INTRODUCTION to Blogging Wisdom for Graying Marketers

So, you’re aging. Me too! What I discovered is my life IS NOT over yet! Neither is yours if you’re reading this. HA! I’m STILL productive
at the wonderful age of 66.

My generation, and most likely yours, was taught to be a certain way. Graduate high school, go to college, get a good paying job, work until retirement age around 50 or so, get a “gold watch”, retire, and then what?

We were taught to “follow” what our parents told us to do. We were rarely encouraged to innovate, try new things, and follow our dreams. Perhaps some were encouraged, most of us not. Those that did follow their hearts were labeled as an “anti-establishment” individual, and rebellious.

And then it happened.

The Internet came along and propelled our lives into a world that turned everything inside-out, upside down, and changed every aspect of our world as we knew it.  We had to adjust to new ways of communication in connecting with others, cell phones, computers, wi-fi, techy gadgets, electric cars, economic changes, Amazon, and so much more.

Yet, what’s come out of all this incredible, and global change is an opportunity that never really surfaced before in my generation (or before 1954 and about four decades earlier).  It’s the opportunity to live your life on your terms – as YOU want it to be.

Suddenly there were no rules to follow. You could manifest your dreams, be an entrepreneur, or create a new career at the age of 50, younger or even older! Age no longer matters.

It became very possible to live your dream because for the first time you could really explore, create, and not follow old, decaying “prehistoric” social rules. They no longer had a place in this new world. And, your years of experience and established wisdom could be resurrected as an invaluable asset – especially on the internet.

Hundreds of people turn to the internet daily now with stars in their eyes thinking they’re going to strike it rich – when sadly I have to “pop” the balloon here, and say it’s just not so.

There’s a mindset that must be cultivated, explored, and implemented to even begin to compete. Yes compete, with all the other millions of website owners clamoring for the “eyeballs” of visitors.

Unless you’re a celebrity, or a well-known company like Coke-a-Cola, you’re just another human being trying to stand-out in a congested pool of websites as well as providing valuable content that people will read.

[tweet_dis]There is good news though. You do have ONE extraordinary advantage that no one else has. Are you ready for it? Here it is: YOU[/tweet_dis]!

That’s right, and this is where the challenge comes in because you have to think, go deep within, to cultivate, explore, and implement what makes you so different from millions of other people online.

Most likely, people who come online just think slapping-up a website is all you need to do. Wrong.

 If you take my suggestions seriously, you can enjoy the rewards of “standing out from the crowd”. But it takes time,
effort, and devotion on your part.

I’ve been online since 1998 and have pretty much “grown-up” with the internet. I created my first website that same year and have morphed myself with the times since then. But it’s led me to the philosophy that “self-branding” is the best tactic to personal stardom on the internet mixed with a healthy dose of social media sharing.

I’m a lovely, seasoned woman at 64, who has learned how to reinvent herself many times over through the years. It’s just the nature of our world now with no job security at all.  The Internet is a vehicle to create a business, or a new career without boundaries and it’s global. The possibilities are limitless. The doors are open to creativity and waiting for you!

However, for some reason (and I see this all the time) many who are around 50 plus years old are stuck, perplexed, confused, frustrated, and think they have nothing of value to share on the internet.

So. So, far from the truth.

The mental “block” is this – we were taught it was wrong to praise ourselves, to appreciate, and celebrate our talents, interests, and successes. We heard more “don’ts” as children than “do’s” so sharing what we know and being comfortable with it is a challenge for many.

YOU are valuable! You have knowledge! YOU have life experience that over-rides the younger generations of today.

You CAN be successful on the Internet if you honor your life experience, interests, and passions first (I’ll write more about this later in the book).

Meaning, don’t go online to follow what others do. Learn and appreciate your own style of wisdom and go from there.

That said, I hope the following information from my personal experience and perspective will give you the “juice” you need to reinvent YOU, separate yourself from the sea of websites, stand-out, and attract those who are genuinely interested in what you have to say, share, and offer others at your age – as a “Graying Internet  Marketer”.

This book is dedicated to you, the aged 50 or later  who want to reinvent themselves or enhance their income using the internet.

I hope it inspires you, gives you some tools to start with, and morph into the YOU you’ve always wanted to be – online.