Wow! I am excited but anxious and nervous at the same time. This is my very first post on this site, and I am still unpacking it.
After thinking long and hard on what I should write for my first post, I decided to settle for the conventional wisdom of telling you about the "THE WEBPRENUER" Story - how it came to be, and why it became a special project for me.
Before I started this "site" I had been running a Facebook Group called "THE WEBPRENEUR". After a few months of engaging with members, my wife Martha and I grew close to many members in the group. We love to reach out to them every day, and help whenever we could.
I want to personally thank each and everyone in the group for participating and supporting the group. There would be no "I Am Webpreneur Newsletter" without this group of people.
Literally thousands of aspiring entrepreneurs come online everyday, with the aim of making their dreams come true. The Internet has already become the new medium storefront for businesses worldwide, and there is a general push to "stake a claim" before it gets too late.
Well, I am here to remind you that it's never too late. There is no such thing as too late, there is only "now". Starting a business can be a scary thought for many. Excuses such as "it’s too late" or "no money" are just simply that… excuses. The truth is that you’ve been lying to yourself.
Here are a couple of stories to prove that you too can use this medium to spread your message and live your life the way you want to.
Ashok's Story: Everyone Has A Secret Dream
Ashok is ambitious, fresh out of college, with a lot of ideas that he picked up from young Webpreneurs around the world.
He was a thinker of sorts, with a lot of good ideas that could potentially benefit him and those around him. His family and close friends loved his enthusiasm, but encouraged him to "play it safe" by choosing (in their minds) a much nobler profession. A doctor, a lawyer, or even an Accountant.
But Ashok secretly dreamed of becoming a well-known Blogger & Author. He loved the opportunity to make an Impact, and to engage with people in the process. A blog would be a great starting point from which he could move on to becoming a best-selling author and a key influencer to youth worldwide. His youthful mind also had big lifestyle dreams - a house, a car, traveling around the world…the whole shebang.
He decided to go for it. He spent hours burning the midnight oil, toiling away at his computer late at night. He worked on his "core message" and fine tuned it, and created a content plan that speaks directly to his target audience. He spent hours connecting with young minds on social media. He kept at it, not taking his focus away from his everyday task of learning and implementing what he learned quickly within his business.
After 9 months of hard work he found himself helping a new generation of bloggers start their own blogs, and helped them share their stories online. Soon enough, he found himself sharing his knowledge on the stages across India, motivating the country's technology obsessed youth.
Ashok is now working on a book that he plans to publish soon - Getting closer to his secret dream!
Shara's Story: How Old Is Too Old To Be A Webpreneur?
Shara has much the same story. She is a small-town piano teacher in her late 50's, earning extra money by giving lessons to neighborhood kids.
She had pondered on the idea to create an online course and start giving lessons online, but was too scared to mess with unfamiliar technology. Her smart phone was a hard enough task for her to get familiar with, and she would avoid anything that is too technical for the longest time.
Like most people, over a period of time, she was forced to start using the Internet to make her life more convenient. This is when she began to see new possibilities with what she loved to do and reach a wider audience with her talent. She loved the idea of automation and duplication by putting out an online course. It would make her life a lot easier and kick back while the cash poured in.
At first, it wasn't easy. Shara failed to realize a couple of things. Web sites and online courses need to be set up, maintained, marketed, sold… and then you have to do it all over again.
Wishful thinking combined with a fancy website isn’t a sure-fire way to attract customers.
She decided to take charge and joined several online groups and forums to learn how to publish an online course. She learned how to create videos and market it on Youtube. She launched a course on Udemy soon enough.
Shara finally made it! Within 4 months of launching her first course, she sold over 500 copies. She is now working on creating a Subscription Based service for advanced Piano lessons!
You might be wondering about these stories. You’re probably saying right now...
‘And the point is?’.
Well, the point is that the internet is full of these stories and we'll be sharing many of these inspirational stories, resources, practical tips, etc.. to make your journey easier.
Inspirational Story: "I AM Webpreneur".
I am Abe Cherian and I AM a Webpreneur. Since 1999, I have supported myself and my family running several businesses exclusively online. A family business where my wife Martha worked as hard as I did on top of raising 4 children.
My life was 100-meter dash for online success ever since 1999. At one point I had a string of businesses in several sub-niches within a broad niche of Advertising and Marketing. From selling domain names, to building a busy advertising agency, I was doing it all.
I worked 17 hours a day, 6 days a week to keep up with everything. I was constantly thinking of ways to grow my businesses, and keep up with technology that is moving at the speed of light.
Until finally. a couple of years back I hit a really nasty patch and was struggling with various business situations I was juggling. I was completely exhausted, drained. I hit the biggest wall and I felt like I couldn't climb this one.
When you’re burned out from stress, problems seem insurmountable, everything looks bleak, and it’s difficult to muster up the energy to care - let alone do something about your situation
It was ugly – I was stretched thin doing things I didn’t enjoy or care much about, all for the sake of the almighty dollar.
I decided that enough was enough. I was no longer going to waste my energy creating products and services that fit the mold.
I packed up my bags and decided to do a bit of soul-searching – traveling the world and connecting with myself after years. My darling wife was considerate and supportive.
I’ve been searching for my own personal truth for years so it made sense to visit sacred places that resonated with me. There I could dig deep within and connect with myself in peace.
I’ve always found solitude conducive to growth and progress.
When we spend time conversing with ourselves we get an opportunity to see the bigger picture. My trip allowed me to do just that – to see where I’m going in my life and to take corrective actions if I didn’t like the direction. I was able to shed all pretenses and layers of expectations that the society has draped me in. I was finally free to make my own way.
I sat down and wrote a list – my personal truths that can help guide my future business-related decisions:
I love helping others and providing them with solutions that make their personal and professional life better.
I have a fascination with mystical traditions and spiritual wisdom.
I believe that technology is a tool that needs to be used in business in order for people to achieve freedom.
To change the world we need to change ourselves – the journey starts through self-transformation.
I believe that young people need to be positively inspired – they are the future of humanity.
It’s possible to achieve everything we dream about through strengthening our ‘Inner-Will’ – the universe conspires to give you a leg up if you firmly believe.
If you’re stuck I suggest you do the same thing.
Write down the things that make you happy and use them as a guideline when trying to figure out what it is you want to do.
To me, words have power. When you say ‘I AM’ you’re actually equating yourself to it.
In Sanskrit, ‘Aham’ means ‘I AM‘- the constant, the unavoidable, the never-changing.
That’s why what you choose in your life is so important – it becomes inexplicably and magically intertwined with who you are.
When I say ‘I Am Webpreneur’ I feel that it defines me perfectly. Mouthing the words gives me assurance that I was put here for a reason – to BE and to DO the things that I love to do.
When you say ‘I AM’ does it resonate with you? Does it mean anything? Does it bring out a smile to your face? If not it’s definitely time to change whatever it is that you are.
Imagine that your life suddenly turns out into everything you wanted it to be. You are happy and content. There’s even a white picket fence there if that’s your thing. You wake up every morning with a smile on your face and go to bed completely content with how the day went.
You’re all that you ever dreamed you were going to be and more!
But what do you do? How do you support yourself in that dream world? This is the question you need to answer. If what you do doesn’t align with that perfect world you’ve created in your head it all falls apart.
"The reason why I’ve created Webpreneur Media is to help aspiring webpreneurs achieve that perfect balance in their life."
I want to take you on a journey with me while we discover new things about ourselves. I had to do it the my way and I collected I lot of bruises in this journey. You’ll probably get bruised as well because that’s how life works but I think that I can help you avoid being black and blue for years while you’re learning the ropes.
Stay tuned because I will be sharing exciting stories, helpful content and valuable information, along with sustainable opportunities that I come across. More importantly, I’m sharing myself with you so remember that I’m always here if you have any questions or comments or simply feel the need to connect.
Abe Cherian
The Webpreneur!