Today we will look at the most common myths about making a living on the Internet. There is no shortage of scams and hucksters out there.

1. "Build your downline" - Beware of any program or person that promises to "build a downline" for you. Usually what they don't tell you is that almost all of these people placed under you are completely useless. Read the fine print and you will find that most of them don't even have anything to do with your commissions. They are just numbers and names that are below you. Also beware of "one big downline". Same concept, same scam.

2. "Overnight success" - I don't care what program you are a part of. You will not be a complete success overnight and quit your job next week. This kind of hype is counterproductive and cheapens the honest programs that are lumped in with this garbage. Any success will be due to hard work and persistence.

3. "It's all in the list!" - Maybe this is partly true. However, the quality of your list is also important. If you have a list full of harvested email addresses or a list of other marketers, you won't make much progress. That is unless you are selling shovels instead of gold.

4. "All I need to do is join an affiliate program, buy a million email addresses, do one email blast and I'm rich!" - This is the quickest way to lose your internet service provider, and probably your position in any reputable affiliate program. If you have received spam emails about Viagra or cheap software, then you have seen this in action. The best way to profit from email marketing is to use reputable sources.

5. "I need a modern, flashy, techno-geek site" - Everyone does not have a high-speed internet connection. If your site takes too long to load, visitors will go elsewhere. Make your point with words and use the smallest amount of graphic "clutter" that you can.

Here is the bottom line. If you are looking to make extra money online, then take action and then jump in for the long haul. Doing things right in the beginning will increase your success later. Learn from the best and don't make the same mistakes others have.

by Bill Wetherington http://profitmakers.blogspot.com