Is Blog Commenting Dead?

Let me tell you a little story about how I came to meet John Chow and how we’ve grown to become pretty good friends over the years. Heck, I even crashed at his guest house in Washington at one point.

Learning to Make Money Online

Even though I’d be writing online for years prior, I didn’t really turn that into professional blogging and freelance writing until 2006. I started learning about Internet marketing, online advertising, search engine optimization and all the rest of it. Coincidentally, it was also around that time that John decided to run his little experiment to see if it was possible to earn a full-time income from part-time blogging. We all know how that turned out for him.

At the time, I didn’t really know him, of course. I only knew *of* him, but we just so happened to have a mutual friend who I knew from one of the local car forums… who was also getting into blogging around the same time. It’s one of those perfect storm kind of scenarios. My friend said I should check out John’s blog for insight and tips and advice, and so I did.

Understandably, John Chow dot Com looks pretty different today than it did over a decade ago. Back then, John had a widget in the sidebar that would display the top five or top ten commentators on the site each month based purely on volume. The five people who left the most comments would be “featured” in the sidebar with the count resetting each month. The competition was understandably fierce, because while all links in the comments themselves were nofollow, the sidebar links were dofollow.

Release the Hounds!

So, I did what any self-respecting new blogger would do. I spammed the site so hard with so many comments for so long that I consistently showed up in that top commentator list almost every month. Looking back, my time was probably better spent and I’m not completely convinced how much of a positive impact it really had on my SEO, but the net result was I got on John’s radar, we met over Dot Com Pho, we co-authored a book, and the rest is history.

Which leads me all the way back to today and the current state of blog commenting on the web. Back then, some blogs (I think including mine, but I’m not 100% positive) allowed for dofollow links in the comments as a means of encouraging people to leave comments. This worked, to some degree, but it wasn’t long before commenting bots and spam services showed up to take advantage. Blog commenting for some dofollow SEO link juice very quickly became an undesirable practice.

Some people say that even if the links are nofollow, they carry some SEO value from anchor text and relevance. I’ll leave that up to debate another day. What I will say is that, particularly since pretty well all blog comments are nofollow across the board these days, link building through leaving comments on blogs isn’t really going to work. But this doesn’t mean that blog commenting is worthless.

A Penny for Your Thoughts

The state of blog commenting now is the same as it was when I was spamming this blog some 12 years ago. It’s ultimately about curating relationships, attracting attention, and establishing expertise. If I had not been so active commenting on John Chow dot Com back then, I may not have ever met John in person and I may not have connected with so many other people through that relationship as a result. It’s because of John that I’ve had the opportunity to work with people like Zac Johnson and Nate Whitehill. It’s because of those comments, to some degree, that I’m blogging here today.

So what does this really mean for you?

Keep commenting, but do it with a purpose. Do it because you actually want to engage with other human beings in meaningful conversation. Do it because you’re adding value to the discussion, asking good questions and providing answers and clarification to your fellow readers. Do it to be personal, genuine, and approachable, so people know you’re actually a real human being who may have something to offer them.

Be relevant, be worthwhile, and you just might get noticed by the right people too.

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Avoid These Top Internet Marketing Blunders

Internet marketing is a very fragile business because it’s very competitive, and takes a lot of patience. However, there are cool ways you can improve your marketing by researching your niche, and applying the strategies you learn at the same time. Over the years, whenever I start a blog, I’ll always research my niche and the top bloggers in my market to learn what I can from them. Since they have been in the business longer it helps me avoid the mistakes they have made along the way. Avoiding these mistakes will help me grow faster, and build my brand quickly. Next,

We have so many cool ways to market our blog which were NOT available before. For example, we have social media which will excel the rate of blog growth 10 fold. The top social media networks like Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ have enormous niche relevant visitors which can build momentum quickly to your content. However, the secret is to know how to use these networks, and avoid the common mistakes made by rookie bloggers. So, what have I decided to focus on today? Simple…

I searched for the biggest mistakes authority bloggers have made when starting out, and want to discuss them with you now. This is great for those just starting, or those who have been in the business for years. It’s never too late to tweak your style so you optimize your marketing and blog growth. Let’s get started and your feedback will be greatly appreciated.

Growth Rate Failure

You’ve started a blog, and want to make sure it grows over the years, however fail to focus on the growth rate. This is one of the worst mistakes anyone can make in the industry because you won’t know what has worked or what has stagnant your growth. In blogging, you always want to make sure every decision you make will increase your brand, and growth over a certain time period. This is why it’s important to make sure you have the right tools in place which will give you a better overview of your growth rate. For example, you should always ask yourself these questions going forward.

• How much has my blog grown over the last month?
• What has optimized my blog growth?
• What tools should I use to track growth?
• How have I drove traffic to my blog in recent months?

Answering all these questions will help you implement the right strategy going forward making sure you keep growing. For example, ask yourself how much content should you be writing to keep your blog fresh because we all know how unattractive a blog with old content is…right?

I suggest you install Google analytics to your blog so you can trace where your visitors are going, and then can focus on those same avenues going forward. You’ll still want to try new things, however this way you can focus on what has been working at the same time.

Very Small Niche

It’s tough building your business in a very small niche. It’s even harder generating profit when you have a very small audience which is why it’s important target a big enough niche. Focusing on a wide enough niche will give you the leverage to try different things, and build a brand around a specific topic. For example, “make money online” is a huge niche, and I can keep narrowing it down even further. I can focus on keywords like:

• Blogging
• Advertising
• Content marketing
• eBooks
• Social media
• Etc

This will just give me the flexibility to try different things, and you won’t run out of ideas. Use tools like Google Keyword Planner or even search to find cool markets which haven’t been tapped into. Then start to narrow down each topic by looking at sub-keywords and products which you can focus on. Many times I have head over to Amazon.com, and started looking at the best sellers within a niche. The fact that many people have been purchasing a specific product means it’s a very HOT niche. It’s important to think outside the box, and choose a niche which has a huge audience, and isn’t competitive.

If you head over to Google and type in some keywords, you’ll be able to find some awesome niches which haven’t been tapped into by a wide range of bloggers.

Not Marketing Enough

It doesn’t matter if you just started out, or have been in the business for a long time because you have to keep marketing. The thing many people don’t understand is times are much different now, and you have to battle others to get ahead in the line so use what’s available to you. The fact so many social media websites popped up is a good thing, but can work against you too. Let me explain this a bit better…

Years ago starting a blog, writing content and generating a following was easier. It was simply based on first come first serve, and the search engines didn’t have complicated algorithms as they do now. This meant you were ranked based on start date, and how many keywords you had in your content relevant to a search phrase. However, now you have over 200 rankings factors which determine your place within the SERP’s. Here are just some of them:

• Content freshness
• Depp linking
• Domain authority
• Page authority
• Social signals
• Internal linking
• Keywords
• LSI
• Long-tail
• And many others

Since things have gotten more complicated I encourage all of you to try different marketing avenues available to you. For example, start investing in banner advertising, CPC, content marketing and others. This will allow you to outshine your competition within your niche if necessary. A lot of this will obviously depend on your niche, and how many others are dominating within it, but choosing to actively market will increase the likelihood of conversions. Start by doing a quick search in Google, and creating a list of marketing platforms. This way you can start to try different ones and keeping track of the long term conversions.

Retention vs Acquisition

As a blogger you have to pay close attention to customer retention, and acquisition. For those of you NOT familiar with these two phrases, let’s take a quick look at each:

Acquisition: This is where you continue to grow your visitors by getting new customers.

Retention: This is where you hold on to the visitors you already have visiting your website.

It’s important you continue to do both, but more importantly focus on your existing customer or reader base. Why? If you start to lose readers, this means you have a deeper underlying problem. It means you have a problem with new content bring published or have LOST the quality of your product or services. No one wants to lose customers especially when they have been active readers of your blog for several years…right?

Here is my point….

One of the biggest blunders I’ve see bloggers make is NOT focus on acquisition and retention enough. They take visitors for granted thinking they’ll stick around forever once active readers of your blog. This mentality will get you in trouble in the long run because losing readers mean you are failing to do something important which you did when starting.

As a blog owner make sure you keep a close eye on why your blog grew, and going forward make sure you continue to focus on the same things.

Delaying to Grow or Blog

For my final point I want to discuss something very important. You have to make sure you blog and write content every day. We are at a time where we should be focusing on content marketing because this is what search engines and people are looking for. More people turn to the internet to find solutions to their problems, and they expect to find them when searching through Google, etc. As a matter of fact, Google has made this clear numerous times over the last few years. Let’s take a look at what they’ve done in recent years.

Algorithm Changes – You’ve seen more changes in the recent years then ever before. These are focused at bettering search results, removing poor quality sites, and those which use manipulation to rank keywords.

Ranking Factors – You’ve seen a huge change in what now ranks your content compared to before. For example, more emphasis is given to content, social signals, domain and page authority.

Bounce Rate – Google tracks user experience by looking at bounce rate differently. They time pages more accurately which will show them the quality of your content.

Internal Linking – More important now then ever before because a solid linking patterning increases the authority of other pages. Google looks for “total” authority instead of single page when ranking websites.

These are just some examples however you can imagine how many other factors matter when ranking your website. I recommend you have a solid content writing schedule so you can keep writing up-to-date content. Google has build their reputation by focusing on providing accurate information, and one way to achieve this is by writing content people actually want to read.

Final Thoughts

Now that you have a solid list of common blunders made by bloggers, it’s important you start implementing what you’ve learned above. Start by reading over this content one more time and making notes along the way so you understand the material. Many times, you’ll still continue to make the same mistakes because you haven’t understood what I’ve mentioned above. This can be avoided by readings the content above one more time, and writing out the fundamentals in point form.

The next time you write content you can start applying these strategies and always have a way to track statistics. The thing you should do is track what’s been working so you can continue to use those and avoid the ones which produce little results. Remember, in the final point I discussed the importance of retention and acquisition which should always be your ultimate focus. Keeping both these elements in mind will allow you to keep writing content to build a bigger following, and keep those who have already been loyal readers.

Here’s something else which I forgot to mention above that I’ll go over now…

Social media is a great way to keep building readership because it taps into a huge amount of people everyday. However, you have to know how to use certain networks. For example, find out how to use social media tools which allow you to focus people in your niche. In Twitter, I use a tool called hashtagify.com which gives you a list of the MOST popular #hashtags in your niche. You start by typing in your main keyword, and the tool will generate a table of popular #hashtags which you can then implement into your tweet. For those of you unaware: #hashtags are Twitters way to sort information being shared on their network, and it’s been a valuable way so far. Learn how to use different strategies for other networks so you can get your content found on social networks which will generate enormous traffic to your blog.

Remember, having a tracking tool which will tell you where your traffic is coming from so you can continue to use that avenue going forward for blog growth. At the same time, you should be focusing on blogger retention through existing content marketing, etc.

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How Much Money Can You Save Working from Home?

There are innumerable reasons why you might want to quit your day job. Maybe you’ve got a horrible boss who keeps “voluntelling” you to come in on the weekend to finish up those TPS reports, because that’d “be great.” Maybe you want to take matters into your own hands, take ownership over your own career, and enjoy the limitless income potential of entrepreneurship.

Maybe you want the freedom to work when and where you want, on your own terms, doing your own thing. You want to steer your own ship and have more time to spend with your family. These are all valid reasons. Another big reason? It’s not just about the possibility of more income; it’s also about how much money can you can save by working from home, being your own boss.

Thousands of Dollars

I recently came across an article by Maddi Salmon on Quartz at Work. She’s not even coming from the perspective of striking it out on your own and working from home full time. She’s just talking about telecommuting into her day job “a couple of days each week,” and even under these much more limited circumstances, she is able to save thousands of dollars every year.

And this got me thinking, as I hadn’t really worked out the math in my own situation. How much money am I saving as a professional freelance writer and blogger who runs his own business from home full-time? Every city is different and every individual is different, but I thought some of you may find it helpful to peer into a real-world example of someone who could be in a similar situation as you are.

Let’s Break It Down

I’m not going to dive into the added matter of writing off business expenses and other related considerations, as that’s a whole other can of worms. Let’s just talk strictly about the money saved when working from home as compared to working a more traditional job in a more traditional office.

First, there’s the commute. Right now, my total commute consists of rolling out of bed and walking down the stairs to my home office. Total commute time of less than 30 seconds for a total cost of nothing. Because of this, my wife and I are able to share a single vehicle. If I drove to work, we’d need a second car.

Conservatively, the costs involved with having that second car would include insurance, depreciation, gas, and maintenance. Here in Vancouver, that’d be about $1,800 a year in insurance, about $2,000 in annual depreciation, about a $60 tank of gas every week (so about $3,000 annually), and let’s say $500 in maintenance (it’s probably more than that). That’s about $7,300, not including the opportunity cost of the time I “waste” on a traditional commute.

Second, there’s daycare. Because I work from home full time, there’s always someone home to take care of my daughter. When my wife or my mom are around, I can work. When they’re not, I can be dad. If I worked outside the home, we’d likely have to invest in a nanny or daycare to some degree. In Vancouver, daycare (if you can even get a spot) is at least $1,200 a month, if not more.

Third, there’s food and coffee. Since I work from home, I typically brew up my own cup of coffee at a cost of about 25 to 50 cents. If I visited the local coffee joint almost daily working outside of home, I could easily spend $3 to $5 a cup. Multiply through by five days a week, 50 weeks a year, that’s an annual savings of about $900. For lunch, I can make my own meal at home for less than $5 pretty easily, while a meal out is at least $10. Conservatively, that’s an annual savings of over $1,000. Combined with coffee, we’re now looking at about $2,000 each year.

Fourth, we’ve got wardrobe. I work from home and very rarely actually meet with clients face-to-face. As a result, I spend almost nothing on work-related clothing. If I worked in an office, I’d have some upkeep to maintain. Dress shirts, ties, suit jackets, shoes, plus the increased wear and tear on essentials. This will vary widely from individual to individual, but you can easily spend $1,000 a year to maintain a professional appearance, if not much, much more.

Tallying It Up

Remember that these are very conservative estimates and it’s naturally going to vary a lot based on who and where you are. Maybe your commute costs are way more or maybe you can find much more affordable daycare in your area. But here are the rough numbers for my situation over the course of a typical year.

• Commute: $7,300
• Daycare: $14,400
• Food/coffee: $2,000
• Wardrobe: $1,000
• Total: $24,700

Nearly $25,000 is hardly anything to sneeze at. That’s the equivalent of making about $100 more each workday or about $12 more an hour (based on a 40-hour week). When you put it this way, even if you take a temporary pay cut for quitting your “comfortable” day job to pursue online ventures from home, you could effectively still come out well ahead. And I’m not even factoring for all kinds of other potential savings and benefits.

Do the math. Working from home is worth it.

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Using The Tesla App To Control Your Model S 3 X

In this video, I show you how to use the Tesla iPhone or Android App to cool down your Tesla Mode S/3/X before your get into the car. It’s great for those hot summer days when you have to leave the dog in the car so you can meet some fellow internet marketers for a Dot Com Lunch. Just remember to place a note in the car window to let people know that the Tesla can keep your pet cool. Otherwise you may come back to a broken window.

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Lamborghini Rear Bumper Delete Mod – Good or Bad?

An interesting modding trend I see at Cars and Coffee is removing the rear bumper off your Lamborghini to show off the exhaust system. My question is, is this a good or bad thing?

In addition to the bumperless Lambo, I checked out some cool Ferraris, a bunch of Ford Bronco, and other cars.

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How To Spend NO Money and Start Getting Customers

When some bloggers are starting out, they have NO money to spend on getting customers. This can be very stressful, especially if they expect blogging to be their only source of income. However, over the years, many case studies and tools have been introduced into the market that allows you to attract customers without spending a dime. You might think this is impossible, but I’ll be going over some of them today. By building blog growth and attracting customers WITHOUT spending a dime, you’ll be able to be competitive in a market which might feel is impossible. Let’s get started, and explore some of the FREE methods available to you online.

Your feedback will be greatly appreciated.

Leverage the Communities

Forums and other online communities have been around a long time, and are completely free. I’m surprised by the number of people who fail to NOT leverage what is available online. For example, I believe every niche has a forum and doing a quick search in Google will introduce you to a handful. Start by doing a quick search in Google, typing “keyword + forum”, and you’ll find some solid forums that you can start engaging in. The cool thing about forums is, over time, you can build a solid reputation for providing value, leading to a huge following. I know many SEO bloggers who got started on forums, later attracting them to their own blog. Forums tend to be solution-based, giving you an opportunity to showcase your skills and knowledge within your niche. Finally, you are able to add 1-2 links within your signature, which is another great way to divert people to your blog. However, it’s important you follow some important rules when participating in forums.

First, always provide value because these forums are being moderated, and you can be banned if you start SPAMMING. The positives outweigh the negatives so take your time and build a reputation for yourself over time because you’ll have an easier time attracting visitors to your blog this way. Secondly, the forum you choose should be as niche specific as possible, allowing you to leverage as specific people as possible to your blog. The more precise your audience, the more engagement you can expect on your blog. Third, always add a signature to your posts when you have an opportunity because this will help build a value link back and drive traffic.

What now?

Head over to Google and do a quick search with your keyword + forum. Create a list of 4-5 forums specific to your niche, then start skimming through each. It’s important you find 2-3 that have the following:

• Large membership or users
• Allow signature (not necessary)
• Are niche specific
• Have a variety of questions

Next,

In regards to other communities, try leveraging:

• Facebook groups
• Twitter groups
• Reddit
• Craigslist groups
• Quora.com

These are all popular, and have grown enormously over the last few years. Not to mention, each year they continue to grow, attracting more people, which works in your favor.

Affiliate Programs

Depending on the type of blog you have, it’s a great idea to leverage affiliate programs to generate a buzz. What are affiliate programs? It’s a system implemented in your blog, commerce site, or marketing where you pay others a fixed or recurring commission to promote your product. Affiliate programs are great because other people actually use them to generate profits through their blog. For example, over the years, I have used so many products, some of which I have found very useful. I would write content based on the product, and get a commission in return when someone buys through the website. How does this help the seller or blogger with the affiliate system in place?

First, it’s a great way to have others promote your content or product for you. Someone will copy their own designated affiliate link and promote it to their readers, within communities, or even paid marketing. Secondly, some affiliate systems are free to implement into your website or offer a free trial in the beginning. This means there’s very little initial investment from you when starting out. The turnaround is very quick and you’ll have a thriving business within a few short months. If you’re using WordPress, you can make use of their FREE affiliate plugins, however, the paid systems offer a better tracking interface.

Another cool thing is…

With affiliate programs, you’ll only pay when someone makes a purchase, so, again, you won’t be paying for dead conversions. If you are just starting out, and have no initial marketing budget, then why NOT have others promote your blog and products for you? Do a quick search in Google and you’ll be able to find some solid affiliate interfaces that can be set up within a few days. If you’re using WordPress, then do a plugin search to find what’s available in terms of affiliate program systems.

User Social Share Incentive

Social media has changed the way people interact with content, and is definitely a plus for those who are starting out with NO money. Social media allows people to share content they find valuable with others, which is awesome for engagement. For example, 2 profiles with 20,000 followers among them sharing content will generate enormous buzz quickly. This is even truer because niche specific people usually follow other niche specific people, allowing your content to be shared with those who’ll find it valuable. However, because we are talking about generating customers and readers WITHOUT money, let’s dig a bit deeper. Why is social media so important?

First, it’s FREE to use and sign up unless you are paying for advertising space through their program. Secondly, you have almost every niche using social media to connect with others who have something in common. Third, people are always on social media throughout the day, which gives you an open window of engagement. You can post content, go to sleep, and the next day, it’s an international hit. Social media tracks statistics or allows you to implement a tool to track data. This will give you insight into the people reading your content and how they interact with your content. Finally, social media is growing each year, and gives you a chance to explore other content relevant to your niche. This leads to further content ideas, traffic, and conversions in the future.

How to get started on social media:

• Register a FREE account on Facebook, Twitter, and Google +
• Set up your profile or page, describing your business so others know your niche
• Start adding relevant people and also join others to create a mutual connection
• Share your best content because “value” is the only thing that goes a long way when on social media platforms.

Blogger Outreach (AMAZING)

When I first started in the blogging industry, one of my partners mentioned the importance of blogger outreach. Unfortunately, I neglected the advice for several years before actually setting up a proper outreach campaign. What is blogger outreach, and how can it get you ranked quickly with very little money? Let’s take a quick look:

First, blogger outreach is networking with influential people within your niche who have made a huge difference over the years. It’s about connecting with bloggers through a solid email marketing campaign so you can leverage their popularity and traffic. If you have been blogging for some years, then you know who to reach out to, however, those getting started can start by doing the following:

• Doing a quick search in Google, looking for relevant powerful blogs within your niche.
• Create a list of the MOST influential blogs within your niche. You can also look in forums, communities, and ask other bloggers for their input.
• Writing to each one of the top bloggers, asking their input on a specific question or just a general introduction email. I’ve noticed that if you ask them for an interview, then they’ll MOST likely help you out because it gives them a chance to showcase their products. For example, here’s a quick blogging series I did: ”14 Experts Discuss MOST Important Link Building Strategy”

Here’s what you should be focusing on going forward…

Start by finding the MOST influential people within your niche, and create an easy to follow list. Then start gathering some questions you’d like to ask them or even creating an approach to initial the conversation. Ask yourself these questions:

• What can I do to open the doors of communication?
• What content format do I think they’ll be attracted to? i.e., how-to, interview, expert opinion
• What is the best way to contact them?
• How long should I wait before writing another message to them?

By answering all these questions, you’ll be able to gather the right type of data that will help in your campaign. For example, these questions will make it easier to construct a plan that increases the chances of response time going forward. Once you have created a solid network of influential bloggers, you can then proceed with guest blogging, social media, or general feedback from them. A quick thing about guest blogging…

When you have connected with them and created a relationship, then you can pitch them some awesome content ideas. You’ll end up getting published on their blog, which will lead to traffic, conversions, etc.

Free Trial

If you’re a blogger providing services, then offering a “free trial” can be your best friend. Who doesn’t want free products, especially when things these days are very expensive? I’ll admit this doesn’t seem too enticing because you’re not making any money, but it’s a great way for people to understand the quality of your work. Setting up something like this doesn’t have to be time-consuming because it starts with a simple opt-in. When a visitor arrives on your website, then have the following set up:

• A pop-up appears
• Visitors inputs email address in return for the free trial
• You contact them directly and make service arrangements.

With this setup, you’re doing two very important things:

First, you’re collecting email addresses, which can generate enormous return visitors long-term. This can lead to further conversions and business. Next, you are able to promote your business for free WITHOUT spending any money. I’ll admit you’ll have to work for free, but the positives definitely outweigh the negatives.

Get started now with Aweber.com, which I believe is one of the best email marketing interfaces available.

Final Thoughts

At one point, starting a business without any money would be impossible, but these days, it can be done with very little investment. The Internet has blown up, connecting people from all over the world, which is an amazing thing. I remember 7 years ago, when I first got involved in the industry, it was tough trying to make ends meet. I needed a few hundred dollars a month for marketing, which delayed progress. This is especially the case when you expect online blogging to be your main source of income with very little help from other outside sources. Either way, I think the Internet has grown for the better and we should all take advantage of the ways discussed above. With that said, it’s time to get started by implementing the following:

Read through the main points again, understanding the points mentioned above. Only then will you be able to implement the strategies when necessary. If you have no clue what was discussed above, then I advise you to Google “marketing with no money”, and you’ll find a handful of awesome resources. Next,

Start compiling a list of niche relevant sites that will help you in your journey. This means focusing on forums, communities, other blogs, etc. Make sure you target high quality authoritative sites because the better the site, the better engagement you’ll get back. Third, start implementing the strategies discussed above and keeping track of results. This will ensure you know what’s working and what’s not so you can then focus your attention on effective strategies.

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Are You Ready to Fail?

We hear about these amazing success stories all the time. There are these inspiring rags to riches stories about people who grew up with nothing and now they’re jet-setting millionaires, living their best life. Of course we all want to achieve a similar kind of success. Of course success is desirable. But what about failure? Do you want to fail? Are you prepared for it?

The Truth About Failure

There are two very obvious “facts” about failure that I think all of us recognize on an intuitive level, but we don’t always fully internalize. First, it’s obvious enough that success, in general, is more desirable than failure. You’d much rather enter a marathon race and win than to enter the same marathon and come in last place. I think that’s pretty obvious.

Second, many of us should recognize that the path to success is not always perfectly straight. It’s not a linear journey that naturally builds upon itself, where you are literally putting one foot in front of the other and taking it one step at a time. You don’t always keep moving forward, because you will inevitably face setbacks and obstacles and delays. Most of understand this intuitively, but we don’t always allow yourselves to take on this perspective in reality.

I don’t know about you, but I can get really down on myself with things don’t exactly go my way. I might start out with an unbridled sense of enthusiasm about a project or an endeavor, and I might really give it my all. But if the numbers that come back are disappointingly low, that can be awfully depressing. The failure makes me FEEL like a failure. But I pick myself up, dust myself off, and give it another go.

Let’s Get to the Point

The point of this post isn’t to remind that failure, as opposed to success, is generally undesirable. Yes, I know that the path to success is riddled with failures and each of these failures can act as a learning opportunity. Each time you fall flat, you’ve learned another way that didn’t work, so you pick yourself up and try something a little different to see if it works out any better. That’s how children learn to walk. And that’s you learn to do whatever it is that you want to do better.

Instead, the real point of this post is really just a simple reminder. You must be willing to fail, regardless of what it is that you want to do. Whether you want to start a new blog, publish an ebook, launch a membership site, start an affiliate marketing campaign or whatever else… recognize that failure is always a very real possibility, whether you’re just starting out or you’ve been at this for several years and *think* you know what you’re doing.

Because an unwillingness to fail is an unwillingness to succeed.

Embrace the Suck

You need to be willing to fail over and over and over again in order to achieve any real form of success. If you are too scared to try something new, if you are too afraid of the possibility of failure, then you will never be willing to go as far as you need to go or take the lengths that you need to take to achieve “success,” however you choose to define it.

If you are unwilling to fail, you will always stick with what is safe and predictable. You will stay within the calming confines of your comfort zone, too afraid to dip even your toes into unknown waters. You can’t know if you can ride a bike until you hop on that seat and start pedaling. You can’t know if you are able to swim until you jump into the water.

Yes, you might fall over and scrape your knee. You might end up swallowing a little bit of water. In fact, you probably will and that’s okay. If anything, it’s to be expected. Failure is inevitable. And the sooner you can accept that, the sooner you’ll be prepared for the possibility of success to come.

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