I was inspired to respond to self-help guru Steve Pavlina on twitter yesterday about something he wrote, you can see both his post and my response over at my twitter profile (if you don’t have your own twitter page yet, get one setup and start by following us here.
The post was about the difference between an amateur and pro, even though he didn’t come out and say it, this was an explanation of why some people reach the top in business, finance, and life while others continue to dream but not achieve.
We all have passions, dreams and things we have great potential to make a difference – but only professionals choose to take their passions seriously while amateurs give less than a 110% effort.
That is evident in any field – dedication to realizing lofty goals takes serious dedication, prioritization of what is important in your life and sticking to your plan no matter what.
For instance, when I interact with our members over at InfoMarketer’sZone about building their six and seven-figure information publishing businesses, I can tell almost instantly if they take their business seriously.
Almost without fail, every member has dreams, passion and even desparation in their desire to live the life of an information publisher – and yes, it IS a terrific life, but…
Only those who take their passion and dreams seriously achieve their dreams.
What does it mean to be serious about information publishing and marketing online?
1. You commit to multiple techniques for developing a relationship with your market. Amateur information product marketers try and push products on a market, professionals develop a plan for providing value up-front in exchange for the chance to nurture a partnership with their marketplace that (if nurtured) continues to pay growing dividends year after year.
2. You give before you get – keep the faith. It’s an odd thing with business, a sort of invisible karma if you will…to receive you must first give to your market. Here’s why this always works. When you give value to your market, suddenly their defenses are lowered and you are given a rare opportunity to see what they really want and need allowing you to further deliver value – the more value you deliver the more wealth you will accumulate.
3. Professionals know that they can’t do everything and that the more in tune with their passions they are, the more they organize their life around their passions, the less interference and distraction and the more productive they become. Amateurs let life happen to them, perhaps poking their head out of the hole once in a while to give a sudden burst of energy, only to be distracted by something else in their life – achievement doesn’t happen that way.
For information product professionals, this means that you must choose what is truly important to you – if you want your own successful infoproduct on the market in 45-90-days then commit to a plan that will GUARANTEE that you achieve that goal. We offer the Ultimate Information Publishing Success Checklist at InfoMarketer’sZone, but it’s up to YOU to plan your days and weeks around the checklist…you need to make it a priority just as any professional would.
4. Professionals make a committment to themselves which spreads to those around them that they have a firm plan, commit to consistent and guided action and are working tirelessly for the good of those they serve in the market. Certainty of plan and action attracts the same. Tell me if you have noticed this, I certainly have…amateurs seem to attract other amateurs and professionals attract other professionals. As an amateur, it’s tough to understand why this happens – why you seem to be excluded from the "boy’s club", but when you commit to a professional plan and course of action, it becomes clear that professionals make it their priority to only deal with those as committed and results-oriented as they are.
5. Professionals take responsiblity for where they are completely. If you have been dreaming about launching your own ebook, report, home study course or other information product for months or years, but haven’t succeeded, then that is on you, nobody else. That may sound tough, but believe me, when I’ve looked myself in the mirror and stepped up to admitting it is MY responsibility for where I am, great things follow. Suddenly you are focused on solutions to problems, ways around obstacles instead of the obstacles themselves. You become a problem solver instead of a victim and with each challenge you overcome you make gigantic progress toward your goal.
Are you ready to step up and REALLY become a professional in critical areas of your life? Are you ready to turn your amateur interest in starting or growing your business into a professional committment that will take you miles ahead of where you are today?
Seriously, you MUST face this question, some decisions will be YES – I’m ready to commit professionally to achieve my passions, while other decisions will be the opposite. The very fact you are asking these questions and making these decisions will move you ahead in your life – after all, the journey is as fun as ultimate achievement isn’t it?
