In my father’s generation, a person was easily defined by their job. If you worked in a factory, you were a factory worker; if you worked at a bank, you were a banker. People generally stayed with companies until they could either retire or were laid off and rarely ever left a profession once they entered it.

That’s really not the case anymore. Careers have become jobs and there’s really nothing strange about people staying in one for only a few years before trying to find another that “fits” better. It’s very rare to find someone who actually likes what they do, rarer still to find one who loves it.

If you’ve been “job hopping” but are still looking for the greener grass on the other side of the fence, maybe it’s time to think outside your field.

I worked in the grocery industry (rising to mid-management) for fifteen years before I decided I really didn’t like stocking shelves. I set out to become a writer, not because I knew I could get rich doing it but because I enjoyed the process of writing. There’s nothing more exciting to me than wrapping words around an idea. If I can make a living doing that, even better!

That might sound kind of boring to you but freelance writing is just one of the thousands of ways to earn money online, work from home, and be your own boss. I’m sure, with a little effort, you could find not only something you could do successfully but something you’d also enjoy.

For me, the internet really made the process of finding a job I was passionate about so much easier. There are hundreds of thousands of people out there willing to pay me (and people like me) to put words in order. Still, in the beginning it was tough to win contracts. The money was spotty but I loved the work. I was good at it. Other people appreciated me for it and I got paid to do it!

One person who has really inspired me is James Martell. I met James a while ago through Elance (one of the websites I use to offer my services to potential clients.) Take a look at his video. He was unhappy working in construction in Canada (I would be too with the snow and the cold,) and gave it up to become his own boss. He learned about affiliate marketing from a friend of his and has spent years honing his craft. He loves what he does and his passion has driven him to become a recognized expert in his field, hosting training “BootCamps” and publishing training manuals since 2002. Because of his humble background, has a no-nonsense approach to things that is a welcome change from all of those high-pressure “life coaches” you see on TV and the internet. He’s just a regular guy who found something he loves to do and can do well (and earns a very comfortable salary doing it.)

I watched the video a while back and was just amazed by how laid back James’s workday is. He chats with his wife and kids, enjoys a morning trip to Tim Horton’s in his Shelby Cobra, plays with the dog for a bit, and then gets to work. When the day is done, he still has a smile on his face, one wider than when the day started.

Sound like something you’d like to learn?

Watch James’ video – there’s no better place to start – and be sure to subscribe to his popular newsletter to get a FREE copy of his all new Affiliate Marketing “Answer” Book — It’s a must read for anyone looking to cut through the hype and to succeed online with affiliate programs.

About the Author

Robert Palmer is a freelance writer and short fiction author who turned to the internet as a means of self expression and found a calling. Though he’s been publishing fiction for eight years, he stumbled upon copywriting by chance and saw the earning potential. He loves the idea of being his own boss, leaving the 9-5 world behind, and working in his own home-based business. He currently lives in Coastal Maine with his amazingly supportive wife Beverly and is currently well on his way to his goal.

You’ve been at this affiliate marketing thing for a while now haven’t you? You were all excited, you knew it could work, and you wanted it to work so badly. You’ve bought a program or two, perhaps a keyword tool and maybe you even belong to a membership site. But your sales are nonexistent or pathetic.

Do you know why most new affiliate marketers fail? Because they get to the point that you are right now and give up. Some of them didn’t have any business trying to start an internet marketing company because they thought it was just a way to make easy money fast. Others are like you. Hard workers but overwhelmed with information that simply can’t be sorted out in any fashion that actually produces results.

It’s a tough place to be and it can be very disheartening. If you’re single then all you have to worry about is yourself and you probably knew the odds when you jumped into this. If you have a family however, you probably feel like you’ve let them down even though you’ve given it your best.

What Happened to The Dream?

Let’s take a minute and see if we can figure out why you are where you are.

In the beginning you probably ran across an email offer that had a spiffy sales letter and maybe even a video pitching how easy it was to make money on “autopilot”. You didn’t bite right away. You hung out in some forums and got an idea from those places what might work and what to stay away from.

And then you found something that you jumped on. Maybe you were unfortunate enough to buy into a program that taught PPC. Shortly thereafter you figured out that PPC was one of the fastest ways to go broke so you tried something else. If you came across one of the more reputable programs that are based on article writing, then you probably struggled putting together articles and getting them posted to ten or more directories.

Still no sales. So you start building backlinks creating web 2.0 sites, you ping every article, you build a half dozen free blogs on blogger, you do all this stuff and still don’t get what you were looking for. You try using a squeeze page and when that doesn’t work you switch to redirects. Then you start to question the product you’re promoting, then the entire niche you have chosen.

Down but not out you change your plan and join a membership site thinking that will finally give you the blueprint for success. It makes perfect sense to hang out with successful marketers and see how they do it. But then you discover they are just as secretive about what they do as the greenest newbie is. You have access to an enormous amount of training material but you are at a loss to make sense of it all. It’s simply overwhelming.

And so here you are, wondering just what you have to do to make this affiliate marketing thing work.

What You Were Missing

Well let’s look at the two things you don’t have.

You don’t have a plan. We’re talking a legitimate plan for a business not step 1 through 5 for how to market an article. You have to know where you want to go and you have to know what you’re going to do to get there.

The other thing you didn’t have is a “boss”. Think about that for a moment. If you had a problem at your day job, if something didn’t go the way it was supposed to, who would you go to for help? Your boss right? And the reason you go to him or her is because he or she knows the business better than you if for no other reason than they’ve been in it longer and have more experience.

So who could you turn to when you had a question about affiliate marketing? Did you post your question in a forum and have some other newbie answer it for you? Were you ever able to talk to someone you knew had the experience to get help? How much easier would your journey have been if you had the confidence that what you were doing was going to work. How much more confidence would you have had if a proven marketer told you that you were on the right track?

Where You Can Get It

So you didn’t have a business plan and you didn’t have a “boss”.

What if you could get both? What if you could get a proven business “blueprint” and scheduled real time contact with a professional affiliate marketer to answer your questions? What if you could have a real, sustainable affiliate business in six months? What if you could say goodbye to your day job and hello to a viable home based business?

Enter James Martell

This guy is not your typical high hype internet guru. In fact his story will probably sound remarkably like yours.

James started in affiliate marketing over ten years ago and he started at the same place you did knowing little to nothing as to how it works but confidant that it he worked hard enough it would. He was fortunate to have a friend to serve as his “boss” to answer his questions and quickly built a part time venture into a successful internet business that makes him a healthy income and provides all the benefits of owning your own shop.

Want to know how?

Okay that was meant as a tease to get you to watch his video. It’s five minutes long and I’ll guarantee it will be the most informative five minute video you watch today. This is the solution, the blueprint that makes sense.

And the reason that it makes sense is because it treats your business as a total business not just focusing on one part. There is a proven business plan that gives you the confidence of knowing where you are going and just how you are going to get there.

And if you hit a roadblock along the way, you’ve got scheduled live interaction with the man himself. In short, you get everything you’ve been missing up to now.

If you don’t do anything else today to further your business, watching this video will make the day worthwhile. This could be your new beginning.

http://www.affiliatemarketersbootcamp.com/pages/tour.html

About the Author

Chris Smith made his last run in the rat race known as the Los Angeles commute five years ago when he left his position with an advertising agency and decided to make his living working from home. It wasn’t just a question if he could earn extra income on the Internet it was a question of making a full-time living at it. He knew he could make money online and today owns a number of niche sites that are powered almost exclusively through article marketing. Today he augments that website income by freelancing articles for other internet marketers. That is when he’s not playing golf.

If you’re like many people, you may think working from home would be a dream come true. Imagine having the flexibility to set your own hours, spend more time with your family, not to mention no more cubicle dwelling or office politics.  Working from home could not only give you the kind of freedom you want and deserve, but could totally transform your life.

The ironic thing is that for some, working from home is no longer just a “some day” dream.  That’s because in many cases, it’s a down right necessity. Chances are you’re very aware of the impact the current economic crisis has left in its wake. The unemployment rate skyrockets while the economy continues to nosedive.

People in dire straights are seeking solutions they may have never considered before. As a result, they’re looking to the Internet for additional or alternative streams of income. And what they are discovering is an unexpected gift in a bleak situation. Not only does the Internet provide countless income opportunities, but finally, they can realize their dream of running their own business from the comfort of home.

Due Diligence is Key

The downside to this is that many business opportunities you find on the Internet are complete scams. It’s sad, but true. Unfortunately, there are shysters out there who have no qualms about preying on the hopes, fears, and worries of people trying to get by in these uncertain times. They promise the moon and do a good job of convincing someone they’ve finally found the answer to a prayer. But the truth is many of these scammers have never made a dime with what they’re trying to sell you.

So Is There An Upside?

Fortunately, the answer is absolutely yes. There are plenty of honest, hard-working people, making a very good (in some instances, extremely lucrative) living with affiliate marketing.  Even better, the true affiliate marketing experts have made it possible for you to do it, too.   If you’re not familiar with affiliate marketing, here’s how it works in a nutshell.

Advertisers or merchants offer other people (known as “affiliates”) commissions for all sales generated by that affiliate. One reason affiliate marketing is so successful is because it doesn’t require a sophisticated skill set to get started. If you have basic computer skills, these days it’s quite simple to set up your own affiliate website and promote other merchants products or services. These merchants are thrilled for you to do so because it drives more traffic to their site and thus, more sales and money. As a thank you, you receive commissions for each sale you send their way.

How To Get Started

The number of niches (or topics) for affiliate marketing is practically unlimited.  If you can think of a product or service sold, more than likely there is a company out there offering an affiliate program for it. What to choose is up to you, but it’s best if you start with something you are interested in or is a current hot topic many people want information about.

For example, right now there is that an obesity epidemic sweeping the nation. Two out of three people in the United States alone are overweight. As you know, there is no lack of programs or plans available to help those who need a strategy and motivation to lose weight. Do you think these companies have an affiliate program to help get their message out there?  Of course, they do.

Perhaps someone close to you is struggling with being overweight or perhaps you would like to do something about unwanted pounds yourself. If so, here is a golden opportunity for you to not only shed weight and improve your health, but also work from home with your own affiliate business – and make good money as well.

The Medifast Diet – An Example of Affiliate Program

The Medifast Diet affiliate program is free to join and very simple to get started. All you have to do to start making money is refer visitors from your affiliate website to the Medifast site.  If those you referred make a purchase, you get paid.  More about how this works in just a moment.

But first, if you’re not familiar with the Medifast Diet program, it is an extremely effective meal replacement plan. You can feel confident you’re recommending a program that has been clinically studied and proven to work. As a matter fact, over 15,000 doctors have recommended the Medifast program to their patients. And if you need further proof of their solid business reputation, Forbes named Medifast, Inc. as one of America’s best 200 small companies.

So how do you refer people to the Medifast site? All you have to do is place an affiliate link to the Medifast webpage on your website. If someone makes a purchase through your link, Medifast will pay you 20% commission.

Saving Money – It’s On Everyone’s Mind These Days

That goes for your readers and more than likely, you, too.

When it comes to dropping pounds, whether through special meals, programs, or gym classes, the costs can add up pretty quickly. Medifast provides their affiliates with discount coupons to offer their readers. Once people searching for a way to lose weight find a Medifast affiliate’s website, they can take the coupons offered and then visit the Medifast official site to buy the product at a discount.

In order to become a successful affiliate of Medifast and earn money, the first step is to create a website that will rank high on Google for keywords such as “Medifast online coupons” or “does Medifast work”. These keywords are the phrases that someone looking for more information on Medifast would type into Google.

However, the competition for these keywords is pretty high. You have to know how to drive traffic to your website without breaking the bank bidding on expensive keywords. If this sounds complicated, you’re right… it can be. That’s why you need an expert in affiliate marketing to show you the ropes.

James Martell is such an expert. The fantastic news is he offers a rock solid affiliate marketing training program.  It’s called the Affiliate Marketers ‘SUPER BootCamp’ and provides all the coaching, training, and support you’ll need to help you get started with your successful at-home business.  This extensive program takes all the guesswork out of how to make money with affiliate programs.  So, if you’re interested in the weight loss niche and you’re serious about creating an additional or alternative income stream as an affiliate marketer, you owe it to yourself to listen to what James Martell has to say.

Matthew is a student of James Martell and a proud attendee of the Affiliate Marketers ‘SUPER BootCamp’. In his website he reviews best weight loss programs and diet plans and offers a coupon code for Nutrisystem diet.

Despite the current economic recession—or maybe because of it—this is a time of great opportunities for anyone thinking of starting a home-based business. The way people work and do business has changed incredibly in the last few years. The Internet and the Worldwide Web have created a new kind of marketplace. From your kitchen, den, or home office, you can reach out to potential buyers and clients not just in your neighborhood or city or state, but on the other side of the world.

As the world of e-commerce has taken off, traditional businesses have been changing too. Many of them are transitioning to new models of employment and moving much of their sales and marketing online. Almost every company is developing a web presence—it’s indispensable these days.

What this all means is that a lot of work that used to be done in offices and storefronts can now be done anywhere there is a computer with a decent internet connection—like your kitchen table. So how do you get started?

There are two major directions you can pursue to earn money online—you can sell something people want, or you can provide a service people need.

Personal services

Many e-commerce operations don’t maintain large offices, and even bricks-and-mortar businesses are streamlining by outsourcing some of their activities. Instead relying on salaried secretaries, administrative assistants, or in-house writing staff, with the associated cost of offices, equipment, supplies, etc., these companies rely instead on freelance, temporary, and contract employees for functions like making appointments and travel plans, keeping calendars, managing correspondence, performing data entry, graphic design, research, writing marketing plans–you name it.

Freelance employment bulletin boards and services make it possible for you to connect your skills in these areas with the people who need them. Some places to start include:

• Virtual assistant services: Alpine Access, Team Double Click, Virtual Office Temps, Elance, ODesk
• Writing, editing, research and design services: Elance, ODesk, GetaFreelancer

Many other sorts of services are available virtually as well. When people need help, information or advice, the first place they turn these days is likely to be not the library or the newspaper but the Internet. And the sites that provide these services need qualified people to provide answers. If you have professional training, educational credentials, or demonstrable technical expertise you can work as an expert advisor or even a teacher or tutor, paid by the minute, the hour, or the project:

• Advice services: LivePerson.com, JustAnswer.com
• Tutoring services: Tutor.com, TransWebTutors.com

Another interesting opportunity crosses the line between online and bricks-and-mortar business: “mystery shopper” assignments. Many large companies keep an eye on how their individual outlets are performing by paying people to be critical customers—you visit the store or restaurant and report back with detailed information about the service, the products, and other aspects of your experience. These opportunities are scattered all over the place geographically, but some centralized services can help you find the ones available in your area:

• Secret shopper services: Service Intelligence, Shoppers’ View, and Service Excellence Group.

Products

You may not realize how much stuff you own or can easily create that you could be selling for profit online. You’ve heard of eBay and Craigslist as places to buy and sell used items. There are actually quite a few online emporiums that will help you find buyers for those lightly- or never-used wedding presents, children’s clothes and toys, the shoes that never quite fit right, etc. Other marketplaces specialize in handmade goods and collectibles. Some of these services are free, and for others the membership fees and commissions are quite reasonable.

• Secondhand stuff: eBay, efleaa, Hoobly, or your local Craigslist
• Crafts and collectibles: Etsy, eBay, Silkfair

And there are new kinds of products and markets that exist only online. For many people photographs and books hardly exist on paper or in print anymore—both are increasingly digital. You can make money by buying eBooks for re-sale online (or writing your own) through your own free website builder such as WordPress. You can upload your own camera-work for sale through central photo warehouses to be used as stock images by all sorts of websites and businesses.

• Photographs: ShutterStock, Fotolia, and BigStockPhoto
• Ebooks: just google “ebook rights for sale.”

Put It All Together

One other pure Internet enterprise can offer you a chance to put many of these other earning opportunities together, and also develop additional income through ad revenue and affiliate marketing:

• Your own website: yournamehere.com

You don’t need any technical or web design experience to create a virtual storefront of your own. All you need is an easy website builder that will provide you with software, support, training, and step-by-step instructions. Your own website can point to all the services and products you are marketing elsewhere, as well as giving you a creative outlet for new ideas and products you may come up with. The possibilities for self-expression and earning are only limited by your imagination and ambition.

The more of these ideas you explore, the more ideas and opportunities you will discover.

Depending on how much time you want to devote and how much income you are seeking to build, some or even all of these projects could start you on your way to greater financial independence.

About the Author

Melanie Citron is a freelance author who wants the web to be open to everyone. She regularly researches and writes about great free or low cost resources to help all have a great presence on the web. See more of her writing at BuildMySiteforFree.com.

Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to work from home. Many people have in fact accomplish their dream of working from home. Typically when we think of the types of jobs we can do from home, accounting, web design, and a huge number of traditional jobs come to mind.

There is one job that most people would not think about as a work at home type of job jingle writing. If you are a musician with an ability to write music, why not consider doing it full time. With today’s technology, you can create your very own recording studio right in your home. Using a computer and digital piano or synthesizer workstation and a couple of other accessories, you can create a recording studio that can produce professional quality recordings.

The opportunities for jingle writers are boundless. Advertising agencies clamour for new talented writers to create music to compliment their advertising campaigns. If you enjoy playing the piano and especially creating music and have a talent for it, consider working from home creating jingles and small compositions for the advertising world.

The music business is competitive however but there is strong demand for creative musicians who have a unique and creative flair, understands business and can create jingles on tight deadlines. If you posses all of those qualities, you will eventually be in big demand by the corporate world. It’s all about creating credibility with the advertising world.

Because the music business is very competitive, you will need to differentiate yourself from your competitors. Solve the “wants” with a special flair in a unique way and you might be able to write your own ticket. This means you will have to treat your music as a business.

The problem with many musicians is that many rely on their talent to get them through but that can be a huge stumbling block. You will need to think of your music as a business that is unique from that of your competitors. That is called differentiating your business. You have to give a compelling reason why someone would buy from you. Once you have carefully crafted your marketing message and appeal, you are one step closer to jumping into the realm of jingle writing as a career.

Having the right equipment is also important for you jingle writing business. Most advertising agencies require that you own your own equipment. A piano keyboard and recording equipment is essential equipment to producing your own music. You will be responsible for the final product — your jingle. So if you have a digital piano or synthesizer from famous and popular manufacturers like favorite Yamaha keyboards, Roland Keyboards or Korg Keyboards, then you’re well under your way.

In addition to having a keyboard from the major brands you also need a computer with MIDI software to record, edit and enhance your recordings with special effects. To capture your creations you will need a computer which can link to your piano keyboard. Most professional keyboards provide a MIDI USB connection at the back of the keyboard which makes it easy to connect to a computer. With the right software, you can record and edit your music straight from your computer. Working from home as a jingle writer can be an exciting career if you have the drive and talent.

So consider becoming a jingle writer and become your own boss.

I recently read an article about a woman in Australia who was nominated the 2008 Australian of the year award. Apparently she was a mother working at home running a business and making an income, while still fulfilling her duties as a mother. They called her a Virtual Assistant.

I asked myself, what defines a Virtual Assistant and as I kept reading I quickly got the concept.

The idea of a Virtual Assistant is the same premise as an office aid or office assistant in the real world, but online. An office assistant files paperwork, schedules appointments, and does anything he or she can to make their boss happy.

A Virtual Assistant provides things for online companies that is necessary for them to make money (i.e. data entry, word processing, etc.) anything that can take a load off the company owner and make the overall goal something that is completed by a number of people rather than one.

To make money online, you are primarily either offering a paid service, something used to entertain or educated, or working for the people who offer paid services or the people who entertain or educate.

If you think about the number of things that go into those things, it becomes quite clear why Virtual Assistants are necessary. They do the small work that if left undone could sink a company. It is work that someone has to do and when added up can completely make or break a company. This position is often left in the dark by people who don’t understand it but if you take a closer look it is quite the job to have.

Why is Working at Home Convenient?

Working at home is convenient for a number of reasons; if you have kids, you can stay with them while still providing an income or if you cannot afford to drive a car to and from work it saves money there. The position of a Virtual Assistant opens up jobs for many people around the world and is really a job that is beneficial to both the worker and the employer.

The Virtual Assistant provides structure and usability to a company by giving them the extra push of another person to do all the odds and ends before they are left skimped because they are considered “small” by the company owner. When you take a look under a magnifying glass that little extra effort put into them from another person doing those makes a world of difference, in the end.

I was reading online about a woman named Janice Byer. She was working at home online and doing both virtual assistance and web design.  Apparently after doing the job for ten years (beginning in 1988) Janice was recognized for her efforts and earned the Home Based Business of the Year award. My congratulations go out to this woman who proved yet again that it is not only a mans world; and woman, man, and anyone can go far with a little hard work, preparation, motivation, and discipline.

Starting from scratch this woman built herself up from the dust starting a job perhaps just to make an income in a convenient way now being acknowledged for her tremendous progress and definite success.

How Did Janice Succeed?

Janice succeeded in a very unconventional but truly effective way. She gained her success by helping others succeed focusing primarily on her customers and clients happiness with her service she put herself out there to assist other entrepreneurs and business owners on their roads to success and that nobility and selflessness is being celebrated today as the seed to her success.

To think that by helping someone else, and also helping yourself you can build an empire of success and productivity. Today, I’m sure Janice is happy that by providing her services to others and working hard for customer satisfaction she has risen to the top and that she probably wouldn’t want it any other way.

These characteristics seen in Janice, I believe should be the fundamentals that make a good in-home worker; Dedication, discipline, effort, and hard work. I believe that if everyone were to possess these qualities then we would prosper as a body of people, as a society. Kudos to Janice and her success story because she truly impacted the way I view my work ethic and allows me to take pride in being a “Virtual Assistant” as it gives me a chance to help others in the process of helping myself. That same customer appreciation that Janice possessed is the true way of making it to the top of this industry, at least in my opinion. And I hope that after people read her story, it hits home with them and begins a revolution of people trying to be better for themselves and for others alike. Maybe if we all took such pride in our work, we could define a whole new meaning to the word success.