You probably get hundreds of emails a week promising great
riches. "Financial Freedom", "Earn Money While You Sleep", "Be
Your Own Boss", "Create Your Own Destiny", "Escape Your Dead End
Job", "Be Able to Watch Your Kids Grow Up While Making Money",
"Work at Home", are all common headlines. Are these statements
true?
First, let's have a reality check. Today over 90 percent of
start-up businesses on the Internet fail within the first year.
The majority of these fail in a few short months. Why?
The answer to this is simplistic. Many people are conned into a
program that cannot succeed without selling the same program to
other people. This is a typical example of a pyramid, and when
you run out of suckers to sell the program to, you are out of
business.
Others jump into a program without finding out the particulars
first. Envelope stuffing is a perfect example. You are promised
one dollar for every envelope you stuff. With visions of "sugar
plums dancing in your head", you figure you could do hundreds a
day. Let's face it - machines can stuff thousands an hour. Why
would someone pay you a dollar apiece? They won't - it's a con -
pure and simple.
Some might stumble on a legitimate venture - yes there are some
out there. But they followed the "Earn Money While You Sleep"
routine. They believe if they follow some simple directions,
they will be "rolling in dough" without having to do any work.
When the postman isn't filling their mailbox with $20 bills, they
lose heart and quit.
Others might buy some "obsolete government reports" on a CD and
believe the "rap" that they can sell each one for $15 a pop.
They get a free email account, a free web site, and are in
business with just the cost of the CD. That business might last
a week.
The ones I get a kick out of are where they "front load" you with
merchandise. You could have thousands invested before you
realize you have been taken. Most of the people trying to sell
this deal, are only trying to recover the money someone else
conned them out of, and hope you will be gullible enough to let
them fleece your pockets. Anybody want to buy a "water filter"?
I know someone with a garage full.
With the exception of a naive minority, people are "savvy" enough
to avoid the majority of these scams. So, if you want to get
into business on the Net, use some common sense and do some "due
diligence" investigation before jumping in with both feet.
Do some people make money on the Net? Sure - but guess what?
They work for it. Some may tell you that JOB is a dirty word and
stands for "Just Over Broke". Working for yourself is hard work
if you want to succeed. You must run your "Home Business" with
the same discipline you would use in any other.
You must advertise, advertise, advertise - if people don't know
you're there, how do you expect them to find you to do business?
Be prepared to work 60 to 70 hours a week or more if it is a full
time venture.
But how about those who need the financial security of their job,
while trying to develop their online business - can they hope to
succeed? Yes! But they have to put in their effort in the
evenings and on weekends. They have to approach it with the same
attitude as someone doing it full time.
There are a lot of good opportunities "just ripe for the picking"
out there. If you avoid the obvious scams, and do some "due
diligence" investigation, you will find one. If the first few
don't work for you, don't lose heart. Be sure you give it
enough time and effort before giving up. If you are sure it
won't, "cut your losses" and move on to something else. It may
take some time to find a "fit", but when you do, it will be worth
your time and effort.
About the Author
Bob publishes the free weekly "Your Business" Newsletter
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