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Shatter Your Glass Ceiling with an Internet Business

Written by: Karen Newman

Article Overview: Here is an irrefutable fact of life-if you are an employee, there is a glass ceiling looming severely over everything you do. It doesn’t matter what industry you work in, what company you work for, or what job you do. If you are not self-employed, you will ultimately come up against a glass ceiling of one form or another.

Shatter Your Glass Ceiling with an Internet Business

Here is an irrefutable fact of life—if you are an employee, there is a glass ceiling looming severely over everything you do. It doesn’t matter what industry you work in, what company you work for, or what job you do. If you are not self-employed, you will ultimately come up against a glass ceiling of one form or another.

We are all familiar with the term “glass ceiling” as it refers to women in the workplace. For many years, professional women in all sectors faced tremendous hurdles when trying to advance their careers. This is particularly true for those of us who work in male-dominated industries or where the “old-boy network” reigned supreme. Promotions and career advancement were based more on who you knew rather than your achievements and work ethic. This trend abated somewhat as women's rights became a keynote issue that increasingly resonated in the public's awareness. However, to this day glass ceiling restrictions still apply to many women in their workplaces.

Less familiar but just as obstructive is the glass ceiling imposed on the aging workforce. Baby boomers who are nearing retirement are finding it increasingly difficult to continue professional growth. Companies that are strapped for cash are cutting costs by hiring younger, less expensive workers to perform jobs previously held by aging baby boomers. Often times, boomers are shunted off into career dead ends that lead nowhere.

The most ubiquitous glass ceiling of all, however, is one that few people seem to recognize but that every employee bears the weight of: The glass ceiling that restricts the life potential of anyone who is employed by someone else. Indeed, working for others incurs the ultimate limitation. Whether you are the employee of a small entrepreneurial firm or a large multinational organization, the glass ceiling imposed on you is as real as it is for women or for aging baby boomers. The reality is that unless you are self-employed, there is no such thing as unlimited advancement, and there is no such thing as employment security.

The reason for this is quite simple. Unless you are an owner, you are not in control. When other people dictate your schedule, your priorities, and your overall employment agenda, you are in effect at their mercy. And regardless of companies that tout unlimited growth potential and long-term employment security, such desirable perks exist only at a relative level. During good times, everyone is getting promoted, and those promises seem marvelously real. But when the economy sours, when dutiful workers are being laid off by the dozens (if not the hundreds), and when those who remain are asked to step up and take on a greater work burden with less compensation, the harsh reality begins to sink in.

The potential of building an Internet marketing empire is one that exists on a completely level playing field. At last, you are in control of your own business and your own destiny. Online marketing allows even the smallest micro-entrepreneur to compete directly against the largest multinational corporations in the world . . . and to outperform them. Again, it is not necessarily easy and certainly not guaranteed, but Internet success is available to anyone who wishes to work for it.

The first step in this process is to recognize your particular glass ceiling for what it is. Understand that regardless of your position in the company you presently work for, as a retained employee, sooner or later your professional growth and long-term employment security will come into question. Whatever your station in life, wherever you are in your job and in your career, know that the realm of Internet marketing offers you the best possible chance to shatter your glass ceiling.

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Article Tags: baby boomer, employee, glass ceiling, internet business, internet marketing, retirement



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Re: Who inspired you to start? - Hi Evan, I was inspired by Mr. Bill Gates ever since I was a student learning Computers. But I was motivated for Internet as my Business, when I read his book "The Road Ahead" in 1995. It was in this book that Gates laid out his vision of an interconnected world built around the Internet. Based on the premise that life will be transformed by the convergence of inexpensive computing and inexpensive communications, Gates drew from his experience at the center of the personal computer revolution to give insights on the growth, evolution and impact of technology. I had always looked up to Bill Gates as my idol. When I read this book, it made me more focussed on Microsoft and Internet, The Internet was one of the upcoming things in this time. So I took over to the Internet as my primary business. Regards,
Re: Fill in the blank: The best decision I ever made with my bus - Focusing on my Internet Marketing Business
Re: How many mambers of this forum are also member of WF? - Hi Kevin, I have to agree with Tanny. All forums are unique in their own way, but doesn't mean that one is better than the other. What you might get out of one forum, you may not get from another. For instance, the WF focuses on Internet Marketing, while this forum focuses on Entrepreneurship. Each has their own set of benefits. I don't think you can really compare one to the other, unless of course they focused on the same topic. I have learned a lot from this forum, stuff I would never have gotten from the WF. With that being said, I've learned a lot from the WF, specifically since I need to know about Internet Marketing and running an online business. The addition of the Online Business forum here will help, and Jeff is doing a great job as moderator.
Re: I thought social sites were a waste of time. How wrong I was - Social Media has only really been understood this last year or two. Before that I didn’t really understand or like Facebook for example because of the problems separating Family and Friends from Business. Twitter seemed a total waste of my time and a lot of people seemed to spend all their time building up their followers to brag about how many they have got. Now I understand the basics a bit more I can appreciate the value particularly of Twitter in building up relationships with others in your niche with a view to doing business later. If people follow me and are active in the general Internet world or marketing in particularly then I follow back immediately otherwise I don’t see the point. You could argue I suppose that someone who breeds dogs and enjoys painting for example might suddenly become an Internet Marketer and I am missing out on not following them but I tend to stick within my niche. regards, Mal.


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