STOP Saying “IF” and Start Saying “WHEN”

96429 Comments2009-04-21+00%3A14%3A44Zac+Johnson
By Zac Johnson on April 20th, 2009

I was never a big fan of inspirational posts, merely because while you read them, you are pumped up… but afterward, the majority of people will forget what they read, or never take initiative. Since my last “I wish I was Rich Like You” post went over pretty well, I thought I would throw one more at you.

There is a very big difference between dreamers, and people who put ideas into action. While most people wish of winning the lottery and say things like “If I’m ever a millionaire…“, the truth is, this will really happen to none of us. First off, half the people who say it, don’t even purchase lottery tickets… and the other half have such astronomical odds against them, it’s just unlikely.

On the flip side, you have people and believe in what their dreams are and put action forth. They know the lottery isn’t how they will get rich, and they are willing to set their ideas in motion. The same holds true for making money online, running your own business, or any task you are looking to accomplish.

For anyone that is already following me on Twitter, you may have seen one of my “Dunk Training Day # – Done” messages. My current personal goal is to dunk a basketball. I’m only 5′10″ and I’ve tried to dunk before, but got lazy with my training. Now I’m putting full effort towards that task, and it isn’t a question of “IF”, but “WHEN”!

If someone doesn’t believe in your idea, or what your striving to accomplish, who cares!? Do it for yourself, and it will be that much more rewarding when you prove the doubters wrong.

How much closer will you get to your goals, when you STOP saying “IF” and start saying “WHEN“?

Posted in Affiliate Marketing, Blogging, Twitter, Zac's Life

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964292009-04-21+00%3A14%3A44Zac+Johnson pieces of wisdom given by ye faithful

Darin Carter said on April 20th, 2009 at 4:19 pm

Zac, you are so correct in saying that … it shouldn't be if … it should be when … because IF you never try … you'll never know!

Good Post!

<abbr>Darin Carter’s last blog post..Launch Contest – Darin.CC Version 6</abbr>
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Lisa Irby said on April 20th, 2009 at 4:33 pm

Fabulous post, Zac. I work a lot with people who are just learning or trying to make money online. A lot of them have great goals and start off very inspired, but they don't follow through because of their own fears of they let naysayers get into their heads. Sometimes you have to put all that aside and just do it. And as I always say "Shake the haters off!"

<abbr>Lisa Irby’s last blog post..Site Review – WebNoobie.com</abbr>
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Logan said on April 20th, 2009 at 8:14 pm

Excellent post. There have been a lot of IF's on my list. I've actually always wanted to train to dunk a basketball. I got about 3 more inches to jump to be able to dunk it well. Is there a specific training program you are following?

<abbr>Logan’s last blog post..Alternatives To Your Home Office</abbr>
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Zac Johnson said on April 20th, 2009 at 8:51 pm

@Logan: Jumping into Plyometrics is a great book for jumping exercises. I also ordered "The Jump Manual" (search google)… a decent program.

<abbr>Zac Johnson’s last blog post..STOP Saying “IF” and Start Saying “WHEN”</abbr>
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Ricky Peterson said on April 20th, 2009 at 11:28 pm

Very well said Zac "There is a very big difference between dreamers, and people who put ideas into action". These days i have come across many Internet surfing guys who keeps thinking big dreams but never put anything in to action. You post was up to mark & truly professional. Making money online, daily may be millions of people think but very few can actually place game plan for that & achieve the Goals.

Thanks for sharing such a wonderful thoughts.

<abbr>Ricky Peterson’s last blog post..Basic rules for blog writing</abbr>
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NPGS said on April 21st, 2009 at 1:00 am

Like Robert (Richdad) said instead of saying "No, I can't do that" and say "How can I do that?"

<abbr>NPGS’s last blog post..FFXIII Going Multiplatform, How does it Really Affect Sony?</abbr>
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Charlie said on April 21st, 2009 at 6:11 am

So how many tries did it take to capture that silhouette picture that you put in the post?

<abbr>Charlie’s last blog post..Buying Online May Be Greener Than You Think</abbr>
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Chris said on April 21st, 2009 at 7:46 am

What's your vertical now Zac? Can you also palm a basketball as well?

<abbr>Chris’s last blog post..Brute Force Twitter Smackdown or Letdown?</abbr>
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Zac Johnson said on April 21st, 2009 at 9:52 am

@Chris:

I have around a 32 inch vertical now and can grab the rim. If it's a new ball, I can usually palm it.

<abbr>Zac Johnson’s last blog post..STOP Saying “IF” and Start Saying “WHEN”</abbr>
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JaneyS said on April 21st, 2009 at 11:37 am

Nice Post Zac but I'm sorry to say I *still* don't see value of Twitter, unless you tell me that help you with your dunk??

<abbr>JaneyS’s last blog post..5 Ways To Make Fast Cash Right Now</abbr>
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Smart Boy Designs said on April 21st, 2009 at 12:51 pm

I couldn't agree with you more. We all have the ability if we put our minds to the task – so we SHOULD be saying "when" instead of "if." Great post.

<abbr>Smart Boy Designs’s last blog post..Love Your Blog Topic Like Stephen Hawking Loves Science</abbr>
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Zac Johnson said on April 21st, 2009 at 3:33 pm

@JaneyS: There is a ton of value from using Twitter. Not just to keep in touch, and meet with new people and contacts. Now you can start targeting people what they are interested in, or talking about.

<abbr>Zac Johnson’s last blog post..STOP Saying “IF” and Start Saying “WHEN”</abbr>
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Creative Writing Ide said on April 22nd, 2009 at 4:44 am

Great post! People need to take initiative and start planning ahead, not dreaming ahead. If you start focusing on the when, you'll start thinking of more application based ideas than dreams.

<abbr>Creative Writing Ideas’s last blog post..Stories Centered Around An Object</abbr>
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Dror Zaifman said on April 22nd, 2009 at 6:38 am

Great article and very true what you said. I especially liked your line putting full effort towards that task, and it isn’t a question of “IF”, but “WHEN”!.

Hope you don't mind but I am going to Twitt your post to my followers.

This article made me a fan of your site and will come back for more.
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Virtual Family said on April 22nd, 2009 at 12:04 pm

That's an awesome way to look at being rich. I was surprised that you said all those things. Most people think only of themselves. cool
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Minnesota Attorney said on April 22nd, 2009 at 3:58 pm

You do a nice job of writing motivational posts despite the fact that they are not intended to be motivational.
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Ricky Peterson said on April 23rd, 2009 at 1:16 am

Zac you are very much correct when it come to putting plans in to action. Many million people across the world plan things daily but very few of them can actually put those plans in to action. I have already planned my entire 2009 calender and going in right direction till now. Let's see how well i can follow all of my plans which i have sent for the year. Once again would like to thank you for sharing such a great post with all of us, You Rock ..!!

<abbr>Ricky Peterson’s last blog post..Google monopoly unfavorable for web marketers</abbr>
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Play Games Win Prize said on April 23rd, 2009 at 2:12 pm

For people that are broke or unwilling to spend the money, they tend to say "IF". It's just natural.

-Mike
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Ann @ Work From Home said on April 26th, 2009 at 2:20 am

Very insightful, I have to say that the no mindset is definitely a deterent from any success but especially online work, as it takes a lot of faith to keep going.
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Authority Networker said on April 27th, 2009 at 7:26 am

As they say, it's not about what you know but how you use it. Most people today aren’t very receptive on being ’sold’ on something. They are tired of this method for business, and a new method is now available that will make everything easier and natural…it's called attraction marketing. In incorporating the attraction marketing formula into your business, you act as an educator as well as a seller while you develop ongoing relationships with clients. The results will be much more favorable then if you were to try to hard-sell everything.
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Russ said on April 27th, 2009 at 9:55 am

Thats right Zac. Taking action and believing is everything when it comes to affiliate marketing.
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Nicholas Chase said on April 27th, 2009 at 10:49 am

Zac,

Ahh the mysteries of successful online marketing…

So far I have hosting with several domains in my name, but no clue how to 'administer them'. No WordPress blogs or any clue how to get started. Still on 'Blogger' with my six blogs that have not been updated in months…

It's becoming clear that a full-time job is required to begin funding an on-line business, and without specialized knowledge in several key areas, it appears unlikely that many will succeed, including myself.

Inspiration is one thing, but having the tools 'in my toolbox' to succeed at this business is the critical missing link. Required expertise in so many web-site maintenance tasks is sucking all of my time from making any money hosting campaigns.

Non-traditional businesses, cloaked in secrecy about techniques, keywords, landing page designs,and discovering unscrupulous ad networks, and Acai-berry-tea scams used to make customer's sign up for repeated monthly charges to their credit cards, just to make money online, are daunting challenges for a new marketer like me.

Guess not everyone can be successful at Affiliate Marketing after all?

Respectfully,

Nicholas Chase
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Make Money On Line said on April 28th, 2009 at 8:03 am

You say your not into inspirational posts but if or should I when you think about it they are needed for some people. They help those that feel like quitting and giving up these type of post bring them back and tell them they can do it, so keep the post coming.
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Chimica said on April 29th, 2009 at 6:42 pm

I so agree… I have a number of projects going on… A gift basket business , a traffic exchange and a subscription site. Years ago when i was 16 i wanted to do all these sites and never did it. Now i couldn't be happier! Plus i'm a 20 year old new mom… I need to make money somehow.

<abbr>Chimica’s last blog post..Tired</abbr>
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Neil said on May 4th, 2009 at 3:38 pm

Hi

I think one thing that people forget when they make big plans is that they will need to make sacrifices/changes to carry their plans through. "If you do what you always did you'll get what you always got"

Neil

<abbr>Neil’s last blog post..Change to Follow Links</abbr>
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Chris said on May 4th, 2009 at 6:57 pm

Good advice. It took me a year of internet marketing before I realized that I had to stop reading and thinking and start doing. My motto is "take action!"
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used tires said on June 29th, 2009 at 12:48 pm

I think you hit it on the nail when you say that people will read motivational stuff get all pumped about changing their lives.. etc but then toss aside all of thee ideas in less than 72 hours. Yes, surely everyone is a dreamer, but of those dreamers who are the believers that accomplish things? Not many. That is why they say its so lonely at the top.
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stranger said on July 29th, 2009 at 5:14 am

great topic , even if at it was a programming topic :D
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xhamster said on January 30th, 2010 at 3:40 am

Thats right Zac. Taking action and believing is everything when it comes to affiliate marketing.
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