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Jobfree Living
October 16, 2004
I was just over at the Warrior forum, and read an interesting post about how too many people think that Internet marketing is the road to quick riches.
Several posters pointed out that it's much better to start Internet marketing on a part-time basis, because contrary to all the get-rich-quick hype, you won't make a lot of money overnight. It takes time and effort and yes, work.
Several people recommended getting a job while you're building your online business.
As someone who lives a jobfree life, I think becoming your own boss is an even better option. And depending on your particular work industry, becoming a freelancer is probably the easiest way to get your feet wet.
Living jobfree is not for everyone, but hey, if you're interested in Internet marketing, then you're interested in jobfree living, right?
I do a lot of freelance work, as well as run my own business and help with my husband's business. And while some days (well, okay, fine ... weeks) I feel like I'm chained to my desk and this computer, I would never trade it in for a regular job.
When I first started out, you wouldn't believe the number of people who asked me when I thought I would get a job. Or who offered me a job, actually. Most people were stunned when I told them I was never going to get another job, not if I had anything to do about it.
There are tons of benefits to freelancing and working for yourself. There's the easy commute from the bedroom through the kitchen for a nice leisurely breakfast and coffee and into the office, second cup in hand. There's the t-shirt and jeans attire and dress-down PJ Fridays. There's the flexibility of doing what you want when you want - I work a lot of nights but I've also gone on a ton of field trips with my kids and every year I do my Christmas shopping during the day when the crowds are working away in the big city.
There's also the ability to start working on other ventures, like Internet marketing or another new business. Even when I'm working under deadline (as in, due in two hours, or emailed before I can go to bed), I still have time to do little bits of other things for other projects.
Of course, there are downsides. The bank account isn't always at its best when you need it to be. You worry when the assignments aren't all lined up, and when they are, you worry that they're not lined up three or four months down the road. Or, you get so booked up you don't know where your head is somedays and when you get sick you learn to "work through it".
(Which, by the way, is one thing that really appeals to me about Internet marketing - it's that passive income-make-money-while-you-sleep-or-have-the-flu aspect of it).
If you have been thinking about quitting your job and working for yourself, whether it's as a freelancer or running your own business, one book I highly recommend is Making a Living Without a Job by Barbara Winter. It's an older book (Amazon says 1993 - I don't have my copy handy right now) but it's very inspirational.
- BJ
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Posted by BJ at 09:44 PM in Internet Marketing | Permalink
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Comments
Nice post BJ. It's quite clear to me from following your blog that you have a lively mind and lots of energy and enthusiasm. I feel sure that you will go from strength to strength.
Here are just a few thoughts for you relating to internet marketing - indeed marketing in general. The businesses I've been involved in (full time day job in banking and 'hobby' businesses I've co-started and still retain an involvement in like graphic design (www.artefact.ie) and technology retailing (www.tech2order.com)have left me with a few general ideas which I'm happy to share. The latter two enable a small living to be made but are not good business models.
1. Residual income is good. If the bank didn't get a single new customer next year it would make millions anyway...all these 20 year loans etc. providing ongoing income streams. So try to build that principle into what you're doing.
2. Selling your time is bad. A graphic designer can only accomplish so much in a given time. If you get more work than you can handle you work all night or you have to pass. And nobody wants to pay too much for your labor anyway, no matter how skilled.
3. Make it once and sell it multiple times is good. With graphic design you start each job from scratch and can only sell the finished product once. Design a software program though - antivirus or something - and you can potentially sell it millions of times, so once the product is in place, the work goes into selling rather than making.
4. Selling on other peoples' stuff can be okay, but often the margins available are too low. That's the problem with tech2order - the volume you have to sell in order to cover the marketing costs is too high, which makes it difficult to get into profit territory. That's also the problem with most affiliate programs as far as I can tell.
5. Having employees is bad - in small businesses anyway. In effect you often end up working for them i.e. most of the work you do is to pay their wages.
6. High volume low margin business is bad - unless you're big and have distribution capability. It's too hard to sell, and administer, large volume sales.
7. High price (and margin) is good. That tends to mean low volume...unless you can get your marketing going well enough. the holy grail is high margin high volume!
8. Unique is good. Almost everybody is doing almost everything. To have something genuinely different gives you a better chance.
9. Make something of your own is good. If you control the product or service from inception and can develop it as you wish, and can control the marketing -in effect be the merchant - you've an advantage.
10. Having something downloadable online that can be bought and delivered while you sleep - no shipping, no warehousing, no hassle....is good!
I'm sure I've some other thoughts along the same lines but they're the main ones that I can recall as I write, and I'm trying to bring them all together in the Life Boss project. So here's hoping it works out!
And good luck to you in your endeavours!
Gerry
Posted by: Gerry | Oct 17, 2004 6:31:04 PM
Hi BJ,
Good post. I read the book mentioned some time ago. I also go along with Gerry's comments as well.
Declan
Posted by: Declan | Oct 17, 2004 11:33:39 PM
I work for myself from home. I have 2 jobs, one freelance work another for a company as an independent contractor. I wouldn't trade either for the world.
Along with these 2 jobs I do affiliate marketing and manage a few websites. One of my websites is my core business at the moment. It started as a store and I had too many time constraints, I have sinced switched out my products for affiliate products. Loving it!
Most people still don't get what I am doing and ask me "When am I going to get a job?" It frustrates me, my MIL being the worst offender. She is constantly trying to get me a job, if I *wanted* or *needed* a job out of the house, I would be quite capable on my own. But I will stop here as I could rant about her for longer LOL
Anyway all that to say "I get it" great post ;)
Posted by: chrissie | Oct 20, 2004 12:24:15 AM
That is so funny about your MIL, Chrissie. I have a friend who is a writer, and even though she's published over ten books all with major publishers and written over 800 articles, her MIL still doesn't "get" what my friend does for a living!
BJ
Posted by: BJ | Oct 20, 2004 11:20:09 PM
we are furthur inform that, i am fresher searching for job,i will be gratefull for u,if u could provide me a job in the field of programming
Posted by: anitha | Dec 10, 2005 4:50:49 AM
