Success is so elusive for some. For others it is deceptively simple. Why is this?
I am currently successful, even though it might not be evident to others. The reason I am successful already is because I have the success mindset.
Wasted Talent
I have been unemployed since graduating with a B.S.B.A. in Finance in July 2010. This blog has made me just $25 (not quite enough to live off of). I’m moving back in with my parents because I can’t afford an apartment. I am single. Worst of all, my hairline is receding.
Based on the above facts, some might dare to call me a “loser.” Do not associate with these people. They are the worst. I am successful now, though I wasn’t always successful.
Earlier this year, I wasted my days away playing chess, watching TV, and playing video games. I was hoping that one of the dozens of companies I’d sent my resume would see my talent and take a chance on me. Nothing. I continued on in passive living. I would go to sleep at 4 AM and wake up at 2 PM.
Success started with a simple thought – “What if I tried to make it myself? I know I am capable and I’m tired of waiting on others to see that.”
That simple thought led to a simple action – I registered deepexistence.com for about $9. Then I purchased web hosting at a discounted price of $37 for the year. And honestly, I should have invested more by investing in something like this from bloggers who already traveled this path. I have learned a lot of things the slow way.
Seemingly overnight, I was working 12-14 hours a day on my website – learning, researching, tweaking, trying different wordpress themes, and writing blog posts. I no longer wanted to watch TV or play games because I had a greater desire to work on my website. I was shocked as I hadn’t ever liked to work. 40 hours a week was always so draining. But I wasn’t the problem – the work was.
Society, the darn thing, pushes us all in the same direction. The good news? Some people like that direction and that is great! But then there are the rest of us, wondering what our problem is for not fitting in. Thankfully, there is nothing wrong with those who would rather not work 9-5 for someone else.
I think a major mental hurdle to thinking outside of the 9-5 box is the difficulty in starting a business. I thought of starting up a “healthy fast food” restaurant. Then I realized I’d need to find hundreds of thousands of dollars to finance it. Physical businesses require a massive amount of start-up capital. And then there is the internet, where I can start a business in one day for petty cash.
There Is Opportunity Online
Do you think the internet is too saturated with websites and businesses? If so, you are mistaken! There is so much opportunity online. The internet is YOUNG – about 20 years old. I’m older than the internet is. High speed internet is only a decade old. If you think the internet is saturated now, imagine it 100 years from now. There will have been millions of very successful businesses and entrepreneurs (and bloggers).
People remember the internet bubble popping in 2000 and the many online companies that were crushed. But what about the multitude of successes since then? The bubble popping was good. It showed that quality still matters with the internet. If you try to sell crap, you’re going to lose now or later.
Maybe you’re not technical enough to start a web-business. Well, you can learn most things for free or very little money. Or if you prefer, you can outsource the technical work. You might find that you love it, but I speak from experience when I say you won’t know if you don’t try.
The Blogosphere
The blogosphere really didn’t start growing rapidly until the early 2000s. In the last 24 hours as of this writing, 62,814 blogs were started. This is an explosive growth era for blogging.
The older blogs have greater trust online, a competitive advantage, and valuable experience over newer bloggers. If you’ve considered blogging, the time to get in is NOW – you can be an “older blog” in five years. Of those 62 thousand blogs started, only a small fraction will still be there in five years.
The Success Mindset
Since starting this blog and getting great feedback from readers (thank you!), I have found that believing in myself and taking a chance is a great idea. I have been more willing to accept failure, which has lead to greater success in almost all areas of my life. Before my blog hits two months of age, I have secured three guest posts on the very popular and successful Problogger blog.
According to my experience, there are two steps to obtain the success mindset.
1. Take a leap of faith for yourself. That might be starting a business, blog, moving somewhere, switching careers, adopting a child, taking up a new hobby, etc. The key is that it has to be something that is very core to your values to make a big impact on you. My values of proving myself in my career and writing well to help others are directly tied to this blog. Even if the blog fails to support me financially, I’ll still view it as a success already because it has changed my mindset! I know this is something I can keep.
2. Through hard work, you’ll eventually hit a milestone. For me, it was landing a guest post with Problogger. I had read the blog and read about the blog. When I was notified that my guest post was accepted, I went nuts. It was a “I’m really doing it!” moment. Then when it actually aired on Problogger and the response was great, it was more affirmation and motivation. It has been snowballing ever since!
Another way to look at it is going backwards…
- I would have never gotten on Problogger if I had not worked my tail off.
- I would have never worked my tail off if I wasn’t doing something I loved to do.
- I would have never been doing something I loved doing if I hadn’t taken a chance on myself.
Whoever you are in whatever place in life, you can do something and start this wonderful chain of events. It all starts with a taking a risk (large or small) on yourself. Then do anything and everything you can to make sure that risk pays off. If it is something very important to you and you succeed, you will begin to believe that you are a successful person.
The amazing thing about the success mindset? It happens well before you have actually “made it” and it helps you to reach that place!