Can You Get Rich Quick?

Are you familiar with the story "The Tortoise and the Hare?"

It's a classic Aesop fable about a hare who one day ridiculed a slow-moving tortoise. In response, the prideful tortoise challenged his much faster mocker to a race.

Not unexpectedly, the hare soon left the tortoise in the dust. In fact, the hare was so far ahead and confident of winning, he decided to take a nap halfway to the finish line.

Alas, when he awoke, however, he found that the competitor he had mocked, crawling slowly but steadily, had already won the race.

The moral of the story is:

"Slow and steady wins the race."

Six simple words, profound in their simplicity.

So what does any of this have to do with marketing?

I was getting to that. I remember when I first got involved with marketing many years ago. I wanted to be successful immediately. I didn't know how to get there, but I knew I wanted to get there fast. And I didn't want to have to work at it.

Well, eventually I did become successful. But it didn't happen overnight. I had to learn the ropes - pay my dues so to speak. And part of paying my dues included learning how to be successful through trial and error.

And yes, heartbreak and pain.

Because the best thing that can happen to you on the road to success is profound failure. Failure can shake you up - shock you to the core. Humble you.

But failure is okay as long as you learn from your mistakes.

I remember an old adage from my childhood, and I never forgot it:

"Whatever doesn't kill you makes you stronger!"

Truer words have never been spoken. You see, I was like so many young people who had come before me. I had the ignorance and impatience of youth. I wanted instant gratification. I wanted the gold, and I wanted it now!

But I had to learn the hard way that "all that glitters is not gold!"

You see marketing isn't a sprint. It's a marathon. It's not about who can explode quickest out the gate. It's about who can last the longest over time.

But you'd never know that by reading some of the outrageous "get rich quick" advertising that is so prevalent these days. You know the ads that I'm talking about:

"Make $30,000 in 30 Days With My Secret Program!"

"Make a Million Dollars in 12 Months Guaranteed!"

"Double, Triple, Quadruple Your Income Overnight!"

Let me tell you something about those ads. 99.9 percent of them are pure, unadulterated garbage - a pack of lies designed to steal your hard-earned money!

Brilliant copywriting designed to sell you a bogus dream that you didn't even know you had.

But is it possible to get rich quick?

Sure it's possible. Anything's possible. Winning the lottery is possible. But it's like catching lightning in a bottle. The odds aren't in your favor.

The truth of the matter is success takes time, and it requires hard work. Always has, always will. There are no shortcuts, and if someone tells you otherwise...

They're probably trying to sell you something!
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

By the way, I'll be launching my new website this summer. It's called Reviews-by-Customers.com. It will feature "real" customer reviews of top online copywriting, hosting, website design, ISP, printing, SEO services and more! Follow me on Twitter @CustomerReviews for further updates.