CAPITULO II: FUNCIONAMIENTO, ORGANIZACIÓN Y ACTORES SOCIALES
2.1.3 Directora
that you can see your strengths and weaknesses to learn
and correct yourself. A marketer who doesn’t do that is a
marketer who doesn’t sell. Image is not everything but it is
still truly a vital part in the marketer’s arsenal.
9. HOLDING BACK INFORMATION
People are afraid to share their strategies to potential clients.
What is there to be afraid of? You’re not selling your
grandmother’s secret recipe that you swore you’d keep to
the grave.
You’re not selling nuclear launch codes. Don’t be
afraid to tell your clients the general idea of your plans.
Show them step-by-step what you plan to do. It’s just like
pitching a project. Would you hold information back when
you are pitching something?
Your clients won’t appreciate obscurity.
I share a rough idea of my campaign on my website
so that the clients could see what I plan to do if they were to
hire me. I provide the gist of what’s to come if they were to
hire me to show them that I know what I’m doing.
On top of that, I even provide a free one-hour
consultancy session to discuss the course of our potential
marketing plan.
This is where they give me a chance to show them
how good I am. When I allow them to see my plans, they
allow me to prove myself.
Remember that confidence is a big part of selling
something on your part but also on your potential clients.
They’re going to place their confidence on you so you must
give them the reason to do that. If you hide your plans from
them, and your competitor approaches them with
transparency, you’re going to lose business. No one,
especially in business, is interested in the obscure.
10. NOT NETWORKING
In business, it’s important to establish and keep on
expanding your network. Novice marketers easily confuse
confidence with arrogance. When they become too
confident, they’d think they’re too good for some things.
This is not the case. You should always be active in
interacting with people. One good place for you to start is to
go on forums and various message boards.
Relationship with others who are in the same trade
could most of the time open up new opportunities for you
and you’ll learn new things.
Blogging is a good way to establish a community on
your site to make your site popular.
It’s best to start a blog on your own domain, for
example, yourdomainname.com/blog.
Not only you have to blog, you also have to reply to
the comments. Interaction is important and you have to
always answer their queries (while ignoring and deleting
the hateful comments… Unfortunately, they will inevitably
invade). This is a great way to establish yourself as an
online marketer and at the same time, shaping a community
of people frequenting your website. Even in blogs, there
shouldn’t be a one-way communication. Also, don’t forget
to comment on people’s blogs.
Do not snub other social media platforms, though.
It’s best that you get your hands and be active in every one
of them. Do not eliminate any opportunity that might be
beneficial to you. Having a Facebook page, for instance,
goes without saying. Everyone has a Facebook page and
Twitter account nowadays. Use these social media tools to
interact with people.
However, be warned that if you are not careful, using
social media could backfire devastatingly and you will be
preyed on.
A good example of a company receiving stint from
the public is Epicurious, a site about cookery and food, took
advantage of the Boston Marathon bombing incident in
April 2013 to tastelessly gain popularity.
They tweeted, “In honor of Boston and New
England, may we suggest: whole-grain cranberry scones!” It
resulted disastrously with a swarm of negative feedbacks
on their insensitive remark and now, they are featured in
this book as a bad example.
While it’s good to be talking about current issues to
add a little personal touch, there are certain sensitive
subjects you have to steer clear of. Any unfortunate or grim
events should not be associated in your social media post.
Frankly, this was an inexcusable amateur mistake.
Conferences are also gainful. I was invited to give a
talk at the E-Commerce Conference where I rubbed
shoulders with the big guns of Malaysia’s IT and
communication industry (more of this later in the chapter
David vs. Goliath). Not only I learned a lot from that
experience, I also got my first two online marketing
consultancy clients from that speaking engagement. It was
an experience that I treasure. It had taught me a lot about
the business, the people, the community, and my strength.
I’m appalled to find out that there are still marketers
out there who are naïve enough to think that they don’t
need to attend speaking conferences.
Speaking conferences is an opportunity for you to
really get yourself out there. It’s the only place where you
can show a huge number of people what you are capable of
and what you know.
It’s a gathering of business opportunities. Even if you
think you are still too green to give a talk, at least attend
these conferences. It will broaden your view and knowledge
of this ever-evolving industry. There are always new things
to learn out there. While I highly recommend Warrior
Forum, it’s best that you go to these conferences where you
can actually interact with and learn from experienced
players of the marketing game. Ask questions and interact
with the speakers. You have to have the eagerness to
acquire knowledge. Great thing is you don’t have to wait a
few days for their uncertain replies like online.
More to that, you will also widen your network and
make a few contacts at the conference where you meet
people of similar trade. Knowing a lot of people is a great
advantage in business. One of those things never taught in
school: the importance of networking. Networking goes a
long way in any profession.
DESIGNING YOUR IDEAL LIFESTYLE
Lifestyle design was made famous by Tim Ferriss’s book, 4-
Hour Work Week. He was the person who reintroduced
home-based work in style. You can follow Tim Ferriss’
footsteps and become a globetrotter, working and setting up
networks all over the world. He describes the idea lifestyle
design as the lifestyle of “the new rich”.
If you are a mother like Jana Kingsford, you can
always use the time to take care of your children. She
designs her ideal lifestyle by making a “to-do list sort of like
a bucket list” that includes “write 1,000 words per day for
30 days”, “appear on TV”, and many others. She even lists
out things to do with her family such as, “read stories to
kids every night” and “join gym with husband.”
The beauty of designing your ideal lifestyle is that
you can live your life however you want. There are no
restrictions. If you’re not the kind who likes to travel the
world, preferring the peace and comfort of your home, then
you can choose to live that way. If you do everything right,
then you earned it. Remember, you’re doing this so that you
don’t have to force yourself to commit to things that make
you unhappy.
If you worry about life expenses and feel that
quitting your job is too big of a leap to take, then you can
start slowly. Internet marketing allows you to work anytime
you want, even when you still have a day-job. Perhaps you
can moonlight your online business first. Spend this time
developing, sculpting and establishing your brand. All
major life transitions need a smooth segue, right? Once your
brand solidifies and you’re generating the formulized
income you desire, you can quit your job.
It doesn’t matter how slow you choose to take it.
Here’s a little step-by-step guide if you still feel unsure:
1. Learning About Design
This is where you learn about lifestyle design, how to
achieve it and, hey, you’re halfway done through the first
step already!
2. Setting Up Shop
The launch of your brand online. This is where you begin.
But you can still keep your day-job if you’re not confident
and your online business hasn’t soared yet. At this stage,
you must grow your business. Don’t worry, what you need
to know about this stage is all in this book.
3. Maintenance
Once you have the business optimized and it generates
the income you desire, you have to make sure it continues
and maintains to be that way. You will face trials and errors
at this stage, but it’s okay as long as you keep your business
afloat.
4. Begin The New Life
Now, when you’re sure that your online business can
support you, it’s time to say goodbye to your old job. You
don’t need it anymore and you’re free to do whatever you
want while manning your online business. This is where
you can take your online business to greater heights.
What I would recommend for you to do during your
free time once you’ve achieved the goal is to further
improve yourself by learning new things, improving your
skills, and workout. When you have the time, nothing can
stop you from moving forward.
“There is only one corner of the universe you can be certain
of improving, and that’s your own self.”
PART II:
RECONDITIONING
YOUR BEING FOR
EVERYTHING IS ENERGY
I believe most of you have heard about Law of Attraction, but how many of you actually fully understand and apply it in your life? The Law of Attraction explained that everything is made of energy, including your thoughts. Your thoughts create an invisible force that brings impact not only to you but the people around you as well.
We are experiencing all kinds of energy every single day, in both positive and negative. You feel happy; you feel sad; you feel angry; and there are so much more other emotions you experience every day – that is all energy. The energy is generated and created by you; you are the master of all these energy and were empowered to control them.
The things you say, the things you do, the things you think, they are the ‘ingredients’ to generate energy; sometimes even the things you didn’t do can ruin the whole ‘recipe’. All in all, it is fair enough to say that everything is energy.
What is Energy?
Energy is everything that invokes a reaction inside you – yourself included. In fact, you are the most important key to affect the energy flow inside you. If you have a positive outlook, you gain the positive energy. Likewise, negative perception attracts negative energy. Do not underestimate the energy flows inside yourself; it is powerful enough to create an impact on you and the people around you.
The energy can be in all kinds of different forms. You can see and feel them if you look within yourself. Some of them are strong and powerful, but some are passive. The powerful one is like the extroverts; they have strong characters and love to present themselves in front of the crowd – that is why you can recognize them easily. On the other hand, the passive one is the introverts, they rarely show up but doesn’t mean that they do not exist – they are inside your subconscious or the sub-subconscious that you need to dig deep to find them. Some of the positive energy might be hiding somewhere deep inside you, waiting to be discovered.
As mentioned, do not underestimate the power of energy. One famous saying about the like attracts like. We are like malfunctioned magnets; we attract things in the same magnetic field. You attract negative crowd when you emit the negative energy, likewise to the positive. The flow of energy moves from one region to another, you can spread the positive energy to your environment and that, in turn, benefits you too.
You can control the energy, the power of the energy is in your hands; it can be different and it depends on how you deal with it. The energy can be learned. You don’t need to complicate yourself with all the reasons and emotions behind the feeling – It’s too much to understand. Simply categorize them into good and bad feelings.
The negative energy will weigh you down, but the positive energy will free you. When you generate negative energy, you are a creating a prison cell around your inner self. You trap your inner self inside with four walls around you.
You must generate the positive energy. Break the wall and get out from the prison you have created. Open up to the freedom that everyone, including yourself deserves to receive. “Negative energy brings emotional burden; Positive energy brings emotional freedom!”
How the Energy Will Affect Us?
Now that you know about what energy is all about, it is time to share a little bit about how the energy will affect us in our daily lives. Law of Attraction clearly states that everything happens because we attract it; the negative energy attracts negative emotions. If you visualize a negative reality, you are setting your mind to believe that whatever can go wrong, will go wrong; and whatever can go right, will probably go wrong too.
Our surroundings depend on a reflection of what we feel. It is important to feel good; when you feel happy, you can attract more happy circumstances. When we refocus on things, see them from a more positive angle, you can change your emotions almost immediately. The same goes to your negative outlook. You can take control of your feelings by making a choice.
When a person immerses in negative energy for a long period time, it brings negative effects to our health mentally, emotionally and physically. Our body releases different chemicals when we experience various things in our daily life, each chemical has its own function to create a different mood. For instance, serotonin, dopamine and oxytocin are the chemicals released from the brain to make you feel good.
Our bodies are miraculours. We don’t really know its capabilities and limitations. It surprises us with its resilience, and at the same time, it’s vulnerable. A happy mind can do wonders to your body. You’ll be healthier.
We have the power to define what is positive and negative. Something may be happening badly to you, but change your perspective, buck up, think about the positive things you can gain through the scenario, no matter how little your gain is. Small things can make a huge difference.
How to Attract Positive Energy?
Remember the like attracts like from the Law of Attraction? To attract positive energy, the first thing you need to do is generate positive thoughts. Make a list of everything that makes you feel good, and make it the guidance for you to learn how to think positively. Every time when all you can think of are negative things, take your list out and start reading it. Here is where the magic happens! Your body will then generate the good chemicals and make you feel good and happy. The negativity will dissipate.
Make the gratitude exercise your habit. The gratitude exercise is when you think positively towards a result; count your blessings instead of allowing the bad things to overpower the good ones. It makes a really big difference in your life.
Third, do something you love. If being with nature makes you feel good, you should plan a trip to go to the woods on the weekend. Go for something outside to get yourself some sunlight, which can actually fight depression. Sunlight can boost the serotonin – the chemical that makes you feel good and happy. Plus, it won’t hurt to get some exercise.
In my case, I love reading. I have a tower of books on marketing, business, lifestyle, and many others. So, I will always make time to read, no matter how much time I have left, I’ll squeeze it in. I not only enjoy it, I get to learn and also sharpen my mind. Apart from reading, yoga and meditation are good choices as well. If you find yourself under too much stress, it’s not a bad idea to do a breathing exercise. There are various breathing exercises you can try and experiment. It will also help lower your blood pressure, increase awareness, and mindfulness.
Last but not least, love yourself – the most vital activity to attract positive energy. You need to love yourself first before the others can love you. If you do not love yourself then you’d have low confidence, which makes it easy to break your spirit.
You have the control over your thoughts. Don’t let yourself be controlled by them.
How to apply energy into your life
Now, you’ve learned all the good things about positive thinking. So, how do we put it into practice?
First of all you have to make it a habit. Short-term application is not going to work; long-term application is the best solution. In order to do that, you have to make positive-thinking a habit. Turning it into habit is no easy task. It requires patience and determination. You have to keep practicing and make it your second nature.
Keep striving for improvement in yourself to be a better person in your life; this is your life, not anybody else’s, no one can help you but yourself. Free yourself from the past, and move forward to a better future. Visualize the future you want and do anything to achieve that! Success doesn’t come without hard work.
Determination is the key to success. Don’t give up easily and give yourself an excuse to start over again. Change yourself first before you capable to change anything else.
“Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the one we’ve been waiting for. We are the change that we
seek.”
Barack Obama Why Positive Energy?
There are thousands of reasons to choose positive energy over negative one. I will share a couple of reasons with you.
According to The Nun Study, those who are regularly exposed to positive emotions live on average 10 years longer. The positive energy reduces the risk of cardiovascular diseases, thus keeping your heart healthy. The benefit of positive energy is not