Table of Contents Chapter 1: Introduction:........4 Chapter 2: Solving Problems Is Profitable........... 10 Chapter 3: Power of Branding.......15 Chapter 4: Find A USP........ 19 Chapter 5: Creating Digital Products.......23 Chapter 6: Super Fast Product Creation Methods........29 Chapter 7: Sort Your PST...38 Chapter 8: The Sell... 45 Chapter 9: Mindset of Success........50 Chapter 10: Conclusion........ 54 Sample Content Preview Most people who are new to the Internet, or even some who have been around for a while, believe that they can't create their own ebooks (or CD’s, videos, etc.) because they can't write. There are also a lot of 'so-called' gurus who will have you believe that it's more difficult than it actually is. What I'd like to show you through this special guide is that you CAN create your own ebooks and other products. And you can do it fast! Even if you've never written a word in your life! (If you’re new to the field, your main challenge may be getting recognized as an expert. But creating your own products will be easy once you learn the shortcuts and tips here!) You see, it’s all about 'perspective.' The first time you see someone riding a bicycle, you immediately say “That’s not possible” or “I can’t do that.” And, maybe you’re right to some extent. You can’t ride a bicycle yet. But, that doesn’t mean you can’t ride a bicycle ever. You just have to get on it, stumble a few times and before you know it, you’re balancing a metal frame on two wheels! Something that seemed impossible just a few days ago. It’s the same with writing an ebook. In fact, it’s much easier than learning how to ride a bicycle. The trick really is to just get started. Just start writing and let you thoughts flow. Don’t worry about spelling or grammar or sentence structure or formatting or any of that. Just get the information out of you. You can edit it later. If you edit while you write, you interrupt the flow of ideas. You can also use a tape recorder and just talk freely into it. Imagine you’re talking to a friend and you’re giving her advice about X (where “X” is the subject you want to write about.) When you’re done, you can type it all out into your computer, or get someone to transcribe it. What people should to realize is that you don’t need to be an English major to write an ebook. Just write the way you talk to a friend. Then, have someone read it out loud and see if either of you can find any areas that sounds choppy or confusing. You can also get a college student to edit it for you, if you’re not comfortable doing your own editing. (Although, personally, I prefer to read an ebook that seems like the author is “talking to me” (it seems more interactive) instead of an ebook that uses perfect grammar, and structure but ends up being boring. If it still seems like a daunting task to write the book, just break the ebook up into sections or chapters, and knock them out one at a time… kinda like writing short reports. (Break the task up into smaller pieces and tackle it that way.) Anyone can write an ebook or create a digital information product. Once you have the content, you can turn that into different digital formats like audio’s, video’s and written text. YOU can do this! Change your mindset, and say to yourself, I can do this! Ever heard of this quote: IF YOU THINK YOU CAN’T WRITE A BOOK, YOU’RE RIGHT! IF YOU THINK YOU CAN WRITE A BOOK, YOU’RE RIGHT, TOO! It all comes down to you. The point here is, what’s the WORST thing that could happen if you wrote a book and it wasn’t absolutely perfect? It’s an eye-opening experience to look at some of the e-books that are selling…right now…on the Internet. All you have to do is find one that, after you read it, you say, “MAN! Even I could do better than that!” But that book’s selling and yours isn’t because you’re waiting to get it perfect! Don’t get it perfect…get it out there! Start saying to yourself, in your head…unless you want people to think you’re really crazy…I CAN write a book! I KNOW I can! Know that your brain is already writing books for you each day. All you have to do is figure out how to get it down on paper…and that’s what this book is all about! Get over that perfectionist stuff. It ain’t never gonna be perfect…just like that grammar, but it gets the point across, doesn’t it? Get your book as good as you can at the time, get it out there, see what happens and then test and tweak it until it sells. It’s NEVER going to be completely perfect, but it can be profitable! Chapter 2: Solving Problems Is Profitable One of the biggest hurdles new internet marketers face is choosing what type of information product to create. Since you most likely want to make a profit off of this, you need to create an information product that solves a problem or tells people how to do something. Solving problems is profitable. Also, you want to make sure that there’s a decent sized audience for this product, and you want to make sure that they have money to spend. So you wouldn’t want to create an information product that solves a really obscure problem that is only faced by a tiny group of people. And you wouldn’t want to create an information product that appeals to a crowd that has no money to spend, such as young teenagers or children. Here is a list of evergreen product ideas where you will always find a hungry crowd. Provide these people with a genuinely helpful solution to their problem and you will have a grateful crowd that will come back again and again: Weight Loss Dog training Pet health Acne cures Curing romantic woes Saving money Debt Consolidation Avoiding foreclosure Fitness Parenting Fertility Making money online Driving targeted traffic to websites This doesn’t mean that you should only stick to that list, by any means. If you have a skill and you can teach other people - for instance, as we mentioned earlier, applying makeup or painting a portrait or arts and crafts or home repairs - by all means create an information product around it. You need to make your information product stand out, so you would want to develop a method that lets people learn how to do something quickly and easily, and emphasize that when promoting your product. “Learn How to Paint Portraits Quickly And Easily!” “Take Pictures Like A Pro - Learn How in Just Five Lessons!” You get the idea.

Table of Contents 1. Introduction 01 2. Define your audience 02 3. Get more followers 05 4. Build an online store 08 5. Drive traffic to your site 11 6. Avoid common mistakes 14 Sample Content Preview 1. ‘What is the purpose of my business?’ To build authority and reach a specific audience, you have to define your purpose. It will also help you to grow your business and stay on track. So, what is your purpose? Is it to build brand awareness, increase sales, or encourage engagement? Having a purpose-driven business allows you to connect with and attract the right people. This brings us to our next point: 2. ‘Who do I want to attract?’ Once you figure out your main aim or what drives you as an organization, specify your audience. Do you want to market to people based on their location, age-group, gender, or expertise? Answering this question helps you to understand your market and meet their needs. After specifying your target audience, find out if your offer is on-demand or if it is something that people need. If it is, move on to the next step. 3. ‘What sort of value can I offer?’ Stand apart from the crowd and make the competition irrelevant by offering something that they aren’t. Identify the value your service or product can bring to your followers and easily convert them to long-term customers. Grow and retain followers. The secret to growing and retaining your followers is sharing useful information that keeps them coming back. So, come up with an effective content strategy and apply it to the content creation process. Answer three questions; ‘What types of posts does my target audience interact with most?’ ‘What are some of the common challenges they are facing?’ and ‘When is the most ideal time to post?’ Share interactive content. Use high-res images and videos when sharing stories or advertising your brand. Include your business name and logo on all images. Upload inspirational quotes, DIYs, or cheat sheets for more likes and comments. Use meta keywords, meta descriptions, and hashtags for SEO and exposure. Post as frequently as you desire and know the best times to share posts. This ensures your followers engage with your content, ask questions, share their opinions, or leave a ‘Like.’ It also enables you to send timely responses, develop meaningful relations, and talk about your brand where applicable. Use Instagram stories. Countless people prefer videos so use Instagram stories to encourage users to stay on your page longer. They are a fun and interactive way to communicate with your audience. You can share image slides or record live videos. Instagram stories disappear after 24 hours. Meaning you can upload a new story each day and give your followers a great experience. Use Instagram highlights, share topics within your niche, use proper hashtags, participate in interesting conversations, and command attention. This can lead to more people visiting your profile, engaging with your content, and following you back. GET MORE FOLLOWERS The next step is to get more followers so you can drive traffic to your site, blog, or store. The best way to achieve that is by marketing your content. You want people to know that you exist, find you on search engines, understand your business, and prefer your product or service over your competitor’s. Market your content. Ensure more people interact with your content and take action by using the following tips: ● Complete your profile. Ensure you have a business account so you can meet your goals. If you don’t have one, go ahead and create it. You will gain access to countless features that will help you to grow and build your brand. So, ensure you either open a business account or convert your existing account to a business one. During the signup process, make sure you fill in all the details and pick the right username so you can appear and rank high on search engines. People will find you based on your username so choose one that best describes your business or offer. If your existing account is incomplete go ahead and edit it. Ensure all the information is there. For example, business name, description, location, and working hours. Keep your information up-to-date. ● Be consistent. Consistency helps you to grow your brand and ensure people easily identify your posts. So, give your brand a unique voice, stick to your primary colors, and avoid copying the competition. Learn from them but be as unique as you can be. ● Use proper hashtags. Hashtags help you to command attention and allow people to easily find your posts. Use industry-specific hashtags to attract the right people. For example, if your business’s primary aim is to offer sales and marketing services to clients, use relevant hashtags. For instance, #marketingservices, #sales, #increaserevenue, and so forth. People follow hashtags and including them on your posts ensures your content appears on search engines. Use AutoHash or Display Purpose to gain access to quality hashtags for your posts. You can also use trending hashtags, service hashtags, campaign hashtags, event hashtags, and so on. Use ones that are specific to your niche. Find out what the most popular ones are and use them on your posts. ● Follow people within your niche. Engage with existing communities and follow relevant accounts. This is the best way to market your content and reach your target audience because you can easily form relations with people who are already interested in what you are doing and offering. Like their posts and leave comments that are worth people’s attention. This can pique the account owner’s attention or anyone who reads your comment and encourage them to visit your profile. ● Connect with influencers. Search for influencers within your niche and connect with them. Engage with their content and develop a worthwhile relationship. Next, ask them to comment on your posts or mention you to their followers. People trust, favor, and easily follow content that’s promoted by a well-known or trusted influencer. So, take advantage of that.

End the Scroll of Doom and Empower Your Life with the Ultimate PLR Product – DOOMSCROLLING!

We live in a world more connected than ever before. We’re all just a click away from an endless stream of news, updates, and information. But have you ever thought about how the content we consume daily shapes our life, mindset, and well-being? Have you noticed a constant feeling of anxiety, stress, and depression among people that seems to stem from a mysterious source? It's called "Doomscrolling," and it's a phenomenon that's taking over the world, one swipe at a time. We present you with a revolutionary product - a comprehensive guide on Doomscrolling. An eye-opening PLR product that addresses this issue head-on and provides practical solutions to overcome it. This is your golden opportunity to educate your audience, helping them reclaim control over their digital lives and enhance their overall mental well-being.  

Uncover the Secret to a Happier, More Fulfilled Life Free from the Shackles of Doomscrolling - A Perfect Addition to Your Content Arsenal!

Introducing "Doomscrolling" - The Ultimate PLR Product!

Our product contains everything you need to educate, engage, and convert your audience:

• A Comprehensive Ebook (35 pages, PDF and DOC formats) that will guide your audience through the true impact of Doomscrolling, and how to break free from its chains.
• A Fully Automated 7-Part Email Series (TXT format) that will consistently remind your subscribers about the importance of overcoming Doomscrolling, keeping you top-of-mind.
• A Ready-Made Squeeze Page (HTML format) designed to capture leads effectively.
• A Complete Resource Page to help your audience delve deeper into the topic and make a real change.

  Here's a Sneak Peek at the Value-Packed Content:

• The Truth About Doomscrolling (Chapter 1): Unmask the modern-day phenomenon that's secretly wreaking havoc on people's mental health.
• How Doomscrolling Impacts Our Lives (Chapter 2): Discover the ways in which Doomscrolling seeps into our lives, quietly affecting our mental and emotional health.
• How to Break the Habit (Chapter 3): Learn concrete steps to break free from the Doomscrolling trap and regain control of your time and attention.
• Final Words & Resources (Chapters 4 and 5): A concluding guide and resources to solidify the path to a happier, more productive digital life.

 

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• Hot Topic: Doomscrolling is a hot topic with increasing importance, yet there's a lack of comprehensive resources available. Be one of the first to provide a solution.
• High-Quality Content: Expertly written and designed, our content is informative, engaging, and actionable. It's all set to help you position yourself as a trusted authority.
• Ready-to-Use: Our plug-and-play content saves you time. Everything is ready to upload. Just add your branding, and it’s good to go.
• Full Control: As a PLR product, you get full rights to edit and distribute the content as your own. You can even use it for coaching programs, blogs, social media, or as a lead magnet to build your email list.
• Customer Support: Our team is always ready to assist you and ensure you get the maximum value from your purchase.

  The Time to Act is Now! Doomscrolling is an under-recognized issue that's silently impacting millions. This is your chance to rise as a leader in your field, providing your audience with the knowledge and tools to escape the Doomscrolling trap. With our PLR product, you can leverage this opportunity while saving time, effort, and money on content creation. Don’t let your audience fall victim to Doomscrolling. Click the ‘ADD TO CART’ button and make a difference in their lives today! Remember, in the digital age, the right content can transform lives. Take this step and become the catalyst for that transformation.  

Sample Content Preview

Media psychologist Pamela Rutledge explains: “The tendency to doomscroll is a result of how the human brain is wired. Our brains instinctively pay attention to any potentially dangerous situation as part of the biological imperative of survival. Our brains are designed to constantly scan the horizon for potential threats. Since threats are more important to our survival than other information, we pay more attention to the negative information than to the positive. When there are no answers or conflicting answers, more information doesn’t increase our sense of safety, so we scroll in pursuit of better answers, and so on.” It’s a seemingly never-ending cycle of negativity and unhappiness. Mike Brooks, co-author of Tech Generation: has this to say about doomscrolling. “Fifty thousand years ago, when we were on a savannah, if we missed the bad news that there was a pride of lions stalking a watering hole, we could have been eaten. But if we missed the good news that a tree nearby was bearing fruit, we likely would have lived to see another day.” So, if you’ve been consumed by doomscrolling, don’t feel bad. You’re certainly not alone. It’s human nature to pay attention to new information, especially if that information might help us respond to danger and ultimately, survive. But the truth is, in today’s times, doomscrolling isn’t just unhealthy, it can lead to missed deadlines, and incomplete tasks, and cost you valuable time that should be spent with friends and family. The habit also isn’t an easy one to break, especially if you have a mobile device and are used to consuming news throughout the day via apps or favorite websites. But thankfully, there are things you can do to quickly replace this toxic habit with ones that will add value to your life, and improve your mindset. Before we get to that, let’s take a closer look at how doomscrolling may be impacting your daily life in ways you may not even be aware of. How Doomscrolling Impacts Our Lives Your brain responds to negative information by activating your “lizard brain”, particularly a structure called your amygdala, a collection of cells near the base of your brain. This sets off your natural response to danger in your environment. You become hyper-vigilant and start scanning the terrain for threats. In other words, you’re on high-alert and your mind and body are laser focused on potential harmful situations that may arise. Your limbic system switches into fight-or-flight mode and sharpens your reaction times in an effort to save your life. Your pulse spikes, your body may grow stiff, and you aren’t able to relax. “The part of our brain that governs doomscrolling is ancient,” says Dr. Aditi Nerurkar, a Harvard physician. “It’s an adaptive response to stress, meaning our species has learned to keep going and thrive and survive. Scanning for danger, looking around, making sure we’re all OK; that is a normal and healthy response to stress.” But if you combine that evolutionary affinity for bad news with the marketing tactics that social media companies use to keep you hooked on their content, doomscrolling seems nearly inevitable. Larry Rosen, co-author of The Distracted Mind: Ancient Brains in a High-Tech World, explains it this way: “The problem is that tech companies have set up a system where you feel that you can’t stop: infinite scrolling, auto-play, and other tricks keep you glued to the screen. If you find a doom-and-gloom article online, and you want to continue in that vein, it’s hard to stop because there’s always more, and you don’t want to miss out.” The pandemic, as Dr. Nerurkar explains, is a real time of acute stress. “What we’re doing is, we’re always scanning for danger.” Our brain is already revved up into fight-or-flight mode by the global pandemic, so it’s only natural that we are on the lookout for even more danger on the horizon. This preference for negative news has now become an example of an evolutionary mismatch. While it was helpful to our savannah-dwelling ancestors, nowadays the bad news comes from every corner of the globe, and in reality, it often has little to no impact on our daily lives. We simply don’t need to consume it. We choose to. The physical reaction is real, though, and doomscrolling is an unhealthy habit to get into. With the constant threat of COVID-19, the protective mechanisms of your amygdala can be switched on way too easily—and the hyper-vigilant behavior which results may become compulsive. “Too much negative information biases our perceptions,” says Rutledge. “A steady diet of gloom and doom makes the world seem more dangerous and uncertain than it already is.” Brooks adds, “The more we doomscroll, the more worried we get, the more we want to look for things about negative news, and we keep checking, and it makes us worse.” “Doomscrolling is not healthy because it can lead to a sense of helplessness and a sense that there is nothing effective to be done,” says Mari Verano, a marriage and family therapist. “Doomscrolling is looking repeatedly at ‘proof of the bad,’ which strengthens the brain’s negative bias.” Doomscrolling has a number of negative consequences on your life, and wasting your time is the least of these. Last July, the New York Times reported that Americans were spending nearly 50 percent more time on their screens than they had before COVID-19. You could be getting a lot of work done in that time. This is also the time you could be spending with family and other loved ones. They’re your real support network, not social media or the internet. Whatever you’re searching for, Nicole Spector of Today says you might feel “a sense of helplessness and a sense that there is nothing effective to be done.” All this time online is affecting our mental health, increasing our risk of stress, anxiety, and depression, as Today reports. These negative reactions can then lead to heightened aggressive behavior and hostility. And the effects aren’t just psychological. Spector also points out that physical reactions such as headaches, stomach problems, increased muscle tension, feeling tired easily, lack of appetite, trouble falling asleep, and poor sleep quality are also connected. “Being constantly showered with fear-inducing content can lead to a variety of anxiety issues that can cause physical and mental discomfort,” says Dr. Pavan Madan, a psychiatrist at Community Psychiatry. “Being exposed to excessive negative content can exacerbate depression in those predisposed to it. When faced with fear or threat, people may even resort to hostile or aggressive behavior. Staying up late at night while doomscrolling not only encroaches on your sleep time but also makes it harder to fall asleep or have a restful sleep.” “Anxiety and stress,” says Pamela Rutledge, “are the byproducts of uncertainty about the safety of the environment. Uncertainty triggers the desire to search for information to feel more in control. When we search for information in this state, we are particularly sensitive to distressing or emotionally threatening news. Rather than increase our sense of control, negative news validates our fears, heightens our anxiety, and increases our internal ‘need to know.’” The sheer volume of the information out there works to further heighten anxiety, she goes on to state. It’s impossible to keep up with everything, and you’re not only anxious about the environment but preoccupied with missing something that might be vital to your survival. So, you keep looking and fall into a downward spiral often seen in chronic depression and anxiety. Looking for news in an environment full of negative content triggers anxiety. Anxiety makes you want to know more so you’ll feel more in control. The need to know more makes you scan even more news, and around and around you go. “This downward spiral,” Pamela Rutledge reports, “will only stop when we actively override our instinctive tendencies.” Self-regulation and minimizing the time you spend consuming negative information is far easier said than done, and doomscrolling is especially difficult to control if you’ve been at it for a long time. It takes a good bit of determination, focus, and cognitive energy to overcome the instincts and emotional reactions that drive that type of negative behavior.  

Table of Contents Introduction 5 Keto Explained 6 How (and why) This Works 9 The Top Benefits of a Keto Diet 12 Keto and Rapid Weight Loss 16 Keto isn’t for Everyone (is it for you?) 19 Foods: Reference List 22 Things You Need to Know 25 Top Tips & Strategies 28 Final Words 30 Resources 33 Sample Content Preview How (and why) This Works In order to better understand how a keto diet works, let’s take a look at your digestive system and how it responds to fewer carbs. When you eat carbs, found in anything from the fruit and vegetable families (and that includes products made from grains, like pasta, breads, and crackers), your digestive system breaks them down into glucose. Glucose is used to provide energy for the body, and the digestive system isn’t particularly picky about where the glucose comes from. It’ll digest a healthy salad in the same way as it would a candy bar, so it’s up to you to decide what to feed it. This glucose is stored in a couple of ways in your body: as glycogen in the liver and muscle tissue, and as adipose or fat. When your body can’t get sufficient carbs to turn into glucose, it will start to burn fat instead. This metabolic state is called ketosis because one of the by-products of this fat-burning is the production of ketones, which can also be used for energy. If you want to be super-scientific, you can get breath and urine tests that will show the presence of these ketones and prove that you’re doing the diet correctly. Most people just follow along and trust that it’s working. You can also tell your body is producing ketones by the following side-effects of the process: increased thirst or dry mouth, increased urination, and a decreased appetite. The most effective way to get your body into ketosis is to follow a ketogenic (keto) diet where you severely limit your carb intake (remember that 5%). That’s around 20-50 grams a day. The rest of the time you fill up on fats and proteins like meat, fish, eggs, nuts, and healthy oils (like coconut or avocado). It’s just as important to limit your protein intake, though, because if you eat too much protein, your body will sneakily start turning some of it into glucose, which it likes better than fat. You can also enter ketosis by intermittent fasting, such as limiting your meals to an eight-hour period during the day and fasting the remaining sixteen hours. The Top Benefits of a Keto Diet As we previously mentioned, the keto diet was originally created to help with childhood epilepsy. It’s still used today, and children can actually have 30 to 40% fewer seizures by rigorously following the diet. In addition to this disorder, the keto diet has been studied in several other conditions. Some studies have shown an increase in cognitive function when Alzheimer’s patients follow a ketogenic diet. This is thought to have something to do with giving the brain new fuel (ketones) and, in turn, improving mitochondrial function. More study is needed to be certain, but it does look promising. Research funded by the Michael J. Fox Foundation has studied the effects of a keto diet on Parkinson’s Disease. One of the key features of this disease is the accumulation of a protein called alpha-synuclein. The keto diet may stimulate breakdown of this protein and reduce the amount of accumulation in the brain, but again, more evidence is needed to be sure. In a small study in 2016, multiple sclerosis patients were put on a ketogenic diet for six months. They reported improved quality of life, mental health improvements, and physical improvements. Because the study was so small, doctors need larger sample sizes and more thorough research before they can declare a definite connection between the diet and improvements in MS, but it looks promising. Since the keto diet is about as low-carb as you can get, it’s been studied a good deal with Type 2 diabetic patients (Type 1 are those who produce no insulin and require regular injections of it). While the studies have been mostly small, they do seem to show that a super-low-carb diet (like the ketogenic diet) might reduce A1C (a measure of how much glucose is in the bloodstream) and improve insulin sensitivity in the cells by as much as 75%. A 2017 review actually found that a keto diet was connected to better glucose control and a reduction in medication use—however, they noted that it wasn’t clear if this was solely the result of the diet, or if simple weight loss was involved. You’d think a high-fat diet would create havoc with the cardiovascular system, but studies have actually shown that a keto diet might help lower triglycerides, HDL, and LDL levels. Since high cholesterol levels are associated with heart disease, this is good news. A 2017 review of information showed that a ketogenic diet could be associated with lower cardiovascular health risks. However, there are no long-term studies and reviewers noted that the diet may be difficult to maintain for long periods of time. We need some good studies showing whether maintaining a keto diet actually reduces cholesterol over a long period of time. And finally, early research suggests that a ketogenic diet might even have anti-tumor effects. This would be due to the lower overall calorie intake and lower circulating glucose levels (which would help tumors to grow rapidly). In a 2014 review of animal studies, a keto diet was shown to help reduce tumor growth and cancer in the colon, stomach, and brain. Human research is needed, though, with larger sample sizes, but the initial results seem heartening. Keto and Rapid Weight Loss Weight loss is one of the reasons the keto diet has become so popular. With keto, you can drop a significant number of pounds in a short time while following this diet.

Table of Contents Chapter 1: Introduction......4 Chapter 2: Affiliate Marketing Explained... 7 Advantages of Becoming an Affiliate Marketer.....9 Shortcomings to Overcome. 9 Chapter 3: The Nitty Gritty: How to Sell as an Affiliate..11 Where to Get Links. 13 Chapter 4: Creating a Website to Sell From...15 Finding Hosting.15 Chapter 5: Your Sales Page....17 Standing Out.. 20 Chapter 6: The Go-To Market/Advertising Strategy. 21 Finding a Route to Market....... 22 Promoting Via Social Media.....22 Driving Sales With PPC......23 Chapter 7: Finding the Perfect Niche 25 Finding the Perfect Niche.....26 More Considerations When Choosing Your Niche....27 Chapter 8: Becoming a Thought Leader – The True Path to Riches 29 The Sales Funnel.......31 Chapter 9: Selling Physical Products..32 Countless Other Options.... 33 Chapter 10: Scaling Up....35 Sample Content Preview Chapter 2: Affiliate Marketing Explained Before we look at advanced concepts and strategies, it first makes sense to go over what we mean by affiliate marketing exactly. What is affiliate marketing and why is it such a popular option for those looking to earn money online? Essentially, affiliate marketing means selling for commission. This works online in just the same way as it does for a door-to-door salesman. That is to say that you will be selling a product that you did not create and do not own the rights to, but in return, you will get to keep some commission. This is a powerful option for those who want to earn money online but don’t necessarily have the skills or the resources to build an ebook, an online course, or something else from scratch. The big difference between being an affiliate marketer and a door-to-door salesman of course, is that the affiliate is someone who will be able to sell their products to the entire world. Thanks to the web, it’s possible to reach pretty much anyone, right in the comfort of their home! This makes affiliate marketing endlessly scalable – and with the right product and the right pitch, you can make a HUGE killing. Online affiliate marketing can generally be split into two categories: - Affiliate marketing for digital products (such as eBooks and online courses) - Affiliate marketing for physical products (anything you might buy in a store) We will talk about option number 2 toward the end of this book. But suffice to say that the majority of people who get into affiliate marketing will be focused on the first option. Selling digital products has a huge number of impressive advantages after all! Firstly, selling digital products means that there is no storage and no delivery. That in turn means that a much bigger cut of the revenue will be split between you and the owner of the product! Another advantage, is that when you sell a digital product, there are no supplies and no materials. Moreover, the entire transaction is automated. It’s for these reasons, that affiliates can often stand to earn 70% or even 90% from promoting digital products! You might at this point be wondering why anyone would be willing to give away such a large cut – the lion’s share – of their profits! The answer is simple: if you’re an ebook owner and you are selling copies of your book to a wide audience, then the more copies you manage to shift, the more money you make. You are probably doing everything you can to try and convince people to find your book (and to help them find it in the first place). As such, you have likely saturated your current market. Now here’s the thing: if you decide to also let affiliates sell your product, then you will be inviting those people to make you extra sales. This doesn’t detract at all from the sales you make – it’s all additional. So if you’re making $2,000 per month from your sales and you get an extra 10% of that, then this is an extra $200. It might not be a lot, but it’s effectively free money. With the ebook created, you no longer have to lift a finger! What’s more, is that if you can attract the attention of 20 affiliates, then suddenly you’re earning an additional $4,000 per month! And if one of those affiliates is a superstar marketer, then you might be earning a whole lot more than that! By offering higher commission on their products, product owners can attract more people to help them sell them. Thus, it is in their best interest to give away a big cut. This is a rare instance of a genuinely win/win scenario! Advantages of Becoming an Affiliate Marketer And it really can be a WIN with a capital W! That’s because affiliate marketing removes many of the challenges and obstacles that you face when trying to sell something online. Some of these are obvious, others are not. First of all, selling an affiliate product means you don’t need to create something new. This means that you can start earning money immediately. As soon as you are accepted as an affiliate, you can start making cash. This is also very beneficial for anyone that is simply unable to make a product. Perhaps you have no idea how to make a course or an ebook, or maybe you just don’t have any valuable information to share. In this scenario, you could alternatively commission someone to make you a product, but that would potentially cost hundreds of dollars and months of waiting! Of course, you would then get to keep 100% of the profit… but that wouldn’t necessarily translate to more cash! Why? Because when you keep 100% of $100, it’s less than keeping 90% of $150. In other words, you can simply find a product with a price and affiliate deal that suits your goals. These benefits also mean that you could start promoting 20 different affiliate products in the time it would take you to sell just one of yours. The scalability is huge then, and this is something you really need to keep in mind when calculating the best business move. But perhaps what’s even more beneficial about selling affiliate products, is that it allows you to sell products that have been proven. In other words, you can look and see which affiliate products are selling the best: how much have they made so far? How are they rated? This way, you can now choose a product that is almost guaranteed to be a hit for you. You at least know that it has the potential to be a hit for you! This is called “verifying the market” and it’s one of the best things you can do in ANY business. Otherwise, you are effectively taking a punt on an idea that may or may not resonate with your audience. Imagine spending hundreds of dollars and months of your life to create a digital product, only to then find that no one wants it! Shortcomings to Overcome With all that said… It is not my job to try and sell you on affiliate marketing. You’re already reading this book, so my only goal now is to give you the honest and practical advice that can genuinely help you to make a killing. Rather than continuing to tell you how amazing affiliate marketing is then, I’m instead going to do something far more helpful and tell you about the downsides – so you can understand how best to mitigate and avoid them. The biggest issue is that this is not your product. For all that affiliate marketing has amazing benefits, you ultimately are selling someone else’s creation. And unlike selling a “PLR” package (private label rights), you won’t have the opportunity to change it or to make edits as you see fit. This means that you will be selling something that isn’t necessarily a reflection or extension of your own personality, views or styles. This is then significantly more difficult to sell. This might sound vague, but as we will learn over the course of this post, your ability to sell often comes down to your ability to speak to the value proposition – to build trust and authority with your audience and to establish yourself as a thought leader. That’s significantly easier to do when you believe in the product 1,000,000% and when you actually created the product. This way, people will want to buy the product because they want more of what you have to offer. This is one of the biggest hurdles that you will need to overcome if you’re going to be successful as an affiliate. And of course, it’s something we’re going to discuss in depth in this book.

Table of Contents Foreword Chapter 1: An Introduction to Periscope and Live Video Streaming * An Introduction to the Concept of Live Streaming * How People Are Using Periscope * The Future of Live Video Streaming * Some Stats to Get You Excited Chapter 2: The Marketing Potential for Streaming * More Possibilities Chapter 3: Periscope – In and Out * Why Periscope? * Getting Started With Periscope Chapter 4: Your ‘Value-Delivering’ Marketing Strategy * Periscope Marketing for Internet Marketers * Periscope Marketing for Businesses Chapter 5: How to Captivate Your Audience by Creating Awesome Videos for Periscope? * Tips for Live Streaming * Types of Video That Work Very Well for Live Streaming * Your Presentation * Improving Your Production Values Chapter 6: Top Tips for Boosting Your Viewers and Engagement Chapter 7: The Other Platforms * Meerkat * Blab Conclusion Sample Content Preview The Future of Live Video Streaming What’s really exciting about Live Video Streaming is the potential it offers for the future. Right now, Periscope is the most popular streaming app but it still doesn’t have floods of content. If you sign in right now, you’ll likely find there are around 100-200 people recording content in the US. That might sound like a lot but it’s hardly much when you compare it to something like YouTube where there are thousands of hours of content being uploaded daily. What’s exciting then is where Periscope will likely go as the technology progresses and the concept catches on. Essentially, live video streaming allows you to truly have eyes everywhere and to transport yourself anywhere in the world. It allows you to transport yourself to anywhere and that means that you can see the world through the eyes of others. If you don’t believe right now that live video marketing can get that big, then consider what would happen if there was a major world event right now. Imagine a huge riot in the streets that was being reported all over the news and which was simultaneously being live streamed through Periscope by multiple different people at multiple locations around the event. Can you imagine what a difference this would make to the reporting? If you could experience being there live and speak to the person holding the camera? Inevitably when this does happen, people will rush to the platform and it will boom in a huge way. Meanwhile, live video streaming could be used to stream other events like concerts from multiple angles. Or it could be used more, as it already is being, to add an interactive element to television. You could watch something being filmed (like the news) and at the same time see it from your phone behind the scenes. It can also be used in more intimate ways. For instance, imagine that you can’t attend a family gathering because you live in another country; using Periscope it would be possible for your family to ‘beam’ you in and you could even follow different family members around different rooms! Likewise, for people who perhaps feel a little lonely, Periscope could be used to take part in group gatherings or even just for some background company. In the future we can also expect technology to progress and drive this forward further. For instance, it may one day be possible to see previews of the footage right in the thumbnails – like hundreds of tiny windows to different parts of the world! Video fidelity will improve and so too will the options we have for capturing video. Imagine if something like Google Glass were to one day take off, allowing us to get a feed of exactly what someone else is seeing fed straight to us anywhere in the world! Some Stats to Get You Excited This is no pipe dream either. Live video streaming is still very new – Periscope and its major competitors all launched only last year – and yet it is already gaining huge momentum. For instance, did you know that Periscope already has over 10,000,000 user accounts? And if you add up all the footage that has been recorded so far, it comes to over 40 years of footage! Periscope also has 2 million active users every single day and these users are located across 25 different countries. In the month it launched, it got 60K tweets every single day! Twitter definitely believes in the potential of Periscope in particular, seeing as they were willing to invest an incredible $100 million to purchase it. And Periscope isn’t the only success story in this category either. Meerkat launched around the same time as a competitor to Periscope and had 120,000 users by the end of the first month. Twitch, which streams live games, had 12 billion users at the end of 2014. Blab is another new streaming app which shows promise with incredible engagement – their average user spends 65 minutes a day watching videos on the platform! And YouTube has been in on the act too. The company live streams some events and the E3 event in 2015 managed to attract a gigantic 8 million viewers within just 12 hours. In other words, this is massive news. People see the huge potential of live streaming and as such, they are flocking to it. So should you be! Chapter 2: The Marketing Potential for Streaming As you can hopefully see then, video streaming has huge potential and will likely have a massive impact on the world. But how about marketing? Why is it such a big deal for internet marketers? How can you even use Periscope to market yourself? Let’s start by answering the first question first: why is Periscope big news for marketers? What are the advantages? Well, right now the biggest news with regards to live streaming for marketing is just how new it is. The truly excellent thing about trying to market yourself on Periscope today is that you’re likely to be the first brand in your niche to do so. As mentioned, there are probably around 100-200 people streaming videos from the US at any given time – and that’s actually a somewhat generous estimate. As also mentioned, a lot of these videos are people who are just staring at the camera not doing much, or even just turning it on for a few seconds and turning it off. If you come onto Periscope with a video that provides really useful, interesting information about making money online, or working out. If you can show off high production values, great presentation skills and useful information; then you’re bound to get a gigantic following right away! In fact, even those videos of people who staring at the camera find they get a big response and a lot of new followers. That’s simply because the platform is so new and so exciting – people right now are eating up any kind of content they can get on here! Try it yourself: head onto Periscope today and try filming yourself just eating some cereal. You will be almost guaranteed to get some followers from there! Can you think of any other platform right now where that’s the case? Can you imagine if you got new followers every time you Tweeted anything? Remember too: this is a big audience. There are 10,000,000 user accounts on Periscope so that’s a gigantic potential audience for you to reach out to! Then all you need to do is to use Periscope as you would any other platform for marketing. Now you have your audience, you just need to recommend them to follow your blog, or to sign up for your mailing list.

Table of Contents Introduction Chapter 1: What are the Key-Attributes of a Killer App? Chapter 2: Analyze Your Competition Chapter 3: Identify Your Target Customers/Users Chapter 4: Pricing Your App The Right Way Chapter 5: Launching Strategies For Your App Chapter 6: Online & Social Media Marketing Techniques Chapter 7: Provoke Curiosity and Demand for Your App Chapter 8: Strategies and Tips to get More Positive Reviews for App Chapter 9: Announce Your App Through Press Release Chapter 10: Direct Marketing Strategies For Your App Launch Wrapping Up Sample Content Preview Chapter 2: Analyze Your Competition Synopsis In any business industry, it is one of the planning stones to study and analyze your competitor’s products or business models. This analysis is important as it will dictate how you will position your own product or app against your competitor. It would be fool hardy to create an app that is similar to Skype and the app does not have a differential factor that is unique from Skype yet popular with users. The Importance Of Analysis The analysis is important as it will give you an insight into what you are up against. You have to analyze the same things about your own product or app as you do with your competitor. You have to know what the app can do and what it cannot do. This is a simple comparison of your competitor against other apps in the market. There should be a rating checklist on features, content, design, functionality, user friendliness etc. This comparison will also tell you what you are lacking and need to improve on. It will also tell you that you may need to add new features that are popular and unique to others. You have to rate it against your own and those in the market. This rating will tell you where you are against your competitor and what you need to do further to succeed. You have to see how many USPs (unique selling points) they have and compare with your own and others in the market. You have to compare against them based on design, functionality, user friendliness, robustness and web content and features. It is in these areas that most of your attention should be focused on as there may be a lot of re-modeling and designing to do to stand out from the crowd of competitors. It is time consuming but necessary. Chapter 3: Identify Your Target Customers/Users Synopsis For any business to succeed, all marketing efforts must be geared towards the right target audience. That is to say that if you wanted to sell toys, then your marketing campaign is aimed at children and not adults. It is the children that will create the demand when they see what they want and ask their parents for it. This can be further segmented to their age group. Know Your Market The previous example can also be applied to further examples. If you plan to sell an electric train set, then the target age group would probably be from 6 to 12 years old. And if you were planning to sell remote controlled airplanes then your target age group would be from 8 to 21 years old depending on the airplane models. Even beauty magazines have their segmented target groups. There are some magazines that are targeted to female teenagers, while others are targeted to women 21 years and above. The contents of the magazine for teenagers will differ greatly from others as they are more in tune with what teenagers want, what they like doing, what’s new for their age group and anything else that would interest a teenager. Magazines that target the older age group would be more towards maintaining health and well-being as well as anything that will help in their youthful image and personality. In the case of apps, it is best to create one that caters to the general public. This is where you can build on a user database if your app is appealing and exciting to the users. Your app should also lean towards the younger generation as it is statistically proven that young people spend more time on the internet than any other group. They spend time chatting, browsing the web, updating their personal profile etc. So the biggest age group found on the internet would be teenagers from 12 to 21 years old. Chapter 4: Pricing Your App The Right Way Synopsis If your app has a distinct feature to perform a distinct function not found in the market then it would be safe to say that you have a saleable product. For example, Norton antivirus sells their product online. This app has a function to assist users threatened by possible virus attacks. Users will buy if they think that it will save them money by way of safe-guarding their computers and laptops. Trial Periods Make Sales On the other hand, there are also many other antivirus products in the market. So Norton’s antivirus has to be either cheaper or have additional features not found on other competitor’s products. Bear in mind, there are antivirus programs that are free on the internet. So one you have to make a choice after studying these products to see which one is best suited for your own use. The free apps come with a trial period or just free downloads. The ones with free trial period give the user a chance to test the product. By testing the product, they will be convinced of its usefulness. This trial period is a good marketing tool as most users do not want to change after trying out the product unless they think that it does not satisfy their requirements. With free downloads, the apps are usually basic in nature and performs basic functions. These free downloads usually come with upgrades that have many additional features. These upgrades come with a price. If users feel that the additional features will further enhance their performance then they will buy. This method of marketing is recommended as most users will want to try out the app before deciding to either stay with the basic or buy the upgrade. When you get a user to try your product, you have achieved half the sale. Even if they do not buy but recommend to their friends, you gain on registered users. Thus increasing user base and making your website more beneficial for advertisement.

Table of Contents Chapter 1: Introduction..5 Chapter 2: Why a Product Launch Works So Well11 Chapter 3: How to Construct the Perfect Launch Plan 19 1. Focus on the Buyer, Not Just the Product..... 19 2. Get Opinion Makers to Weigh In... 21 3. Don’t Hesitate to Be Bold......22 4. Make the Event a Spectacle.. 24 5. Plan for Pre-Orders24 6. Be Clear about Product Positioning.......25 Chapter 4: Finding Out What Type of Products to Launch Online......28 Chapter 5: Determine the Market Need for the Product.... 37 Chapter 6: Get Your Marketing Material Ready..43 Social Media for Free.......43 Email Marketing.......46 Paid Advertising....... 47 Chapter 7: Building the Buzz and Pre-Launch..... 50 Teasers.....50 Behind the Scenes.... 51 If You Want to Keep the Mystery.... 53 Contact Influencers or Blog it Yourself.... 53 Chapter 8: Launch Process Explained.. 57 Chapter 9: Post-Launch Tactics....64 Monitor Social Media.......65 Check the Data.65 Run Referral Campaigns.. 66 Get Customer Feedback...67 Customer Retention.67 Chapter 10: Conclusion 71 Sample Content Preview Chapter 2: Why a Product Launch Works So Well Before we jump into how to make a product launch successful, if you weren’t convinced already, let’s take a look at why these things work wonders. There are many reasons to do a big bang product launch. The first one, of course, is to let your customers know that there is something up for grabs in the market. You also get to make some waves in the industry and get a little recognition for your brand. Apart from that, prepping for a product launch also gives your organization a little structure to work around. And after the launch, of course, you get valuable information and feedback from the early users of the product. But there’s more to it. Let’s talk about that for a minute. The idea of a product launch is not to nail it 100 percent. I mean, good if you can. But there will always be last minute changes that will topple the plan from just a little bit to entirely gone to the dumpster. The idea for you as a leader is to make sure that you get as close to the perfect launch as possible because this is a test of your organization’s ability to execute a plan. Your launch tells you how well you can stick to a plan and the dynamic changes that happen in real time. It tests the flexibility and the adaptability of your team. Because sometimes, even though you have a great idea, the right technology and market conditions that back you up, the quality of execution of a plan can make or break the deal. A product launch is a process where most, if not all, the departments in the organization will have to put their heads together. Sometimes, teams will differ on the fundamental ideas. The other times, you will see clashes on design specifications, organizing and investing ideas. Now, for a launch to be successful you need a lot more than help your customers locate the product and the ‘Buy Now’ button under it. It is a massive undertaking for the entire organization. It requires planning, effort and coordination. You also need time. You need to make sure that all the departments are on the same page. You need marketing, sales and support staff to have multiple run throughs. And they must all be successful. When those run throughs are successful, you increase your chances of having a successful product launch. Now that increases the chances of having a successful product in the market. It gives you momentum in a way that it resonates with the customers and announces to the industry that you have indeed arrived. It is clear that a product launch is a key event because it gets your attention, right? How do you get started on that? You need a press release with all the dates and details of the event. You need to advertise it on your website and social media channels. You need all these channels to come back to the landing page where everyone who is interested in the event, not just the product, can learn about the event and the product. A product launch is also a great place for influencers and first users to try the product out. It’s an exclusive and must be pitched as one. It also helps you build trust and creates a discussion in the online community organically. In marketing terms, it is called the word-ofmouth strategy. Putting yourself out there also shows that you are confident of the quality of your product. That’s a big boost and makes for a good product launch story for anyone covering the event. Influencers—this is a very 21st century concept and it’s a great one. Make a list of those who are relevant to the marketing of your product and get them talking. For that, you need to make them entertaining. For that, you need to learn what captivates your target audience. It is also important to understand the right timing for the launch. You don’t want it clashing with events that are more attractive to your target audience or influencers, unless, of course, you are Apple computers. A product launch works because it gets your product noticed and creates a buzz about your brand in the industry. Make the event interactive since that keeps the audience engaged. Offering free samples is a textbook way of getting the influencers and the public interested. Keep the entertainment unlimited and the refreshment stands stocked. Product launches are, without a doubt, a great way to expand your business because you fundamentally put yourself on the map. When you attract the attention of industry titans, you offer yourself up for tie-ups and joint ventures. This creates opportunity for future growth. Now, some brands like to keep a little mystery alive. You’ve seen this with big brands that keep the actual product itself a secret. You know nothing about it till the actual launch. Now, that’s not always an easy thing to pull off and is a tricky decision. We all remember how the iPhone 4 leak story went. It also doesn’t always work for all products. So, make a decision on that early on. If you choose to go that way, you must tell the people as little as possible about the product before the release. The idea is for the mystery to drive interest. A lot of times, tech bloggers and websites like to make their own predictions. Make it interesting. Ask them to submit scenarios and give a reward for anyone who is able to get a detail right. And a bonus if they can work up a mock design, when it is applicable. Now, all this sounds quite fun but it won’t be if you don’t plan it well. And be original throughout because copycats don’t always succeed. Although sometimes they do remarkably well. So, if you are not good at copying an idea and tweaking it enough to make it look like your own (and even if you are), you need to plan out every single detail of these optional activities too. Plan the information you want to release carefully. Put a lid on the number of people who have the information and give the details out strategically. Chapter 3: How to Construct the Perfect Launch Plan The first thing to know about a product launch is that the focus is on the customer. When you are out there in front of the people, it is very tempting to talk about the features of the product. It is true that a lot of people want to know the technicalities or the specs, if you will. And you should do that in a minute. But remember that that information can be found on the website or any number of new reports that will be filed after the event. What you must tell them is how the product changes their life. 1. Focus on the Buyer, Not Just the Product Talk about the comfort of the product. Talk about how specific it is to a particular situation and help them understand why it simplifies the task at hand and in turn simplifies their life. That is what makes it exciting for the users. Research shows that over 40 percent of startups do not succeed because their products do not fit the market. Sometimes the reason is that your marketing team has failed to communicate just that to the user even when they had a good product in hand. That’s because a lot of businesses fail to focus on the buyer persona. A lot of them go ahead with the launch without mapping out who the target audience is. Sometimes, it is also because the target audience is too wide a group. Both those scenarios can have disastrous results. That is why it is recommended that you start by focusing on something called a single buyer persona. In this scenario, you pay attention to the chunk of users who can most easily be converted into buyers. Once they become paying customers, you can move along to the other buyer personas. You start doing that using customer development methodology where you do customer and product development together.

Table of Contents Introduction Chapter 1 – All about Confidence and Self-Esteem * Confidence vs. Self Esteem * Constant Indecisiveness * Focused on Outside Reassurance * Hesitant to Speak Up * Inability to Take Criticism * Give Up Easily Chapter 2 – Effects of Limiting Beliefs on Your Self-Esteem * Our Influences * Our Experiences * How Limiting Beliefs Keep You from Living Your Life * Identifying Limiting Beliefs Chapter 3 – How to Overcome Your Limiting Beliefs? * You Must Choose the Outcome You Desire * Questioning Your Limiting Beliefs * Consider the Consequences of Your Limiting Beliefs * Choose a New Empowering Belief * Condition your New Belief Chapter 4 – Daily Routines to Enhance Your Self Esteem * Change Your Self-Talk * Practice Affirmations * Stop Comparisons * Eliminate Judgment * Incorporate Self-Care * Let go of Perfectionism * Celebrate Daily Victories * Practice Gratitude * Set Realistic Expectations Chapter 5 – Meditation for Increasing Self-Confidence * Mindful Meditation * Breathing Meditation * Visualization * Anchoring Conclusion Sample Content Preview Confidence vs. Self Esteem Confidence is a huge part of your overall well-being. Being confident will help with your career, relationships, self-image, interactions, and other aspects of your life. It isn’t uncommon for someone to be extremely confident in one area of their life, yet insecure in another. Being fully confident and comfortable with yourself in every situation is truly invaluable. When you foster a strong sense of self-esteem, it will help you become more confident in all areas of your life. While confidence varies between circumstances, your self-esteem is a continuous part of your self-concept. The higher your self-esteem, the more likely you will be comfortable facing a variety of situations in your life. Self-esteem is an underlying trait that directly affects how you perceive yourself in all circumstances. Self-esteem can be tricky because a lack of self-esteem will manifest in a variety of ways. Generalized self-doubt is one way that low self-esteem can manifest. If you have low self-esteem, you may automatically assume that you won't be good at a task and will either give up or subconsciously sabotage yourself into failing. This is your self-concept trying to prove why it has low self-esteem. If you repeatedly fail in a variety of circumstances, your subconscious says, "I told you this would happen." During every situation that you face, negative self-talk will rear its ugly head, telling you that you will fail, you'll look stupid, you'll embarrass yourself, and that others will harshly judge you. This negative self-talk is not accurate, but instead it originates from low self-esteem. Humans are social creatures, which gives us the ability to pick up on indicators of high or low self-esteem. It is these indicators that often affect how we respond to one another. Those who have high self-esteem are more likely to get a job, create social connections, strike up conversations, etc. It isn't that most people are looking to hurt those with low self-esteem intentionally, it is just a natural tendency for us to be attracted to those who exhibit confidence. We are all self-serving beings, innately trying to get ahead and when someone exudes confidence, it indicates they can help us get ahead in life. The way in which we present ourselves can be a clear indication to those around us of our levels of confidence and self-esteem. Physical cues like slouching, talking sheepishly, or a constant downcast gaze, all indicate low self-esteem. During conversations, expressing doubt, frequent verbalization for a need for reassurance, or indecisiveness, are also clear signs of low self-esteem. It is relatively easy to see these kinds of signs in young children and teenagers; however, many adults have learned to hide their insecurities. Many of us have all adopted the fake-it-until-you-make-it attitude. Unfortunately, we are so focused on faking it that we never work toward fixing the underlying issues. Another way in which low self-esteem manifests itself is a confidence-contingent outlook. It displays itself when a person relies entirely on their accomplishments to feed their self-esteem. This is far harder to spot in ourselves and other people. This kind of low self-esteem makes us have the need to succeed at everything so that we can feel good about ourselves. They may also feel the urge to put others down to feel superior, which feeds their confidence temporarily. The critical factor in these cases is always contingent on outside factors and is always temporary. It results in the continuing need to feed the self-esteem monster in an attempt to escape your true feelings. It is a vicious and draining cycle that is incompatible with peace, happiness, and real self-esteem. If you know how to build your confidence in any situation, it will help you to develop your overall self-esteem. Confidence in separate situations is a necessary building block to retrain your mind to think more confidently. As your confidence becomes more natural, self-esteem grows and becomes a part of your self-concept. Thus, developing unwavering self-esteem, as well as knowing how to build confidence in specific situations effectively, are both essential components for success and well-being. So, how do you know if you lack confidence and have low self-esteem? Here are five signs to determine if you need to work on your self-esteem and confidence. Constant Indecisiveness Being indecisive often is a sign that you don't trust yourself to make the right decision. Doubt and insecurities accompany this. Those who lack self-esteem are frequently riddled with self-doubt. Being indecisive in many situations may indicate low self-esteem, while having it in one or two situations may show a lack of confidence in those particular situations. For example, if you are a new business owner, you may spend more time making decisions than a seasoned entrepreneur because you are frequently second-guessing yourself. As you learn and develop the appropriate skills, you’ll increase your confidence. Thus, knowledge and experience will improve confidence in individual situations. Focused on Outside Reassurance Self-esteem comes from your self-assurance, which means that you are confident in all situations and aren’t swayed by the opinions of others. One symptom of low self-esteem is often the frequent fluctuation in your mood based on the actions of others. Again, if this only happens in a few situations, it merely indicates that you may have a lack of confidence in those areas. However, if it is a reoccurring theme across the board, it is an indication that you have low self-esteem. For example, if you always need to be told that you look nice to feel good about your appearance, you likely have low confidence about your self-image. If you also need constant reassurance at work, in relationships, and during social interactions, this likely indicates that you have low self-esteem. Hesitant to Speak Up Being reluctant to voice your opinions is another sign you might have low self-esteem and lack confidence. It indicates an underlying doubt in what you have to say. It might mean that you are unsure if your opinion is valid, or you tell yourself that others are uninterested in what you have to say. You might fear that by speaking up, it will cause others to dislike you. Having low confidence in a particular area may cause you to be hesitant about voicing your opinion because you may fear you are not knowledgeable enough in the field. If you are a new business owner and attend a networking event, you may not feel confident to share your thoughts with a 20-year veteran. If you continuously fear speaking up, it is an indication that you are suffering from generalized low self-esteem. This might cause negative thoughts of doubt that ultimately prevent you from speaking up. Inability to Take Criticism Being focused on outside reassurances and a failure to take criticism often coincide in individuals with low self-esteem. When you need others' approval to feel good, then hearing criticism can be crushing. For these individuals, criticism is always taken as a personal attack on the ego rather than being looked at as feedback. When you suffer from low self-esteem, the opinions of others are valued higher than your own self-worth, the criticism is taken as truth, instead of mere opinion. When you have high self-esteem, you use these criticisms as helpful feedback and are able to listen and discard it as an untrue opinion. Give Up Easily Self-doubt is a substantial cause and symptom of low self-esteem. Nobody is an expert when they try something for the first time, and it requires perseverance and overcoming obstacles before you can succeed at anything. Someone with wavering esteem can become easily defeated when they fail the first time. While your confidence may feel shaky when you are first embarking on a new endeavor, with the appropriate level of self-esteem, you will be able to figure out how you can increase your confidence. When you have low self-esteem, the shaky confidence can become overwhelming, causing you to give up, protecting yourself from the potential consequences and discomfort that may come with failure.

Table of Contents Introduction Chapter 01 – The 1C: Confidence A Radical Self-Assessment Be Self-satisfied And You’ll Stagnate Realize The Need For Change The Openness To Change The Cost-benefit Analysis Of A Potential Change The Need To Change Vs. The Need To Control Change Can Either Be Self-induced Or Induced From The Outside Change Should Be For The Better Chapter 02 – The 2C: Competence Make Use Of Visualization To Achieve The Change You Want To Manifest Make A Thorough Assessment Of Your Assets And Talents Clarify Your Motive And Goal For Change Change Your Negative Mental Programming Create A Mental Map For Change Write Down Your Good And Bad Qualities Reward Yourself For Every Goal Achieved The Power Of Affirmation Chapter 03 – The 3C: Communication The Environment Is A Factor In Your Successful Change Make Sure Your Significant Others Know That You Want To Change Heightening Your Awareness Of The People Around You Surround Yourself With Optimistic People Optimistic People Can Challenge Us To Greater Achievements Climb On The Bandwagon Of Optimistic People Discovering Our Own Neurosis And Character Disorders Chapter 04 – The 4C: Cooperation The Usefulness Of Having A Support Group For Change Cooperation As A Catalyst For Change The Advantage Of Having A Common Goal And A Common Enemy Resolving Conflicts Listening To Criticisms Always Seek The Opinion Of Wise Men In Important Matters Take Criticisms Positively Chapter 05 – The 5C: Creation Action Is Better Than Inaction The Need For Self-discipline Divide Your Work into Parts So As Not To Be Overwhelmed By The Task Unfreezing Your Old Habits Never Give Up When Problems And Hurdles Arise Delaying Gratification For Future Satisfaction—A Si gn Of Maturity Refreezing Of New Knowledge Or New Habit Take The Responsibility For Change Wrapping Up Sample Content Preview Chapter 01 - The 1C: Confidence A Radical Self-Assessment There is no better way to start change in one’s being than to have a radical assessment of one’s personality. Yes, the best place to begin changes in one’s world is within oneself. The reason for this is the fact that the only organism in this world with which we have a total control is our very own self. If we still have the illusion that changing the outside world would radically change the inside, we are mistaken. Our very own self is the only platform of which we should have perfect control, and for this reason, the best possible change can only start from within. Now, if we want to change something in ourselves we should know which aspect of ourselves need change. Henceforth, we need a radical self-assessment. What I mean is that we should discover the areas in our life which need to be changed. There are different aspects and areas of our life. I have learned from my college psychology class that there are five important aspects or areas in our life. First, there is the physical aspect which includes our very own body, our instincts, and our bones and muscles. Second, there is the emotional aspect of our life which includes the different emotions which we daily experience and the motivations which prod us to action. Third, there is the intellectual aspect of our life which includes our intellectual skills, our IQ, our logical perspective, and all the mental processes we indulge in every day. Fourth, there is the social aspect of our life which includes our interactions with our fellow human beings, our works, and even our relationship with our significant others, relatives, and friends. Lastly, there is the spiritual aspect of our life which includes our belief system and our relationship with the higher beings. If we want to make some substantial changes in our life, we need to make a thorough assessment of these five aspects and find out which are the dark and grey areas which need to be changed and developed. Only then could we say that we’ve made a radical assessment of our personality if we were able to assess objectively these five aspects of our life. We can do this assessment of ourselves by listing down the different areas of our lives which are veering towards the positive and the negative sides. A realistic assessment of these five areas can give us an objective view of which areas of our life necessitate change. Be Self-satisfied And You’ll Stagnate It is very easy to be smugly indulged in our present existence to a point that we resist change, thinking that there is no need for change because the present is definitely comfortable and working well. Yet, this kind of attitude may lead to self-stagnation while the rest of the world is making progress in great strides. We all know what happens if we stagnate, we fail to adapt to the ever-changing situation and we will be left out. A perfect example in nature of stagnation is the stagnant pond with no exit points. The water becomes full of silt that there comes a point that the pond exudes a fetid stench. Thus, if we want to revitalize a pond, we need to improvise an exit canal which will allow the water to move out of it, and new water to come in allowing the rejuvenation of the pond. In the same way, our self is a like a pond which needs to be renewed and revitalized every once in a while. This need for change is very apparent not only in the grander scale of life but also in the minutiae of life. In the grander scale, a nation should improve its economy otherwise it will be left out by other economies. Likewise, superpowers should continue to improve their technologies so that other rising superpowers can never catch up with them in terms of weaponry. Empires sometimes implode from within because they become self-satisfied. In the smaller scale, a person should always recreate himself or herself by allowing some rooms for changes in one’s life, otherwise, one will risk the prospect of stagnation which is the most pathetic thing that could ever happen to a person. When we allow the cobwebs of pessimisms and lack of vitality to encroach into the very fibers of our being and we become resistant to change and development, we become defeated like a carcass left for the taking of the vultures. Realize The Need For Change Change and growth will not happen if a person is not open to change. How can the floods of innovation and creativity move into our very being if we shut off every exit point for change? Change can only happen if the seedbed for change is present. In psychology, there are developmental stages in our life which we got to undergo to achieve full maturity. Yet, there are instances wherein a person may get fixated at a certain stage, unable and unwilling to progress to the next stage. We call these disorders—psychological fixati ons. There are fully grown-up adults who are still so much fixated at the oral stage of their life. There are mothers who could never really let go of the image of their child as a kid and thus stunt the growth of their being and their child. There are also grown up adults who can’t seem to let go of their umbilical cord and still manifest strong dependency on their parents. Unless these guys realize their need for change and maturity, they will never be able to move to the higher stages of life. So the first demand for a positive change is to realize that there is a need for change. This realization may come to a person if he/she makes an objective assessment of the different areas of his/her own life. Moreover, sometimes, a good advice based on an observation of another person can make a person realize that there is a need for a change in a person’s life. This realization may also come to us by allowing ourselves to make a paradigm shift. If we try to see things from a different perspective, we may be able to see the dark and grey areas of our life, and we may be inspired to change them. This realization is the beginning of our growth and progress and definitely the onset of maturity and improvement. The Openness To Change There are many hurdles which we have to overcome to achieve a substantial change in our life. First, there is the inertia—the force which drags us to remain in our present situation and to avoid the prospect of change. This is a powerful force which is akin to the force of gravity. We need another sizeable amount of force to get out of this inertia. Second, there is the internal resistance such as our mental programs of fear and phobias, emotional baggage, and lack of self-confidence. These internal forces are powerful emotional and mental habits which prevent us from opening ourselves to the necessary changes in our life. To overcome these hurdles in our progress, we need to take the initial step, and that first step is the desire to alter our negative subconscious programs. Let me give you a good example: many among us fear the prospect of speaking in front of a crowd. I know a friend of mine who is by nature very eloquent, yet whenever he is asked to speak in front of a crowd, he would shrink back and recoil. I asked him why he is always naively tongue-tied every time he is asked to speak in front of an anonymous crowd. His answer is that he always hears an inner voice that says he will be embarrassed if he makes mistake. The prospect of embarrassment is holding him back from making progress in his rhetorical skill. This inner program, which was probably infused into his subconscious mind, early on in his life, has been so strong and capable of preventing him from harnessing his skill. It is so powerful enough that he is hampered from achieving something substantial using his God-given talent for public speaking. He could overcome this snag by developing a strong desire to debunk the old program in his subconscious mind and replacing it with a confident and self-assured belief in his very own self. We can become aware of these negative mental programs by listening to our self-talk. You may be wondering what self-talk is. It is not the kind of stuff which psychotic people do—talking to their very own selve s. Well, self-talk is the process of talking to oneself when one is alone. This talk may not be expressed audibly, and all of us do this kind of talk. It is an inner conversation between our subconscious mind and the conscious mind. In the case of the above-mentioned example, the guy has the natural flair for public speaking. Yet, there is an inner voice that tells him that he is not a good speaker. Though his conscious mind knows that he got the talent for public speaking, his subconscious mind argues with his conscious mind that he is not a good speaker. So every time he is about to climb the platform and render a thunderous speech, he would get involved in a self-talk wherein his subconscious mind would argue that he is indeed not a good speaker. He may be consciously aware of the fact that he has the making of a brilliant speaker, but his inner program is telling him he is not. This negative subconscious program may be so debilitating that many among us often shy away from success because of the instigation of these negative programs. So to debunk these negative programs and lay the ground for change, we need to prepare our inner self by being aware of these negative inner programs and slowly altering these negative programs with the opposite positive programs. Awareness of these negative programs can create an inner desire for change, and the creation of this inner desire for change can be the necessary impetus that can prod a person towards change. The Cost-benefit Analysis Of A Potential Change One way to convince oneself that there is a need for change is by doing a cost-benefit analysis of a potential change. There are payoffs if we open ourselves to change. If we understand the payoffs derivable from change, we can be encouraged to change, and we can unleash the impetus to open ourselves to change. People don’t usually change because they don’t realize what they could gain via change. Likewise, people are not moved to action if they don’t realize the possible rewards they could gain from change. It is very difficult to convince a group of people to accept a new concept if they don’t see the benefits they could derive from that concept. In the same way, it is difficult to opt for a change if one is not convinced of the benefits of change. For this reason, a person needs to make a cost-benefit analysis of a potential change to convince his/her mind of the need for change. By doing a cost-benefit analysis of the prospect of change, one will become confident enough to take the plunge required to manifest change in our life. This knowledge of payoffs will give us the necessary drive to face the challenge of change. In the eleventh hour, when the force of inertia is pulling us back to our cocoon of comfort, and when progress and development for the better seem to be hard to come by, we can reassure ourselves to go on thinking that the rewards of change are just around the corner. The Need To Change Vs. The Need To Control There is another factor which hinders us from realizing the needed change in our life. This factor is due to the conflict between our need to change and the need to be always in control. There are many reasons why people won’t accept a new concept or new technology. It is because they feel they are out of control with the new concept or technology. There is always that accompanying risk of losing control every time we want to change. To change an old habit, one has to let go of the old habit in favor of a new one. To become independent, one has to let go of one’s dependency on other people. But most of us are control-freaks and don’t want to get out of our comfort zones. Problem happens when parents seem to be incapable of letting go of the childhood perception of their children. Likewise, problem occurs whenever an adult person can’t seem to let go of his/her dependency on her parents. In order to grow, one needs to let go of the old ways to pave the way for novel ways. Growth entails the ability to risk losing control. If one can’t be at peace with the prospect of losing a bit of control, one often tends to avoid change. There are many instances in nature wherein we are taught that the old forms should be given up to pave the way for newer beautiful forms. The caterpillar has to let go of its squirming worm-form in order to achieve its lovely butterfly form. Even in the spiritual realm, “one has to die to oneself to be born to eternal life,” and this dying to oneself is the surest way to achieve spiritual nirvana according to the wise men such as Jesus and Buddha. If we don’t let go of the old form in favor of the novel form, we will never achieve substantial change. The concept of change always entails a certain loss of the old self in favor of a new self. Without understanding this risk, one will never become ready to open up to change. Change Can Either Be Self-induced Or Induced From The Outside We are always aware of the different changes happening around our very own world. This is because modern developments have imbued almost every aspect of our life. No one is so shielded from the onslaught of modern technological changes. Even the nurturing and development of human beings nowadays are conditioned by technology. The newer generations for example seem to live in the virtual world and seemed detached from the old idyllic way of life. In the span of hundred years, the human world has changed so much. Yet, with regards to personality development, there are still two basic kinds of changes which may take place: there is the changes instigated internally, and there are changes engendered externally. There are self-induced changes which trickle down to the external aspect of our life. There are also external changes which can condition and produce inner changes. When we were young, we were not aware of the different external changes in our life. We were not aware that the social milieu in which we were born have already acted on our personality, molding it in a certain way. Every significant external event in our youthful life has produced an inner change of which we may not be aware because it happened prior to our reaching adulthood. External conditions may leave a mark, a new program which may influence our life subconsciously in the future. External conditioning wrought about by the social milieu in which we find ourselves can definitely produce some marks and imprints on our personality. We have passively accepted these changes because we have not yet reached the necessary maturity to decide which external factor will influence us. Moreover, radical external changes may bring in abrupt changes in our lives. Say for instance, those who experienced the Holocaust of WWII came out of it scathed and bruised physically or emotionally.