At the moment, I have a few different ideas up my sleeve and need to sit down and corral them. I’ve written a couple of posts on this sites about setting daily, weekly and yearly goals, so I’m going to track my own goals in this blog to give you an idea of just exactly what setting goals is all about. I find that writing things down is a strong indicator of their impending fruition.

I want to accomplish these things over the year:

• Finish building my four websites and generate a daily income of $200 a day from them part time;
• Pay my car completely off (I owe $8000);
• Successfully navigate my current semester of classes and finish with over a 3.5 GPA for the semester; and
• Save $15000 in the bank.

Each one of these goals I feel are completely achievable if I stay on track and follow a plan. So for my own sanity, here is a breakdown of exactly what I’m going to do.

Website Building

This has captured my interest and every ounce of free time as of late, but I’ve become obsessed with the idea of building my own internet empire. Initially I was running a business dedicated to buying from eBay and Craigslist and selling on Amazon. As that business grew, I found a need for a website to send my customers too and answer any frequently asked questions that they may have. Little did I know, but this small website project spawned a monster, and I soon found myself learning principles of Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and trying out different ideas.

I found initial success with my main site that spun out of my business and have seen earnings from $2 to $80 in one day with consistent earnings of around $15 to $20 a day. This was great, but as always the human greed monster wanted more. From here on, I developed a plan to expand my enterprises across 4 more websites. I picked topics that I was passionate about, performed solid keyword research and purchased or created domains to meet my needs.

This has since provided me with a huge challenge of creating content, backlinking and ensuring that each site receives tender loving care. I find myself growing more efficient as the days pass, but I’m still finding ways to improve and develop my empire into something great. I’ve adopted the following mantra as of today:

Quality beats quantity. If I build a great site, I will be treated great in return.

This is how I’m going to approach my sites from now on. I still have a ton of more ideas to develop into new sites, but for the next few months, I’m going to focus on developing the sites I have started into true gems. This will help me achieve my goal of $200 a day on a consistent basis.

Paying my Car Off

This is a task that I have recently set my sites on, only because I’ve learned to budget my money more appropriately. Right now I’m putting money away in my savings account and IRA with each paycheck, and have found myself with a few dollars left over after each pay day. Instead of wasting this money frivolously, I plan to put it to work and pay of my auto loan. I currently pay $294 a month, but have decided that I must pay $600 a month to meet my goals. This is going to take some extra frugality on my part, but I think I’m up for the challenge.

Achieving Good Grades for the Semester

Lately, I’ve become somewhat lethargic towards my master’s courses. This is in part because I spend each day working on subject matter relating to my degree (research), and because the material just doesn’t seem that challenging. This is not the instructors fault, simple a matter of seeing the recycling of most of my undergraduate coursework in these classes. Couple that with the four hour class length, and I have found it more difficult to absorb information and provide my true undivided attention.

I feel that a stronger effort must be made on my behalf to balance my passions out and rekindle the fire I once had towards school work. Lately I have been all business and I think my dedication to building a strong following online has led to the suffering of my learning. This is why I’m writing this entry, to get myself balanced back out and focused on the bigger picture of things. Yes, my internet businesses will provide strong income throughout my future, but building a solid foundation for my career is equally as important. The internet is not going anywhere and neither are my passions, so I must take the time to balance myself out and provide equal attention to all subjects at hand.

Achieving Good Grades for the Semester

This upcoming week I have midterms in both of my classes. I began preparation last week by reviewing old PowerPoint slides. The minute I finish this post, I’m going to direct my attention towards reviewing more material for my Monday exam. I think that review the coursework, drafting my own practice test, and making an effort to answer possible questions as thoroughly as possible will guarantee my success. Admittedly I feel pretty comfortable with the material, but blowing off preparation will only hurt my chances at success.

Money in the Bank

By following my previous three goals, I will not only have a stronger focus at curbing my wasted spending, but I will have a better focus on my life and what I want to achieve. Building my sites to where I want them, putting effort into my education, and paying off my care loan will provide myself with greater income and no debt to enter next year. One goal that I have on my mind all the time is my dream of owning a great home. I think that putting consistent work towards the goals mentioned above will allow me to meet my goal of having $15,000 in the bank, and free up monthly income previously tied up in payments and debt. I will set myself up for an excellent future and prove to be successful and a great example to my family and friends looking to set themselves up for financial and mental security.

I thank you for reading. Have a great day!