Come on, admit it. You've probably done it more than once and perhaps ended up wondering why it didn't "happen" to you.

You've probably surfed the Web more than once or twice, looking for "The One Plan" or "Amazing Secret Offer" that will fill your bank account with filthy lucre while you sleep. Didn't find it, did you? Neither did I.

Sure, several hundred eBooks or membership programs blasted their sales message at you, along with promises to show you how to make $10,000 in 30 days by following the same plan of action the author did. How many did you buy?

It seems that almost everyone is looking at the Internet like it's the giant Golden Egg that is going to solve all their problems by cloning itself while they watch TV or take a nap. Wanting to get rich quickly without lifting a finger is a pipe dream.

There's no magic eBook that is going to send bags of swag your way just for reading it. That secret plan, "never before seen by anyone, stolen in the middle of the night from a spooky crypt in Egypt," was probably written by someone sitting in their underwear, working on the computer in their bedroom.

The dream of getting rich is such a glittering beckoning finger that there's a whole mystique and vivid folklore that's grown up around the possibility of it magically happening one day, or not happening, depending on your attitude.

How many of these thoughts have coloured your dreams of waking up rich?

* "I don't want to sell out and become one of those wealthy snobs!"

This attitude really puts a negative spin on those you see as being better than you because they have money and you don't. The "snob" tag relieves you from any responsibility for your own lot in life.

* " Everybody else is luckier than I am. I must live under a black cloud."

This "poor me" mind set doesn't allow room for any positive, upbeat self image that can lead you out of the pessimistic and unproductive hole you are digging for yourself. Wealth has nothing to do with luck.

* "I keep playing the lottery, but never win...It's got to be my turn sooner or later."

One winner out of several million players is not something to bank your financial future on. Your "turn" will probably never come.

* "None of my relatives are rich, so I will never inherit anything."

Relatives are pure gold in your life. They love you, listen to your fantastic stories and wish you the best there is for your life. They are rich with the real stuff of life...family history, hugs and hope...and it is usually freely given, if you will accept it.

* "I just don't know the right people to help me out."

The "right people" are all around you. Check them out. They are looking at possibilities, considering their options and taking action to get something moving in the direction they want to go in. Copy success!

* "My job will give me enough financial security to do what I want to do, if I don't get laid off, of course."

Some people are actually afraid of having lots of money. The fantasy of the "security" provided by a steady job is all too comfortable to allow them the real freedom of working for themselves. In today's economy, having a job is not real security.

The truth about increasing your income level, even getting rich, is that there's no steaming magic potion to do it for you. You have to do it for yourself, with enough focus and steady determination to finally succeed, in spite of all the hurdles that get in your way. Sounds easy, doesn't it? Well, it's not. But, there are steps you can follow that will make your journey easier.

The number one thing you don't want to do is waste any more of your money. There's lots of ways to throw your money away, but some of the more seductive ways to blow your dosh can be found on the Internet:

* Investing in vague schemes that might not even be legal.

* Jumping into a multi-level marketing (MLM) plan that is probably nothing more than an illegal pyramid scheme.

* Playing the lottery has the same chance that chucking a note in a bottle into the sea and expecting it to come back to you has. There's some very tantalizing international lotteries online that will happily take your money. Don't give it to them!

* Buying every eBook that promises to make you a millionaire overnight. A Google search on "get rich quick ebook" (no quotes) turned up 541,000 sites with ebooks to sell you so you can get rich without working for it. Don't even read them!

If you have been seduced by all the "get rich tonight" hype of the sales letters, landing pages, pretty covers on virtual books and pictures of some guy sitting on the bonnet of a flashy sports car, you're not alone. I've been there, seen it, done it, got the T-shirt.

The first thing you have to do is separate the hype from the truth. There's hundreds, probably thousands, of honest, hard-working Internet Marketers who have really helpful products you can use to put you on a real path to creating your online business.

The Secret To Getting Rich

So can you actually get rich with online ventures? That answer is, "Yes, but..." Take a deep breath and read on.

What you have to do now is build an online business that you can market, expand and duplicate to match the changing interests of your site visitors. That's how you get rich online...that's the secret that's not so secret after all.

Are you poking yourself in the eye with a wet fish yet? Be kind to yourself. The simplest solutions are often the most successful and the most elusive. Sometimes our own thought processes try to complicate sunrises.

Most highly successful Internet Marketers create their fortunes in several ways and you can do the same:

* Selling your own products online...eBooks, eCourses or software you created and own all the rights to. If you cannot write well, there's always ghostwriters who will do it for you. If you want software and do not have the expertise to develop your ideas, there's freelance programmers who will do it for a fee.

* Becoming an affiliate for already successful products or services and getting commissions for every sale made through your efforts.

* Selling your services in your own field of expertise to those who need the knowledge you have...gardening advice, balancing budgets, fixing recipe disasters. The option list is endless.

* Creating your own forum, blog or subscription membership site will let you provide good service or information to your readers and members and generate a large list of interested customers for your products.

* Using Social Networking sites to attract attention to your business and increase your subscriber/list base by posting quality articles with links back to your sites.

Your mind set here has to include a determination to provide more benefit or value to your visitors or members than the cost of the product you're selling. "Over Deliver" is the buzz word here and it works like a charm.

Most do this with good, related bonuses, free for the download after buying the original item. Those bonuses can be several ebooks on the same topic, or other aspects of the same topic, software to make common processes easier, or free memberships. Just make sure that the bonuses are at least as high a quality as your product.

Now you have the real secret to making money online. How rich you get, or don't get, is totally in your own hands. The lack of rich relatives or not knowing the right people can no longer hold you back.

The most difficult product and marketing plan to create will be the first one.

1. Take your time

2. Think outside the box

3. Learn to use search engines to find what you want

4. Use the resources available to you on blogs and forum

5. Copy successful marketers

6. Become a member of several social networking sites

7. Concentrate on developing and promoting one product at a time (FOCUS)

When you have all the processes required for your first successful online business working seamlessly, you will have a template to follow for others. If you actually research successful marketers you will run into on your journey, you should notice that all of them have multiple sites and more than a few products.

That, in a nutshell is how you do it. Set up the first one. Get it working perfectly and then repeat the process over and over until you reach the level of success you want.

Your requirements are knowledge, work and focus. Apply them and getting rich can be a reality for you a lot faster than you thought it would.

Here's to your success!