It's a scary step to give up the security of a full time career - after all, most give extra benefits such as health insurance, pension, company car, expenses and all the rest of it.

But it is great to feel a sense of freedom - to be able to do what YOU want, when YOU want and say "to hell with the consequences" is a powerful factor in making the big decision.

My last "proper" job was back in 2000. Since then I've been doing a variety of online "stuff" in order to make an income.

A potted history;

• 2000 - sub-contract my services to a webdesign/hosting firm
• 2001 - branch out into SEO services
• 2002 - start playing with oscommerce
• 2003 - end my relationship with the webdesign/hosting firm, start up my own oscommerce templates service
• 2004 - read an eBook which changes my life. Start my first few AIS schemes
• 2005 - AIS
• 2006 - AIS
• 2007 - AIS

I won't go into what is meant by AIS - suffice to say it's online sales of ebooks, scripts, products, software, affiliate stuff, adsense, TLA and all the rest of it. Around 170 different streams of income or so.

So, I think I have enough experience to be able to give a spot of advice to those of you who are thinking about going into this business full-time, or those of you who have already made that decision. Take any advice I give with a pinch of salt, as everyone's ideas are different;

1. Don't be afraid of what others think of you. Any publicity is better than no publicity.
   Do you think that all the negative (or semi negative) blog-posts about John Chows decisions to monetise his comments section hurt his goal? There is a couple of people within an older forum that I am part of, who think that all I think about is making money. Nothing could be further from the truth, but because those people are unable to look past their own noses, they can't see the woods for the trees. It's really quite funny.
2. Don't be afraid to go outside your Comfort Zone.
   Most income is created when you move outside your comfort zone. Think about it - if you know 1% of something, there is another 99% for you to explore.
3. Keep records of what you are doing to earn online.
   Keep records of what and where you are earning your money, down to the last cent. This way you can see which ideas are earning you money, and which are dead ducks.
4. Don't be afraid to abandon ideas that are not paying you.
   This is the one fatal mistake that most new Interweb Entrepreneurs make. If a site or service or product is NOT paying, move on to something else. Take the shame of a failure and respin the product, or give it away to build a list or whatever. Don't try to flog a dead horse.
5. Don't be afraid to let your problematic clients go.
   Another one that I see all the time. If clients are starting to become problematic, let them move on to someone else, with a cheery "goodbye". This frees up your time to allow you to concentrate on more profitable areas.
6. Don't be afraid to say "NO".
   If you don't want to work with someone, say "no". If you don't want to take on a new client, say "no". If you don't want to do something, say "no". Saying "no" is NOT being negative. It's re-inforcing the positive.
7. Don't be afraid to ask for advice.
   Asking for advice is something that is hard to do. Most other people are not in the same situation as you and so cannot give advice that is 100% correct. But there are people who CAN help you and don't you forget it. Get yourself an Accountant post-haste, worth their weight in gold in years to come.
8. Share the love, share the profit.
   There is nothing better than going into a partnership with your online friends. If you have chosen your partner(s) well enough, there'll be no problems at all. And seeing all of you becoming successful is very satisfying.
9. Don't forget to take time off.
   It's important to take time off - when you work online it's all too easy to spend 15 hours a day in front of the computer screen working on projects, testing and tweaking, building sites and what-not. Every so often take your loved one out for a meal, and make sure you get away from it all for at least a few days every quarter. Don't burn yourself out.
10. Remember your friends
    When you are a squillionaire, remember your friends

That's about it - you can see I've not learned much Seriously though, if you are thinking of working at this industry full-time, you need to know that it is cut-throat, that most Internet Marketers would sell their own granny for $97.

I don't particularly like the industry, but have found myself a place in it, for better or worse.

I prefer to deal in "shovels and picks" than actually do any digging myself. Perhaps this might also be a good way for YOU to do things? It's an idea anyway.