How Long Does It Take To Start Making Money Online?

40 | Posted In Life & Mindset by David

I get asked this question fairly often.

Usually it is from somebody evaluating one of my products to buy. Sometimes it is from somebody who is seeking a solution and just looking for whatever is going to work for them.

Often, the question is something like this:

How long will your system take to get my income up to $1,000/month?

Every time I get a question like this, I feel this compelling need to start preaching at them. :) Why?

Because it is the wrong question!

In fact, the question isn’t even valid.

People who ask that question have fallen for the mistaken concept of the “system”. You know, this paint-by-numbers thing where you can just execute some steps – steps that somebody else passes onto you with their ultimate wisdom. And, if you do those steps, in that order, in the exact way you’re told… well, then money will pop out. You don’t have to even know what you’re doing or think for yourself. Just execute the “system”.

Oh, and not only do they want this “system” that removes all thinking and responsibility, but they don’t want the “system” to take up very much time. They want it now. Just money.

Just give ‘em money.

And if the money doesn’t just pop out of the ether, then the person who sold that “system” to them is a liar, a scammer and full of hype.

Has it ever occurred to anybody that they get the marketing they DESERVE? The marketing they SEEK? Those hypey-ass marketers only do that because it frickin’ works.

But, of course, I have to look at myself in the mirror. I want to set an example for my kids when they’re finally old enough to understand what I do. So, I don’t mislead people into “systems”. You can find plenty of people in the Warrior Forum with their fancy WSO’s hocking “systems”.

But, that place is mostly full of hopers, not doers. There are two classes of people in the Warrior Forum… the hoper who just blindly buys stupid shit if its cheap and hypey enough… and the producer who is posting WSO’s because it is like shooting fish in a barrel in that environment. Consumers and producers… the classic breakdown of how any economy works.

So, how long does it take to start making money online?

Well, here’s the real answer:

Nobody knows. Because the answer is determined by one person. YOU.

What market you choose. What your technical skills are. Whether you’ll self-sabotage yourself. Whether you’re willing to work or not. Whether you’d rather sit there and play video games or watch a movie. Whether you’re the kind of person who over-analyzes things and is afraid to pull the trigger.

These things matter. And these are things which YOU control. And ONLY you.

Not the “system”.

The word “system” is a marketing term designed to remove responsibility from the consumer. It is just a mental game being played on you. The word “system” increases conversion rates. Nothing more.

On the flip side, there is some good news. And it is this…

If you’re willing to actually do the work, then almost all the “systems” out there will work for you. And you’ll make money online.

Because there isn’t any magic to internet business. Its just business. There’s nothing mysterious about it. And, yes, you CAN DO IT. Absolutely you can.

The question is only…. will you?

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  • http://www.ricardobueno.com Ricardo Bueno

    Execute. That’s all you gotta do…execute. Don’t think about doing, don’t get stuck planning, just DO IT already. 

    I launched my first membership site this year. I bought the domain, designed the site, set up the systems. At first it wasn’t pretty, but I launched anyway. Shared it with my list, etc. I got my first subscriber in less than a week. I’ve since kept tweaking/designing the site to make the process/systems better. What I realized about he whole process, was that I just needed to do it. Screw planning about doing it. The content was there. The idea was solid. The only think keeping me from launch was myself. 

  • http://davidrisley.com David Risley

    Yep. Make it better on the fly. Don’t try to make it perfect before the person person with a heartbeat takes a gander at it. :-)

  • http://twitter.com/mskonfa1990 Kerwin

    David,
    I think what people are asking is can you help me to use the system that I’m buying to make money.  Maybe you should just take their hand and show them.  Maybe they need one-on-one coaching.

    It is a valid question though.  Just watched a video that says my system can make you money, buy it for $47.  It was so lame, but I’m sure people buy it.  Maybe if we get rid of those guys, people won’t be asking?

    Who knows.  Good post though and as you know those type of questions will follow.

  • http://sitefling.com Justin Brooke

    A-MOTHER****ING-MEN! Whenever I am asked this question again in the future I’m just going to link them to this post

  • http://www.mondaymorningva.com/ Dawn Martinello

    When someone approaches me to help them with a launch they always seem to ask two questions:  what can I expect to earn if I hire you and how much have your previous clients earned on launches. 

    There are plenty of overnight successes … a lot of folks just don’t realize that it took 5 years to get to there.

  • http://davidrisley.com David Risley

    Well, the thing is, those guys who market that way are only doing it because people respond to it. It is a REACTION to the marketplace.

    If people didn’t respond to it, they’d never do it. So, I don’t think it is accurate to assume that if they’d stop pitching it that way, the consumer would wisen up. 

    This, of course, doesn’t say anything to the ethics of perpetuating this idea. In an ideal world, more of these marketers would simply refuse to go there out of pure integrity. But, we don’t live in a perfect world, and there are people who will say/do anything to make a buck.

  • http://davidrisley.com David Risley

    Gotta love that. :-)

  • http://davidrisley.com David Risley

    Su-weet. ;-)

  • http://website-in-a-weekend.net/ Dave Doolin

    I once read a rant from an experienced IM guy (“The youngest old guy in internet marketing”) who stated that he actually buys competing products and implements their “systems” exactly and precisely, step by step, 100%. He reported that sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t, but he usually learns something profitable along the way.

    Here’s the twist: He was ranting because people buy these products, including his products, but they don’t actually implement every, single step. They (according to him) do 60-70-80%+ of the work (at best), and change the steps as they go. Whence it doesn’t work. And they are surprised by their lack of results.

    An interesting perspective, to be sure.

  • http://thesolopreneurmentor.com/ Attila TheSolopreneurM

    Thank you David. You’ve just made it to my solopreneur’s resource page as answer to FAQ #1! 
    I believe that if like minded marketers keep shouting this message i.e.: Get out other there and create value – than people will start to understand. 

  • http://webdesignmobileal.com/ Tim

    My question is…if they are making $40,000 a month on “auto-pilot”, overnight with a push button “system” – why are they wanting to sell their system to someone who could compete against them.  And why is it that the “millionaires” in the videos look like they bought their clothing at the local good will store (I have no problem with the goodwill store – you can find great deals there)

  • http://www.thefreelancertoday.com/ Ken Crawford

    So many people looking for the magic pill. Truth is they already possess the real determination of whether they will make income online or not. I agree just about any of the “systems” work. I’ve been using an old one for years that still brings in income. It’s not the “system” but rather the work you put into your online business. Great posts and blunt way of cutting to the chase. True success lies within the individual…not a “system”

  • Jack V Sage

    I love the use of the phrase, “afraid to pull the trigger.” We really do sabotage ourselves by being afraid both of failure and of success.

  • http://millionairejoint.com/ Iroko

    I think that’s the whole idea, just launch and do not be too demanding as to when the ‘system’ would start pumping the needed cash, I have this idea, just treat your online business like a real business and just like real business produce result your online business would also produce!

  • http://millionairejoint.com/ Iroko

    Those kind of guys wont be eliminated for life, because human beings are generally greed and always want overnight success stories or something for nothing!

  • http://davidrisley.com David Risley

    A lot of people do.

  • http://davidrisley.com David Risley

    Agreed. Actually, I think it is a process of natural selection in the marketplace.

  • http://davidrisley.com David Risley

    Yeah, that’s really interesting.

    And, hell, I think even 60% execution, in some cases, is optimistic.

  • http://davidrisley.com David Risley

    Hehe…. :-)

  • Chelhamilton

    Thank you for speaking the truth so clearly on this one. I feel both bad and angry about the good and honest people I know who have gotten sucked into this “best system” mentality. Their only defect is having hope – hope is beautiful but it won’t sustain the making of a business. Thank you again for hitting that home tonight!

  • Amitav

    You just showed the real truth about Internet Marketing!

    I am also quite new to this and I know how it goes. It one of the human tendencies to go for the easy route and always avoid the one that can be painful or tough. Most of the marketers take advantage of this and they show and give us what we want. They just display our dreams in front us and the work is done as we are pre-sold to that dream and were hoping for that since a long time. We always hoped for a “system” that can flood our bank accounts with cash, with out even lifting the finger or with “5 clicks”(the most popular :) We just jump out & buy it!

    Thanks for the eye opener David! :)

    Its only because of few of the genuine marketers like you that this “internet marketing” stuff is still legit and good!

  • http://www.seogeorgetown.com/ pablodenzel

    so true , its depends only “you” not on the system . nice post, though.

  • http://profit.exofire.net/blog Oswald Rodrigues

    You are spot on about your comments regarding the Warrior Forum! The three secrets to online (or offline) success are: implementation, implementation and implementation.

  • http://profit.exofire.net/blog Oswald Rodrigues

    You are spot on about your comments regarding the Warrior Forum! The three secrets to online (or offline) success are: implementation, implementation and implementation.

  • http://davidrisley.com David Risley

    Thanks, man. :-)

  • Anonymous

    nice article

  • Anonymous

    m? b?st fri?nd’s brother is making $ 81 per h?ur working from home. h? was ?ut ?f his j?b f?r eight m?nths but this october his salary w?s $ 7500 only by w?rking ?n th? c?mputer f?r ? f?w h?urs a day. for more info go to </iCashSharp.com

  • http://www.fortricks.in/ Sujoy Dhar

    No Idea might depend on the traffic and system thanks for the feeling post !

  • http://onlineincometeacher.com/ Matt Smith

    So very true!  It all depends on the individual and how much they intend to work on earning online.  Many people still think that making money online is somehow really easy, but it requires dedication and determination to succeed, just like in any business.

  • http://www.whatbizopp.com/ earn extra money from home UK

    There’s always good money being made online, but you won’t achieve this until you establish trust and gain influence from both search engines and users. When search engines trust you, they’ll reward you with higher ranking than competitor websites. And when people trust you, they’ll buy from you.

  • http://aremorch.com Are Morch

    Hi David.

    Great reality check here. 

    Before I came here to US in 1999 I ad only watched, read and heard stories of this country. This was the land of opportunity. And everyone had the chance to become rich.

    I discovered fast the reality was no different here then what it was everywhere else in the world; YOU have the opportunity to create your own Future yourself if you do what it takes. 

    And just like anywhere else on your journey there will appear several roadblocks. It is your choice how you look at these roadblocks. 

    Now I am no different then many that got lured into the hype of overnight success. And I felt both fear of failure and the fare of success. I also played the blame game, though when I looked at myself in the mirror I realized in the end I was responsible for my own actions. 

    I often see the question some like to ask ‘Are Your Glass Half Full or Half Empty?’. And most people give a response depending on where on the scale they believe they are (positive or negative). I was doing the same until I realized that correct answer for me was none of the above. My answer was that my Glass was a awesome looking glass with room for changes that will guide me in the right direction. 

    Cheers..

    Are Morch
    Hotel Blogger

  • Kenny Fabre

    David,

    making money online takes guts and strength mentally, everybody is different so like you said its up to the individual person to see how long it will take them to make money online.

  • http://www.addvalue.com.au/ branded items

    This just gives me an idea Tim. Not so long ago when I was just starting to get the basic terminologies in SEO. And now that I just put up my own site, I’m trying to still gather information on how I can post a good headline and work on the site’s SEO. Alright then, let me go ahead and do my thing. These ideas can just be stuck without taking action for it. 

    Thanks for the insight.

  • http://www.intenseblog.com/ Jenni R

    I need 1 years, however, if you don’t learn from your failure, you will never get this success.

  • Ntathu

    Good ole honest roll your sleeves up; say a prayer asking for health; guidance and strength and as we say in UK..Whistle while you work….thats the system that seems to work best for me. Thx for straight talking positive post.

  • Anonymous

    ..W?W……?y fri?nd`s sist?r m???s 59/hr ?n th? int?rn?t.  Sh? h?s b??n un?m?l???d f?r 11 m?nths but l?st m?nth h?r inc?m? w?s  5846$ ?ust w?r?ing ?n th? ?? f?r ? f?w h?urs.  Read about it here ………..    C a s h M a n y . c ? m  

  • http://www.blogceptional.com/ Mike

    Execution is the key, but you still need some kind of plan to execute against.  Even if it’s at the 30,000 ft level and sketched on a napkin.

  • http://www.blogsdb.com BlogsDB.com

    There are a lot of us who are very diligent to apply the system, but there’s a lot of us who also, like what you said, “over-analyzes things and is afraid to pull the trigger”, I felt a bit guilty on this one when I’m still new to the internet business. Thanks for great advice.

  • http://tinyurl.com/Commision-command Polly Jenkins

    People are afraid or don’t know how to go about getting it started and for that I say they need a system. A starting point.

  • http://davidrisley.com David Risley

    You bet. It is very common, too. I think people seem to think that, if somebody doesn’t go right right away, they’re screwed. But, that’s not true. Anything can be changed online.