This week, I wish to share with you an important lesson that I keep at the forefront of my mind in my online business efforts - and you should too.

Too Much Opportunity!

Back when I was at school, I was lucky to have an abundance of opportunities with which to explore my potential.

I was equally lucky to be rather good at most things I put my mind to - the major exception being competitive sports, for which I never had an aptitude.

The result of this was that, academic or extracurricular, I would usually greet any opportunity that came along with enthusiasm. After all, no child likes to be left behind, plus my involvement in any activity would be another box ticked on the CV, if anything.

From music and drama to outdoor pursuits, I certainly enjoyed most of the things I did - of that, there's little doubt.

Nevertheless, at around the age of 13 or 14, I started to feel a degree of burnout.

I was spreading myself too thinly to excel in any one direction, with every waking hour devoted to some kind of activity.

Plus, I rarely had time to just relax in front of the TV, nor did I socialize a great deal.

What's more, this grind reached the point where I started to hate, rather than enjoy, some of the activities I was doing.

Something clearly had to give way, but I was neither old nor experienced enough to realize this.

Just as I was dreading signing up for another year of a strenuous outdoor pursuits program, one wise mentor (who was not a teacher but was affiliated with my school) said the following:

"You need to learn how to say no to opportunities."

His point was not that opportunities are necessarily a bad thing. In fact, I regard myself as extremely lucky to have benefited from an education that is denied to many people.

Nevertheless, an inundation of opportunity can be problematic if it stops you from focusing on just one or a handful of things and doing them well.

By putting the matter in this perspective, I learned that saying no to opportunities was not necessarily a waste. So I pared down my activities, and I was much happier as a result.

Opportunity in Affiliate Marketing

I forgot about this lesson for years - until I became an internet marketer.

You see, with internet marketing, you have an abundance of opportunity far greater than anything I had to deal with at school.

Not only are dozens of so-called experts and gurus tempting you with their own complex coaching programs, but thousands of products, tools, and services are launched every single year.

Each of the vendors of these products promises you that their methods, their shortcuts, their knowledge, and their experience are the keys you need if you want to see success online.

And you always feel as though you'll be left behind if you don't grab their opportunity right now - a feeling that only gets worse as technology changes so quickly.

The result of this is that you can end up spending thousands of dollars on products and programs that you never really see through to completion. You simply don't have the time or dedication to use each of them effectively.

As such, your marketing business never builds up much steam.

If this is an affliction from which you suffer, then there is one simple answer:

You must start saying no to some, if not most, of the opportunities that land in your inbox.

And there is a fairly simple way to do this:

First, pick one or two mentors whom you know can get results. Join their high-ticket programs, and study everything about their methods intensely.

Second, if you buy other products, start first with those that are recommended by your mentors. Don't go looking for other things.

Third, once you begin this, you will likely end up on a few other mailing lists. Keep the ones you like on your radar, but don't lurch off in another direction by investing in someone else's coaching program.

Fourth, if you have an aptitude for a particular niche, then keep an eye on some other big names in this niche also - you'll want to stay up-to-date with relevant innovations.  

My Example

With my own online marketing business, my chosen mentor is John Thornhill. As a result of that choice, I also pay attention to his closest associates, especially Randy Smith, and Omar and Melinda Martin.

I am a multi-year member of Partnership to Success - John's personal coaching program - and of Master Affiliate Profits, John's new affiliate marketing platform he has launched with the Martins.

These are the big programs to which I am committed. I have not spent serious amounts of money on anything else.

Most other products in which I have invested money have been recommended by John or his associates, but they are usually handy tools that I add to my business rather than serious coaching programs.

In other words, I'm not exposing myself to numerous, fundamentally different methods.

There are a few other marketers I like to keep an eye on. Michael Cheney springs to mind, and I am fond of Kevin Fahey; I have invested money in some of their products, but not on the same scale as I have committed to John's.

As for niches, I am especially interested in traffic generation and email marketing, so I tend to look at all things traffic related.

As such, names like Frank Salinas, John Cornetta, Jeff Aman, plus creators of programs they recommend, are on my radar.

But that is pretty much it for the time being - I find that is plenty to get on with at this stage of my business.

I don't need anything else to make money, no matter how good other opportunities look when they land in my inbox.

A Final Word

None of what we have said means that you must close your mind or that you must slavishly follow the methods of your mentors without question (good mentors should always encourage dialogue). 

But the ability to do things in multiple ways - or to start piecing together methods and advice from various directions - is something that requires experience.

Indeed, eventually, such synthesis may end up as your own unique footprint in the market - when you become a "guru" in your own right.

But when you are just starting out, you must build a solid foundation, which requires focus.

And to get that focus, only one thing can block out all of the noise of opportunity:

Just say no!

*   *   *   *   *

Show me something else