‘Identity shifting’ is a term that has seen a rise in popularity over the years, especially in the self-help niche.

So what does this term really mean?

It basically means that you’ll be adopting new beliefs, behaviors, interests, or even personality traits that may differ from your current identity – while staying true to your authentic self.

The goal is to become a brand new you.

The focus is no longer on ‘fixing yourself’… because if all you see are things to fix, the universe in all its wisdom will keep giving you more things to fix.

This may sound woo-woo… but…

• Have you ever found yourself in this situation?

No matter what you do, no matter how many self-help books you read, no matter how many motivational videos you watch – sooner or later, you always find yourself back at square one.

If you’re trying to lose weight, you may do so successfully for a month… and suddenly, in one week, you let your diet and training slide and you gain back whatever weight you lost.

Or maybe you’re trying to save up and build a nest egg… and once again, something happens to make you spend all your savings. Maybe the car breaks down, or some new bill arrives… and you find yourself back where to you started.

This process may have been repeating over and over for years or even decades, and you have no idea why!!!

• It’s your identity!

We are all born with a clean slate. But as you get older, parents or adults or society, instill beliefs in you which are nothing more than opinions and ideas.

If you were given lots of food as a kid and you gained weight, you parents may have said that you have ‘fat genes’… and you grow up believing this.

You look around and most of your family members are overweight because nary a thought is given to what goes in their mouths.

Everything around you is reinforcing your beliefs… which were not even yours to begin with. Now, you identify as a person who becomes fat easily.

But is this even true?

When you become an overweight adult years later because of the mental conditioning you had when you were young, you may try to do better and lose the excess pounds.

Here’s the worst part of it all – your best efforts will yield results. That’s an excellent thing! You have put in the work and you see the results.

But guess what?

Your identity rears its ugly head to put things back to ‘normal’.

You can’t have an identity of someone with ‘fat genes’ and lose weight, can you?

No way!

So you start binge eating and skip a few workouts… and you know that you shouldn’t be doing what you’re doing, but here you are doing it.

And you can’t stop yourself – because you are fighting your identity, and it’ll almost always win.

You gain back the weight you’ve lost and you feel disappointed and miserable and you tell yourself, “I guess I do have fat genes.”

This self-fulfilling prophecy is nothing more than false beliefs and trauma that’s rooted inside you which are causing chaos in your life. The key to solving this problem is not so much about changing your habits but shifting your identity.

The weight loss example above applies to most other scenarios like your money habits (you’re always broke) … or your relationship habits (you keep picking the wrong partners) … or even other habits such as alcohol, smoking, etc.

Now let’s see how you can elevate yourself above these issues!

• Release the trauma!

The first step will be to practice deep breathing techniques. Inhale deeply with your nose so that your belly (diaphragm) rises… then exhale smoothly. Practice this style of breathing throughout the day whenever you can.

With deep breathing, your body (and cells) will gradually release the trauma that’s trapped inside you. This may sound strange, but do try it.

Breath is life… and deep breathing is highly beneficial to your body. It’ll prevent anxiety attacks, depression, and myriad of other negative thinking issues.

The next step will be look back on your past and see all the different ways you were hurt, mocked, laughed at and so on.

You’ll remember times when you felt embarrassed, stupid, etc. These painful memories are traumatic and you’ll be amazed to find that they’re directly or indirected connected to the problems that you may be having in life now.

For example, if you grew up in a family where money was an issue and your parents were always fighting over it… when you’re older, money will probably be an issue for you too.

It’s in your identity that being broke and constantly worrying about money is normal. This is your default setting.

Once you’ve analyzed yourself, you may wish to write down these memories so you can analyze them.

Now it’s important to understand that all your beliefs until now are NOT yours. You got them from other people. Whatever you think you know is a reflection of their opinions… and your experiences which are reflections of their opinions.

If all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail.

• To he who hath, more is given

The cruel irony here is that the universe or law of attraction – call it whatever you want – will give you more of what you believe.

So if you thought that it was normal to have money problems, you’ll always find yourself in debt, or you may lose your job… or never seem to be able to pay off all your bills without more bills finding their way to you.

Your identity is made up of beliefs and the universe is giving you exactly what you believe in. It has to, otherwise you’d go insane.

Since you need to make sense of your reality – what you think/believe must come to pass.

But now you know better.

Understand that all your beliefs and even your identity was unconsciously created when you were young.

During your formative years, you were like a piece of clay… and you were shaped by the beliefs that was foisted on you by people with their own issues. Now you’re hard, baked in the oven of life, and it seems like you can’t change things.

But of course you can… anytime you want to.

It’s time to break this clay pot and build a new one. The days of fixing and reshaping are over. We’re building a new identity from scratch now.

• The Art of Identity Shifting

First things first, ask yourself what it is you truly want. It’s imperative that you have a clear picture.

From here, you need to write down in present tense who the new you is. For example, if your name is Sarah, this is what you’d write…

“Who is Sarah?

She’s a happy, go-getter who eats clean and is in shape. She’s great at yoga and looks after her health.

Sarah works for herself and has a 5-figure monthly income from her writing business which she does at home.

She is focused and meditates daily. Sarah loves traveling and takes a trip to a new country every 4 months…”

What you’re doing here is describing the new you. The new you is NOT in the future. It’s in the present but on a parallel track to your current life.

If you’re always forward projecting, what you want will always be out of reach.

By looking at your new identity and saying what the new you is like, you’re not creating any internal resistance where you feel like you’re lying to yourself.

What you’ve written down is what the new you is, if only your instilled beliefs had been positive when you were young.

You’re not there yet, but you’re easing yourself into it.

Once this is done, it’s time for the last step…

• Being present

Now that you know how the ‘new you’ lives, it’s crucial that you remind yourself of this DAILY… multiple times a day.

So you’ll not only be doing the breathing techniques, but you’ll live like you’re the new you.

There’s nothing to fix because there’s NOTHING wrong with your new identity. You’re starting off with a clean slate.

For example, the new identity will be focused on being healthy… NOT weight loss.

When faced with food temptations, you’ll bring yourself to the present, and think, “Hmm… new me wouldn’t eat this cookie!” – and so you don’t.

Because it’s a new, different you who does what’s right.

The question to always ask when faced with a temptation/decision would be, “What would new me do?”

In this situation, you’d probably eat some cold fruit or just not eat the junk food.

It’s inevitable to face some resistance because the old identity is still in you… but it will NEVER be as difficult as it was before.

You’re not in a fight with the old you because you’re constantly present and living as the new you.

There’s nothing wrong with you and there’s nothing to fix because you’ve shifted your identity.

You may notice that procrastination disappears because your new identity will do what he/she needs to do to win. That’s what winners do.

Do you get it?

With the breathing techniques, knowing what you want, and most importantly, living as the new person that you want to be – you will bring whatever you desire to reality.

Life will be ‘lighter,’ fun and an exciting adventure. When you take 2 steps forward, you’ll keep going forward instead of taking 3 steps back.

Your actions will multiply and you’ll make up for lost time.

Results will come faster than you can imagine. The universe is on your side now, and it must give you what you believe in.

This is the real power of identity shifting.

Don’t fix a faulty identity. Just shift to a new one.

New Azon Affiliate AI Compliance Tips

When artificial intelligence (AI) first crashed onto the Internet marketing scene, entrepreneurs were thrilled with the new technology and how easy it was then going to be to handle their content creation needs.

But one thing that no one was sure about was how businesses like Amazon and Google would view the content of those using AI. On Kindle, if you are self publishing, they make you list the extent of your use of AI.

Google seems to be okay with the use of AI assuming the content is high quality, relevant and accurate. But now some things are tightening up when it comes to using AI content, one of which is the Amazon Associates program.

Amazon’s New AI Compliance for Associates

Recently, they published and sent out a notice to all of their affiliates that stated: “Program Content and Special Links should not be used in connection with generative AI.”

That statement alone is not even fully clarified, with some believing it means you can’t have a chatbot recommending products and others believing it means if you used AI to create the content, don’t put your Amazon links in it.

Amazon is not known for being very forthcoming with detailed explanations. They publish their rules and you’re expected to abide by them, even if there’s confusion. People often have their account shut down with no way to appeal – and they’ve closed their forum for affiliates, so you can’t even actively discuss it with company moderators or fellow associates.

Even if you ask AI if that statement means you shouldn’t be using AI for Amazon affiliate content, it agrees that it is “advisable to avoid using AI-generated content directly in your Amazon promotions.”

Now that you’re of their disdain for AI-generated content when it comes to affiliate marketing, you need to be proactive in minimizing or eliminating the possibility that your account will be shut down, and I’m going to show you how to do that.

This doesn’t mean you can never use AI for your affiliate business. In fact, there’s a great way to use it – even as an Amazon Associate! But first, we have to take corrective measures.

Replace Any Amazon Reviews You’ve Created with AI Immediately

Don’t panic, but don’t waste time fixing what they have announced they won’t tolerate – because this rule went into effect on March 1^st, so your account could be jeopardized at any moment.

The unfortunate thing about this situation is that AI has been out and widely used for about a year now (if not longer) so many of you reading this may have an enormous amount of content to sort through.

If you’re unsure of what’s AI and what you created yourself, simply unpublish this content as you go through it. Return it to a state of draft. You don’t have to delete everything you (or AI) has done.

You just want to be able to deal with it without having it dangling on the Internet waiting for Amazon to find it and take action against you. The corrective measures can be done in three ways.

First, you can simply go through and rewrite each product review from scratch (and I don’t mean rewrite the words of AI with synonyms). Second, you can replace the AI content with private label rights (PLR) content, which is allowed if you’re in a hurry to get the content back up.

The third method is to put everything in a draft state and one by one, go through and apply the method I teach in the section called “Using AI Without Detection for Amazon Affiliate Reviews.”

Understand Where and How You Can Still Use AI for Amazon Promotions

Amazon has always been persnickety about their rules. You have to have the disclaimer that you’re an affiliate, you can’t put links inside emails or PDF files, etc. So this is kind of the same concept.

You can still use AI to warm up your audience with an email that sends them to your blog for the original written review. AWeber, for example, has no problem with AI – and it even has an AI built into it.

So you could whip up a teaser email and include a link to the blog post so subscribers will go see what the hot, new gadget is that you’re recommending. Then, on your blog, which is 100% uniquely written by you, you’ll have your Amazon links.

Social media works the same. You can create content for Facebook, TikTok, YouTube, and elsewhere using AI and drive that traffic to your blog for the review post, which is 100% in compliance with Amazon Associates’ TOS.

In the next section, I’m not only going to show you how you can use AI for your Amazon reviews, but also how you can use it on social media accounts and still be abiding by the rules they’ve set forth.

Using AI Without Detection for Amazon Affiliate Reviews

This is where the strategic compliance comes into play. You never want to try to trick Amazon or bend the rules because they will smack you down hard in an instant and you’ll lose your account.

Instead, play by the rules but still use AI to help you get those reviews off the ground and published faster than if you had to do everything yourself.

When you think about the creation of a review, what all goes into your process? For many, they have to think of a problem for their niche demographic, then figure out what solutions (Amazon products) might be a good fit.

Next, they have to consider what the consumer will think is important when shopping for that type of solution (is it price, durability, reviews?). They then have to compare all of the products to see what might be the best option, and figure out how to present it as the best one to meet the needs of the consumer.

If they’re publishing it for their blog, then the goal is to have it rank well and convert nicely. If it’s going to be on social media, they need it to be discovered by the right audience.

The content has to be well-crafted and comprehensive if it’s going to be competitive. And if you’re publishing it somewhere on social media where images, video or audio is used, that requires more steps.

All of this, AI can assist you with. As long as your mind is the one doing the final work in creating the content, you’ll be safe. But you have to be careful in how you’re using it for these steps.

Consumer analysis is something AI can easily do for you that Amazon won’t realize. For example, you might go to AI and prompt something like this: “I have a blog where I publish reviews for products for dog owners. Give me 10 problem areas dog owners have where they purchase products from Amazon as a solution.”

AI can tell you to focus on chewing and teething, potty training, leash pulling, anxiety and stress, flea and tick control, grooming, destructive behavior, weight management, joint health, and traveling with pets.

It also tells you what kinds of products they buy on Amazon – like joint pain supplements for dogs, orthopedic beds, dog puzzle feeders, dog brushes and dremels, chew toys and more.

So let’s say you get that list in mere seconds (your consumer analysis partially complete using AI). Now, you can ask AI: “Brainstorm 10 different titles and slants I can write about on my blog addressing the destructive behavior concept where I can promote Amazon products to address this need.”

Now here’s where you have to be careful. AI is going to instantly deliver your ideas for you with titles. Don’t use their title! For example, they might have: “Taming the Chew Monster: Solutions for Destructive Chewing Habits in Dogs.”

That is a cute title and you’ll be tempted to use it as is. But don’t do it unless you want to risk your account. Instead, think of other ways you can title it, such as: “Banish Your Dog’s Destructive Chewing Behavior!”

You really want some ideas for wording (like destructive chewing) and if you spot other random words in the other options, you can use those in a mix and match scenario. Words like chaos, calm, combat, etc., can be used in the title – just not in the way they used it.

Next, ask AI to help you outline what should go in the review. Word it like this: “I want the review article to be heavy of valuable tips as well as introduce the most effective product solutions for destructive chewing habits. With the concerns of the consumer in mind, tell me what needs to be in my comprehensive outline with the goal to rank this content high in Google SERPs and convert into sales.”

AI will give you an outline that includes the valuable ideas you can write about plus tell you where to weave in your Amazon product recommendations, like this:

III. Tips for Managing Destructive Chewing

          A. Provide Ample Exercise and Mental Stimulation

                     1. Importance of physical and mental exercise for preventing boredom

2. Suggestions for engaging activities like walks, puzzle toys, and interactive games

          B. Establish Clear Boundaries and Consistent Training

                     1. Importance of setting rules and enforcing them consistently

2. Tips for positive reinforcement training and redirecting inappropriate chewing behavior

            C. Create a Safe Environment

                     1. Strategies for puppy-proofing the home and removing tempting objects

                     2. Importance of providing appropriate chew toys and rotating them regularly

When using AI for outlining purposes, be sure to not use their exact titles – and you might even want to rearrange the order of things as long as it doesn’t mess it up logically.

For example, setting up a puppy-proofed environment can easily come before the sections about creating boundaries and being consistent with training or providing exercise and mental stimulation.

For writing, you’re going to do all of that yourself (initially). So if AI tells you to talk about the “importance of physical and mental exercise for preventing boredom” do it – but don’t say it verbatim, like, “It’s important to provide physical and mental exercise for preventing boredom.”

Instead, word it in your own way, like this: “Dogs are going to get bored. It’s inevitable. To prevent problems with destructive chewing, have a routine in place that stimulates them both physically and emotionally. You want to wear them out so they exhaust their pent up energy and give them fun things to do so they don’t have to find them.”

That’s easy enough! Let AI guide you so that your content creation process goes quickly, but don’t let it speak for you. Next, you can have AI help with product recommendations and research.

For example, you might prompt it like this: “Give me information that proves puzzle toys are beneficial in helping curb destructive behaviors in dogs.” ChatGPT can tell you about positive association, enrichment and environment and other solid details you can share with your readers.

When you Prompt Google’s Gemini with this, it gives you links to articles – which Google loves (resources). You don’t want to link to someone else’s page who is selling products.

Find a resource in the list like an article from the AKC (American Kennel Club) that discusses giving your dog a chew toy in a dog-proofed room whenever you’re out and about and can’t keep an eye on it.

With product research, you can have AI help you warn consumers about what not to buy. For example, prompt it like this: “When it comes to chew toys, what are some products that are not advisable for dogs – those that we should warn them against?”

AI can tell you not to get rawhide chews (and why), small or hard plastic toys, toys with squeakers or eyes that can be swallowed, and so on. You’ll want to include these in your review because it gives you a way to contrast those with the good recommendations you want to give in your review.

You can prompt AI like this: “What features should consumers be looking for as a good chew toy to prevent destructive behavior?” AI will give you a list, like durability, and it’ll explain what that means – made from strong, non-toxic material like nylon, being the appropriate size, and it clarifies what that means.

Read it, rearrange it, write from scratch in your own words. Ask AI if there is anything else you need to consider, too. It will give you more insight, like considering the breed of your animal – a chihuahua unable to destroy a toy as easily as a pitbull, for example.

After you write your content, you can ask AI to help you in these ways, too: “Review the attached article and suggest anything that needs to be improved, without rewriting it yourself. Just give me advice.”

It might spot something you need to include that you haven’t covered, or something you need to expand on that you briefly glossed over. Then, prompt it like this: “If my goal is to get this article ranked at the top of Google SERPs, what metadata should I use and what other SEO tips should I apply to make that happen?”

You can even have AI come up with a competitive analysis detailing what someone else is doing to rank in those top spots for your keywords and help you plan how to dominate over them.                                 

Next, you have the ability to use AI for your social media posts. Again, don’t use it to create things from scratch. Instead, have it guide you. You might prompt: “What's a good idea for an infographic I can publish about destructive dog behaviors where it would link back to my review post recommending chew toys? Give me the details for it.”

Don’t have AI create it and then publish it on your social media pointing to Amazon. Instead, listen to its advice. If it gives you a title, alter it to something new. It will tell you things like the type of image to choose (a dog chewing on a shoe), a title (change this), and a lit of bulletpoints to create on the infographic.

Now if you’re linking this image to your blog, then by all means have AI create it in full if you want to. Amazon can’t do anything about that. But don’t link from that image (or video or audio) straight to Amazon.

Amazon can give you scripts and storyboard ideas for video content for YouTube or TikTok that you can tweak so that it’s unique and then drive traffic to Amazon. Or, use it as is and send them to your blog first, where the content is all your writing.

AI can also help you with social content optimization. Juts as it can advise you about SEO (search engine optimization) for your blog post, it can help you get your content discovered on platforms by telling you what hashtags to use, giving you content design advise about things like thumbnails, and even advise you of the time and day to post.

Using Safe PLR in Conjunction with AI for Amazon Promos

Private label rights doesn’t have restrictions against it when it comes to Amazon. You can find tons of articles in your niche and even product reviews blatantly promoting something on Amazon.

You can feed this into AI and ask it how to improve upon it, how to make it different from others who have published it as is, how to optimize it, or even how to repurpose it into something new – like a video or image, for example.

One way to use AI for PLR content is to take an ordinary PLR article, like an article titled: “10 Survival Skills You Need for Bugging Out in the Wilderness” and run it through AI and prompt it like this: “Based on this article, tell me what Amazon products my readers would need.”

It can advise you about things for building shelters, fire starting, and so on. Then ask it what consumers need to know before shopping for one, and apply all of that insight to your review while using the PLR intact – but adding in the review elements you write yourself. Amazon isn’t trying to foil anyone’s goal of earning money as an affiliate. But they’re trying to protect consumers from AI users who are sloppy and who might not use good oversight in publishing exactly what AI suggests, even though it admits it can provide misleading, wrong information to consumers

Letting Go Of The Need To Control Everything And Finding Harmony is a Balancing Act

As chaotic as modern life can be, you can find balance. It's difficult to get it right, especially when you're trying to embrace life's spontaneity while also creating an efficient routine to maximize your time and opportunities.

There's a big part of it that requires control, the problem is that the desire for too much control can stress you out and make you incredibly anxious. This need for too much control steeps you into a state of perpetual tension. Here, we talk about the balancing act and the art of letting go.

Control is an Illusion

Control is an illusion, it's the idea that you can dictate all of the outcomes throughout your life. There are, of course, certain things you can control. If you're getting a degree, license, or qualification in something, you can control the level of study you put in for the testing process. That's in your hands.

Not everything is that simple, though, and the reality is most things in life are inherently unpredictable. So, the more you cling to this illusion of control, the more stressed out you become and the more frustrated and disappointed you feel when things don't go your way. Accept that there are limits to what you can control.

Embrace the Uncertainty

Some of the beauty of life lies in its unpredictability, some of the greatest moments of your life probably came from nowhere. Embrace that uncertainty, it might be a shift in your perspective, but it gives you the freedom to navigate new situations with more grace and patience. Don't resist change, don't avoid unpredictability, lean in, and recognize there's a chance for growth.

Cultivate Mindfulness

Mindfulness is a useful tool and a powerful one in your journey to let go and find balance. By cultivating a level of mindfulness, you are detaching yourself from the desperate need to control everything. Focus on the present, find peace, and enjoy clarity in the here and now instead of getting caught up in the past or obsessing about the future.

Identify Your Areas of Control

As important as it is to understand how limited your control is, it's just as important to recognize your areas of control. When you understand what you can control, you can focus your efforts and energy on those areas to maximize that control. It also gives you a deep sense of empowerment, without the added burden of managing something that's unmanageable.

The Process

While some people think letting go is showing weakness, the reality is it's recognition that you are human. Sometimes, you have to surrender to the process and let life do what it's going to do without trying to control every single detail. You can't micromanage, so don't bother trying!

The Joy of Imperfection

There are two big issues that plague us – the need for control and perfectionism and they go hand-in-hand. When you embrace imperfection, you're letting go of control – you're letting go of the idea that everything needs to be flawless and freeing yourself from the unrealistic expectations society places on you. Find joy in those imperfections, that's where you can flourish.

Embrace Self-Compassion

Self-compassion is the final piece of the puzzle because you can't let go and find balance without it. You need to recognize that it's okay that you don't have it all figured out, that it's okay if you're still making mistakes – it's all part of the human experience. `Treat yourself with kindness in those moments of uncertainty.

Final Thoughts

There is a delicate balancing act between leaning into life and letting go of control. You have to make a conscious effort to loosen your grip on those reins, but in doing so, you will finally be able to find harmony in life! The biggest secret out there is you'll find harmony in this moment, which means letting go and enjoying every moment for what it is.

For some families where personalities clash and opinions are strong, arguments are a part of everyday life.

There are pros and cons to arguing.

On the plus side, you can develop a talent for debate which improves logical reasoning skills and hones communication.

In fact, some would say that arguments are healthy, but fights cause stress and dysfunction. If you are experiencing the latter, then it's time to reassess your arguing style and explore ways members of your family can express themselves more fully and positively.

When Does an Argument Become a Fight

Personal attacks

Let's say, for example, you and your partner don't agree on whether to open the windows or turn the air conditioner on. This is one of the many small differences of opinion that typically crops up for anyone living under the same roof as other human beings. Asking your spouse, "Are you insane? Who turns on the A/C in October?" is definitely not the ideal way to get your point across. Even worse if you're bellowing, shouting, scowling and storming about.

Name calling

Try to avoid insulting the person with whom you do not agree. Instead, keep calm and put the problem in perspective. Perhaps one person who feels overheated can retreat to a room with an air conditioner. Another option would be to run the A/C for a half hour just to cool things off, then let some fresh air in. Problem solving does not have to be ugly business. In fact, it feels nice when each side gives a little in the name of happiness for all.

The blame game

Even if you accuse rather than insult i.e. "Well I guess the house is hot because you were too busy taking a nap to turn the A/C on," blaming and shaming will quickly escalate the argument into something that has nothing to do with actually solving the problem of cooling the house off.

Bringing up issues from the past

The best way to keep peace in the family is to let the past be the past. Saying something like "Last year the electric bills were huge thanks to you leaving the A/C on all the time," may in fact be true. Or, maybe not. Does anyone really know just how high the electric bills are with A/C on compared to off? "Every time I open the windows, you go around shutting them!" is another generalization that can result in high peeve factor and building resentment.

Avoiding fights before they start

Seek a compromise for clashing priorities

Running air conditioners when it's hot out does not break the bank for most people. The disagreement comes in when one person prioritizes something that the other does not think is important. Perhaps it's worth having a frank discussion to know where other parties are coming from, and coming to a compromise about what's important.

Don't say things that you wouldn't want said to you

The golden rule is so important to remember when dealing with family members. If you don't care to be called an idiot, lazy, foolish, mean, or crazy, then don't say it to your loved ones. Also, people become what we say they are. If you tell your wife she's crazy every day, it may well drive her mad, which will drive you crazy. Now you live in a family of nutcases. That doesn't feel so good!

Be flexible

Inflexible personalities tend to clash with each other. Ask yourself if you're good at compromise. This is a high level skill that, once developed, will increase your emotional intelligence which will help you navigate through tough life situations more effectively.

Don't have a separate "at home" and "with outsiders" personality

Instead, treat everyone with equal respect and fairness. If you tend to be driven by emotional impulses, find out what's causing that and fix it. Maybe you're not asserting yourself as well as you could be, then becoming angry when it seems like people are passing over your opinion or ignoring your wishes.

Figure out what's really stuck in your craw

Maybe you eat poorly and don't exercise enough. Everyone carries around a certain amount of tension. Tension builds inside of our bodies as we deal with the challenges of daily life. If we don't release this tension, it can make us sick and unhappy. So make it a priority to release your inner tension by exercising regularly. Exercise improves mood. People who are in good moods argue less about dumb things.

Timing is everything

Bed time is a lousy time to pick a fight. So is a car trip when everyone is trapped in a small space with no place to escape. There probably is no ideal time to fight, and no one really enjoys it (or do they?) but it's worth choosing when and where to hash out disagreements. The times when people are supposed to be having the most fun are, ironically, often the place when family members choose to duke out their disagreements.

Ask yourself, is being right worth making everyone else around you upset

You can always turn to a friend to privately express frustration with family members or living companions. Find ways to express yourself pleasantly, without raising your voice. Take other people's opinions seriously, and listen when they speak.

Know when to let it go

You've probably heard of the book, Don't Sweat the Small Stuff." This advice works so well when applied to getting along with family members. Even if you were freezing and your boyfriend turned up the A/C, will this matter in the grand scheme of things?

The best way to stop fights is to find the humor in everyday situations, disagreements included. Sometimes, all it takes to stop fighting is to just… stop… fighting.

The health and wellness industry is constantly evolving, driven by a growing global awareness of the importance of maintaining a healthy lifestyle.

In 2024, several key trends are shaping the industry, reflecting a holistic approach to well-being that goes beyond traditional fitness and nutrition. This report outlines the top health and wellness trends for 2024, highlighting emerging practices and technologies that are gaining popularity among consumers.

Let's take one of the health and wellness trends mentioned in the report - "Personalized Nutrition and Functional Foods" - and exemplify how it is manifesting in 2024:

Example: Personalized Nutrition and Functional Foods

Scenario: In 2024, Sarah, a 35-year-old professional, decides to take a proactive approach to her health by exploring personalized nutrition. She signs up for a cutting-edge nutrition platform that utilizes artificial intelligence (AI) to create personalized dietary plans based on her genetic makeup, health history, and specific health goals.

Implementation:

1. Genetic Analysis: Sarah submits a DNA sample, and the platform performs a comprehensive genetic analysis. The AI algorithm identifies genetic markers related to metabolism, nutrient absorption, and potential sensitivities.
2. Health Assessment: Sarah completes a detailed health questionnaire, providing information about her lifestyle, exercise habits, and any existing health conditions. The AI considers this data in conjunction with the genetic analysis.
3. Personalized Nutrition Plan: The platform generates a personalized nutrition plan for Sarah, recommending specific foods, nutrient ratios, and meal timings tailored to her unique biological profile. The plan takes into account her need for certain vitamins, minerals, and bioactive compounds based on genetic predispositions.
4. Functional Foods Integration: The personalized nutrition plan incorporates functional foods that address Sarah's specific health concerns. For example, the plan may include foods enriched with antioxidants to support her immune system or those containing omega-3 fatty acids to promote heart health.
5. Real-time Monitoring: Sarah receives a wearable device that monitors key health metrics, including nutrient levels, sleep patterns, and physical activity. The device syncs with the nutrition platform, providing real-time data to continually refine and optimize her personalized plan.

Outcome: Sarah experiences improved energy levels, better digestion, and a heightened sense of overall well-being. The personalized nutrition plan not only addresses her specific health needs but also educates her on making informed food choices that align with her genetic makeup.

Impact: This example illustrates how the trend of personalized nutrition and functional foods in 2024 goes beyond generic dietary recommendations. The integration of AI, genetic analysis, and real-time monitoring allows individuals like Sarah to take a highly tailored and proactive approach to their nutrition, ultimately contributing to a more holistic and personalized wellness journey

Finding Balance: Juggling Work, Life, And Self-Care

The more technology we have, the easier life is supposed to be – but somehow, the world just gets faster-paced and everything feels much more frantic than it did before. You're trying to kill it in your career while looking after friendships, romance, and maybe even children, but what about self-care? It feels like you're constantly juggling and if you take your eye off any of the balls for even a second, one drops to the ground.

Your career demands your attention.

Your family and friends need you just as much as you need them.

And what about self-care?

Believe it or not, you can have them all if you simply find the right balance… and you can find the tips you need to do that below.

Boundaries and Priorities

Step one in your journey to finding balance is establishing boundaries based on your priorities. That might mean you need to sit down and establish your priorities if you haven't already. That means understanding your core values and getting to grips with what matters most in your personal and professional life.

Once that's settled, you can establish boundaries that will protect your energy and time. Just be ready to communicate your boundaries clearly and be firm when saying no.

Think about your boundaries around technology, too – do you pick up emails even when you're off the clock? Do you feel the need to reply to every message instantly? Think about your relationship with the internet and social media.

Organization and Time Management

Organization and time management work in tandem and once you crack this code, you will find it much easier to find balance. Use a calendar or diary, utilize to-do lists, and structure your day to break down your responsibilities and when you will tackle each.

By breaking down every task into manageable moments, you avoid the risk of multitasking, reduce stress, improve productivity, and give yourself time for everything.

Delegate

Something that many people struggle with is letting go of control. Let's be clear about this – you can delegate! At work and at home, you can assign appropriate tasks and responsibilities to family members and employees or colleagues. The key to finding balance is sharing the load, so learn to let go.

Take Breaks Intentionally

Part of finding balance and practicing self-care is taking regular breaks, which means you might need to schedule them when you sit down with your calendar and to-do list. So, schedule a take-five, go for a brief walk, sit down for a quiet meditation session, or just chill out with a glass of water or hot tea. A break should not be viewed as a luxury, it's a necessity to improve productivity and performance.

Say No

There's no point in establishing boundaries if you don't learn to say no!

You should be able to say no to things that don't fit or feel right without feeling guilty about it. Everyone has limits, and if saying yes means pushing yourself beyond yours, you need to say no. Whether it's coffee with a friend on your busiest day of the calendar month or picking up an extra project at work when things are hectic at home. There will be times you can say yes to those things, but if you can't say yes now, don't!

Lean On Your Support

Everyone needs human connections and having a strong support system when you're dealing with life's obstacles and challenges is key. So, be sure that you are surrounded by people who respect you, understand your goals, and build you up. These people should be willing to go 50/50 in sharing responsibilities and happy to pick up the slack from time to time when it's necessary.

Final Thoughts

It might feel like an impossible task, but with a bit of intention, you can strike a balance between work, life, and self-care. It might be difficult at the start, but once you establish your boundaries and learn to stick to them, the rest will come with time and practice. When you do find the balance, you will start to see everything in your life improve.

10 Questions to Ask Yourself Before Using AI

Artificial intelligence (AI) technology is still relatively new in the online marketing industry. Some jumped in and began using it right away, while others have waited on the sidelines to see how things played out before testing the waters.

AI is a tool that can possibly help you achieve more in your business than you could ever have dreamed possible. But not everyone wants to use it. And some people should be using it, but they haven’t started yet.

There are some questions you can ask yourself to determine if you fit the profile of someone who should be leveraging this technology. Below, we’ll go over those questions and for each one, discuss how and why AI can assist you in that particular area.

Question #1: Do I Have More Tasks Than I Have Time to Handle Them?

The first question has to do with an obstacle that often plagues many online entrepreneurs – not having enough time as a solo employee to handle everything on your to do list.

AI can automate many of your repetitive tasks, such as brainstorming new content to publish across multiple platforms or researching your niche’s trends and it can do it almost instantaneously.

Entrepreneurs are great at immersing themselves in strategic and creative decisions, but the monotonous tasks can drain you of the energy you need to thrive. If you’re constantly moving things around on your schedule – pushing them to the next day, AI could help solve that problem and assist you with being more productive.

You can use AI to sort through data, create email campaigns and give you summaries of information and research so that you’re not spending hours trying to find the information you need to take an innovative approach with your audience.

Question #2: Is My Content Reaching the Right Demographic?

If you feel like you’ve been spinning your wheels, unable to get traction with your target audience, it may be that you’ve either cast too wide of a net or aren’t targeting the people most likely to be interested in your products and services.

AI has immense capabilities when it comes to demographic research, consumer behavior and intent and likely trends they’ll adopt. It can sift through a wide number of online resources to see what your niche audience needs or is complaining about so you can step up and serve them as a leader.

Having a tool to conduct the research means you can quickly and easy tailor your content to certain demographic audiences where they feel as if your message resonates with them more powerfully. 

AI can look at your current marketing campaigns and tell you whether or not you’re hitting the mark with your intended audience – in terms of what you’re promoting to them, how you’re educating them and even how you’re attempting to get engagement.

Question #3: Do I Struggle to Understand and Act on Various Data?

Data analytics is a wonderful tools provided to you by your hosting account, your various social media platforms and even your email autoresponder company. But if you don’t know how to look at this data and do something with it, it will go to waste.

AI has the ability to dig into your various data and not only interpret it for you in layman’s terms, but also give you a precise plan of action that tells you what you need to do to help your business perform better.

It can also gather data from outside sources and identify trends and patterns that you can leverage in your own brand. For most individuals, data analytics is largely wasted – and they only know of 1-2 key metrics they can grasp, such as their emails not getting opened.

With AI as your data analyst, you can make decisions quickly and have a positive impact on your business without having to blindly make attempts to improve things. Using AI, you’ll be able to take corrective measures, but also identify opportunities you may not have known existed.

Question #4: Have I Been Unable to Grow My Business?

Being able to launch a business online is a big accomplishment. But at some point, you may run into a phase where you find it hard to expand and grow your profits. Most online entrepreneurs like to diversify their income streams, and if you’re already burdened with too many tasks, it can present an insurmountable obstacle.

Luckily, AI can step in and serve as your ready assistant at all hours of the day. It will help you avoid any missteps where you’re trying to make a leap into a business model or demographic that isn’t a good fit.

If your goal is to experience expansion in new niche markets, it can craft a blueprint to help you do it in an efficient and productive manner, so you start earning from the new endeavor quickly.

Even if your growth goal is to keep everything the same, but earn more, AI can help you there, too. It can show you how to generate more leads, how to optimize your current conversions and extend the lifetime value of each customer you already have.

If you need help coming up with cross-sell or backend growth opportunities, AI can evaluate your current business and tell you how to scale things so that your business reaches its full potential.

Question #5: Am I Getting a Good ROI with My Efforts?

Getting a good return on your investment is important when running an online business. You don’t want to lose money (or even time) spinning our wheels with things that don’t work.

One way online entrepreneurs avoid failure in this area is by conducting an analysis of their return and then split testing new options to maximize performance. This is done in a variety of areas, including sales copy, emails, and even social media.

Most solo entrepreneurs don’t have a bottomless budget to test new things, so they have to take a very slow approach to getting a good ROI. With AI at your side, this process unfolds faster.

It can develop A/B versions of your content, strategies and creatives to optimize things on the fly, as soon as you get results and are ready to analyze them. The ability Ai has to refine your marketing is far above what most entrepreneurs can do on their own.

By using it in this manner, you’ll be able to allocate your financial and other resources in the best way possible, removing things that aren’t working well for you and pouring more time, money and effort into what is.

Question #6: Are Competitors Continually Outperforming Me?

Competition in the online marketplace is fierce in virtually every niche. You have to not only be adept at paying attention to every wheel and cog in your own business, but be on the lookout for what your competitors are doing, too.

AI makes quick work of this task – and it can not only identify who you should be paying attention to, but how they’re performing better than you (and worse). When given this information, you can up your game to be on the same level where you were lacking.

But you can also use the areas where AI says they’re lacking to start outperforming them, too. This covers different areas such as their search engine optimization (SEO) strategy, their content coverage on their blog as well as social media, and what kind of engagement they get (and return) with customers.

It can even help you identify the best competitors to align yourself with for things like a panel of experts on a webinar, a product partnership, or affiliate cross-promotion. You can better set your brand apart as a niche leader when you use AI for competitor analysis.

Question #7: Have Customers Complained About My Products or Service?

Sometimes, customers will complain online about your products and services. It can cause you to develop a negative reputation. There are also those who won't necessarily vocalize their dissatisfaction, but instead they will simply unsubscribe from your list or abandon your sales letter.

AI has the ability to conduct a sentiment analysis that sorts through the feedback you have gotten online and identify ways that you can improve so that your customers are more satisfied.

This can help you improve the way you engage with your audience, such as replying to them in a public setting or privately via email. It can also help you make improvements with your products so that they are known for delivering value instead of disappointments.

You can even use AI tools to set up a chat bot that fields common questions from users and delivers the precise answers you want. This will assist them in getting help immediately Rather than having to wait for a response, which can often irritate them and make them feel as if they have had a negative interaction.

One way you can use AI for better customer satisfaction is to let it devise a loyalty program for you. This can be done for long term subscribers, first time customers, or repeat customers so that they feel valued and appreciated.

Question #8: Am I Consistently Participating in Trends Ahead of Schedule?

Being a cutting edge niche leader is an important part of building your brand online. But it takes a lot of work to pay attention to all of the chatter and news within your niche to see if you are picking up on things early enough to be considered one of the first to guide your audience about it.

Not only can AI scour the Internet and give you current trends and news that you can use in your content and product strategy, but it can also use predictive analysis to forecast what you need to be doing in your business to be an early adopter of a certain trend.

It's important, no matter which niche you are in, that you are known as a marketer who has fresh content. These are the kind of leaders who people routinely bookmark their blog, pay attention to every social media post they make, and offer the most engagement to.

You could do this on your own, but it takes a lot of time and effort, and there will undoubtedly be times when you miss something and you are only made aware when the competition comes out with information that you didn't catch.

Question #9: Is My Business Budget Blown Before the Month Is Out?

Another problem for many online entrepreneurs is their ability to stay within budget when they are trying to run an efficient business. You have to have certain tools and knowledge in order to remain competitive.

But not everyone can afford endless courses and multiple tools such as search engine optimization tools, keyword tools, or services such as ghostwriters and ad agencies. If you have started noticing that you don't have the budget to be more resourceful and achieve more in your business, you may want to consider using AI instead.

There are some people who falsely believe they have to spend hundreds of dollars each month on things like keyword tools, when you can actually get a thorough list of very specific types of keywords you can use in your business straight from AI.

Even if you want to run a paid ad campaign, you can use this technology to help you with ad creatives, bidding strategies, audience targeting, and more. This is something that may cost you thousands of dollars if you were to hire a company to do it for you.

At the very least, you can use AI to help you modify your budget so that it is being spent well in your business, on things that are going to benefit you most, while allowing it to optimize how you are spending your funds.

Question #10: Do I Lack the Skills to Perform Certain Tasks?

Lastly, a common problem for online marketers is simply not having the skill to do the tasks you need to earn money online. This can be anything from creating content for your blog, developing products you can sell, conducting research, and more.

There are many people who want to launch their own business and they may have ideas, but they're not adept at formulating them in a way that they can present to their target audience.

Instead of thinking you have to have a fancy degree or sophisticated training, you can lean on AI to do the special skills that you simply don't have expertise in. There's no shame in saying you aren't a good writer.

Many people don't have this inherent talent, and being able to use AI powered tools helps them complete these tasks in a way that doesn't require a big budget to outsource or even time waiting to get content back from a freelancer.

Even with research, there are some people who can fly through this process quickly and easily because they know exactly where to go and what to look for, and others who might take weeks trying to find and analyze information that they can use in their business.

Let AI compensate for the lack of skills or talent that you don't bring to the table. This is the same thing successful entrepreneurs do, whether they use artificial intelligence or have the money to hire a team of individuals to do the work for them.

Not everyone will be a good fit for the use of artificial intelligence. Some people demand that they do their own work, regardless of how tedious and time consuming it is because they want to have full control.

But once you let go of the notion that you know everything and a robot couldn't possibly provide anything beneficial to you, you will see that this technology opens the door to endless opportunities no one human could do on their own.

DMARC Compliance Changes for 2024

If you’re an online entrepreneur, you’ve probably seen other marketers chattering online about the authentication rules taking place beginning in February 2024. Many people have been using Gmail or Yahoo to send emails to their customers, and if you have been doing that, too – these rule changes are going to affect you.

This was announced back in October of 2023 when both Google and Yahoo made changes to their bulk sender guidelines. Those who aren’t in compliance are going to struggle with deliverability in getting their emails to inboxes.

Below, we’re going to talk about why this is happening and what you can do about it. Don’t panic, but don’t procrastinate, either. Email marketing is one of the most effective ways to reach your target audience, and it’s an aspect of your business you have to maintain in a pristine manner.

Why Is This Happening Now?

Spam has always been a problem, and at every turn, major companies have worked hard to ensure spammers are prohibited from cluttering your inbox. One main reason they do this is because if the user is annoyed, they may switch to an option that prevents spam better.

Google and Yahoo made a decision that anyone sending bulk email (which means 5,000 or more emails per day) as well as other volumes to Gmail accounts would need to be authenticated.

They’re doing this to prevent unwanted emails as well as malicious mailings such as spoofing or phishing emails that are fraudulent and aim to scam people, not just spam them.

Everyone should welcome these changes because it means your brand is also going to receive a level of protection against anyone impersonating you. This happens from time to time, and it’s a way to sabotage your reputation or trick customers without your knowledge.

What Are the New Sender Guidelines for Email Marketers?

Google and Yahoo want you to have an authenticated outgoing email account. This is the technical part that is overwhelming many people, but it doesn’t have to be difficult. There are other guidelines as well.

They don’t want you to send out unwanted or unsolicited emails to individuals. Cold emailing (which is typically B2B not B2C) is going to be largely unaffected by these changes, but they still have their own spam guidelines to adhere to.

They also require you to make it easy for people to unsubscribe from your emails. This is something that’s very annoying to consumers, when you’re not only receiving spam, but there’s no way to get off the person’s list.

If you don’t work to follow these guidelines, Gmail is going to block your messages and mark them as spam, or limit your send rate. Starting February 1^st, 2024, you’ll want to follow the guidelines for the under 5,000 and over 5,000 email messages from your business.

You have to set up SPF or DKIM to authenticate your domain. Many marketers have simply been sending from a Gmail account, and now you’re going to want to register a domain and authenticate it so that the email comes from something like: yourname@yourdomain.com.

To set up SPF, which is going to prevent people from impersonating your domain, you’ll publish an SPF record on your domain. This will list any and all email senders for your domain.

Whenever an email is sent, the receiving email server checks the record to see if the incoming email is verified to send emails on your behalf. You can follow the SPF Set Up Instructions with example records here.

Each domain provider may have different steps on how to set up the field names for the DNS TXT record. But Google has some guidelines and instructions on how to add your SPF record at your domain provider.

The domain has to have valid forward and reverse DNS records (PTR records). This simply verifies that the sending host is associated with the IP address attached to it. You’ll need to set up valid reverse DNS records and if you want to check for a PTR record, you can do that in the Google Admin Toolbox Dig tool.

If you’re using a shared IP address, then anyone sharing that IP address is going to impact your mailer reputation. If they have engaged in shady behavior (or do so in the future), your emails will get blocked along with them.

You can use Postmaster Tools to monitor the reputation of anyone sharing your IP if you happen to be using an email service provider for the shared IP. You also have to send emails that support one-click unsubscribe.

That means they aren’t taken to a page where they have to then go through additional unsubscribe steps, but instead they can click one link in your email and it’s done – they’re unsubscribed from that point on.

The formatting of your emails is also going to matter. They have standards such as the Internet Format Standard and HTML Standards.  If you include links in the email, they have to be clear and visible and not anything that’s going to trick people into going to a link they weren’t aware they were going to.

If you’re new to email marketing, you should know that you need to gradually increase the volume of emails you’re sending out. It’s a red flag If you go from 15 emails to 60,000 overnight – it means you likely bought a list of unsuspecting subscribers.

Consistency also matters. You don’t want to go cold from your list and then suddenly spam them with a huge burst of emails in a short period of time. Monitoring your results will help you see if your list is responding positively to your schedule.

DMARC and DKIM Options

It’s important to give this its own section because it’s where most marketers are worrying. DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail) is not identical to SPF (Sender Policy Framework), which we discussed previously.

With DKIM, the recipient is verifying that the message hasn’t been altered in transit, which SPF is verifying that the incoming email is attached to the authorized domain. DMARC, on the other hand, adds another layer of protection to the process.

It stands for Domain-based Message Authentication Reporting and Conformance. It’s going to verify senders by using DKIM or SPF to more deeply analyze the verification status on incoming emails.

Consider it similar to a tailored approach that gives senders more control over your own process of authentication. You can give instructions to servers receiving the emails on what they should do with emails that don’t pass the DMARC test.

This helps you prevent your brand from being spoofed. The DMARC test is going to check to see if there are any hidden pathways in the return email and ensure it matches the domain it claims to be from.

If, for any reason, there’s a glitch and it doesn’t pass DKIM or SPF, then DMARC can be set up by you to tell the receiving server what to do with it. You can choose “none,” which means the email can still be delivered, put in the spam box or filtered out.

Or, you can choose to “quarantine” the emails, which means it goes to spam. Or, you can have it outright “reject” the email, which means it never gets delivered at all. You can even tailor it so that the serve does a partial “none” and partial “reject” with a certain percentage if you want to.

You’re going to get reports from receiving servers for every failed DMARC that comes through, helping you put more preventative measures in place. With DMARC you can add a variety of additional tags, like pct (the percentage we mentioned just now), sp (allowing you to instruct it to ignore failures from the main domain, but quarantine subdomains), and more.

In order to set up DMARC, you have to generate a record first and then add it to your domain’s DNS files. There are DMARC Record Creation tools you can use. Each provider is going to have their own method of adding the record to your DNS, so you’ll need to look that up depending on your domain and hosting.

After setting it up, you’ll start getting reports within a day so you can begin monitoring the health of your email compliance efforts. You can also add a BIMI brand logo to your DMARC, which will be verified with Verified Mark Certifications (giving your subscribers proof that it’s from you).

Instead of seeing this as a pain, look at it as a welcomed layer of protection that’s going to not only give your subscribers a decluttered inbox so your emails stand out, but give you more protection for your brand reputation!

There’s No Excuse for Failure Anymore

We are in a period of time where, for many years, there have been legitimate reasons for people to think their goals were unattainable. But now, that has been forever altered and the excuses we once clung to have dissipated with a myriad of solutions and options available to us.

It doesn’t matter what goal you’ve been striving to reach – whether it’s financial success, weight loss, or something else – you have what you need now to get things done, as long as you’re willing to do them.

If you think about it, this has always been true in most cases. The biggest obstacle to our success is us. Our mindset, our refusal to find the answers and do the work in a consistent manner is what often holds us back.

But instead of accepting responsibility, we tend to blame it on something outside of our control, like a lack of money to pay for the right “fix.” It’s easy to get mired down in a cycle of excitement and excuses, where one day we’re feeling motivated and the next, hopeless.

A Lack of Money Isn’t Standing in Your Way

Money is often used as an excuse for people to not be able to do the things they feel will change their life. People will complain that they can’t eat healthy because produce is too expense or they can’t start an online business because they can’t afford to.

Neither of these things is true. It’s simply a choice of what we allow ourselves to believe. If you’re an online entrepreneur, you don’t have to invest in expensive site building tools, keyword research and SEO tools, and courses that break the bank.

You can start a business online for $0 and start pouring your profits back into the mix, but you have to be smart enough to choose a business model that allows for that, like affiliate marketing.

If you want to eat healthier, you can buy produce that’s in season (and less expensive), on sale in bulk, or being sold at a Farmer’s Market locally at a cheaper price. You can even grow your own product by investing in seeds for next to nothing.

If you feel money is holding you back, that simply means you haven’t tried to find a workaround, because money isn’t an obstacle if you really want to do something significant to make changes.

You can also take a look at the money you’re wasting in life (Starbucks, streaming cable, etc.) and par down on those if there’s something you really want to afford to reach a goal – but that requires a sacrifice that makes people feel uncomfortable, so it’s easier to use a blanket excuse as to why you can’t do it.

You Have the Time to Do Anything You Put Your Mind To

Time is another excuse people often mention when they feel like they’re being held back. You don’t have time to shop for healthy food and prepare it after a long day at work.

You don’t have time to start a business online when you’re already working fulltime in an offline job, right? Yet that’s exactly what millions of others are doing who are in the same boat.

So you have to correct your wording to say, “I don’t want to spend time do that.” Because that’s the truth of the matter. You can meal prep one day on the weekend so that you have nutritious food all week long.

You can build your business little by little in your spare time after work and on the weekends. You don’t have to be able to devote 8 hours a day to succeed as an online entrepreneur – you just have to get started.

And once you begin evaluating how your hours and minutes each day are being spent, you’ll realize there’s a lot of waste happening there, too. There are times when you could be learning and working, but you’re not – you’re watching mindless TV, commuting with the radio on, or eating lunch while on social media.

Use your time strategically, and if that means you have to wake up 30 minutes earlier to have half an hour each day to progress towards your goal, you’ll do it. But only if you truly want it without letting excuses weigh you down.

There’s Enough Free Info to Teach You Everything You Want to Know

A lack of knowledge is another excuse that is often used when people are analyzing why they haven't been able to achieve their goals. It's easy to say you don't know how to do something, but you can't use that excuse anymore because the Internet has brought a world of information to your fingertips.

It's not only online resources, but offline meetups in your local area, libraries, and the other sources that can provide you with information you need to know. However, if you have access to the Internet, you can learn just about anything you could hope to learn that will help you achieve your dreams.

For example, if you don't know how to lose weight, you can look up an endless number of strategies that will help you find something that works for your personal preferences and health needs.

If you needed to know how to lose weight to improve your blood pressure, there are free sites with information about what foods to eat, what exercise you should do, and calorie calculators that can make things easy for you.

If you want to know how to start your own website so that you can blog and earn money from it, there are endless YouTube videos that will teach you in a step by step manner so that you can follow along and take action with the person teaching it.

There are even free tutorials for more advanced things you may need to know. But you have to use your keyboard and Internet connection and search for the answers that you want.

Even if you aren't able to find something that is readymade and outlined or answered for you, there are sites such as Quora or niche forums that you can sign up on and ask questions of the other members to find the answers you need to know.

Just befriending other people who have the same interests and goals can help you significantly and none of this costs you a single penny. But it's easier to simply shrug it off as a dilemma where you don't have answers, so therefore you will remain stuck.

You Have the Ability to Try, Fail and Succeed

The truth is, just about everyone who has succeeded at the same goal you have in mind has failed more than once on their journey to success. Very few people start off and take a direct path to the finish line.

Most people stumble when they are on a weight loss journey. They may have setbacks such as a plateau in their weight loss or they may lose and then regain the weight and have to do it all over again.

There are people who start a business online and can't seem to gain traction in building a list or getting their site ranked in Google. But instead of giving up and throwing their hands in the air in frustration, some people power through the failures until they achieve the success they are after.

Others will fall down in their journey and never get back up because the sting of failure is just too much for them. It doesn’t matter that everyone else before them had the same obstacles – it’s easier to be able to say they tried than to admit they don’t want to try again.

Perseverance and Consistency Will Turn the Tides in Your Favor

There are only two things you need to get past this struggle of using excuses and  they are the ability to persevere through obstacles and consistency in your efforts. If you are armed with those two traits, nothing will be able to stop you.

This is necessary in any aspect of life – your relationships, your health, your financial success - it’s needed everywhere, and at all times. So how do you adopt them into your life?

It’s not going to happen overnight. You’re going to feel uncomfortable and not like yourself when you’re using these two traits. But you’re also going to quickly feel empowered and unstoppable – and when that kicks in, it’s going to feel amazing.

Looking back on past failures and seeing where you fought back until you emerged victorious is a powerful feeling that lends to more success in the future. It’s what’s going to push you forward with momentum to do the things you always thought were unattainable.

For consistency, start with bite-sized effort. If you try to tackle too much all at once, you’ll be setting yourself up for failure. If you’re trying to eat healthier, start with a healthy breakfast every single day and don’t worry as much about lunch and dinner until you master breakfast.

Or you could start by making sure that you eat one fruit and one vegetable each day – small steps that get the ball rolling. The key is to make sure you progress with incremental change to do more until your life is transformed.

As an online entrepreneur, you could dedicate small increments of time to learning the ropes and taking action, such as devoting one hour per week (either all at once or broken up into 10-15 minute blocks) and then work on adding more time until you have the new career in place.

You Can Block Saboteurs and Surround Yourself with Mentors

One thing that’s going to be hard for many people to do, but absolutely necessary – is to block the enablers (also known as saboteurs) who don’t care if you succeed or fail, or who secretly want you to.

They may not do it knowingly, but they can hold you back if they coddle you with your excuse mindset – or if they’re jealous and don’t want to feel bad about their own lack of success in certain areas.

These will be the people who urge you to blow off working on your business to do something with them instead, or who tempt you to just go off your diet this one time. These people are not good for your goals, and you need to keep them at arm’s length until you are strong enough to push back.

Instead, surround yourself with other go getters who feel unstoppable and who can lift you up and believe in you as you strive for great things to unfold in your life. You can find them online and in person, and they may not even be on the same path, but simply love to see others shine.

Success isn’t unattainable for you. It’s not out of your reach or too difficult. It’s there, ready and waiting – and as of today, there is no longer any viable excuse for you to embrace failure as your destiny.

Selling Solutions - Pain Point Paydays for Affiliates

For years, affiliate marketing has been taught through the same lens – sign up to popular platforms, find products that pay well in commissions, and create reviews touting their features and benefits.

Not once has the emphasis been put on the customer. Instead, it’s all about how much you can earn – and there’s definitely a place for that to be considered (as it should be). But the reality is, this focus is likely holding you back from maximizing your earnings in this business model.

With a profit-centered affiliate business, you’re missing out on the very thing that helps your conversions soar – the needs of the customer. Once you tap into that organically, it explodes your income because you’re now able to provide much-needed solutions rather than try to push consumers into making a purchase.

Pain points come in many different forms. Some are physical, as the name implies. But others are emotional and some are practical needs that have to be met in some way. You, as an informed and caring affiliate, can guide your audience to the solutions that will make their lives better.

11 Ways to Identify the Struggles of Your Prospective Customers

In order for this strategy to work well for you, you have to become adept at uncovering the pain points of your target audience. There are different ways to do this, and if you limit yourself to just one, like keywords, you’ll be lacking in a well-rounded approach that expands your profit potential.

Let’s go over the first, and most obvious one mentioned already -  keywords. You can use tools to look for keywords that indicate a problem, such as a lack of knowledge about what product will work for their problem, with a keyword phrase starting with: how to.

For example, if someone is looking for how to lose weight fast, you have stumbled upon a pain point and specific type of solution they’re seeking. If they want to know how to get rid of wrinkles, you’ll know to present a solution for that type of anti-aging problem.

Forums are the second method for uncovering pain points. You can go to any niche forum and look only at thread titles and find a whole host of ideas for a problem-solution product review.

These might be direct questions, such as: “Which water purifying system is best for my house?” Or it could be someone asking “How can I grow a garden in a small space?” You’ll either be able to easily find the right solution (as is the case of the first question), or you can formulate some options and create a review that covers all of the possible solutions available to them.

Third on our list of ways to spot the needs of your audience is simple social listening skills. When you’re on social media platforms, pay attention to the engagement being doled out on other peoples’ content about your niche topic and see what struggles they’re having so you can offer up the right solutions.

Look for patterns that evolve and the volume of demand so that you address more of what’s needed.

The fourth option for finding pain points is to create a survey or poll for your niche audience.

This can be done through your list, on social media, or elsewhere and you can ask your audience directly what they find more pressing. What they feel as a non-expert may not be what you assumed as someone who has ample knowledge and experience.

Fifth in our list for pain point identification is to conduct a competitor analysis. Go over to the blogs and social media of your direct competitors and see what topics are not only resonating with their audience, but what they’re not covering, too.

The sixth way to find the needs of your niche audience is to look at customer reviews. If you’re an Amazon associate, for example, and you want to make money promoting an anti-aging cream, you might find people complaining that the creams are too greasy or heavy, so you’ll know to find one that’s light and fresh.

Seventh in our list is to listen to feedback from your readers. When you promote something, or teach something, they may send in emails or comment on your content in a way that shows they’re struggling and not getting the help that they need.

The eight way to unearth pain points is to use question and answer platforms like Quora or Reddit. Reddit tends to be more diverse in its content, but it’s still a place people go to ask questions and seek answers from others.

If you’re in the pet niche and you want to promote grooming supplies, you can look on Reddit and find things such as threads about the best nail clippers or calming agents for nail trimming sessions, and so on.

Ninth on our list is a method that’s relatively new to marketing – using artificial intelligence (AI) to ask for its analysis of pressing pain points in your niche. It can spot trends and consumer behavior that point to both current and future struggles, and you can even have it role play as your target audience.

The tenth method is to host livestream events. This might be on a social media platform or a webinar event, but you can open up the floor to questions by your attendees and make not of the problems they discuss with you.

And lastly, you might try immersing yourself in consumer and industry publications. These often have articles published where the publication has done the research about emerging trends based on problems people are facing, and it gives you a cutting edge approach to your affiliate product selections.

Build a List Where You Segment Subscribers' Pain Points

Segmenting your list by their pain points is a smart move to allow you to tailor your recommendations so that the response is even better than when you cast a wide net and send out a broad email to those who may not be interested in what you are promoting.

Even with the same niche, you’ll have people who have unique needs and frustrations. Within the anti-aging niche, for example, you have people who are going to want skincare products, those who want brain health, and others mobility products.

Even within skin-care anti-aging, there will be 20-somethings wanting preventative products and those who are older and seeing age spots or fine lines and want to get rid of or reduce them.

You want to figure out how you can segment your list, using lead magnets that address a variety of problematic issues within your niche. Have multiple landing pages that you can send traffic to for each, individual segment to get them on your list.

Then, whenever you start seeing numbers grow on certain lists, you’ll be able to send surveys to those subscribers and test product recommendations out on them to see where their preferences lie.

The valuable, educational content you send out can be geared just to their problems. A 20-something isn’t going to be interested in reading your product review for getting rid of age spots because she doesn’t have any (yet).

But that group will be highly vested in sun protection and ways to ramp up nutrition to provide antioxidants that shield them on a cellular level from the aging process. Monitor the engagement you get with your emails and you’ll be able to fine-tune your approach so that everything you send is something they need or want to provide a solution to their obstacles.

Know How to Uncover Products That Serve as Targeted Solutions

For this strategy, you need to put your focus on commissions on the backburner until you first find solutions that make a great fit for your audience’s problems. That doesn’t mean you don’t consider your profits at all, but that they don’t come before the needs of the customer.

Your goal in product selection as an affiliate is to match the solutions with the pain points and potential to solve problems. You may need to dig into a little bit of research to make sure the product does what it claims.

You might have to research the brand or vendor to see what their reputation is for providing products that have value to the buyer. You’re going to put an effort into finding top quality products.

One way you can find the best product is by watching what competitors are promoting with great feedback. If people complain, you want to avoid those products – but if they’re grateful for the recommendation, add those to your list.

You can also look at product reviews but be careful when doing so. There are sellers on platforms like Amazon who use the same listing to sell different items, or who flood their reviews with fake feedback.

Instead of just promoting the first product you find that seems as if it will fit the mold for what your audience needs, work on discovering many options so that you can select the best one for your readers.

That means looking at tangible and digital solutions, looking across multiple affiliate platforms and seeing what each vendor or brand has to offer as a solution for their pain points.

So for instance, let’s say you’re in the dog grooming niche and many of your customers’ pain point is trying to keep their dog’s nails trimmed amid extreme anxiety the pet exhibits.

You might look on Amazon, Share-a-Sale and commission Junction for tangible product offers. These might include things like nail trimmers, dremels, nail trimming hammocks, nail trimming boards, and more.

But you also might look on other platforms for digital info products that teach proper dog grooming methods. These might be on platforms like ClickBank, Udemy, or even a direct affiliate program from a vendor.

Also think about different types of solutions your audience may want. For example, someone suffering from poverty who wants to make money online may not want to do affiliate marketing – they may want to do printables or PLR (private label rights) sales instead.

Someone who want to get their blood pressure under control may want an info product teaching organic solutions rather than buy a monitor to simply track the problem so they can get a prescription.

Tailor Your Content to Tap Into a Buyer's Emotional and Practical Needs

When you have found the pain points of your audience and identify solutions that will help them, you'll want to create content that not only presents the facts about a product to your readers, but also taps into their emotions.

Sometimes, the products they need is based on some sort of feeling they have, such as shame, desperation, etc. But other times, they are simply feeling frustrated because they don't have a solution they need, which could be something as simple as a gadget for the kitchen that can save them time.

Either way, you want to highlight the struggles that they are facing so that they know you understand their current situation. Consumers are plagued with marketers trying to push products on them for a quick commission, so they are looking for people who are more genuine in their approach.

Not only do you want to express empathy for what they are going through, whether it's something deep or simple, but you also want to use persuasive language that will hint at the improvements that are going to come from their purchase.

This means you'll be using words like improve or transform. However you can describe the future they will be enjoying that differentiates between a before and after scenario in using the product, it's going to help make them want the product even more.

For example, if you are promoting a weight loss supplement, you want to highlight the struggles they are feeling and not being able to eat a normal amount, and suffering shame and guilt, and talk about the physical discomfort they feel in their body before you talk about the contrast they are going to experience once they begin using the product and seeing results.

Whenever possible, you want to also use visual media formats to engage them on another level. Not only do they need to read and think about the benefits you are offering to them when they buy this product, but you want them to see it, which means seeing the emotionally distraught persona as well as the happy go lucky person they will be after they own the product.

It's not always a picture of a person before and after that does the trick. Sometimes, it can be something statistical or showcasing a space that went from clutter to organized. It can even be an infographic or video that you use to pull in their visual sense.

Show how the product can usher in positive emotions and outcomes. You don't want to simply state that things are going to be better, but talk about specifics. With the weight loss example, you can paint a picture for them that shows how life is going to improve once they shed the pounds.

Create comparison content that illustrates the differences between products. They may initially embrace your recommendation, but have some hesitation in whether they should choose the product you mentioned over another one.

You can use comparisons to highlight the different outcomes or features that can make a difference in their journey to achieve their goals. You also want to use a clear call to action that's encouraging and offers relief to your readers.

For example, you might say something like, “Download the book now to begin transforming your body today!” Or, you might say, “Act now to find relief from knee pain in an instant!”

Split test emotional appeals to see what resonates best with your audience. Even if you have a list of people who are on the same journey, such as to lose weight for health reasons, they are still going to have different emotions that you can play to.

Some of them might feel guilty that they have let their health go because they are focused on their family and want to make improvements so they can be there for them. Others may be scared of suffering a worse health issue, so their fear is the emotion that gets them to take action.

Share Real Life Examples and Stories of Others in the Same Boat

Many times, affiliates will go into a niche that they already have a personal connection to. You may have it as a hobby, have the same health issue, or have experience where you want to reach out and help others achieve the same results you have.

Therefore, it makes sense for you to be able to share real life examples in your content that will help people relate to you and know that you understand their needs. This is especially prevalent in niches like online marketing and weight loss.

If someone has gone from broke to 6 figure earner, that's the type of person online entrepreneurs want to learn from because they know what it feels like to be desperate to pay your bills and want to work hard to make money fast.

Likewise, if someone wants to lose weight, it's more inspiring to learn from someone who has been in your shoes and lost weight themselves than to listen to someone who has never suffered from a weight loss problem or food addiction.

But you don't always have your own stories that will help humanize your product reviews. Sometimes, you have to come up with a story that will paint a picture for your audience, like using an anecdote to clarify the emotional journey they are on.

You may be able to use someone else's story if you have permission from them, or you can talk about it without naming names or specific details. You may even have certain customers or subscribers on your list who share their story with you, who don't mind you sharing it with others as long as you maintain their anonymity.

Whenever you are using storytelling to show them that you understand what they are going through with their pain points, you want to start off by giving them an introduction that highlights the problems they are facing, whether they are financial, physical, or emotional.

Talk about the journey they may have been on and the missteps that could have been taking place before they found you. And then deliver the solution with a positive message on how they can finally get the relief or outcome that they have been seeking.

Basically, you want them to be able to see themselves in the story that you lay out for them, which includes not only what they are going through currently, but what they have been through and what they could have happened to them if they take your advice and purchase the product you recommend.

We talked about visuals previously, and this is a great place to include things like before and after pictures or screenshots that offer a proof of your own journey and evidence that you are not misleading them.

Motivate Buyers to Be Action Takers with Bonus Implementation Advice

Lastly, you want to motivate your buyers to take action and not only purchase the product that you recommend, but implement it or use the gadget or advice so that they aren't putting off a positive outcome.

In order to do this, you can provide bonuses as guides where you not only have complementary information that supplements what is being sold to them, but takes them by the hand and walks them through the process and a step by step manner.

Sometimes, there will be info product courses that teach a lot about a process without going into the fine details buyers need to actually implement something. Even something as simple as a weight loss supplement can be an effective if the buyer doesn't know how to properly pair that with a good nutrition plan.

If you’re promoting a digital info product, try to get a review copy or buy it and go through it to figure out what’s missing that your bonus could teach – because you want your people to have a full solution to their problems, and not just a temporary Band-Aid.

Even if it’s something like a kitchen gadget that can save them time and effort when preparing means, you can create a bonus that delivers more solutions for their problems, like quick and easy recipes or meal prep hacks.

Being a high-converting affiliate means you do more than just paste links where you’ll earn commissions if someone is eager enough to buy without thinking about it carefully. It means you take time to protect your customers and serve their needs and you earn more because you go that extra mile.