Could you please help me find a path?

[Paul96]

I'm not asking for a holding-hand guide here. I only want to get a fresh start with the right mindset and some glimpse of the path I should walk.

Back 12 years ago, I was doing a venture with a combination of content marketing and SEO in a high competition niche. The revenue model was affiliating. It was doing great until the ranking of the websites was gone.

I knew the right thing to do, but I still couldn't fix it. When your website is affected by Google's automated algorithm, you're doomed. It's hard to recover your old identity back when you have a criminal record. No matter how hard you tried, even with the correct method.

The worst choice in my life was when I decided to try to recover their ranking. I denied the idea of creating a new website in another niche that is easier to rank. It's because that niche paid well, but it's highly competitive and almost impossible to get a new site ranking even for a year unless you have super link quality like CNN linked to your website.

I spend all available resources for 3 years, but none of them work. I broke, and now I'm working under a small company helping with their website local SEO. While it could make a living and pay the debt, it generates only 5% of what my websites used to make. I used to have freedom and time, but now I haven't. The works made me feel like dying because of rotten from the inside.

I was trying to do side hustles like selling grilled pork in the flea market on weekends, trying drop shipping, started a blog. None of them succeed.

Of course, I tried to go the same model with the new websites in 2017 in the same niche. While the inner pages got their ranking but the homepage never got its rank with the main keyword. Therefore they are making only a fraction of money. Although the hard to rank the new domain compared to the aged in this particular niche is understandable. Still, this case made me doubt my SEO ability.

My questions.

1. I'm not sure if I should continue learning SEO or acquire other skills that solve people's problems and give them results instead.
2. Apart from SEO, what is the skill I should learn to gain traction again?

I want to give my mom a better life like I used to give her before, and the current regular job will never cut it. I want to start on my own again.

I'm feeling doubt, overwhelmed with fears, and don't know where to begin now. I don't think my current SEO skills could give the client the specified results if I get the SEO job as a freelancer. That's why I asked about the other skills I should learn.

Thank you.

 

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[Kevin88660]

Personally I don’t think from the angle of skill and trade. Find out what people are dying to pay for. Then figure out the skills needed later. Because there are a lot of values you can create but people don’t care enough to pay for. These are “value traps” that can give false hope for business creation.

There is a poem that Is written many years ago. It goes like that “Men are horny, Women love beauty, Kids fear Stupidity and Old People fear death….and everyone is very interested to make money”.

Basically this sums up what are hot needs to focus on b2c needs and why everything else could fail as a business when the need is not hot enough.

 

[arturcookiejar]

One of the most craving questions on this forum is WHAT EXACTLY TO DO? What niche to dive in? What business to make? My wife doesn't have a unique soup recipe. Ha-ha

Sadly, there's no EXACT answer in @MJ DeMarco books. Because he knows that almost every niche is the same. It will be hard anyways. And there are no guarantees.

I'm in active search & test mode for 4 months.

Look, Paul, agency gurus like Alex Berman or DONVESH on Twitter suggest picking one industry from below. Then pick one service from below.

Top Industries in the US
Pharma
Internet Software
Biotechnology
Banking
IT Services
Logistics
Consumer Products
Human Recourses
Energy
Financial Services
Construction
Advertising

Common Agency Solution (pick one)
FB Ads
YT Ads
newsletter Copywriting
Lead generation (90% of agencies here right now)
Content Creation
Website Design
Mobile App Development
Branding
SEO (seems you're burned out here)
Social Media Creation / Growth
Software Development
Growth Hacking
Ghostwriting
User Experience
Logo Design
Cybersecurity
Telemarketing
Graphic Design

Looks like a bloody ocean. Because it is.

Hope it will help you find an idea to make the next step.

 

[Dan the Man]

I'm not asking for a holding-hand guide here. I only want to get a fresh start with the right mindset and some glimpse of the path I should walk.

Back 12 years ago, I was doing a venture with a combination of content marketing and SEO in a high competition niche. The revenue model was affiliating. It was doing great until the ranking of the websites was gone.

I knew the right thing to do, but I still couldn't fix it. When your website is affected by Google's automated algorithm, you're doomed. It's hard to recover your old identity back when you have a criminal record. No matter how hard you tried, even with the correct method.

The worst choice in my life was when I decided to try to recover their ranking. I denied the idea of creating a new website in another niche that is easier to rank. It's because that niche paid well, but it's highly competitive and almost impossible to get a new site ranking even for a year unless you have super link quality like CNN linked to your website.

I spend all available resources for 3 years, but none of them work. I broke, and now I'm working under a small company helping with their website local SEO. While it could make a living and pay the debt, it generates only 5% of what my websites used to make. I used to have freedom and time, but now I haven't. The works made me feel like dying because of rotten from the inside.

I was trying to do side hustles like selling grilled pork in the flea market on weekends, trying drop shipping, started a blog. None of them succeed.

Of course, I tried to go the same model with the new websites in 2017 in the same niche. While the inner pages got their ranking but the homepage never got its rank with the main keyword. Therefore they are making only a fraction of money. Although the hard to rank the new domain compared to the aged in this particular niche is understandable. Still, this case made me doubt my SEO ability.

My questions.

1. I'm not sure if I should continue learning SEO or acquire other skills that solve people's problems and give them results instead.
2. Apart from SEO, what is the skill I should learn to gain traction again?

I want to give my mom a better life like I used to give her before, and the current regular job will never cut it. I want to start on my own again.

I'm feeling doubt, overwhelmed with fears, and don't know where to begin now. I don't think my current SEO skills could give the client the specified results if I get the SEO job as a freelancer. That's why I asked about the other skills I should learn.

Thank you.

Paul96, Hi. Take a breath. This is a long post but worth it.

Picture this: A guy, any guy, (not you) walks in the front door of a commercial bakery and announces to anyone within earshot: "I WANT TO BAKE THE BEST CAKE YOU'VE EVER SEEN! ALL MY CAKES HAVE BEEN DISAPPOINTING. I USE INGREDIENTS BUT SOMETIMES I CAN'T GET SOME OF THEM AND THEN...AND THEN...AND THEN...IT'S NOT MY FAULT! I REALLY WANT TO BAKE A CAKE!!!" Someone calls security and they escort the poor distraught person away from the building.

Understand that most of us are here because we have "seen the light" that MJ DeMarco has so graciously shared with us. Like you, most of my entrepreneur ventures did not come to much fruition. The reason for this is there is a recipe for success and I didn't know it. I was just guessing and not very good at it. I went looking for help, just like you. Found it, right here. It provided me great value. It can for you too.

One of the most important aspects to keep in mind is to provide value. In return you receive "value vouchers" aka money. Kevin88660 was trying to communicate to you about adding correct value. See? Members want to help but unless you understand the basics of "why," it won't do you much good. If I tell you that you need to envision a Productocracy, do you understand what that is? If I mention the CENTS model, ring a bell? Does Act, Assess, Adjust click for you or leave you wondering what I'm babbling about?

Since this is your first post, you're probably are completely clueless as to what I am talking about, even though it may sound good. You may have stumbled on this site looking for help. Good for you. You have come to a wealth of knowledge and experience. Seriously, many of the members here are excellent entrepreneurs, some of the best I've ever encountered and they want to help. It's an amazing Forum to be sure!

However, virtually no-one is going to give you a serious hand because you don't know anything about why we are here in the first place. You need a mental foundation, which nearly all of us have, but there isn't enough time to bring you up to speed on a Forum such as this one. You need to come here with an understanding of the basics of the Fastlane mindset. First, get and read The Millionaire Fastlane . While reading that book, which will give you a toehold into the Unscripted mindset, if it all makes sense to you, order Unscripted and The Great Rat Race Escape . Read. Learn. Digest. Come back. Ask questions. We will still be here.

Once you have read at least TMF , then, you can have intelligent conversations with other members of the Forum because we know and you know we are all on the same page. In other words, from the earlier example, baking school basics. I needed them, you need them, we (well.... almost) all needed them.

If you have the determination PLUS the correct understanding of how the Unscripted mindset works, and can and will take action, you'll be worlds ahead on your next entrepreneurial adventure, then YOU may be providing assistance to the new FLF members and telling us about your success. I'm glad you joined us. Go get some basic understanding with The Millionaire Fastlane and Unscripted . It will do you a world of good. It did for me and virtually everyone else on this Forum.

End of encouraging rant.

 

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