Last week I shared a part of my journey with you as I published my first book on Amazon for Kindle, Your Time, Your Life. During the free promo period, my goal was to hit the top #100. Many of you have asked, “So, Lisa – did you hit your goal?”
Now, remember, this is my first book . . . and I really had no idea what was involved with hitting the top #100. I just knew that if I achieved that goal it would be “good”. So – I reached for the stars.
And failed.
The highest I ranked during the 5 day free promo period was #636.
Boy, was I discouraged. You see, I was at #636 on Day #1. I just assumed I would continue to rank higher each day.
Ummmm . . . no!
However, after I had a chance to reflect, I realized that over 1,000 people downloaded my time management book, Your Time, Your Life. That’s over 1,000 people that will be able to spend more time working towards their goals. Doing the activities that they WANT to do. I could NEVER talk one-on-one with 1,000 people in 5 days! So – a win!
But, realistically, I was still a bit bummed. Maybe you can relate. Have you set a goal before . . . and then fell short? It can be discouraging.
So, I took a step back, tried to look at the experience logically, and evaluate the process. So – what did I learn?
- I now have a better understanding of key words, rank, and Amazon
- I have an idea of how many downloads it may take to break into the top #100
- People WANT to help – you just need to ask!
- Setting a goal and NOT hitting it is OK
Because – you see – though I didn’t break the top #100 during my free promo, my book is currently ranking #6 out of over 123,000 books in the category of Time Management. Whooo Hoooo!!!
Before my promo – I have NO idea where I was ranking, I just know it wasn’t in the top 200! (After that, I stopped looking!!!)
Imagine where I would be had I NOT set the goal of breaking into the top #100. Imagine how many more people I can touch when Your Time, Your Life is on the front page of results vs. buried somewhere in the back.
Imagine what is possible the next time I launch a book.
See – the important part of this post isn’t that I didn’t reach my goal – it’s that the goal I set was sooooooooooooooooo HUGE, that even when I didn’t hit it, I still accomplished great things! So though I “failed” at achieving this goal – I was still successful!
Imagine what is possible the next time YOU set a HUGE goal!!!
Your turn – have you ever set a goal – and then fell short? What “lesson” did you learn? Please share!
Now is the perfect time to increase your time management strategies with My Time, My Life. If you are ready to spend LESS time doing what you HAVE to do, and MORE time doing what you WANT to do – download this book!
Reach for the stars- because even if you missed you are still above the clouds
Exactly, Terri, exactly! Thanks for the comment!
Lisa
My goal is trying to get a good night of sleep,I don’t achieve it very often but when I do….I am pretty happy about…just need to try harder.
Michael
Great goal! What steps do you take to turn this into reality?
Lisa
I really hope that I do make it as a writer one day.
*Fingers crossed*
-Writing is my passion!
Thanks Sophie! I appreciate the encouragement!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Lisa
Congratulations, Lisa on the belated goal achievement though it appears that you achieved a lot more for a first time Amazon writer – visibility! It’s going to make your next book’s promo even more successful.
Thanks for the encouragement, Vatsala! I need to keep the end goals in mind – both visibility and sales! Plus – it’s a journey!!!!!
First, congrats on the book! I just went and bought it now and look forward to reading it this next week. I LOVE time management books, there are always so many good ideas. My mom and I just published our first book, too, and it’s been tough to see low numbers on Amazon. We keep trying to remember that Amazon is not where we’ll sell the most (that will be through our publisher at quilt shows), but it can still be disheartening. Just keep it up!
Woo HOoo Laura
Congrats on your first book – and thanks for checking mine out!!! Each day I’m thrilled to find it still on the first page of results for “Time Management” . . and I know it will catch on . . . I just need to have a realistic time frame! Best of luck with yours!
Lisa
Hi other Lisa! I discovered you via the Blog Formatting link up. I think you’re a rock star for publishing a book full stop.
I always expect to go from zero to a hundred in two seconds flat so I’m usually not so much falling flat as a little unrealistic about how rapidly the goal can be reached.
thanks for stopping by, Lisa! I truly can understand the “realistic” view! I’m learning!!!
Lisa, it’s so very tempting to focus on numbers and find that we fall short so many times. Whenever I feel that, I just try to step back and see how I can shift my focus on what I did well. How am I helping the people who decided to download my free material, buy my ebooks, courses or coaching programs? This always help me reset and see things from the “brighter” perspective.
Thanks so much for sharing your experience, it’s very helpful!
Hi Delia
Thanks for stopping by! It’s a journey – not a destination – I keep reminding myself!!! How can I be even better next time is my mantra now!!!
Lisa
Lisa you are amazing! I love that you made the goal of publishing the book! I am so in the baby stages of blogging and you have given all of us great insight into the world of publishing.
Kristina
Thanks for stopping by! I am so honored and encouraged that you think I’m amazing. Keep blogging!!!
Lisa
Lisa, I love your honesty in this post. I have had a situation, where I wanted something so bad, and against my gut instinct I went forward with promoting my business when I was not really ready. Well I fell flat on my face, I was discouraged, sad, heart broken and totally embarrassed BUT…what I learned from this mistake was priceless because it helped guide me to where I needed to be. I learned a great deal as a result of my mistake, as I tell my kid, “mistakes are learning opportunities”. Boy did I learn and you are too. Good job and your book is fantastic by the way! Keep going and learning, you will get to the top 100 I am sure!
Lisa
Sometimes it’s tough to “get back up” when we fail . . . but I’m a HUGE believer that we learn more from when we don’t hit our goals than when we do. It’s just a matter of pulling it all together long enough to look at the situation LOGICALLY. Congrats on seeing your learning opportunity! Thanks for the compliment on my book!!
Lisa
Congrats Lisa!!! Recovering from a painful situation or disappointment is never simple, though we should focus on what it teaches us…
Thanks for the encouragement, Clara!
Love this post Lisa, as well as the book!
Hey Natalie –
Thanks for stopping by, leaving a comment, and reading the book! You are AWESOME!
Lisa
Dearest Lisa…,ever so excited for you and ever so proud of you. I’ve been goal-a-phobic for years…why? “cuz “why set goals if you can’t/don’t meet them?” Yup, I know, not the wisest (LOL). So what you’ve done is shown us all you don’t die if you don’t make it, you learn a lot and you helped at least a 1000 people by “failing.”
Rock it sister girl!
Laugh lots, Love more!
MamaRed
Thanks for stopping by, MamaRed! Set a goal . . . right now . . . do it! And let me know what it is! Truly – you won’t know what you are capable of until you s t r e t c h! (I must admit – if I would have had ANY idea how difficult getting into the top #100 was, I would never have chosen this goal . . . ignorance was bliss in this case! But once I did – I’m thrilled with the results!)
You are a rock star!
Lisa
Hey there Lisa…yup, you’re so right about the stretchhhhhhhhhhhing! My current stretch is partnering with someone who really loves what I do and, gasp, creating plans and properly written “stuff” to communicate what we’re up to. We’re creating a mini video series with a storyline/characters and building the marketing plan. Today’s goal is to create 10 Hook Pages (a form of simplified content page) focused on systems, processes and content. There, I wrote it outloud!
Big hugs and thanks for being my cheerleader.
MamaRed
MamaRed
Cheering for you – and jumping up and down in my office in excitement! Thanks for sharing your BIG GOAL here . . . I can’t wait to see the finished product!
Lisa