Back the days of the Old West, gold was discovered in California by a man named Jim Marshall. The year was 1848. The gold rush had begun. It ended approximately seven years later. During that time, hundreds of thousands of people made the (sometimes) perilous journey to California in search of instant riches. While very few discovered the “instant wealth” they’d hoped to find, some were wise enough to recognize the wealth of opportunities awaiting them in the young, developing country.
These individuals were responsible for building the businesses, companies, towns and cities that changed the face of the country. Their spirit of entrepreneurialism continued on for many years to come.
The Internet, in many ways, is a modern version of the land of opportunity that existed in the 1800’s. Fortunes were made by people who “struck gold” with a variety of ground floor opportunities between 1997-2005.
Things have changed a lot since 2005. Today, the “easy gold” has already been found, gathered and monetized. Like the people who made big money selling shovels, tools and picks to the gold prospectors in the late 1840’s, you could make an easy living in 2000 selling product “shovels” to the gold rush crowd. Today, however, things have changed. The easy-money chasers are basically broke and to a large degree – disillusioned with the overnight riches story-line.
Like the America of the 1870’s, however, the Internet continues offers unlimited potential for those seeking to build real, lasting businesses.
THE TOOLS YOU’LL NEED
The technical tools you’ll need to bring your ideas together are cheaper than ever and the prices continue to fall. The main tools you need, however, aren’t available for immediate download. The most important tools, the ones that can make or break any business, are inside you. I’m talking about the ability to focus upon building a real online business and laying the foundation necessary to do so. Building a business takes a little time, but it’s a lot less time than you’ll waste bouncing from one idea to the next.
When I first started online, I didn’t have the money to outsource anything. I did everything myself. I built my own websites, created my own ads, wrote my own content, etc. During this time I learned what skills were worth developing, at least from my own perspective. These would be skills I wouldn’t have to rely upon others for. For example, if you learn how to write good copy, you won’t have to rely upon others for this service. If you learn how to develop websites, you’ll receive the same benefit in that area.
Either way, you’re making an investment. This kind of investment takes time. On the other hand, hiring someone to write sales letters, develop websites, etc., takes money. Time IS money, as the old saying goes, so you can clearly see… one way or another, you pay. In my case, my investment in time paid off because I wound up developing multiple business sites.
WHAT KIND OF INVESTMENT ARE YOU MAKING?
How about you? Are you still caught in the trap of searching for instant riches that require little to no effort? There are plenty of real opportunities to start, grow or develop a REAL online business in 2012.
All you need is a “get-going” strategy to get started.
For some people that means acknowledging certain distractions and making a decision to cut them off for a certain period of time. For others, it may mean investing in developing a certain skill set – taking your ability in that area to the next level of proficiency.
Some people put off committing to specific plan of action because they’re unsure they’re heading in the right direction, making the best choices. As a result, they follow after a variety of leaders, invest in courses, go to seminars, etc. Eventually, this approach creates a pattern of relying on other “experts” instead of developing your own insights, intuition and personal experiences which you can draw from. You become a lifelong follower instead of a leader in your chosen niche.
Sooner or later, the focus needs to be shifted from what the “herd is doing” to your own individual projects and pursuits. This is the place where creativity can flourish and you can finally leave a path created from your own, unique footprints instead of following the shadow of someone else’s.
The landscape has shifted and the skyline we see in the online world of 2012 is different than that of the past. Adjust and you can prosper from these changes greatly. Keep looking for easy gold, though, and you’ll probably have a very long road ahead of you.
