Just as important is how you think about your goal. Do you “hope” you can achieve it? Does it seem like something you’ll try to do… and see what happens?

Or do you think of it as if it has already been accomplished?

To achieve the extraordinary, you need to feel that kind of certainty about it.

Use this strategy with your team. Start talking about what you want to have happen in the future as if it has already happened. You will see amazing results.

[Ed. Note: Tom McCarthy (www.transformationtechnologies.com) is a success coach and business consultant. As the emcee at ETR's recent Info-Marketing Bootcamp, he kept attendees motivated and working toward their goals. You can see Tom in action, along with a dozen experts in business building and Internet marketing, in the Bootcamp DVD home-study program.]

“Finally! Someone tells the truth. Michael, you’re brilliant. Issue #2795 was right on the mark. Small productive actions taken consistently change attitude (and reinforce taking more actions) faster than anything else.”

Stacey Morris
New York

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How the “Missing Link” can kick your online business into overdrive

Every inefficient system… whether it’s an overweight body, a sputtering car, or a losing football team… has a “missing link” that prevents it from operating at full capacity.

It’s the same thing with a floundering online business.

There’s a “missing link” that keeps it from bringing in big-time revenues.

But once you pinpoint this “missing link” and get it taken care of, you can make more money online than you ever dreamed possible.

And the best part is, it is so easy to do, you’ll kick yourself for not thinking of it.

Let me show you how…

Well, some people keep trying.

You’ve seen it. The ne’er-do-well who keeps bragging about his big plans. The office screw-up who keeps apologizing for his mistakes and committing to do better in the future.

You probably don’t do that kind of thing. But if things fall apart, you may be tempted to climb out of the hole by making promises.

Resist the temptation. You’ve already established your good reputation. It was built on what you did, not on what you said you would do. If you want people to keep thinking highly of you, do more and talk less.

Promises are powerful weapons, but they lose their impact when they miss their targets.

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The Simple Six-Figure Marketing Strategy – Paul Lawrence spent less than $100 to start his first business. He used just one marketing plan. Soon he had so many customers, he hired someone to do the work. He went after new business. He used his marketing plan again. Almost instantly, he was making $4,000 a month. The people he sold the business to (so he could finish college — paid for by the sale, by the way) used the same plan. They are making $100,000 a year. Read more…

The proper uses of I and me are among the first grammatical rules that schoolchildren are taught. Yet even as adults, writers and speakers sometimes get it wrong.

The distinction is not that difficult to keep straight. Grammarians call I the nominative case and me the objective case. So use I when you’re the actor: “I’m going to the office.” And me when you’re the object of the action: “Please give the package to me.”

True, a few situations arise where following the rules might create a stilted or pretentious result. “It’s me” sounds more natural on the phone, for example, even if it’s technically incorrect. (Officially, “It’s I” abbreviates the phrase, “It is I who is speaking.”)

Similarly, “How do you know it was I who signed it?” is a trifle awkward. But problems like this can usually be solved via adroit rephrasing. One possible option: “How do you know I was the person who signed it?”

This column brings to mind two movies that were popular when I was growing up. The title of The Egg and I was admirably correct. But Me and the Colonel was ungrammatical. Of course, the filmmakers knew what they were doing.

[Ed Note: For more than three decades, Don Hauptman was an award-winning independent direct-response copywriter and creative consultant. He is author of The Versatile Freelancer, an e-book that shows writers and other creative professionals how to diversify their careers into speaking, consulting, training, and critiquing.]

Example (as used by Clayton Makepeace today): “There are pretty much only two kinds of prospects in a marketer’s universe: (1) casual copy scanners, and (2) inveterate readers.”

In some cases, that may be necessary. But in most cases I’ve witnessed, second-guessing is a response to a real problem. So before you accost your bossy boss and set him straight, make sure his worries are groundless.

Next time you feel you’ve been questioned or criticized unfairly, calm down and take a deep breath. Repeat after me: “I am not perfect. It is possible for me to be wrong in this case. If I am wrong in this case, it doesn’t mean I am human waste.”

Once you are comfortable with the idea that you may be wrong, try to figure out why your boss thinks you are.

What, exactly, happened that shouldn’t have? What didn’t happen that should have? Did you have all the resources you needed? Did you follow sensible procedures? If you had to do it again, from scratch, how could you do it to produce the desired outcome?

You need to ask yourself these questions — and you should also ask a trusted friend or colleague for input.

Once you understand what went wrong and how it could have been right, set up a meeting with your boss. Admit your mistakes. Tell him what you’re doing to avoid the same missteps in the future. And ask him for his suggestions.

I can’t imagine any good boss not being impressed with that. If he doesn’t respond positively, then he’s the problem, not you. Look for another job.

“Just what I needed to hear.”

“I just wanted to say thanks for some great content in the ETR newsletters. I find something useful in just about everyone of them.

“Michael’s lead article prompted me to respond today. A number of times, he’s shared some really useful tips for dealing with difficult people and situations. And they’ve been just what I needed to hear, like this one was today.

“Many thanks.”

Stuart May

Torquay, Devon, U.K

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Ready to Impress Your Boss? – You’ve just read about one way to handle a second-guessing boss. Wanna know the best way to avoid such a situation altogether? Know more than he does about business and marketing. Just read Michael Masterson’s book, Ready, Fire, Aim, cover to cover.

There are those who advocate a “me-first” approach. Loyalty, they argue, is a sentimental attachment that winners cannot afford. When people are no longer useful to you, get rid of them.

Success is determined in no small part by the quality of the people who surround you. I’ve argued in past ETR essays that when it comes to the key people in your career, good is not good enough. But does that mean you should dump a loyal employee or vendor the moment you find someone better?

In a word, no.

When you mistreat a longtime supporter, you create a lifelong enemy. Populate your world with enemies, and you assure yourself (and your career) an untimely death. More to the point, loyalty is a two-way street. Develop a reputation for “using” people, and you will find yourself used when you least expect it.

So how do you avoid the terrible choice of keeping someone who’s been with you for years or bringing in someone “better”?

The best thing you can do — by far — is to hire (and partner with) only great people to begin with.

You must also provide your key people with the information, technology, and direction they need to be excellent.

Finally, recognize that loyalty doesn’t mean you must do what others think you should do for them. Someone might expect to be your business manager someday. But that doesn’t mean you have to put him in that position.

Don’t make promises you can’t keep. Don’t suggest benefits you can’t provide. Hire and partner with excellent people. Teach them. Listen to them.

Do that and you will help your loyal employees grow. They will recognize the value you’ve given them and be grateful to you for it. If something out of your control happens and you have to let them go, they will be better able to get a good job because of what they’ve learned from you.

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Build It and They Will Come… and Other Myths - A fancy website has zero bearing on how much money you make online. In fact, you could lose money! Internet Money Club Director Brian Edmondson knows a better way. And it uses one of the simplest Internet tools: e-mail. Find out more here…

Many managers are specific about the steps to take but vague on intent. This is a mistake.

Just because you’ve achieved good results by following a certain procedure, don’t assume that everybody who works for you must approach projects your way.

It’s much more effective to make sure they understand the ultimate purpose of the job you’re asking them to do, and the time and money limits attached to it. You can explain what’s worked for you. But then get out of their way and let them get the job done without your constant interference.

Do you have trouble with this advice? It may be because you have trouble with delegating itself. If so, you will accomplish much less in your career than you could if you learned the value of letting your people develop their own methods.

“Tattooed on everyone’s head.”

“This quote from Michael’s article should be tattooed on everyone’s head and taught from preschool on: ‘If it’s going to be worth less after you buy it, or if you’ll have forgotten all about it by this time next year, pay cash.

That includes stereos, vacations, dinners out, clothes… you get the idea. Use credit only for things that are going to appreciate in value — such things as houses, investments, or an income-producing side business.’”

Jon S.

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Delegating for the Web Entrepreneur – Do you work solo on your Internet business? Most start-up entrepreneurs do. When Bob Bly decided to start his own online business, he recruited dozens of people to help him out. Many of these people helped him for free. And some of them were paid, but only if they got results.

Bob makes thousands of dollars a week now, working only an hour a day on his online business. Find out his secret — and dozens of other tips for making a full-time income from part-time work – here.

• They set goals.
• They are action-oriented.
• They are willing to outwork the competition.
• They are eager to learn.
• They are persistent.

Today, for a change, let’s talk about what you don’t need to succeed.

• You don’t have to be smart.
• You don’t have to be good-looking.
• You don’t have to be thin.
• You don’t have to be nice.
• You don’t have to be right — all the time.
• You don’t have to be even-tempered.

I’m not saying you shouldn’t be kind, sympathetic, and patient. You should try to be all of those things, because those qualities will make you a better and happier person.

But in remaking your personality into that of an automatic wealth builder, focus on enthusiasm, diligence, and determination. Set goals. And take action.

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Success Comes in All Shapes and Sizes – Success coach Bob Cox helps people get what they want out of life — to make more money, build loving relationships, or turn long-held dreams into reality.

He agrees with Michael Masterson. You don’t need to be smart or nice or good-looking to succeed. But he does insist on a willingness to follow one simple rule:

“They must be open-minded enough to simply look at my program,” he says. “When they see how it works and read about the success I’ve had with my clients, they will be motivated to jump in with both feet.”

Find out more about Bob’s unique approach to success and how his clients have achieved so much so quickly here…

Example (as used by Robert Ringer today): “To be sure, power is a panoptic objective for politicians and many religious leaders. But, to their dismay, it is the most unstable of all achievements.”

Fromm did not believe faith is in opposition to reason or rational thinking. On the contrary, he simply made a distinction between rational faith and irrational faith. He believed that irrational faith is based on submission to irrational authority. But rational faith is based on one’s own convictions.

Rational faith, then, is an important component of rational thinking. In fact, Fromm believed that creative thinking begins with a “rational vision,” a vision that results from study, reflective thinking, and observation.

In other words, rational faith is rooted in one’s own experiences and judgments. Irrational faith, on the other hand, is the acceptance of something as true only because an authority or the majority say it is.

The rational believer must have faith in his core being. He must have trust in himself. He must know that the person he really is will not change with changing circumstances. If we lose faith in who we are, we become dependent on others and change in ways to gain their approval. Not a good thing.

There is no rational faith in domination — either for the dominator or the dominated. To be sure, power is a panoptic objective for politicians and many religious leaders. But, to their dismay, it is the most unstable of all achievements.

Fromm pointed out that because having faith and having power over others are mutually exclusive objectives, all religious and political systems originally built on rational faith become corrupt and lose their strength. It would be difficult to argue that history has not supported his viewpoint. And over the next several years, this will become clear to all but the most brainwashed American sheeple.

What Fromm did not address head on, however, is faith in a higher power. Is it rational or irrational faith to believe in God? The atheist would say it is irrational. The believer would come down on the side of rational.

But the believer could just as easily say that the atheist’s viewpoint is based on irrational faith — faith, perhaps, that the universe somehow created itself.

In truth, both an atheist and a believer in a higher power can have rational faith in their beliefs, so long as those beliefs are based on study, reflective thinking, and observation. As I’ve said so often, I agree with Viktor Frankl’s view that there is probably not much difference between a so-called atheist and an individual who believes in God. It’s more a matter of semantics than zealous people on both sides might believe.

So, whether it’s faith in yourself, faith in your spouse, faith in a friend, faith in your future, or faith in a higher power, don’t let anyone tell you that faith is not an integral part of the human experience. Make thatrational faith. And you will do your children a great service by making sure they understand and believe in rational faith from a very young age.

[Ed. Note: To learn how to survive and prosper during the turbulent years ahead, check out Robert Ringer's powerful audio series Succeeding in a World of Chaos. And be sure to sign up for a FREE subscription to his one-of-a-kind e-letter A Voice of Sanity in an Insane World.]

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Making Money Online Is Not Complicated If You Are Not Greedy

Most Internet marketing programs promise you millions. But they deliver only manuals filled with complicated instructions. Many advocate strategies that most people can’t possibly follow.

If you are not greedy — if you are happy with making an extra $250 to $500 a day — we have a program for you. It was created by one of the industry’s most knowledgeable insiders. And the best part about it is that it requires you to work as little as an hour a day. Read more…