There is a famous quote that reads like this ...

"Everyone is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid" 

For a long time, people attributed it to Einstein. And yet, for all his genius, it seems he did not originate that quote. 

BUT IT'S STILL TRUE AND WE CAN LEARN FROM IT!

You see, our lack of results in life can often be traced back to our being fish who are trying to climb trees. 

If we were trying to swim, success would be natural, fun, and repeatable. 

But we are trying to climb trees, and that's just never going to work. 

I've been feeling sad lately because I'm hearing from people who believe they will never "make it online". 

Some blame the "gurus". Some blame me. Others blame themselves. 

I personally believe that blame is toxic, so I'm going to leave that one alone. 

But what I can add of value is this - in MANY cases people are trying to do something that they are not equipped by temperament or experience to do. 

They are wonderful, creative, fun, well-intentioned people who get down on themselves because they can't create the same results they see others achieving online.

Why do they not achieve success when they copy successful people?

Because copying does not work.

Modeling does work, but that's another email. 

SO WHAT IS THE TRUTH?

The truth is startlingly simple. I believe it starts with three parts. 

1. Find something that fits you. 

If you hate to write, or just can't write, then content marketing is not going to be your thing. 

I'm in here writing to you at 3:29 am because writing IS my thing. I woke up with this email being written in my mind. It happens to me all the time. 

It's okay if you think I'm weird. :-)

When you find something that fits you, your work will be like play. I know that's a cliche, but it also happens to be true. 

I'm 8 again when I'm at the keyboard.

That's where the "pig of profit" came from :-)

2. Find a way to monetize what you love. 

The following example is real but the niche has been changed to protect my client's identity. 

Let's say that what you love is fishing. You are at home on the water. You were born to fish. You know fishing like the back of your hand. 

Why in the name of all that is good and true would you even consider going into "affiliate marketing"?

And yet, that's what he had been told to do. 

What my fisherman friend needed to do, and did, was to lean into his strength and become the go-to resource online for his passion. 

I'm telling you that this concept can be applied to any passion you have.

It takes a little creativity to find out how to monetize it, but it can be done and I believe you can do it. 

3. Model a selling system that works online. 

There are about a dozen proven selling frameworks that work well online. 

You know their names already.

• Sales funnels.
• Webinars.
• Email marketing.
• Creating courses.
• Consulting.
• Done for you services.

The list goes on. 

The names don't matter as much as matching the right system to what you are wanting to sell. 

My fishing friend would have failed terribly had he pursued webinars. But YouTube turned out to be just the right fit.

The very worst way to find a selling system that works for you is trial and error. 

It's costly, painful, and discouraging.

The best way to find a selling system that works for you is to consult with someone who has the depth of experience and track record to be qualified to advise you.

There are lots of good people online who fit those criteria. 

I'm going to wrap up this message with one word of encouragement because encouragement is important. 

In my 22 years of working full-time online, I have seen men succeed and women succeed online. 

These men and women had determination, they were teachable, they were willing to try and fail and keep trying, and their reasons for wanting to succeed were noble. 

DO YOU KNOW WHAT I HAVE NEVER SEEN IN ALL THESE YEARS?

What I have never seen is a "natural born" success. I've never seen someone for whom success came easy, fast, or cheap. 

I'll leave you with this from Vince Lombardi. 

But I firmly believe that any man’s finest hour, the greatest fulfillment of all that he holds dear, is that moment when he has worked his heart out in a good cause and lies exhausted on the field of battle – victorious.

Success can be yours. It will not be easy. It will not be fast. But it will be well worth it. I can say that without any fear of error because I've lived it. If you know my story, you know that's true. 

Keep your chin up and keep working to find the thing that fits YOU, that brings you joy, that helps other people, and then you will swim free, the beautiful fish God created you to be. 

Love you guys,
Charlie"

I also love you all,
God bless,
Graham