For almost two decades, I’ve mentored others to help them create a lifestyle and a business as an online entrepreneur and author that provides time freedom and unlimited income potential. My work in this area is based on my own journey online and the success I have continued to achieve. The concept of knowing, doing, and becoming is at the center of this work.
I share just about every detail of my strategies and processes with these people I feel so honored to work with, as only a few things are too private, or not yet proven to be effective that I hold back from sharing them.
The business model is a simple one, in my thinking. We choose a niche market to serve, based upon on own interests and experience; build a list of people from within our target audience by inviting them to opt in to our list; offer them products, courses, programs, and resources, both our own and from others we recommend through our affiliate links; create content that is relevant to our topic and share it on social media and within our daily email messages; connect with others who also have online businesses in an ongoing networking practice; and spend time coming up with new ways to serve them in a way that helps us stand out from others online doing something similar.
If I were to break this down into steps they would look like this:
Choose a niche market that resonates with your experience and interest…
Start a blog on your niche topic and offer a free gift in exchange for the name and email address of your visitors…
Offer your subscribers content, products and resources they may be interested in knowing more about, while also sharing more about yourself and introducing them to new ideas, concepts, and people…
Email them regularly with these offers and information, and invite them to connect with you on one or two social media sites where you are active…
Make friends with others who also have online businesses…
Serve your audience by coming up with ideas that will make a difference for them…
Yes, I can sometimes complicate this process with many more steps and details, but this is all you need in order to start earning income online.
The people I work with closely, within my Incubator Mastermind Mentoring, as well as through the courses, products, and programs I have in many areas of online marketing already know what I have just shared here. Yet, only about a third of them ever get to a steady six-figure income.
Why? Because knowing and doing are two different things. Taking inspired and focused action is the path to becoming more of and closer to who and what we want to be. While knowing and doing go hand in hand, they are far from identical. We’ve all been there: we find out about something new to us and it pique’s our interest. We invest some time and money into learning more and begin to envision and dream about how our life would change if we did what is being suggested and described.
Then, it happens… We stop taking action and slowly the dream and the vision begin to slip away. We make excuses as to why whatever it is won’t work for us. We make up a story about how others can do this, but we cannot. Finally, it all slips away and we prefer to not think about it any longer because the memory of what could have been in simply too painful.
The key is to figure out why you aren’t taking action and what to do about it…
Purchasing an online course on how to write and publish an eBook in less than a week is not the same as sitting in front of your computer and doing the work to accomplish this goal.
Technical or other issues may sometimes feel overwhelming when we are setting up a blog and websites that are unfamiliar.
We have all dealt with “imposter syndrome” at some point in our life experience and feel unworthy of the success that is just out of our reach.
How do you take your experience and interests and transform them into actions?
By admitting to yourself that you know what you’re doing, that you’ve done this many times before, and that you’re ready to get past your blocks and begin taking action with everything you truly want to do, you slay the dragon so you may move forward with confidence and joy. This requires us to go deeper into our psyche to figure out what’s going on in the depths of our mind.
We could blame our inaction on having too little time or inadequate resources, but if we are willing to take a deep, honest look, the root of our issues lies not on some external factor, but rather, within ourselves.
Fewer than ten percent of all people achieve the dreams and goals they set for themselves. That means more than ninety percent do not! Just writing down your goals and reading them aloud once a week sets you apart from almost everyone else on the planet.
And we are the only one stopping us. We alone are to blame. Are you ready to accept that the only one stopping you from doing so is… well, you? I was, and in 2005 I made the conscious decision to change my life once and for all.
After seeing the life altering ripples of overcoming my own action obstacles… going from living in poverty as the child of a single mother to becoming a best selling author, international speaker, and mentor to people all over the world, I felt called to help people from all walks of life and living in every corner of the planet to do the same.
Regardless of your role in life, you’re called to take action on a regular basis. To live your life, not just to ponder living it. That dream you have, be it living in a different home, becoming a business owner, writing a book, is yours for a reason. Now is the time to make it happen.
Here’s a closer look at some of those reasons we don’t take action and what to do about it right now…
Perfectionism – This often stems from childhood events and has been amplified by our culture. Society’s pressure to project an inauthentic version of yourself, your goals, and your life, has created unrealistic expectations. Take social media sites, for example. I’ll bet if you went on Facebook or Instagram right now, you’d be hard-pressed to find a post where someone exposes all the failures, mishaps, and heartbreaks behind a recent success.
You log on and scroll through a barrage of polished images that may leave you feeling dissatisfied and inadequate. If your goal is a minimalist lifestyle, you may even be tempted to give up completely because now you think minimalism equals a perfectly curated home. Anything less than perfect is deemed unacceptable, which leaves you paralyzed.
How to overcome the perfectionist in you: The 90% Rule.
Consider the most challenging thing on your schedule for today or this week. What if you viewed that “challenge thing” as a challenge you had already conquered? Do you think you would have more peace and confidence about it? I would imagine so. Because you have already accomplished it.
Often, the pressure we place on ourselves leads us to trying too hard and missing our goal. Write down on a piece of paper: “I have Already Won the Game.” Place this paper on your nightstand or bonus points for taping it to the ceiling directly above your bed (first thing your eyes will see every morning when you wake up!).
You have already won the game. Take a deep breath in; you no longer have to press 100% of the time. How freeing is that? Now you can freely take action.
Distracted Thinking and Acting – Studies show that we spend around 47% of every waking hour “mind wandering” into distraction. This type of distracted thinking and behavior has become such a natural experience that we don’t even notice how it prevents us from taking action.
Of course, the culprit of your overly distracted life could be external. You could blame the 3.14 million apps available for your phone, the 767,833 restaurants in your area, the 539 cable television channels you are able to watch, not to mention the 69 different streaming services.
But if we are honest, the reason for our distraction is often internal. We seek out distractions to stay mentally busy, so we can avoid facing up to the big questions, like whether we are living genuinely meaningful lives or simply going through the motions.
How to overcome the distracted thinking: The Distraction Advantage.
Distractions are all around us if we want them to be. But so are ample opportunities to take advantage of what others have deemed to be distractions. Take a piece of paper; list your distractions on the left side and list the most important people you want to spend time with and the things you want to accomplish on the right side. Now draw a line, or what I call a bridge, between them to link them together.
Here’s an example:
Distraction: I still have a full-time job, so how can I ever find time to build my own business?
Goal: To create a blog/website and add one new post each week.
Distraction Advantage: Set up an area of your house, even a small corner where you will write down your ideas in a notebook, read through them each night before you go to bed, and finally write the 750 word blog post you will schedule to publish each week at the same time and on the same day.
By bridging your distractions with your goals, you take action.
Allodoxaphobia – This is the fear of other’s opinions. Studies support that the irrational fear of being ridiculed by others begins in childhood. Being laughed at for bringing an unpopular toy to class in grade school, being teased for driving your parents’ beaten down station wagon in high school, being scoffed at for suggesting a new theory in a college class. All of these experiences are future triggers for allodoxaphobia, affecting whether or not you take action today.
Think about how much better your world would be if you didn’t concern yourself with what others think. Will they laugh at me if I speak up? What if this social media post doesn’t get any likes? What will my friends think if I donate this coffee mug that someone bought me?
How to overcome allodoxaphobia: Create a personal mantra.
Your personal mantra is a funnel of clarity for who you are so that you control the narrative of your life, not the opinions’ of others. Consider your strongest qualities, descriptive words you like, and type of people you like to be around. Then use this to build your mantra.
My mantra is: “I create content, courses, and products that help others to build and grow profitable and joyous businesses online.” I keep this mantra on the lock screen of my phone because I want to enter every room with this mantra plastered on my brain. A personal mantra allows you to choose your inner narrative, shaping the way you view yourself, and drowning out other’s drivel that blocks you from taking action.
What If? Thinking – Being injured by a past event leaves you living in “what-if” mode. Your last attempt at getting your business off the ground left you feeling inadequate and frustrated by your shortcomings. Why even try to start over? You put years into this business, only to see it falter once again. Why even try to rebuild it again?
The root of the what-ifs is fear. But I’m here to propose a question that should grip you with even more fear: “What if you don’t?” What if you don’t take the chance of going all in on your passion? You’ll forever live in regret.
How to overcome feeling inadequate: The reverse alter ego.
Creating a reverse alter ego name can help you realize that the person you were in the past is not who you are today. Adopting an alter ego is a form of self distancing, which gives us space to reframe a situation. Kobe Bryant’s on-court alter ego was The Black Mamba; Beyonce’s stage alter ego is Sasha Fierce. Mine is Constant Connie, Never Changing.
It makes me laugh when I say it out loud and reminds me that’s who I was when I was younger, not today. I even use Constant Connie for mistakes I made a few years ago, or when I think about the times I was derailed in my life. Constant Connie can have those past traumas and setbacks, but not today’s Connie Ragen Green. Not me. Not here, not now. I am a different person these days and can take action regardless of my past life experiences.
By uncovering the reason you don’t take action and learning the tools to move past them, you go from knowing to doing, giving yourself permission to truly live. Happiness is what we all seek, fulfillment is the key to happiness, and taking action is the vehicle that will get you there.
Why not do what fulfills you? Take action… your life and the lives of those around you will only be better for it.
Small Steps Lead to New Habits and Big Changes
“Sometimes it’s the smallest decisions that can change your life forever.” ~ Keri Russell
Every significant, major change that we make in our lives is the result of a long series of small changes. Be willing to take a few steps back and look at your life from a new and different perspective. Then, take action and challenge yourself to turn your new habits into a life filled with joy and prosperity.
I’m bestselling Wall Street Journal and USA Today author and online marketing strategist Connie Ragen Green. Knowing, doing, and becoming the person you were meant to be can happen quickly, if only you are open to taking the first step towards making all of your goals and dreams come true.
Leave a Reply