I would say that the hardest thing about getting started is the time versus passion factor.  I quickly realized that this is never going to work unless I am totally and completely committed to making it work.

What drives you? The need to succeed? Money? fame? Or just that your name is in black and white, findable in cyberspace – objective proof one day that you existed?  Whatever it is, make sure its a good reason to you, and that the reason is big enough to get you out of bed charging for action every morning and brimming with ideas.

With that being said, the biggest and best advice I can give you…. This is the FIRST step to success…. DON’T quit your day-job!

This may sound contrary to a lot of advice, and there are certainly those that will tell you the old adages like: “desperate times call for desperate measures”, “when you have no option but to succeed, you will” and “when you are hungry enough, you will find a way to support yourself”.  While in many instances these can be sage pieces of advice, there is a stark reality: There is a HUGE learning curve and it will take TIME and many mistakes until you master earning what you have been earning.

When speaking to all the people who have “made it” (I use quotations because even those that are successful don’t feel like they are where they should or could be – you see, its about the drive!), every single one of them took time to get where they are going. Many of them took a year, sometimes more before they made their first dollar online.

Of course there are those that have made six figures in a matter of months (it can be done), and those that have lost the same amount in a fraction of the time. I am a believer that e-commerce is today’s marketplace, and that there is enough business to go around for all who are motivated enough to go out and get it.

I am really fortunate that I have a fantastic job where I work from home, so my schedule is somewhat flexible.  This does not mean that because I am free to goof off because I work from home. What it means is that I am now working harder and longer than I ever have, without the inconvenience of the commute.

After Unseminar5, for a few days I was all over the place – spending a few minutes on my job, spending time on the internet researching new possibilities, back to my job, etc.  Unproductive for both my job and my new business. For those of you that are thinking: “I work at an office so I would never do that”, remember those words when you start surfing the net when your colleagues/supervisors are not looking, or dreaming about your new venture when you should be doing something your boss gave you. Being at work is not the same as working.

What I found has moved me forward was setting a rigid schedule for myself.  Now, I am a little (lot) of an extremist, and to do this I have foregone most of my social life (except for twitter but that is a whole other blog) so this plan may not work for you in terms of hours.  But it is essential for you to set a schedule that you can work with and sustain on a long-term basis.

I get up 2 hours earlier than I used to. I dedicate those 2 hours to working on setting up things like blogs, planning future projects, researching niche markets, ebooks, 12seconds videos and twittering (theres that twitter-word again!).  I will get into each of these topics later. I have set up a reward system for myself: If I work for 4 solid hours at my day-job, then I will allow myself one full hour at lunch to play again (and by play I mean plan and work on my new internet marketing business).  I am very strict with myself.  I will not take a break until I have put in those four hours, and if they are not consecutive and it is late in the day, I cut my “play” time by a 1/2 hour.  After play time, I get to go back to work at my day-job for another 4 hours.  At 5 or 6 pm, I take a quick break, maybe go for a swim, and then work on my new projects until about 11pm.

Please do not “put in time” with your day-job just to spend the time.  It is triply important for you to succeed in your day-job right now for 2 really huge reasons:

1) It pays the bills – you can’t think clearly and be creative when you are terrified of where the next rent check will come from. Sales/business propositions offered in need and lack are often lacking in substance and can scare away prospects and partnerships. Live life from a position of power.

2) Success – success is a mindset, and breeds success. If you feel productive and successful in one thing, you will be successful and productive in everything. Make sure that you do well at whatever it is you are currently doing and are proud of your success – it will show and multiply all results!

Of course, we all have life that intrudes in what we want to do, so make allowances in your plans for things like bathing the kids and putting them to bed, time with the significant other, going to the gym and grocery shopping. Set yourself a timetable with Outlook Calendar reminders, and try to stick as closely to your schedule as possible.

Everyone who has succeeded has said that in the beginning, they worked hard. I am willing to put that time in, and stick to a pretty tough schedule.  I am happy to do it, because the thing that drives me is strong enough to keep me there.  In fact the drive is so strong, that the hard work and learning are my current reward. What is yours?

You can follow my life at www.twitter.com/simoneblum