If you have dealt with many people in the Internet marketing field, you have undoubtedly run across "The Whine". This is an attitude filled with self pity, the desire to have the rewards of Net marketing without paying the price, and often a great deal of hostility. It is an almost 100% certain path to small business failure.

If you aren't familiar with The Whine, two examples will clarify this deadly attitude that you want to avoid at all costs.

I reward those who subscribe to my auction ezine with a free ebook that I wrote. One morning when I opened my email I found two emails from new subscribers - apparently the link to my book was broken. One subscriber simply explained the situation and asked for a remedy. The other sent me the email below:

Subject line: SPAM Complaint

I WAS PROMISED "HOW TO SUCK UP CUSTOMERS FASTER THAN A VACUUM CLEANER ON STEROIDS" FOR SIGNING UP FOR 'AUCTION GOLD' BUT WAS TAKEN TO A PAGE TELLING ME THE ITEM NO LONGER EXISTS...

DON'T YOU THINK EVERYONE SHOULD NO ABOUT THIS ON DISCUSSIONS BOARDS EVERYWHERE? I DO!

My response was courteous and professional – and very firm. I explained the link problem and assured him that the book did indeed exist. I also expressed my curiosity over how this was a SPAM complaint when HE contacted us and not the other way around.

I expressed my dismay over the aggressive and hostile stance he had taken before even bothering to ask about the book. And further, I politely told him that we would not be a good match and I would make certain he would not be bothered by emails from us in the future.

In other words, I did not want him as an ezine subscriber or customer.

I received a reply from him which said he reacted that way because he had been “ripped off in the past”. Further, he “demanded” a copy of my book.

There it is ... The Whine. He's been ripped off in the past, and that's a justification for rudeness and hostility (though he could be cheated when the book was free was a mystery to me).

Have you ever been “ripped off”? If you haven't, it's because you haven't bought much of anything. I have wasted thousands of dollars on material that has gained me nothing.

But you know what? I don't regret it. It's a necessary part of the apprenticeship fee that I paid to learn the net marketing business. I still buy things often – ebooks, software, services. But I rarely buy wrongly anymore. Why? Because I've learned the business well enough to recognize value when I see it. I am so blessed to be in this exciting, wonderful Internet world. Some wasted money is a small price to pay.

As a little girl, once I got past the fairy princess and movie star stages, all I ever wanted to be was a teacher. To realize that dream cost me four years of hard work in college and many thousands of my parents' dollars.

Further, once I had a teaching position I went on to get advanced degrees. That cost me many summers, most weekends, thousands more dollars and long days of going to class after working all day. No complaints – it's just part of the price I paid to do what I wanted.

So, why do people assume that having a net business should require no sacrifice or preparation? Once I was coaching a new auction student, explaining how she could get started. I asked her if she had any questions and there was a long, long silence. Finally, in a whiny voice she replied, “That sounds like a lot of work”.

Well, guess what ... it is! And here's the analogy I used for her: If I created a $10,000/month auction business and just handed it over to her .. free gratis ... “Here, it's all yours.” - what would happen?

I can assure you that in a very short time it would all fall apart, because she didn't have the skills she needed to keep it going! It's like starting the first grade and being assigned to an algebra class. Skills build on each other and there's no way around the learning curve.

So, The Whine will kill you in this business. Don't blame others, no matter what. Take responsibility for your actions and get to work. Decide what you want, and start looking for mentors who can help you find it.