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Affiliate Marketing is simply the selling of products or services for others for an agreed upon commission. The concept is ridiculously simple; but, the successful practice of the task can try the patience of a saint. I cannot begin to count the number of times I have run to my computer to check my stats for the day, only to find I have had no sales, nobody signed up for my mailing list and I only had a handful of visitors to my website. Then I checked my email and waded through the offers from other affiliate marketers that claimed to have made thousands of dollars that day and if I would only sign up, I could have enjoyed the same success. I have to admit I have succumbed to such messages several times, especially when I am having a particularly bad day.

If that statement sounds at all like you; you may need to re-think your measure of affiliate marketing success. Let's take a little test to put it into perspective. I am always scouring the internet for what other marketers are doing. What are the hot programs; what is and what isn't working for others? Unfortunately or fortunately; depending on how you look at it, the major message I see time and again is the number of people that are failing and considering quitting or moving on to a different program.

I am a firm believer that internet marketing levels the playing field for everyone in the world. The internet offers untold opportunities to make a considerable income from the comfort of your home. Nowhere in the previous statement did I see the word easy! Somehow, somewhere, the concept of working from home has been equated with easy; easy, this business is not. If it was easy, everyone would be rich and there wouldn't be anyone left in the work force, that's not a pretty picture either. So if you're not making millions are you still successful? I think, yes, you are successful! You have taken the initiative to change your situation and done something to move toward a goal. So if I'm not making any sales, how can you think I'm successful? Well, let's take a little test and examine that, shall we? Ready, pencils up.

First and foremost, if something isn't working, it simply isn't working; it doesn't mean you have failed if you try something and it doesn't work. You need to find out what didn't work and fix that and move on from there. We know for sure there are real people that have made and continue to make a lot of money from home; that's a fact, so; we know for sure that affiliate marketing works. Somewhere between zero dollars per day and, let's say for arguments sake, five thousand dollars per day, there is a figure you believe would make you successful in affiliate marketing. Once you decide on that figure, you have to ask yourself "what are you willing to do to make that amount of money?"

Now, put your pencil on the table in front of your keyboard, right in the middle. Now, move it to the right side of the keyboard; good. Now move it to the left side of the keyboard; good. We have just demonstrated success. There is a message here, trust me! This little test shows that you and only you dictate your future. The past is past and cannot be changed. Once you moved the pencil to the right or left, you could not go back to the middle again because it was in the past. The present is here right now and it is a result of what you did in the past. At present the pencil is on the left side of your keyboard.

In the future, you will decide when and where the pencil moves. If decide to move the pencil (start a business) you will have successfully moved the pencil (started a business). If you move that pencil through your monitor screen, you will have successfully moved the pencil; but had an outcome that was not so desirable. The same goes for your business. If you get zero sales you may think you have failed; when actually you only had an unfavorable outcome.

Put your successes and failures into perspective. I'm not Polly Anna enough to say never, ever quit; what I am saying though, is put these things in their proper perspective. If after careful evaluation you decide a program is not for you; then it's just not for you. If you know deep down in your gut that the program you are a part of is good and it is something you can see yourself doing; then stick with it.

You have already demonstrated success in taking the action required to get a business going. When something produces an undesirable outcome make an adjustment and try again. Soon, you will be taking small successful steps with the desired outcome, as you get better, the big steps will get bigger and the sales will come. OK, pencils down! You passed.