I've learned the hard way – by experience – how important the following eight life-changing tips are.
They will vastly improve your chance of success in affiliate marketing. They'll make you more efficient, more productive, and happier, too.
They're suitable for whatever system you've chosen to follow.
It took me years of experimenting and making mistakes before I realized how vitally important all these principles and tips are. Don't under-estimate their importance.
These life-changing ideas could be worth hundreds of thousands of dollars to you. They have been to me.
Just like you, I get distracted, and goof off. When I pause and figure out how to get back on track, these are the main principles I think about…
- 1. Remember WHY you're doing this. It's not for the money. Not really. When you've worked it out, picture yourself enjoying the THINGS you're going to get, the FREEDOM you're going to have, the TIME you're going to have with loved ones.
For me, back in 1998, it was all about quitting a job I'd grown to hate. A few years later, it was about building up an investment portfolio and buying properties. These days, it's all about having the freedom to work only if I feel like it.
To be able to fully enjoy the things you want, remember to take frequent breaks, eat healthily, exercise, and get enough sleep. There's no point in being rich if you're dead – unless you're doing it for your children.
- 2. Even if you're a part-timer, treat it like a business. Pretend you paid $100,000 for that instruction guide. Study it as though your future depends on it.
Do everything professionally. Keep careful records, with backups. Act as though you're succeeding. Your mindset is hugely important. Because this is a business not a hobby, stick with ONE system for at least six months, preferably a year. Give it a chance to work.
Don't just aim to make money. Create valuable assets. Build businesses.
- 3. Read the instruction manual you bought several times. First, read it quickly to get an over-all impression. Then study it slowly taking notes, as though you're learning for an important exam. You are. It's your life exam.
After you've make notes, read your notes and think about them.
Do this, and my guess is you'll already be ahead of about 90% of affiliate marketers.
Some successful marketers say you should read a book seven times to “internalize” it. I haven't tried that, but it makes sense.
- 4. Look for leverage. For example, email lists and autoresponders give you leverage by providing multiple opportunities to earn trust and make a sale. Residual income and lifetime commissions give you leverage because you do the work once and get paid multiple times.
As soon as you can, hire, delegate and outsource. Doing so gives you leverage and improves your quality of life.
- 5. Set deadlines for yourself. For example, set yourself a written deadline to write an article by 9am – or 9pm.
Deadlines work well if you divide large tasks into 50 minute blocks. Shut off distractions, work for 50 minutes to complete a block, and then reward yourself by doing something you enjoy. Having a relaxing cuppa, going for a walk on the beach, and reading a novel are simple little rewards that work for me.
Setting and achieving deadlines is a truly valuable skill to learn because it gets things done. The more you do it, the better you get.
- 6. Make “Top 5” lists. At the end of each day, prepare a SHORT list of the top 3 to 5 most important tasks. Next day, start the day by doing the task at the top of the list.
Warning: Keep this “Top 5” list separate from any long to-do list you have. Long lists are too daunting.
It's REALLY important that you make the list THE DAY BEFORE, so that in the morning (or whenever you start your “day”) you don't hesitate or get distracted while trying to figure out what to do.
Get the first task on the list done early, see yourself making progress, and you'll begin the day feeling efficient and productive.
When you're feeling good about yourself, you're more likely to tackle the next task and get it done, too.
This “Top 5” tip, adapted from something cosmetics multi-millionaire Mary Kay wrote, has made an enormous difference to my productivity and my life.
- 7. Once a month pause and assess your progress. It's all too easy to make the mistake of slaving away at “work” that isn't achieving your goals. Keep asking yourself, “Is this the most important task I should be doing?”
An annual review is essential, too. Ask yourself, “Am I moving towards my major goal?”
- 8. Set easily achievable goals and reward yourself when you achieve them. Goals can include: your first sale, your first $20/month revenue, $50, $100, $200, $300, $500, $1,000, etc… (In the early years my wife, Joanna, and I used to like going out for a meal at a nice restaurant each time my newsletter subscribers number went up another 1,000.)
Rewards can get bigger as you grow – a celebratory meal at home, lunch out, dinner out, a weekend away, a long weekend away, a week at a health spa/retreat (in Queensland, Gwinganna is good), a vacation, an overseas trip (Paris is nice), etc…
Rewards are vitally important. They help make you feel good about yourself, and about the sacrifices you've made to get where you want to be. They lock in good memories. They reinforce good behavior.
Enjoyable rewards are one of the good things in life – so make sure you include many of them in your plans.
If you've been grinding away at the keyboard, overlooking the importance of rewards, pause now and write down three rewards you're going to work towards.
I won't try to fool you. It's much easier to write these tips than actually do them. But if you make a start today, you'll find you improve with practice.
It's been said that it takes about 21 days to form a habit. For me, it seems to take a bit longer. If you're not working efficiently and not enjoying what you're doing, start today and try one or more of these tips for the next 30 days.
They are all powerful, and when you apply several of them at once they're exponentially powerful.
Perhaps you've just skimmed this list. If so, go back and read each tip again. I've condensed a LOT of extremely valuable tips into one article. They really are life changing.
These tips will make you more productive, more efficient, and help you enjoy life more. Start right now.
Do you have a life-changing tip you'd like to share? I'd love to see your comments.
