A reader asks: “I am spending a couple of hours every day reading lots of websites, forums, blogs, and I am getting confused by all the information…how do you do it?

I’ve been at this for about 6 months and I’ve only earned about $86.73.

From the looks of things, I am gonna have to work 24-7 to make a decent living from this. What am I missing out on?

Here is a list of ebooks and blogs, forums and other sites I’ve been reading

[list of 50+ websites follows]

HELP!!!

-Angelo”

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My answer:

First off, I think you’re reading way too many websites to do anything productive. From your list, it looks like you’re trying to master AdSense, eBay auctions, ebook product creation, teleseminars, affiliate marketing, SEO and PPC.

I am not sure what your focus is on, but if you haven’t yet, you should read this post: What’s A Good Niche To Get Into?

I’d suggest you focus on just one area for now, and most Internet Marketers will likely start out as either AdSense Publishers or Affiliate Marketers.

I personally prefer affiliate marketing not just because it generally gives a better return (ie pays better) than adsense publishing (where you’re paid when a lead LEAVES your site by clicking on an external link), but it’s more in line with my personal style – I like to build personal relationships with my readers.

So lesson 1 is “be focused”.

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Although you didn’t mention it, you might not have a goal in mind.

“Making money on the Internet” is not a concrete goal.

You’d need to set a specific target and deadlines to achieve that target.

I’ve seen my fair share of new marketers who go on the big forums and say “I want to make big money on the Internet by the end of the year”. And they spend a couple of hours reading the forums, swayed by different ideas in the various discussion threads. They’re like a blade of grass swaying in the wind.

And I’m quite shocked that some of them might have drifted into adsense arbitrage or domaining a couple of weeks later, and the worst is that they’re a couple of hundred bucks in the hole with nothing to show for it.

I’d suggest setting a goal of making your first $10 on the Internet within 7 days is a good first goal.

You might end up doing directory submissions or writing articles – among the odd jobs you’d find in the “buy/sell/trade” or “help wanted” sections of most major forums or websites.

It might be small money, but I want you to understand how easily money is made on the Internet.

Once you’ve gone through this small exercise, your view changes, and possibilities open up.

Remember, Internet Marketing is not a “mental sport” where things happen just because you had an idea. You need to take action on that idea.

Write down your goals, look at your goals regularly, and focus on achieving them.

Lesson 2: Have a plan. More importantly, act on it.

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It can get quite lonely in Internet Marketing sometimes and it can take a lot of time, especially if you’re a writer and you’re trying to pick up programming skills. Or you’re a programmer and you’re struggling to put up your sales page.

If you don’t have the necessary skills, look for people who do and pay them.

There’s no shame in paying some freelancer $100 or $200 to do something that you don’t have the necessary skills to execute and which would take up 10 hours of your time (and probably ended up with a badly coded application or badly written sales letter).

If you’re really struggling to come up with the cash to pay someone, then get a small business loan, a cash advance or work at your regular day job till you build up your savings.

If on the other hand, you’re working on a major project, find partners with complimentary skills. Work out a win-win arrangement by coming up with a profit-share arrangement.

Like my friend James Brown (the Internet marketer, not the Godfather of Soul…) says “share the load and share the cash”

Lesson 3: If you don’t have the skills, outsource it. If it’s a major project, find partners and form a joint venture.

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In short, Internet Marketing should be something that’s fun, fulfiling and creates the lifestyle you desire.

If it’s creating pain, look at ways of simplifying your life and getting back on track.