Building a Solid Business…or Chasing a Fad?

Are you building a solid online business, or chasing another fad? Are you interested in following a clear, concrete path to build an online business, or hoping to find the next craze to make millions almost overnight?

Wikipedia gives us the following definitions:

A fad is a practice or interest followed for a time with exaggerated zeal.

A craze is a product, idea, cultural movement, or model that gains popularity among a small section of the populace then quickly migrates to the mainstream.  Crazes are characterized by their lightning fast adoption and swift departure from public awareness.

Crazes and fads are also characterized by their unusually high interest and sales figures relative to the time they are active in the marketplace, as compared with other similar products, ideas, cultural movements or models.

In other words, a fad or a craze is a temporary fashion, interest or activity that some people follow enthusiastically, but which lasts for a short period of time. They quickly arrive with a huge, but shallow, fanfare and just as quickly dissipate when the hype and fizz dissolves.

I’m pretty certain that you DON’T want to have to shell out hard earned dollars to have your income be great for a month or so and then have to repeat that process over and over again when those income streams begin to dwindle.

Wikipedia also states that a trend is a line of general direction of movement, a prevailing tendency of inclination, a style or preference, a line of development, or the general movement over time of a statistically detectable change. You want to build a sustainable business that provides an income that grows over time.

Losing weight by cutting off a leg is a fad. Making money online with cookie cutter push-button sites is a fad. The “Lose Weight While You Sleep” diet is a fad. The work required toward making your internet business successful and healthy for years to come is a long-term process.

Ever since children around the world starting asking “Are We THERE Yet?” our society has spiraled into a continuous state of conflict between instant gratification and the notion that slow and steady wins the race.

This conflict can pose a problem when starting your own online business.

You may be tempted to purchase and dive into those products with their promises of huge, “push-button” profits delivered almost overnight. And there is a boat-load of them out there to tempt you. The best advice you can receive at this time is to resist the temptation.

“But, what about those that offer an ‘Iron Clad’ online money-making guarantee?” you may ask. Remember this – a marketer’s job is to make something so incredibly appealing you’d spend any amount of money to buy it. They are selling you the Dream. But are often short on the details of what or how you will accomplish what they promise. Your responsibility as a consumer is to research their claims and see just what REALLY is true…and what isn’t. Period, end of
discussion.

You already have the Dream. It’s why you are researching ways to accomplish your goal of creating a successful online business. You will continually be faced with the choice between “instant” or “slow brewed.” And while there may be overnight success stories, just as many of these one-shot wonders disappear as fast as they emerge. Your business should be built so that you do NOT become one of them.

Starting and building an internet marketing business is a long-term process. It’s NOT something that you slap together or set-it-and-forget-it. (Although, certain types of semi-automatic sites can be a part of your overall business strategy).
The strength and long-term success of your internet business will not come from you jumping from one project to the next. That is NOT a business – it‘s a shotgun approach that, although it may generate some cash for you, is not sustainable over the long term. You will constantly have to spend the time, effort and money chasing the next “best way”. That method will not provide you the long-term security that your hard work entitles you to.

Build an Online Business – Start with Your Dreams

Before you begin to develop your own online business, you should have decided why you want to do so. It will be much easier for you to accomplish your objectives if you have clearly defined goals and dreams to motivate you. You will discover that one of the hardest things you’ll have to do as a new online marketer is maintaining your focus. This will be easier to accomplish if you have set clearly defined goals.

Your long-term goals are represented by your dreams. Short-term goals are the steps you will take to get there.

Dare to Have Big Dreams

When you dream of the future you want, nothing is impossible. Don’t limit yourself in deciding what you want, because the most vital thing that will keep you driving toward success will be your dreams.

What are your dreams that you want to accomplish as you start and build an online business? Are they retiring from the workforce as soon as possible, or just having some additional income each month to meet current obligations? Being able to put your kids through college, or just pay their pre-school tuition? Buying a new car whenever you want, or having the money to repair the one you own now? Buying that dream house, or just knowing the rent/mortgage is paid each month? Do you want to travel around the world, or simply be able to put gas in the car to get to the grocery store?

Can you remember some of the dreams for your future that you had as a child? It seems that as we aged we started to get comfortable with, and little by little, began to settle for what we have; or, life got in the way; or, unforeseen circumstances struck; or any number of things happened and gradually we began to stop believing that the dreams we had as a child would ever actually come true.

It’s time to start dreaming again.

Without dreams, you’ll have nothing to work toward and no reason to continue to push yourself through the tough times you will encounter in your business. A dream will provide you with the drive to achieve what you really want in life. Keeping your dreams alive and in front of you will help fuel your eventual success.

Whatever your dream, just make sure that you have one.