Recently a reader sent an email to me: 'I am a regular reader of your articles. Your articles are crafted to attract the readers to the New Indian Express and the website www.seekluck.com. Though the articles are inspiring, I don't think I will ever make money through an Internet business.' I replied: 'Every book, movie or business is designed to attract patrons. I am happy that you have been attracted to my articles and to the New Indian Express. Please tell me how many websites did you create before coming to such a negative conclusion?' He replied: 'none'.
This is the problem with most people who complain of not making any money even after reading articles on self-employment and entrepreneurship.
Making money is real work. It's not Harry Potter's magic. If you don't have a burning aspiration to become prosperous and don't take a plunge into a self-employment venture, reading 1008 success stories will do no good to you. If you do something meaningful and are sincere in your efforts, you will make money.
How can I be so sure? Read this tale of a middle aged average Indian housewife and you will know you too can make money.
Though Rathi is a BA graduate, she could not write a simple sentence in English without a mistake. "Had I been good at English, I would be earning Rs.3,000 in some good company as a typist or secretary. My weakness stops me from becoming prosperous," said Rathi with a sigh.
"No, you are wrong. All weaknesses are income opportunities. The lower you are, the higher you can go up. Earning Rs.3,000 a month is poverty, it is not prosperity. If you are a self-respecting individual, you must place a higher price tag on your services and work hard to justify your price," I replied to Rathi.
"I don't have any money to invest in a business. I don't have skills to run a business. I don't have any business idea. I aspire to become prosperous. I am ready to work hard with enthusiasm," said Rathi.
"You are fully qualified to become self-employed because aspiration and enthusiasm are the basic requirements. There are hundreds of creative work and online income opportunities that do not require English language skills. For example, naming a child is a creative work. All new parents face the happy problem of finding names for their children. Help them and make money. There are a few websites for Indian baby names. There is plenty of room for new websites," I said.
Rathi shook her head in disbelief. "Do you think it has some income potential?" she asked me. I replied, "I don't speak of a project if it does not have an income potential. Even if a project appears to be hopeless, if you are resourceful you can create new revenue avenues. Think about it well and create a business plan. If some of the tasks are beyond your capacity, hire professionals. That's what every successful business person does."
"I understand now. Anyone can take up self-employment, if this approach is taken," suddenly Rathi became positive. "If you spend a few months you can create a large database of Indian names. Give their meaning and, if you like, astrological and numerological values. Thousands of new parents will visit your website. Monetize your website by selling ad space, books, baby needs and new mother needs."
"But I don't feel like selling anything," Rathi said. "You don't have to sell something to make money. There are hundreds of affiliate opportunities through which you can make money by sending buyers to other websites," I replied. Rathi said, "Then I would like to give it a try."
"I am sure you will soon have positive feelings about Indian population growth," I said. Rathi laughed merrily and took leave.
After several months I received this email from Rathi: 'Believe it - I collected 6,000 names, their roots, meanings and related tidbits over six months. When I was happy with the work, I visited many webmasters' forums and invited talented webmasters for a joint venture. A British programmer told me that he was creating software on baby names and would buy the database for $1,000! (Rs.45,000). In addition to it, he will pay me $1,000 if his program sells well. My daughter had been asking us to buy a two wheeler. But we had been postponing it as we did not have enough money. Recently we bought a new scooter and many household things that I so far possessed only in my dreams. P.S. All of us are working hard to become conscious of our weaknesses, oh my, income opportunities.'