Spend five minutes on social media, and you’ll see it. Everyone is suddenly an expert in helping you to navigate life or start a new business in the time of coronavirus.
From masterminds, mentors, and MLMs to special pandemic pricing on courses and programs, there is an online offering for everyone who has even remotely thought about starting their own business or side hustle.
So who do you trust?
Anyone who is offering advice on how this is an excellent time to follow your dreams, start that business, or move to the place you’ve always wanted to live, while at the same time offering you a discount on something they’re selling is not someone whose advice you can fully trust.
They are vultures preying on your weakness, desperation, and your fear.
Life in the online space has always had its share of vultures and wannabe gurus claiming to be an expert in whatever it is they’re preaching, so we shouldn’t be all that surprised at what we see today.
Except that today our online space and the whole world over are different than they were just a few months ago. Alarmingly different, and that appears to be making many online entrepreneurs goofy in a not-so-fun sort of way.
COVID-19 did not suddenly turn ordinary people into subject matter experts.
With so many newly minted coaches, self-anointed gurus, and MLM marketers promoting their offerings, being online can be a dangerous place for the recently laid-off or financially desperate.
Those operating in the online space for any length of time are already familiar with the sales pitch, formula, and the buying strategy used. That familiarity breeds skepticism for the seasoned entrepreneur, but what is it doing to the newly laid-off person who finds themselves without work and no idea when they’ll be able to return?
It’s creating false hope where hope is all there is right now.
Financially successful online entrepreneurs know the strategies that work in getting people to buy. And for those who market exclusively to people wanting to build a business, get more clients, or create an income stream while they’re stuck at home, their pool of potential buyers has exploded.
And this is not good news for the jobless and those struggling to survive. Savvy (and unscrupulous) marketers are lying in wait to exploit your vulnerability. If you weren’t planning to join that MLM or start your own business before, why are you thinking about it now?
Do not allow your fear about your financial situation to make things worse by spending money on products, courses, or programs promising to show you how, or to help you generate an income. Most don’t work, and those that do have a long-learning and implementation curve. And not only are you not prepared to know the difference, but you also don’t have the time to waste right now.
Starting a business and generating an income takes time––a long time. Stop reading those posts and emails telling you now is the time to start that business you’ve always dreamed about having. Stop watching videos and Facebook lives, showing you how easy it is to get started. And please, don’t hold onto the promise of those offering you a “done-for-you” option with a payment plan. You still have to do things to get it done!
Do not spend money you don’t have to start a new venture when you’re in crisis. The results will not equal the promise of hope you’ll be clinging to so desperately.
Trust me on this, I speak from experience.