distractions.

Sometimes you just have to turn off the newsreader, shut down the games , avoid the forums, then pick one thing and like Nike says "<strong>Just DO It!</strong>" After you finish a project, THEN reward yourself with one of those fun distractions.

In his "<strong>Power of Clarity</strong>" audio series Brian Tracy teaches you how to focus your energy on those most important 20% tasks to DOUBLE your Income and at the same time DOUBLE your time off to do other things. Here you can listen to a <strong><a target="_new" href="http://www.nightingale.com/pa~product~Power_Clarity~audio~2640.asp">FREE audio sample</a></strong> that will help you understand the power of this technique. There are actually several good free audio excerpts on this page about the power of focus and clarity. Take advantage - listen and learn.

Information overload and an inability to focus is also one of the biggest reasons new affiliates quit this business before they even get started. Newbie affiliates are often diverted and sometimes completely derailed when they get hit with all the new "systems," new gurus and new ebooks that pretend to have all the answers for success on the web.

Newbie affiliates, if your problem is that you can't seem to focus long enough to pick a system or a niche to even get started, Eric Giguere over at Geek Affiliate has an article that may be helpful. He says pick a system and stick with it, then "<a target="_new" href="http://www.geekaffiliate.com/2006/11/21/the-nike-rule-of-affiliate-marketing-just-do-it/">Follow Nike?s Advice and Just DO IT!</a>"

I have another article about the power of focus coming which will help you learn
<strong>how narrowing your product or market focus can help you INCREASE commissions.</strong>
But my carpal has had enough typing for today. Over & out til next time.
 
Thank you Linda.

Very good post and about a topic that is always timeless. The more I learn in this 'game' the more I learn that two most important words are "Focus" and "Action"
 
I just discovered through a trackback to my blog article on focus, that Scole, one of our members had been blogging about the subject of focus too.

He (she?) blogged:

I will succeed? ?

"There?s something to be said about being focused. This is probably one of the biggest things holding me back. I lack focus. I need to step back, take a deep breath, and concentrate on one project at a time. I spend all my time trying to learn how to make money online, but I never do anything to actually make the money. I have learned a lot of great information over the last few months. I feel like I?m heading down the correct path now, but I still feel I?m missing something."

http://www.s-cole.com/2007/01/15/theres-something-to-be-said-about/

And then in the next blog:

"I was just thinking. I?ve heard the same (similar) recommendations from a few ?gurus? regarding focusing. In a nutshell, they basically state that you need to focus on one project (site) at a time until completed and bringing in a few bucks before going to the next."

http://www.s-cole.com/2007/01/16/i-was-thinking/

Please read these insights from a person who like you is trying to make it on the net. It looks like we were on the same wavelength this week but his (her?) personal story is much more moving than what I wrote. :)
 
Hi Scole, the name sounded male but you just never know.

Glad you cleared that up because I'm blogging about you right now and would like to get it right this time. Stay tuned for my blog.
 
Linda, this is a great post. I have several friends who want to get into this business and they are inspired by my success but they are so overwhelmed with information so they are stuck in this "Ready set... Ready set... Ready set..." mentality and they just can't seem to GO!

I think this is such a common problem with new affiliates. There is so much information on affiliate marketing and sometimes it gets overly complicated to people.

Another problem is that people spend so much time searching for the money instead of relying on their passion to lead them in the right direction. What they don't realize, if they choose a niche they truly love then their passion for the subject will drive them in the right direction. Suddenly it doesn't seem like work... you end up making money and having fun. That's what happened to me. :)

Affiliate marketing doesn't seem like a job. I just find topics I enjoy that help people and then the money just comes as a result of doing what I enjoy.
 
Thanks for the post Linda. It's good to get a reminder on what it takes to succeed.

Since discovering making money online, my head keeps coming up with all kinds of ideas that I'd like to get going sometime in the future, but your article reminded me to stick with my site until it succeeds and I get to put it in maintenance mode. I still have to install an opt-in newsletter and create more original quality content for blogs and organic search engines.

My other sites will simply have to wait.

Renato
 
This was exactly the post I needed. I recently have been looking into different forums and some educational resources to help me learn affiliate marketing, and I have been amazed at how much I already know(of course, I recognize that there is a lot more to learn).But taking action...now there is the issue. I enjoyed this post so much that I would like to read more in the forum, but that will have to wait.I'm off to write an article and a blog post :)
Warmly,
Kevin
 
If people are not already ware I would highly suggest a free program called Simpleology that can be found by searching on google.

It literally saved my life from all the information overload out there and increased my focus, productivity and effectiveness 10 fold.

Seems like with no daily plan nothing much gets done and there is absolutely no structure in ones day.
 
wow~!

Hello Linda,

That was a wonderful post, funny thing is......I think you are actually describing about me.

That's exactly what's happening to me now.

Your post definitely wakes me up.

Many thanx
 
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