I’ve been feeling a little sentimental since the launch of Firepow.
Thinking back to how it all started… how I’ve come to be where I am today.
I thought I’d recount to you a couple of stories today, to both comfort and inspire you.
These are some parts of my online business story that I don’t usually talk about. These are some of the ones I wouldn’t write about in sales letters… the ones that make me look stupid 
Like I mentioned in my last post, I see people too often giving up on web business because they don’t get the results they think they should be getting, at the time they think they should be getting them.
I started thinking the other day about all the ways that I’ve failed online – the stuff ups that I’ve made – the times I’ve wasted money, missed opportunities, complete F ups that when I look back on them I can’t believe I did…
So I thought I’d share some of them with you today…
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The first thing I tried to do online was sell a niche ebook – underachievers style!
I picked the niche “Origami” … got a book written, wrote a sales letter, the works.
I actually made some money on it, but the conversions were low – like sub 1%.
But for some reason, I was CONVINCED that if I could rewrite this sales letter to convert at a higher rate, I’d be rich.
I spent about 10 months rewriting that damn sales letter! I must have done it 20 times, AND without split testing it properly – just making a rough guess at whether it was converting well…
OH, and I also spent 2k on a copywriting course to try and make this happen.
What an IDIOT! But yes I did that. I lost money on the project, gave up on it, and started looking for something else.
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Failure 2: My Spam Blogging Foray…
The next method I came across was making the now affectionately called “splogs”
I used this small piece of software to crank out spam blogs. I’d spend about 6 hours a day after I came home from my day job, crankin these sites out like mad…
And it actually worked… pretty soon I was doin about $100 a day from Adsense!
Man, I thought I was the KING – 18 years old, $700 a week passive income – that sh$% was TOO easy!
…
Until I woke one morning to find that my splogs had been promptly delisted and my adsense income had dropped to 0!
Depite this wake up call, I persisted with my splogging for several months after that and seeing the same results…
Yep, what an IDIOT! But I did that, wasted a lot of time – came away with a small profit but wasted a whoole lot of time and experienced a whole lot of frustration.
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Failure 3:
During and after failure 2, I started getting desperate and looking for other ways to make money.
I made some money again, thought I was the king again, before realizing what I was doing was in violation of some agreements I’d made.
It was promptly brought to my attention, I got into big trouble and had to return all that money.
Massive failure, lost contacts over it, and lost what was for me at the time, a lot of money.
That’s when I had the unfortunate KFC lunch incident where my bank card was declined. A real low in my life.
Again, what an IDIOT…
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At this low point, I was actually taking ARTICLE WRITING jobs for $6 an article to make money…
Yep, true story!
It was not long after this that I made some realizations and things started to pick up for me…
But the failures didn’t stop there!
Even right up until today with Firepow I continue to fail, almost daily…
1. I made the enormous mistake of not split testing properly on my niche marketing on crack launch – AND the mistake of not building a list from the start – lost who knows how many thousands there.
2. Last year I spent a few thousand dollars trying to rank a niche site for a keyword that when I look back at now, was never going to bring me quality traffic – few grand lost there.
3. We spent a few grand developing a certain aspect of Firepow that now I wish we hadn’t – losses there too.
4. Even just last week week we failed to back up a massive site we had, and lost (fortunately we’ve found a way to rectify it now) thousands of pages of content and a years worth of Elysia’s work.
And you know what?
This isn’t even HALF the failures I’ve had – I just can’t handle repeating any more to you because it’s making me sad!
But you know what??
That’s how it is!!
That’s how business is, and that’s how life is!
Today I don’t feel a shred of dissent for any one of these failures, because they have brought me to exactly where I am today… They’ve provided lessons I wouldn’t have learned any other way.
So what’s today look like?
Right now, we have a company that employs 12 staff from 6 different countries.
As I mentioned in the Firepow letter, I’ve taken 9 vacations in the last year and had the privilege of meeting incredible people from all walks of life.
Oh and I didn’t mention it yet but: Elysia and I will be moving to Canada next year to keep connecting with other business owners, and keep pushing this company forward. If all goes according to plan, we hope to have a multimillion dollar operation within the next two years.
But perhaps best of all, is that we’re helping so many people each day to move that little bit closer to having a story like this of their own.
The bottom line of all this?
Is keep failing.
Keep failing, but never lose the resolve that no matter WHAT you have to do, no matter how many times you have to fail, you’re gonna be one of the ones who makes it!
To quote a hero of mine Tony Robbins, you’ll succeed when your success is a MUST. When you will refuse with every fiber of your being anything less than the success you desire – that’s when you’ll succeed.
All the best to you.
Andrew
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Thanks for baring your heart. I went through similar paths like you. But am glad that I have developed a new profit system as well that allowed me to quit my job within 2 years.
Thanks Andrew for sharing this with us. This requires courage as well as real concern for others. By sharing this you have inspired us to learn lessons from each failure and move ahead without falling a prey to depression and inaction. Your latest launch FirePow is the best system I have used so far. And this really proves that you have learnt valuable lessons from all your experiences and better still found a way to translate them into action in such a way that can help a lot many others.
Now others can learn from your mistakes and benefit from your super system.
Thanks for the motivation. I hope to read more about your success stories too!
Well I have my own list of failures which I may well blog about some day! It’s really quite encouraging to hear of the problems you’ve faced andrew
I guess the only real failure is giving up.
Alex
Many thanks for sharing your story Andrew!
It’s very useful to know especially for newbies.
Marian
Andrew,
Great post – with awesome advice. Thanks for taking the time to share. Hope you visit us here in Japan on one of your upcoming vacations!
Sincerely,
James B. Allen
Hi Andrew,
Thank you for sharing your experiences.
I’ve been doing much the same, only much worse: win a few, lose a lot. For over 40 years!
But I’m not quitting until “they” pay me or bury me.
Best wishes,
Oran
Great moral to the story Andrew.
I think the key to it all is not to see them as failures – rather experience, which you can learn from and make an even better fist of it the next time!
Thanks for sharing Andrew. I am new at all of this, and steadily learning.
Thanks!
I’ve got some similar problem when start my own business.
Almost all mistakes made us more stronger!
Nice post, Andrew, inspiring too.
Just about everyone who succeeds goes through a phase (or a series of phases) of not getting what they want – at the time they want it.
Sticking it through is indeed the ‘secret’ recipe to success. That, and determining to succeed, no matter what.
Thanks for sharing that powerful lesson.
All success
Dr.Mani
Great story. My journey as an internet marketer has been somewhat similar. I’ve had lots of small successes but my income only started to take off when I started to build email lists in different niches.
Andrew! My heart goes out to you for displaying “Courage”. The kind of courage that brushes aside the failures with this simple (although sometimes difficult) acceptance of profound nature. I am sure you will agree, that the trick is not to go it alone, to get involved, be prepared and informed. By the real key to it all is “Persistence”.
thanks Andrew for sharing your feelings with us. I personally think there are NO failures in life. There are just a bunch of different experiences we go through. If I don´t put a label like good or bad on my experiences, life seems so much easier and more joyful. Who says we have to look at it a certain way.
Why not make up my own?
just my 2 cents here,
Nirusan
Work At Home Ideas
Thanks for sharing. Cliche indeed, but the lessons we learn when we fail are the ones that help us succeed. More success to you, cheers!
What an IDIOT? Come on Andrew, you’re being too hard on yourself Mate.
I am sure we all have been through that but not many have the balls to post about it. Thanks for sharing.
I like these kinds of posts/stories. =)
I remember Mike F’s also shared his beginnings in a video and it certainly gave me some “See, you don’t have to be perfect!” moments, just like as I read this post. hehe.
John
Thanks for teh nice post, Andrew. Good to see that even the more successful guys fail!
I’ve failed a lot but every failure I make brings me closer to the target. Instead of giving up I have just been moving on everytime. Some times it feels like swimming in mud and the progress is slow while other times the progress is faster. Sometimes I even have som set backs but I guess it is a part of the game….
BTW: Love FirePow
If you are ever in Norway, Andrew, drop by for a drink! he he…
Andrew,
Thanks for sharing your story with us. You’re one of the few people online whom I consider trustworthy. I am encouraged by your transparency and the success that lies ahead for you as well as NMOCer’s and FirePow users like myself.
All the Best,
Paul
Hi Andrew, Thank you very much for sharing your business failures with us we cn learn something from it , as even most success ful people have failed so many times before they succeed.
Best wishes,
Kevin perera
http://www.diamondhits.com
http://www.theperfectdating.com
Andrew:
Truly inspiring!
However, in my estimation, I can’t possibly see how anything above was actually a failure…
If you didn’t learn anything from your mistakes then that’s what I would call a major pity… But, the lessons you learn’t were probably worth ten times the cost of the admission!
Sometimes it’s best to fail fast because each successive failure moves you ever so much closer to real success.
You’ve done well my friend…. Keep on keeping on!
JimL.
yes, nice story and I’m sure it was written in all sincerity, unfortunately the average person reads so many of these “I came from hard times and now I’m successful” stories that it’s hard for some people not to be cynical. (don’t even get me started on photoshopped earning reports online) I wish the internet marketing arena would clean up it’s act because it’s now comparable to the used car salesman drivel. No disrespect Mr Hansen, it’s just tiring for beginners trying to learn online, when there’s lots of hype and little practical teaching (techniques that work today, not 5 yrs ago)
Thanks Andrew, it’s good to know that there will be life in internet marketing after failures. I know you have put me on the right track, I just feel a breakthrough coming soon. All the best to you.
Stan
Sensitive, intuitive blah, blah, blah there are lessons to be learnt at every level. Every day is another day to fall on your face you are where you are today because you continued to get back up.
Wow, in reading these comments I see that the Internet Marketing coummunity has indeed grew a much thicker skin. Every one of us has to take this into account. With my Free Guide I tried to confront this head on and Help a person build a business for free! My first comment back was that he wanted to affiliate with the book because he thought it was going for $97! NO its totally free. Its for the “NOT MAKING ANY MIONEY ONLINE NICHE” These comments are correct. We have all been taken advantage of so much on the net that we are numb to it. I am really glad this post was started to open up some eyes and minds to how we need to approach our marketing from now on. Get my Ebook…its free and I think It will make a FINANCIAL difference in your life…..One day when im rich…I’ll give my sob story then. ha.
Thanks for sharing this information. It is really very encouraging and gives us a sort of inspiration.
Hi Andrew! I’ve been online since Nov.1977!
Haven’t made much money!But now know what I have to do.
My problem, was, that everything had to be perfect..Also, I was very shy to get my name out there, what if I looked silly or foolish?
Well, I am stronger now and know a lot . I’m learning to focus. I will not give up!
Welcome to Canada!
Cheers, Eleanor Campbell
Andrew, you son-of -a- gun! It’s takes quite a bit for me to become emotional, but as I was reading your post ,I felt what you were going though. Not the exact methods you were describing but the same feelings of despair and sense of unworthiness.
i have spent more money and time on Garbage that my Wife of many years said…Enough is Enough! your just to damn old to learn this stuff!
Well my friend…I didn’t listen and kept plugging away at it. I felt deep in my heart that I will succeed!
It as only been in the last few months that although I am far from a decent income that I am seeing the light at the end of the tunnel…(and this time it’s not the frickin train!)
I do need to point out that I have become hardened to sales letters, by that I mean if the first words out of their mouth is: ” You too can make millions in the next …..without any work” I click delete and unsubscribe…. My point is Andrew you are one of the few that actually care about others success!
Thanks again for the post and I apologize for my rambling! Just couldn’t help myself…LOL
Your Friend,
PaPa
Hi Andrews.
Like others here I see everything as a lesson/step to the next phase. I have been watching from the sidelines since 1990s, trying to decide which offer was best to jump on, what worked with my style, studying the gurus, etc. At least you took ACTION and today the bruises are minimal. I have to say that thanks to FirePow, I am encouraged to finally achieve a dream and all my little steps are seeing fruition. Thanks for sharing and for finishing the creation of FirePow. Much success to you and all posters.
Absoutely fantastic advice Andrew. Failure is truly one of the most important parts of real success. Thanks for the reminder!
Hey Guys,
Thanks so much for the kind words. Means so much to know that sitting here typing at a screen could connect with so many of you and make something flicker in your mind, good or bad
Though I can’t accept the the compliments of courage… it’s weird but I kinda feel a sense of pride in airing these failures… Of course there was no pride at the time, but now looking back its like… cool… this is all the stuff I’ve “conquered” on my journey. Ya know?
Again thanks so much for all of your support – If the post inspired was inspiring to you, your comments have been even more inspiring to me.
Andrew
When you sum it all up – it’s the mistakes that make us human. Thanks for sharing that, Andrew – I needed that! I don’t feel so bad in taking so long to be where I need to be. Those of us in “trying hard” land need to hear those stories more often – could be a good ebook in it?
Hi Andrew, I’m a big fan of yours as you might have noticed on the WF and my blog. I have said many times that your Niche Marketing on Crack ebook was the first one that actually earned me money in affiliate marketing.
TomG.
HI Andrew,
It takes some courage to admit one’s failing stories. You are the legend, and it certainly inspires me in terms of having a right attitude in front of failure.
Clarence
So inspirational!
We tend to think succesful marketers got things right all the time. We didn’t know that they make blunders too.
Not realizing this fact is the reason why we chickened out whenever we made mistakes. We sabotaged our ownself by telling “you’re a failure and can never make it”.
Our fighting power then diminishes gradually until we say…I GIVE UP!
So thanks for your help.I’ll just keep going and going…
Thanks for sharing that Andrew. It’s not easy to be open about our own failures, but in spite of the words of that “cynical commenter” I think that behind every successful man or woman there is a story of failures which once overcame and used as learning experiences have been part of the foundation of the success of that person.
BTW, I’m working on promoting Firepow, it looks like a great software and membership package. Keep the good work!
Thanks for the post, it really helps to know that Internet Marketing is not always the instant success story that most of the ‘gooroos’ would have you believe. It gives hope to those of us who are still slaving away at the IM game and not really feeling whether we are getting anywhere.
Without failures there is no successes. You can’t have a high point without having a low point that makes that high point… well high.
If your life went just as planned with never a bump you would go mad or die of boredom.
Learn from your mistakes and grow. The lower the low point the better feel when you conquer it!