Did you ever make a mistake without knowing it?

As a person who firmly believes in learning from my mistakes, I've made it one of my goals, every few months or so, to pause long enough to look back through my endeavors. Not so much to reminisce, but to consider carefully, the steps I've taken to get where I am today. When doing so, I carefully analyze every online marketing tool and method I've tried over the past two years.

Not only does this process help me to decide the path of my future online marketing, it also allows me to better assist others. By passing along some of the important decisions I've had to make, I can help others who may be coming to the same forks in the road, or simply passing through similar learning curves.

As I think back to my early days of setting up shop on the Internet, (a few years ago) I can recall at least one very big mistake I made. To this day I see lots of other folks making this very same mistake. Perhaps you are one of them.

What is this mistake I am so willing to own up to?

Without a doubt, I waited too long to start building my web site.

When I started my business I had no idea how to even begin building a web site. The web authoring programs you see on the market today were still taking shape. There were a few on the market, but they were clumsy and difficult to use. For nearly six months I went on trying to grow my online business without a web site.

I used email marketing exclusively. Although there weren't nearly as many ezines back in early 1996, there were enough to survive on. I placed classified after classified and submitted articles every week in hopes of drumming up exposure.

Oh, sure, it was a good lesson on the importance of email marketing, but I was really missing the boat. All I had for a web site was a few free web pages that came with a couple of reseller programs I had joined. I figured, hey, that will have to do.

After all, I was making money. More money than I had been making at my regular 9-5 job. But, making money without a web site of my own was actually both good, AND bad. It was good because it helped me shed my day job so I could really focus on honing my Internet marketing skills. But it was bad because it clouded my judgment. I figured hey, who needs a web site if I can make money without one? (How naive I was!)

Once I decided to make my living online, I finally smartened up and decided I should have my own site. And it was THIS decision that turned out to be one of my best. Yeah, I know, those of you with your own web sites already, are thinking c'mon Jim, THAT was one of your best decisions? Sounds like a no-brainer to me!

Well, to you, I say look around. To this day, this decision remains as one of the biggest obstacles for many would-be cyberpreneurs. Let's face it, there are literally millions of people settling for free space on someone else's server and calling it their "online business". Don't get me wrong, there's nothing wrong with putting up some free pages to drum up some traffic - for YOUR OWN site.

The simple fact is, if you are at all serious about making enough money in cyberspace to change your lifestyle, you need your own web site and your own domain - . This is one of the biggest and best decisions you will ever make for your online business.

Sure, it can be a big undertaking, and that is exactly what keeps most people from doing it. Just remember, everything great thing you achieve in life and business starts with a single first step. That step is getting started. Don't make the mistake I made. I figured, "Hey, I don't have the time or know-how to build a great web site that gets thousands of visitors a week."

Instead, do what I did after I smartened up:

Get your own domain name and put up a decent home page and two or three informative web pages to go with it. Once you accomplish this goal, add a page or two every week. Before you know it you'll have a super informative web site consisting of hundreds of web pages - the kind of site that attracts visitors and in turn, makes sales.

Once you settle on a domain name, reserve it and it's yours forever. Next, get busy building your web site.

Once you have a few pages built, get them online! This is the start of your REAL Internet presence. You'll add web pages constantly but the key is to get something up!

Remember, don't make the same mistake I made and limit your income by waiting too long to get your site going. Get busy TODAY building a real cyber-home you can be proud of - YOUR OWN web site!