The Last two weeks for me have been very relaxing. Since the launch of PLR Monthly Firesale I have taken two weeks off from blogging and marketing in general to recharge my batteries and take things into prospective to figure out my next move. While I was off having fun, mostly spending time at the beach and teaching my daughter how to say more words than Daddy, Mammy and One More! I started to think about where I wanted to be in my life and how I was going to get there.
Now I don’t have a big life plan at all, I have a general idea of what I want to do and where I want to be but in no way do I have my life mapped like some people. Even from my days at school I remember my careers advisor asking me what I wanted to do with my future. And to be honest I would always find it hard to answer the question. In many ways I would have loved to set myself a life goal but I probably would not be here writing this now, so I’m winging it with millions of others
During my time off I did started to think about what life lessons I live by and I found 7 lessons which I feel help me in my life and business. So in no particular order here they are:
Chill Out From Time to Time it Helps
The time I spent off work has for me been great. Recharging your batteries and spending time with family and friends have been fantastic. I know I am not alone here when you find yourself grinding away from day to day, whether you’re working your day job, marketing job or you’re preferred or not choice of employment we all need a recharge.
Going from day to day without a break or time to relax is massively counterproductive, and can prove extremely damaging to your heath and business. The last thing we all want to do is burn out! You will be surprised at how much your brain works better with rest and relaxation.
Over the last two weeks I have been able to plan a number of new activities, notes, ideas and product ideas for the future. One in particular you will see in a couple of weeks from now, a product which I feel I would not have done if I was still grinding away, sort of stuck in limbo.
I know if you have read my older posts I speak about working and making time to generate your business model, well it’s so much easier with a fresh mind! I’m not saying go on holiday for two weeks, just take some time and chill out!
Productivity Goals
If you’re not productive you are not producing, it’s a simple as that! We all need a goal to set ourselves, a time limit, the finish line whatever you want to call it we need it. Why do we need it? If you don’t set yourself a goal then you find you will have a big problem completing your tasks. Why? Because I’m Lazy! Not sure about yourself but I am and I annoy myself some days when I don’t do exactly what I should or say I am going to do. And guess what? It’s all my fault, there is no one else to blame but me!
‘Setting goals can be hard at first but once you find your way and know you have a time limit, productivity will not be an issue and you will be building products in no time’
My good friend Dave Nicholson actually set me a goal a few weeks ago to produce a new product by the end of August. I know I have the time to do it and don’t want to let Dave down as he will help me with promotions, so it is in my best interests to reach my target.
Having a goal set like in this way (by a friend or mentor) always helps you create products faster and reach your goal easier. I know I have a time limit and I know it’s up to me to achieve what I have agreed to do, so I will try my best to do it. Bring it on!
Care About Your Goals and Business
If you don’t care about your business, you won’t achieve your goals. You really have to believe in yourself and give it 100% in everything you do. No short measures and none of “well it will have to do”. Think about what you would like to see rather than what you would like to do, and then you will create a better product and a better run business.
Last year I was on the verge of giving up, not because I was not earning enough or my businesses were failing it was simply due to losing my way and not caring enough about my business to want it to succeed. I was working too hard and never had enough time with my family and placed too much pressure on myself. How did I cope? I took a break and re-evaluated myself, gave myself time to think about my decisions.
Now my business buzz is stronger than it’s been for years. I feel like I have just started again with a fresh outlook and a better attitude toward my life and goals.
Stay strong and don’t underestimate yourself.
Give Something Back
Give something back for free, just help someone for free and see what it feels like. I’m not saying give someone a million Dollars or a new car, just a simple piece of advice is good enough. Give someone some direction; help them with something they can’t do online, a website, an eBook technique and some SEO or traffic advice ANYTHING! Why? Simply because it’s nice to help people from time to time without asking for anything in return. You may be surprised what you get back in the future because of it.

Give it a Shot No Matter How Crazy!
It may work it may not but you tried, how do you know you don’t have the next great idea until you actually try it? This is a new concept for me and one I am going to stick with. People spend too much time being over critical of other people’s ideas.
How do they know it’s not going to work for you? Now I am not saying create a product about making shoes for earth worms, I am saying if you have an idea which you feel will work, don’t allow anyone to put it down and discourage you from giving it a shot.
If you feel so strongly about your ideas then go for it! What is the worst that can happen? It will fail but yeah so what if it does, simply pick yourself up and start again! Lesson learned next task please!
You never know until you try!
Get Some Marketing Friends
Your business circles are one of the keys to your success. Imagine all your friends were criminals (strange analogy I know) what are the chances of you becoming involved in criminal activity as well? I high percentage I bet.
Say your business is marketing and you have marketing friends who are successful in what they do. What are your chances of becoming a success too? A high percentage again is a certainty. You see if you communicate with successful guys and take their successes and advice and learn from it then you will succeed.
Now I’m not saying go ditch all your friends and make new ones, I have a lot of marketing friends, but I also have great friends from all other backgrounds and would not think to lose contact with them. What I am saying is get more friends, meet new people in your circles, go to events, join groups on Facebook, get to know guys on forums and blogs, build relationships with guys in your niche and you will find friends and business partnerships which will prove profitable to your business for a long time to come.
Grab a Mentor
Free or paid mentors we can all learn more from other guys in the same business. I don’t class myself as the best in my business and still learn new techniques on a daily basis. Having a friend or mentor will really boost your business and help you gain that vital experience you need to move on.
Your mentor can also be a friend. Just reflect back on the last chapter you can find new friends within your mentors, join them at events and gain new contents at their forums and blogs. After all you will be a student and in constant contact with your mentor for a long time while you learn their business and apply their teachings to your own business, a friendship will grow.
Taking coaching courses from mentors can also lead to big joint venture promotions with the course owner. If you are willing to spend the money then the rewards can be fantastic for both knowledge and joint ventures partners. In some cases producing a good quality product on the back of a high end coaching course can lead to massive affiliate promotions and the launch of your marketing career. Just think about it?
Well that’s about it from me please feel free to comment and also your rules you use in your business I would love to hear them
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I have been online marketing since early 2005 where I started selling eBooks on eBay before the digital download ban. Once the ban took effect, I made the decision to take my business online and into general online marketing. eBooks were a good way to build affiliate revenue and mailing lists, but it was my blog and online marketing where I found my passion....








{ 16 comments… read them below or add one }
Thanks for sharing Dan. I agree that we need to take some break and not drain ourselves to achieve our goals. We should also set our goals so that we can have a direction. And of course, having a mentor can really bring us to success.
Keep it up. Regards,
Gary
Hi Gary,
Thanks for the comments
You’re definitely welcome. I always watch your blog, you’re really providing useful information here.
Hi Dan,
I totally agree with you, we should all take some time out to relax once in a while, although I think sleeping for 2 thirds of the day on hammock may be a bit extreme
So get back to work and keep up the good posts
Alex
.-= Alex Thornhill´s last blog ..Learn from Apple’s iPhone 4 Launch =-.
Hi Alex,
Thanks for the comments. Just for info I only sleep for half the day
Great point to ponder Dan, as well as implement!
Hi Daniel, you are absolutley right about taking time out it clarifies the thinking, I went away for a few days recently no laptop, no note book and no intentions of working, came back with a load of fresh ideas for products and projects. We all need time out to recharge the batteries roll on the summer holidays!
Rob
.-= Rob Corrigan´s last blog ..Affiliate Marketing Know How =-.
Hi Robert,
Thanks for the comments and sorry for the late reply
I looked at your blog and seen the photographs, looks very nice:-)
Hi Daniel,
Really great post! Very reflective.
Quite a few of your lessons are on my list. I believe goals are very important. I have a pinboard with my goals written on cards that sits above my desk. Every day I read my goals, they help keep me focused.
The chilling out side of things, well that doesn’t happen very often in my house in a holiday sense, however we do have what we call ‘lazy days’. These are the days nothing gets done, other than relaxing and playing with my 3 year old. The phone gets redirected to message back and we veg out on the couch.
I completely agree with giving something back or paying it forward so to speak. ‘What we give out comes back ten fold’. I think a lot of people think they need to give money, however sometimes, it could be just a smile to a complete stranger that looks like they are having a bad day that can make a difference.
And Re mentors! Massive believer in that one! In ‘The One Minute Millionaire’ there is a quote I really like. ‘No One Succeeds Alone’ this is so true.
How is your little one going? My little girl only said Mumma for the first time when she was just 2!! all she said for the first 18 months was bub bub, dada and teddy!
Hope all is going well!
Cheers
Jacinta
P.S I sent you an email re my RSS stuff. Have no clue on that one!
Bimbo moment! 
Jacinta Dean´s last [type] ..John Thornhill’s Internet Marketing Master Class Coaching Program Week 35-
Hi Jacinta,
Sent you an email about FB.
Evie is fine she is talking so much now. You can’t wait until they start then you want them to stop! I LOVE IT REALLY
We have another on the way in November so looking forward to the next addition.
I am deffo going to try the answer phone technique now thanks for the tip.
Thanks J
Hi Dan,
Just what I needed to read! Thanks for writing that up for us all. It all made sense to me, in particular the ‘make some marketing friends’ bit. For a long time I thought I was in a minority feeling very lonely working at this.
The rise in mentoring has shown that people learn and work best when they have some contact with people doing the same thing. Good thing that I am finding is that your fellow mentoring students are the most likely people you will do your first JVs and list-swap activities with.
Comes a time when you have to make contacts!
Thanks again for a great post. I’m off for a walk now to recharge my batteries!
Nice article, taking time off can help in recharging the batteries and it is helpful no matter where you are and what you are doing
Vinish Parikh´s last [type] ..Difference between Authorized and Outstanding Shares
Hi Daniel,
I just took two weeks off to be with family and it was a real good way to get back to work with more gusto and with some fresh ideas. I finished my first video shortly after getting back to work so guess the time off did some good!
I also think that having friends in the business is important. I am seeking out a couple of fellow marketers who live right in my area. We might get together to collaborate on a project.
Thanks for the reminder to slow down and take a break every once in awhile.
Best Regards,
Alice
Hey Alice,
It’s good to see someone taking my advice
.
Thanks for the comments!
Hi Dan,
Thanks for sharing your thoughts and words of encouragement. I totally agree with you on your reference to taking some time off from our daily hectic schedule. Life happens! Unfortunately, most of us go through life in a ‘reactive mode’, always putting out the ‘fire’. In the process we exhaust ourselves by packing in more and more stress daily. Did you know, today stress is the worst health hazard we subject ourselves to. Most of it is self inflicted! It also a trigger for myriad other complications!
My thought are totally in line with yours, we need to hit the ‘break’ and slow down!
The creative part of our mind don’t work well under the clutter of constant reaction to demands for attention. If we are to build a better life for ourselves and for others around us, we need to take that pressure lid off!
You can’t do everything yourself. Even if you can, you shouldn’t. You should practice to delegate most of your duties to others, except for the most important ones. You need to put your creative mind to best use for it’s skills and talent.
We should all allow ourselves to relax without feeling guilty. Once we let our creative mind take over, everything starts to happen easily and life’s most daunting challenges don’t seem that alarming any more. Some of them may even magically solve themselves! Take few deep breaths, and you will experience ease of completing tasks at hand.
And, every project we undertake must have a deadline. That way we hold ourselves accountable for desired results and avoid becoming complacent.
Having a mentor, and possible more is essential for success. All trendsetting and seemingly larger than life athletes also have mentors and trainers! Why, we wonder!
I appreciate your encouragements for being helpful to others. Giving feels much better than receiving, I’m sure every one of us has experienced that. In the end, it’s a better way of living then to expect others take care of our own needs!
At the end of the journey, we all have to take an exit! None of us should ‘move on’ without leaving a legacy!
Thank you again and keep on leading!
Syed
Syed Alam´s last [type] ..On-Page SEO for Your Web Site
Hi Syed,
I like the quote at the end of your comment, this is so true:
At the end of the journey, we all have to take an exit! None of us should ‘move on’ without leaving a legacy!
Thank you for the great comments and the time taken to write such a detailed one at that. Thanks for sharing
Dan
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