I promised I’d tell you about my new adventure, and explain why and when this site will be fading into the sunset.

Basically, I’ve been searching for a way to expand my business, help more people, and give myself more freedom to pursue additional interests.  I’ve finally realized what that is, so Fun Monger will remain active for a few more months and then I’ll take it down.  So if there’s anything here you find useful, please download it and you’re welcome to keep it.

If you’re someone who has had at least a taste of success in some area of your work life,  and you know you could create a killer new business, or a new product that you’ve been dying to get launched, we’re creating a community just for you.  Starting a project is pretty easy for a lot of us.  Figuring out which way to go and how to get to our destination is the tricky part.  So that’s what we’ll do together.

I’m not going to promise you that you’ll be a millionaire, or that you’ll get gazillions of followers.  Maybe you will. That part is up to you.  What I am going to show you is that, together with other like-minded people you can pinpoint your own True North — the thing you really long to do to live the kind of life you dream of.  I know, because I’ve done it, and you can too, step-by-step. And you don’t have to sell the kids or work on it 16 hours a day.

I’ll share with you the skills I’ve learned to become a successful entrepreneur.  We’ll use a combination of disciplined tasks with a software system that allows you to see your progress, interact with others, and get things done!

It’s not for the timid.  It’s not for those who hide behind excuses.  If you’re finally willing to get to work in a clear and focused way — to roll up your sleeves and get busy, then I highly recommend you come and grow with us.  Click here for more:  www.ZoomCrew.com

Since you’ve come upon this blog and are no doubt curious what ProBiz Partners has to do with Fun Mongering, I’ll just tell you.  In a nutshell, it’s growing pains.  Practically from the day I started my own business I always wanted to stretch and be more — and since I’m incredibly gifted at getting in my own way, it’s taken me awhile to figure out where that twisty path was leading me.  Or, more accurately, what twisty path I was intentionally choosing in order to reach my destination.

Thanks to more than one exceptional muse, I’m nearly ready to morph again.  Just have to find the right name, and we’ll be off and running.

I’ll give you a little hint.  If you have an interest in pursuing your own twisty path — but this time you’re ready to stop wandering and find your destination, stay tuned.    And that’s all I’m sayin’ for now.

It’s no secret that I’m a major Seth Godin groupie.   When Seth talks, I listen.  And it doesn’t hurt any that when I read his books or blog, I get strong flashbacks of my Granddad.  Not that Seth’s old enough to be my Grandad, ‘cuz he’s not.   Um… wait….

What I mean is that the “radical” business ideas that are exploding right now, from visionaries like Seth Godin and others – permission marketing, building community, and giving things away for free (aka don’t be so damn greedy), are all things that Granddad did every day.  And I’m tickled pink that people with big voices are reminding us that our basic humanity, our innate sense of community, is what will sustain us and make us happy. We need to pay attention and do what should come naturally.

Seth Godin, and others like him, are trying to open our eyes to new ways of doing business – old skool style, but with some new twists.  A few weeks ago I was the recipient of a big surprise.  A package came to my door.  I opened it, and inside was a book that I didn’t remember ordering.  The Mesh by Lisa Gansky.  Hmmm…. I had heard of the book and was considering ordering it, but didn’t remember having done it.  I opened the cover, and a piece of paper fell out.  It said:

SETH GODIN

Hi Linchpin.

I thought of you when I was reading an early draft of my friend Lisa’s book.  The Mesh is a breakthrough in the way we think about the future of business, and I wanted to share it with people who could do something with the idea she so clearly describes.

I hope it resonates with you.  If it does, buy a copy for your colleagues and ship something.

Hope all is well.

Seth

Really?  Wow!  Seth Godin had sent me a second free book since I was one of the early ones to buy his new book Linchpin. (If you haven’t read Linchpin, go get it -  right NOW!)

He didn’t have to send me anything. All he had to do was mention the name of the new book, The Mesh, and I would have bought it.  Well, in fact I already have bought another copy and I intend to buy more, to share with friends and family.

It’s about sharing, working together as a community, instead of throw-away products,  another example of doing business with old fashioned ideas. Creating relationship businesses instead of wham-bam-thank-you-ma’am. The ideas are brilliant, sustainable, and just plain good for us.

What’s The Mesh? If you’ve been wanting to start your own business, but you think you need a ton of money, or you shake at the thought of doing high-pressure marketing, or whatever other excuse you’re hiding behind – GO BUY THIS BOOK –  and find out for yourself.  Granddad would approve.

Sometimes I’m a little slow on the uptake.  No, I’m not saying I’m stupid.  Just saying that I need to process things and then “suddenly” I have a revelation.  Like last week.

I’ve always been critical of online business gurus who offered their 5 Step Blueprint for Getting Rich Quick.  So working with people that develop programs and services for the online business world makes me a little gun shy of marketing their products / services too aggressively.  After being around the online block for awhile, though, I see things a little bit differently.  Yes, there are plenty of gurus who really don’t offer much real value.  But you may be someone who has something truly beneficial to offer.  Do you want your work to really make an impact, or are you OK with it sitting on someone’s (literal or metaphorical) shelf?  The key is in finding your ideal client.

Talking with clients recently, we’ve come to the startling conclusion (ready for this brilliant insight?) that you can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make ‘er drink.  Put another way, some people are only starters — they start things but never finish, while others are finishers — they cross the finish line  — maybe not always in first place, but they almost always finish.

You can have the best intentions, market with authenticity and heart, and have the best program on the market, but if you don’t get your product / services into the hands of your ideal clients, you’re  going nowhere.  I see it all the time.  People who are tired of their corporate job, or can’t find a job, or just want to take the leap and follow their dreams, decide to start an online business.  They do their research, pick a couple of gurus to follow, and they think that if they plunk down the big bucks that they, too, will soon be rollin’ in the dough.

[Insert soundtrack of needle screeching across a vinyl record]  WAIT!   Many (ok, most) clients don’t want to really, truly, take responsibility for building their own businesses.  They want someone else to tell them what to do — which is why they hire us.  But more importantly, when things don’t work out, they want someone else to blame.  “I paid $XXXXXXX for her program and I have nothing to show for it!”  Don’t get me wrong.  Of course all entrepreneurs need to study,  to watch and learn, and they need guidance.  And sometimes they (we) need to sign up with the big dawgs and pay the big bucks.  But, ultimately, to succeed, THEY HAVE TO TAKE ACTION!

This is the part where we get back to Ideal Clients.  What I’ve realized is that it’s not enough to choose your clients based on people that you like, who have a good idea, who have a clear understanding of what it takes to be an entrepreneur, and who can afford the risks.  The key is in finding people who will actually take what you teach them — and run with it.

No matter how good you are, or how great your teachings or your coaching or your product is, your success depends on your clients’ success. Not everyone who buys your product or services is going to be successful — and that’s OK.  But you also want to try to spend most of your energy with clients who are finishers.  How do you know that?  You do your best to ask the right questions and find out their track record.  If they have a history of being a starter, steer them toward one of your lower cost products that may help them get unstuck, and you can feel good about taking a reasonable amount of their money in exchange for offering them a good, solid solution.  If they’re a finisher, welcome them and treat them like gold.  The finishers are the key to your success!

How much of what you do is in your head?  Shame on you!  I know you’re going to groan, but what happens if you get hit by a bus?  We’ll assume you just have a broken jaw and you’re laid up for a week.  But it’s during a product launch.  You’ve promised this product to your raving fans for months and they’re waiting anxiously to throw money at you.  You can’t talk.  And your hospital room has no internet access.  Stupid hospital.  What were they thinking?

So you get a bright idea;  “Oh! I know, I’ll have my VA or best friend or significant other to do the last bits of the launch! Perfect!”  So you pick up the phone and start to dial.  Um, but you can’t talk.  You think, “Why did I not take the time to write this stuff down?”  Because you’re normal.  You’re the typical entrepreneur.  You keep WAY too much stuff in your head, and way way WAY too little of it is written down.

Now pay attention.  I’m going to tell you the big secret.  There’s no big secret. It’s easy.  Just take the time to do it.  Here are the super complicated steps to protecting your business and your sanity.

[Oh, and BTW, did it occur to you that if this stuff was written down you could let other people take care of these details all the time -- and you would have a whole lot more freedom to focus on creating an even better business?]

1. Next time you setup a new product (or do any other regular activity for that matter), STOP for a minute and think about the steps that are necessary.  As you work your way through the various tasks, write them down.  All the steps, not just the big picture.
2. You don’t have to write a novel, and you don’t have to write a software manual.  These instructions are for someone who already understands at least the basics.
3. Create a bullet or numbered list and write down the steps — in short, but understandable bits.  Instead of “First you need to go to your shopping cart software and login.”  Just write:  “1.  Login to shopping cart.”
4. Put these instructions in a central, online storage space  (or use collaboration software such as Central Desktop) that your assistant or a knowledgeable helper has access to.  Create an online Operations Manual in your collaboration software and put all these great instructions you are going to create in there.
5. Next time you break your jaw, the people around you will know how to find the information that they need to keep your ship afloat.  (And hey, if you decide to fake it and go to Fiji, who’ll be the wiser?)
6. Now, eat your jello and go to sleep.

Have you ever looked up a quote for “redundancy”?  I just did, and 95% of them are negative.  Redundancy is a word that big corporations often use as an excuse to lay people off or cut something out.  But yesterday I got a big fat reminder of why there is one place in our businesses we can’t afford NOT to have redundancy — when it comes to ensuring the collection and backup of our intellectual property.

Whoa, that sounds awfully dry — no painfully-thought-out copy to suck you in and get you to pay attention.  So allow me to tell you a quick story that could save your bacon.

Yesterday one of the admins that works with me said, with strain in her voice said…  “Um, you know that really important teleconference this morning?  Well, there doesn’t…. um… I don’t think…. gee, there’s no recording.”  WHAT?  THERE’S NO RECORDING?  I went into firefighter mode and scrambled to find out who had scheduled the teleconference, if the call had been setup properly with the service, and if there was any chance of a backup being in place.

Now, mind you, I DID set up a backup recording system for the client, but she simply stopped using it — much to my chagrin.  But now I was panicked.  What to do? I fired off an email to the conference service — do you have a way to tell if the call was set up properly, so that I can put additional safeguards in place to ensure this doesn’t happen again?  And then… the email to the client, apologizing profusely and assuring her that I would do everything possible to prevent this from happening again.

As I’m sitting at my desk with my head in my hands, an email catches my attention.  “Conference Call Recap….. x people on the call…. recording being processed.”  Did I see that right?  Recording being processed?  Suddenly there was hope.  Typically the service has the recordings ready within a few minutes, and several hours had passed.  So I immediately jumped to the conclusion that a mistake had been made.  Fortunately, I was wrong. For some reason the processing time was twice as long as normal — and there was a recording after all.  No mistake had been made.  But that’s not the lesson here.  Systems. Redundancy. Backup Plans.  That’s the point.

Don’t neglect this part of your business.  You need at least 2 backups of your data at all times.  For your computer, that should be in the form of an external hard drive PLUS a secure online service, so that you are 100% protected.  And for your information products — eBooks, audios, documents, videos, etc. there should always always ALWAYS be 2 copies.  Don’t compromise — or you could lose the very thing that keeps your business going.

Isn’t it great how life gives you little gentle nudges, tries to get you to pay attention, and then — when you keep ignoring the signals — it shoves you off into the deep end?

For my entire career I’ve naturally gravitated toward putting together systems and processes. A little organization goes a long way in getting those  little duckies to all line up in a row — and make your business and your life SO much simpler.  When I was the assistant marketing manager at a start-up manufacturing company I sat in a meeting one day and listened to the head of engineering whining that the guys in the shop just could NOT seem to ship the product with all the pieces-parts.  Did you get that?  The LEAD ENGINEER couldn’t figure out how to get the shipping department to put all the pieces in the box!

I sat there stunned for a minute and then (quite uncharacteristically for me of course) butted right in.  “Um…. do you have a checklist?” The lead engineer stared at me and said “What a great idea!  Would you put one together for us?”  During the rest of my time there, not one more box was shipped without all its widgets.

So why am I telling you this?  Because I have finally learned to listen to “mine own self” as the little kids say.  After years of putting together systems here and there and not really really educating my clients (like I should have) to see the enormous benefits that come with having the kind of well-thought-out documentation and processes that they needed, I’m taking the bull by the horns.  With major changes in my business and a little demon in my head that demands freedom and an unconventional lifestyle, I’ve moved systems and processes from the back burner to a critical priority.  And you should too.  Why?  Because when you have good systems in place, your business runs like a well-oiled machine.  You are freed up from all those nagging little details, and other people can support you much more easily.  Suddenly you have room to grow and live the life you really want.

It seems so obvious.  Yet so few business owners have good systems and processes in place.  We’re gonna fix that.  Ready to rock and roll? Let’s give you a taste of the incredible benefits of systems.   Spend a little time over the next few days thinking about all the little tasks you would have to do if you decided to hire your first virtual assistant (VA) or if  your current VA should decide to leave.   How much of what you need to teach a new staff person is all documented and in nice, neat folders somewhere that is easily accessible?  My bet is that you’re like 95% of online business owners –  you have no documentation. Or maybe you have a little, but can’t remember where you put it.  How much time is it going to cost you, to get that new person up to speed?  Wouldn’t you rather spend that time developing new products or attending an event?  So think about the difference that even a few simple systems and processes could make.  Think of the freedom!  And then get ready to start putting your own systems and processes in place — and I’m going to show you how!

There are several reasonable choices for putting together your email marketing and shopping cart infrastructure.  To be clear, we’re talking about specific email marketing tools, rather than more soft (but critical) skills of writing content and figuring out frequency, getting permission, etc.

As with any technology, things are always changing, so it’s a good idea to stay plugged in to what’s happening and make changes when appropriate.  There are two main types of email marketing tools; 1) Stand-alone solutions that specialize only in email marketing; and 2) One Stop Shopping solutions that include email marketing tools with eCommerce (shopping cart) capabilities.

I promised that we’d cut to the chase, so just for your education we’ll take a quick look and then talk about the most widely used solution.

1.  Stand-alone Email Marketing Tools

There are lots of software solutions that will provide the features that you need to conduct email marketing campaigns.  Some are free, some are inexpensive, and some ramp up the cost significantly, as your list grows.  In my opinion, one of the most important considerations for a beginner is the Keep it Simple factor.  Are you going to be selling things through your website?  If you are, then you need to think about more than short-term cost.  If you will sell products and you’ll be doing email marketing, building your “list” (the prospect and client names that you will gather into your database) will be much easier to manage if you have just one. When someone makes a purchase on your website, you will collect their name and other contact details in a database.  But if you have a separate email marketing system, when people come to sign up for your ezine (newsletter) or blog, their contact information will be added to a separate list (or database).  If you’re technically savvy, or are OK spending quite a lot of time reading user manuals or talking with tech support (when there is tech support), there is typically a way to sort of synchronize the two databases, but it can get complicated.  We’re about simple, remember? 

If all you want is email marketing and no shopping cart, then take a look at aWeber, Constant Contact, and MailChimp.  These all have similar features, but the user interface is different — so you’ll want to kick the tires, compare how easy it is to use against the cost, and you’re on your way.

2.  One Stop Shopping — Email and Shopping Cart Combined

For beginners there is a lot to do, and we’re usually excited to get going, so there’s not a lot of time to spend experimenting or exploring. That means you want to look for the solution that has the best combination of;

• Features
• Ease of use (or plenty of skilled VAs or other users who can help you)
• Price

And, of course, you want your list in one database so that you can control it better (the technical aspect of course, not the people!).  There are a few options out there that can do these things for you; the most widely used are 1 Shopping Cart and InfusionSoft.  1 Shopping Cart has been the chosen solution for online business for many years because of its combination of features and price (I’m not going to say it’s super easy to use, but there are lots of people who are trained in it, so you can always get help).  InfusionSoft is making a huge leap in popularity right now, but unfortunately the price point is prohibitive for most new online businesses — so we’ll leave that one for another day.

The Winner Choice Is

For beginners or small to mid-size online businesses, 1 Shopping Cart still seems to be the best game in town.  Having a single solution, single database is simply more cost effective and easier to maintain.

The benefits of a product like 1 Shopping Cart are;

• One prospect / client database that can be broken into separate lists for email marketing
• No duplication, so if an email address is changed, you don’t have to worry that it’s changed in one database but not another
• All your records are in one place – you can easily see the history of a particular client – what she’s purchased, which lists she has subscribed to, etc.
• Database metrics are all in one place — you can monitor your progress in just one piece of software
• One user interface to learn

Let me be clear – 1 Shopping Cart is not a perfect solution (in fact it can be crazy making) but for the features and price, and the fact that there is a large, knowledgeable user base where you can hire reasonably priced help if you need it, it’s frequently the best solution for a beginner, or smaller operation.  You can always move up to InfusionSoft when you’ve made it to the big time.

If you know of another solution that is a good alternative, please tell us!

Hmmm… I bet that got your attention, huh?  Well, don’t worry, I’m not really going to tell you how to fail in online business. I’m going to show you just the opposite — the specific tools that you need to succeed in online business — how to create a business that is fun and that won’t drive you to drink (Ok, as a wine lover I have to take that one back — go ahead and have a glass of wine. Or two.)

New online business owners often fall into the money (and time) pit of too many choices; which web platform should I use, what email marketing software, which ecommerce solution, and on and on til you just want to curl up in the corner and cry.

It’s overwhelming – so much so that the verb “overwhelm” has been morphed into a noun.  If you do a search on “business overwhelm” (but don’t – you don’t need more distractions) you’ll find dozens of entries.   Do you really want to focus on the negative?  You want to use a new word designed to scare you?  I wonder if there’s a pill for that?  Sorry, I digress.  Anyway,  at the risk of over-simplifying,  let’s over-simplify.  I’ll walk you through the specific tools that you need to build an online business, and then show you how to put them together. This will take more than one article, so stick with me.

Fun Monger Disclaimer:  The tools and setup I’m about to share with you have provided the foundation for thousands of online businesses. But we’re not talking about a business that has enormous inventory, like Amazon, or brick and mortar stores (although it certainly has been used for smaller stores). Let me be clear – there are TONS of options for building your online business, but we’re going to cut to the chase — you need answers, not more options. 

First, the big picture:

• If you are going to do this yourself, that’s great – you can do it! But don’t kid yourself, it will take time and patience, but shouldn’t take very much money.
• If you have the resources and don’t want to do it yourself, that’s great too – just read the next sentence carefully: Would you hire a plumber to fix your car? I hope not.  So don’t hire just any web developer to build your online business. Find a technical person who has specific experience in building an online business;  all aspects of it, and someone who uses tools that are widely used.  A programmer is NOT a programer is NOT a programmer.  Trust me on this one. I’ve worked with literally hundreds of programmers and you need someone that understands this unique world.  You need someone who knows that simple is best, and who understands that you want, and need, to maintain control.

Standard tools

1. Website –  WordPress blogging platform is being widely used as a Content Management System.  What that means is that you have the best of both worlds — you can have a “regular” website, and you can have a blog, and they are all part of the same system.  I’ll go into detail about this in an upcoming article.  It’s free and easy to install.  You can download it at Wordpress.org  Don’t mix this up with Wordpress.com – they are the same company, but you want the self-installed version, Wordpress.org.
2. Email Marketing — The three most widely used systems are aWeber, Constant Contact, and 1 Shopping Cart.  There is also Mail Chimp which is becoming more popular, but as of this writing I’m not a fan, as it simply doesn’t have the tools and ease of use of the other options, but don’t listen to me – check it out for yourself.  Important considerations when you are choosing:
   • Do you plan to sell services or products via your website?  If you are, then 1 Shopping Cart should be at the top of your list.  No, it’s not perfect, and there are other options out there, but 1SC is widely used and there is a large pool of experienced people who can help you. 1SC can provide your email marketing and ecommerce in one solution, and most significantly, it means that you have one database, that can be separated into multiple groups.  That’s BIG.  Just try managing 2 or 3 different databases and trying to keep everything in synch. Then imagine trying to send out an email campaign only to realize that the list you really want to send to is in a different place.  Been there, done that, no fun.
   • If you have no intention of processing sales through your website, and all you need to do is send emails, then go for aWeber or Constant Contact.  But if sales are only a few months away, go for the lower priced 1SC option.  It will save you time and money in the long run.
3. Project Management — This one is easily overlooked and is really important.  With the right tool you can keep projects organized, have a task list that can be checked off to show progress, store important files online so that you (or your team) can access them easily, provide a calendar, keep an Operations Manual, create databases, etc.  I wish I’d gotten one sooner.  The two that I see people use regularly are Basecamp and Central Desktop.  My strong preference is for Central Desktop, which has a free version and is very powerful.  You can use all the bells and whistles, or just keep it simple.  Basecamp is more, well, basic, and although I have worked with it, I find it rather limited.
4. Free Telephone Conference Service — This is a bit of a muddy area, because different services have different gotchas.  FreeConference.com is widely used because they seem to work better with cell phones and VoIP (Voice over internet – like Skype and Vonage).  The gotcha is that when you record calls they only keep the recording for 30 days.  No exceptions, no backups, no grace period.  So you hiccup once and you’ve lost a valuable recording.   Oh, and to record a call you must schedule it in advance, which can be a little annoying.  Another service that is widely used is FreeConferencing.com .  It has nice web interface controls, allows you to do things like see who is on the call, let people “raise their hand” to ask questions, etc.  But it doesn’t play well with cell phones or VoIP phones.  A killer in my book because many of my friends and clients don’t even have a land line anymore.  There is a guide here that provides more information.
5. Metrics — This one is so easy to overlook, and it is so important.  Setup a free account on Google Analytics and go through the simple tutorials, then put the tracking code on your new website.  But don’t forget about it.  Create a simple spreadsheet and check your numbers in Google Analytics and in your email marketing service about once a month.  Check the Learning Center for a template.  1SC provides shopping cart and email metrics as well.  Don’t get too crazy with this, it’s just good to keep an eye on things and see what works and what doesn’t.  Never forget that numbers are a tool, not a substitute for creating a memorable customer experience.
6. Backup – Way too many new business owners learn this one the hard way.  I recommend 2 backup systems at all times — one online, something like Carbonite (their stellar reputation has been a little tarnished lately, so do your homework before contracting with them) and then a physical, external hard drive that uses a good backup software like Acronis.  Don’t forget to backup your email files!

These are the tools that are the big players in online business.  Yes, of course there are other options, but a significant advantage of these tools is that there is a big pool of people who understand the tools and the processes that work together to create a strong online business.  When you’re new, or trying to get re-organized, having the tools that a lot of people know means you can easily get help when you need it.  Take some time to visit the various websites for the different systems, and feel free to post questions here.

I’m kind of a weird duck, if you haven’t already noticed.  I like nice neat rows, policies and procedures, and a set of steps to show me how to do things  — but I also like to break the rules, throw away the keys, and have some fun.   Business startup is a perfect example.  When I started my business I stumbled around in the dark trying to figure out what to do.  I had some help in the form of training that I paid a pretty good chunk ‘o change for.  And then the rest I learned on the fly.  I never seemed to find step by step instructions in one place that covered the basics. So I’ve put together a series of tutorials of the five steps, with templates, that have worked for me –  and I’ve seen them work for dozens of other online business owners.  Follow my advice and I’ll make you one promise — you may not become an overnight millionaire, but you will have a clear idea of where you’re headed, and you’ll have some fun!

1. Dream Big

Have a night out or some time alone with someone you trust.  Both of you can take a turn at this. Let your imagination run wild.  What would you like to do – both work and play?  What’s your ultimate goal?  Do you think that 10 years ago I believed that I could live part of every year in Spain?  Heck no. But I do, and I know that there is more than one way to get to any destination, and the path to your goal may be something totally outside “the norm.” Make a great dinner, buy a bottle of wine (that works with the food of course), invite a good friend or significant other to share it with, and make an evening of it.  Two or more can play at the same time.  Talk about your dreams with someone you care about, and invite them to do the same.  More details here. (Learn)

2. Write it Down

So now you have at least a general picture in your head of what your life would look like if you could write the script.  Now just start writing things down. No organization, no rules. If you like mind maps, feel free to do that. If you like to just make a free-flowing list of ideas, do it!  This is your chance to get everything you can think of on paper.  There’s a cheat sheet for you — just click here, or go to Learn.

3. Create a Business Plan

You’ve got some ideas about where you want to go. You need a plan.  Think through all the pieces-parts that you’ll need to know in order to create your business (or get on track if you’ve already started).  Use your own format, or use this one (Click the Learn tab).

4. Create a Road Map

This is the part that most often gets neglected – right after the Business Plan.  This is essential!  Make a list of products / services and tasks that you need to accomplish.  Who will help you? How much will you (and can you) do yourself?  Remember that there is always more than one way to reach your destination.  Things change, so know that all these documents are flexible. No writing in stone!  In order to thrive you have to be quick on your feet. Change when it’s called for, stick to your guns when you need to.  We’ve provided a template for you here.

5. Follow The Yellow Brick Road

Ready, set, GO!  Start working your way down the road map. Don’t be surprised if your road map changes.  It’s OK.  One of my favorite books is The Alchemist by Paulo Coehlo, about a young Spaniard who has a dream of pyramids and a great destiny waiting for him. He has no idea how to get there – and his life takes many unexpected turns and he thinks he’s far off the path.  But you can guess what happens.  The theme of the book, loosely translated:  When you follow your personal legend, all the universe conspires to assist you.

There are detailed docs  under the Learn tab.  These Business Startup Steps will show you how to visualize, document, and then build your online business.  Step by step… inch by inch….. and you’ll get there.