Crawl before you Walk

My number one basic blog tip is that you have to crawl before you walk in the Internet world of making money online. It might seem like it is extremely easy when you are on the outside looking in, however when you are actually doing the job and making money it is not so easy.

Any true Internet marketer or blogger will tell you that it takes hard work to become a success on the Internet and you have to have exceptional talent to go straight to the top. I am not saying that it is not possible, but I am saying that its rare.

When I tell someone how I make money online from blogging a common reply is “Oh is that all you do?” Yes that is all I do! How can I possibly go into the real details of what I do? There are so many aspects involved in making money online that to truly explain I would need a few hours.

Image credit candrews

Starting at your level

When starting a business online you will need to rely on either your knowledge or your wallet. If you are not willing to spend money then you will be relying on your knowledge entirely. If you have limited knowledge then you need to start at a level that you understand.

I usually tell people that it is easy to build a WordPress website and many of us here know that this is true. However many people contact me when building their first website complaining about how difficult it is. The actual problem is never building the initial website, but what they have tried to add to it later.

For example a guy was trying to build an e-commerce website using WordPress for his first ever website. He did not have any money to spend and was struggling to get things working. He had built the WordPress website easily but ran into problems when he tried to mix e-commerce options with it.

How do I help someone like this? He has no background experience with websites, has not tried to crawl before walking, and basically he has jumped into the deep end. This is exactly why I tell people to “crawl before you walk” as this guy is now stuck at a point where he has to learn something difficult or quit. It is very hard to tell someone to turn back. Do you think he would listen?

Lower your expectations

You cannot build a mansion overnight and you cannot build a multi-million-dollar blogging legacy overnight. Of course again, it is possible for some people but others seem to be aiming too high and need to get back to reality. Ask any millionaire how they started out and they will tell you a story about hard work and constant rejection. Many, if not all use the “crawl before you walk” method.

If you do not have thousands of dollars to invest in your business, then you need to lower your expectations and do what you can. You also need to be happy with what you are achieving and not compare yourself to other Internet entrepreneurs.

I do not want to dampen anyone's spirits here, but if you aim to achieve goals within your reach then you will feel like you are getting somewhere. If you set yourself a goal that is beyond your scope you could be setting yourself up for a lot of stress as your expectations are too high.

Taking baby steps

My theory is that you should learn a new skill and use it, see if it works for you, if it does then use it again. If the new skill does not improve your business then move on and learn another skill. True success online can only come with experience and knowledge. It is the same with life, relationships, and everything around us. Of course you can learn from other people's experiences but you must be sure that they are true in the first place.

Taking baby steps when learning to make money online or blogging will make you an expert in the end. People will respect you because they have seen your rise to fame and endeavor to follow your steps. If you can crawl before you walk, the journey will longer but the rewards will be that much sweeter.

I like to build my websites with baby steps, laying the foundations for a solid business. Here is a free PDF report on how I build a website from scratch.

Using building blocks to crawl before you walk

When I say building blocks I mean knowledge and assets that you have accumulated on the Internet. Knowledge is probably the number one asset if you want to make money online. Another asset could be your websites or your content that you have posted to other websites. These are all building blocks that you should be using to improve your business. If you have been in business for a long time you will have many building blocks and the pile will get bigger.

Building your empire will be easier if you crawl before you walk because you will know which blocks go where. You will find the tools you need to create guaranteed website success and you'll be able to build a solid business that will be hard for others to knock down.

Learning to run

We all know that you have to crawl before you walk, but when you have mastered this skill the next thing is learning to run. Once you have got your online business flowing you cannot simply keep walking or crawling as the Internet is constantly moving fast. You at least have to learn how to move your business along at a slow jog.

How to crawl before you walk?

People study to be something for most of their lives but expect to learn how to earn a living from blogging overnight. Everyone is in such a hurry to make money now, but if you crawl before you walk, the money will come in good time. In fact, I believe that if you learn your craft correctly in the first place you will be rewarded even more in the long run.

I would highly suggest that all newbies should build a simple website and start basic promotion on it. Don't give up your day job just yet. When you see how it really works something will click and you will suddenly feel confident to move on.

Although I suggest you crawl before you walk, just make sure you do not get stuck crawling for too long.

Do you agree that if you crawl before you walk in the blogging world you can almost guarantee success?