Hey – my name is Shannon. (Yep, I’m a guy with a girl’s name) and by the classic definition of the term, I’m a failure. However, I am fine with that. Why? Well, it has taught me more than winning ever has.
You see, I have been one of the top athletes in the state I lived in and blew it, I was an amazing soldier and left it, I built a successful business and lost it. I have failed over and over again, but that will never stop me.
My Story
In 2002 I stumbled across a book called “How to Sell on eBay for Dummies”, that book set me on a path that would change my life forever. Before I found the book I did not even own a computer. I had been on a computer couple times, but really knew nothing about them.
That weekend my wife and I went out and bought an E-machine computer (it was the Best Buy brand computer). It even had one of those fancy flatscreen monitors. The reason we bought the computer… So I could make a million on eBay 
Needless to say that one turned out to be a real bust.
Once I started actually researching how to make money on the Internet I ran into a couple different opportunities. I started with a program called PIPS (plug-in profit site). I bought the domain name Dreams2Freedom.com and I still own it today. Basically, PIPS was a referral site for a couple different multilevel marketing programs.
It took a while, but I finally made my first check. It was a check for $40 from a company called Host 4 Profit. Basically, it was the hosting company that I was with. When you referred someone to the hosting, they paid you a commission. That first check was my first money online.
From that point I was hooked. I knew that I could turn this into something real. For the next three years I dabble with building a business online. I never really gave it my full attention, but always thought I could possibly do it.
In 2007 my life changed drastically. My wife had to have brain surgery, and my father passed away at the tender age of 49 from lung cancer. I suddenly found myself questioning what I was doing with my life. What did I want to do with my life? How could I make an impact in this world? I knew that I was not going to live forever.
That’s when I decided to turn my hobby of online marketing into a business. Within nine months I quit my full-time job and was making more online than I had ever made with a traditional job. For the next four years life was grand.
The Downward Spiral
Unfortunately, I built this entire business by myself. I say unfortunately because I was stuck in an office all day every day. I really did not form any real relationships with other people and I relied only on myself to build my business. Even when I hired employees they were outsourced employees. I was basically locked in a dark room 60 hours a week.
Don’t get me wrong, I like what I was doing… I got up when I wanted to and worked when and where I wanted to. However, I found myself in a deep depression.
That depression spiraled downward and with it so did my business.
Before I knew it, I had lost everything. My entire business was crushed.
I went from living the dream to not making a single penny.
This blog was around when I was making a lot of money. However, I never really considered it a real part of my business. However, that is changing now.
I’m going to use this blog to document how I am going from absolutely nothing, to building a successful business online.
I did it once and I will do it again. This time, you get to watch as it all unfolds.