My Only Choice Was to Succeed! What Have You Done?

December 22, 2011 - Last Modified: December 24, 2011 by Hesham Zebida

I never thought that 2011 will bring much success into my life, but it surely did! Probably because there was a plan to achieve, and there were goals to reach. I am so proud of what I’ve done so far, however I feel I’ve could done more with some little tweaks in my plan, but it’s all good, and I am really happy to achieve my blogging goals, even tough I didn’t have a plan B.

My only choice was to succeed! Period!

Today, my friend, my blog reader, and my fellow blogger, I want to share the success that you have been always part of it!

Tow years ago, I haven’t got many choices, I had to leave!

There where some success in the past, it wasn’t my own creation though, that’s why I left my country in a try to find my own success, I left my childhood dreams and almost everything else behind.

Today, and after long nights, and hard work, my business is paying off. My people think that I did good so far, they see me heading to the right direction, I do good business, I earn my living from what I do, this makes me more happy! Actually no one believes that I’ve made more than 50,000 this year blogging on my sofa and watching TV. which is really cool for someone who has just started, the only problem I have to deal with is my Income Taxes, so wish me good luck with that, I am not prepared for any painful truth!

Anyways, to me… It’s not only about money, I’ve earned what is more valuable than money, it’s my great friendship that I’ve made in the last couple of years with people who I really appreciate.

My Blogging Goals for 2012

Find a way to make FamousBloggers.net a better blog.
Grow my design business.
Develop more awesome stuff!
Break the wall of $100,000 / year.
Get a new sofa 🙂

That’s my business and blogging goals for the coming year, maybe it looks simple, maybe it’s a way complicated than it looks like, I really don’t know! But the only thing I am sure of is, success requires hard work and passion, and I’ve got what it takes.

My Advice for Bloggers in 2012

Be helpful, supportive and nice!
Don’t be random, get yourself a plan!
Make plan B part of plan A

Alright, instead of contacting 100 blogger and ask them about their blogging goals for 2012 and publish their replies in a big fat ass blog post, I thought to just publish this short and sweet post to share my goals and my advice, and get to know yours. The goal of this post is to have a little chat together, so you don’t have to complicate things, just add a simple list of your blogging and business goals, and let others know how you did last year. I would appreciate if you give advice based on the experience you’ve got by running your own blogging business.

So here I am.. Asking you directly, what’s your goals for 2012? And what you advice others who are starting!

Happy New Year, and more power to you and your business in 2012!

Maybe next year we will all come by this post and say : Yes! We did it 🙂

Thank you so very much for being here.

About Hesham Zebida

Follow @hishaman

I create websites with WordPress, and I develop Schema Plugins to help SEOs. I am a social network lover. I am also the night creature who works hard to keep this project up. Owner and founder of the Famous Blog.

{ 83 Responses }

Grace says:

Wow! Congratulations for achieving your goals! I had a little luck the past year but I learned a lot about life and business. Now, I"m more eager to face 2012 with more business plans and effective ways too. Thanks to people like you who makes it easier for us to set goals and plan for effective strategies as well. While searching for great videos to inspire me, I got stocked into this great video: http://marieforleo.com/2012/01/free-planning-tool-reach-business-goals/ It was a great tool for planning our goals and it's very informative too. Watch it.
Sefati says:

hey Hesham By the way where did you make your 50k from? purely ads? I do blog but not for profit I just blog to promote myself, my business, and my clients. But if I can also make some side cash then why not. Any advise would be great
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  That number present my full online business income, I do a lot of stuff to bring it in, so let's say that FamousBloggers only dose 20% to 35% of it, but without it I probably won't profit because it's my main window on the internet! About 50% of profits comes from my ThesisAwesome.com site, the rest is from affiliate commissions and ads, so ads probably comes on the third place. To be able to earn from what you do now, you probably need to tweak your way or maybe start building a few niche sites.
Barry says:

Hi Hesham! Nice to hear that you crossed 50,000 this year and you are heading to double in 2012. There are no substitutes for hardwork and persistence. You had both. Thank you for writing inspirational post. I wish you a very happy new year, 2012. Barry
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  Hi Barry, Thanks a lot for your wishes, I appreciate it, same to you, big success in 2012.
Thomas says:

Hi Hesham I see that we have one thing in common when it comes to goals for 2012. I need a new sofa too :-) I better go and put that one on my list as well. I don't want to miss that one.
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  Hell yeah buddy, new sofa is a must :) Actually, I've got a nice office room, and a cool desk for my Birthday, my wife was super cool that I want to buy her new furniture on the first chance! However, I will always remember the sofa and my first other desk (the small rounded kitchen table), what a start for a business! Thank you Thomas for stopping by, I really wish you big success in 2012, and Happy New Year.
Aidy says:

I am looking forward to the New Year, and wishing everyone great success. I think I will try different things for my site in 2012--starting with increasing my posting frequency to one post daily, comment more on other blogs in my niche, and support a few more indie projects in 2012. More importantly, I wish everyone success with their goals in 2012. Hesham, looks like you have a busy year ahead of you!
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  Hey Aidy, I don't think that focusing on one thing will bring success, so you are absolutely right, trying different things on your blog is a must, plus engaging with and supporting others in your niche will bring you on the top of them! Yes, I have an insanely busy year ahead, I don't complain though, busy is good :) Happy New Year, and thanks you so very much for your continues support, I appreciate it.
Noel Addison says:

Creating a plan B (in case plan A fails) is very important to ensure the success of a business or a blog. Happy new year Hesham! :)
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  Thanks Noel , However, some people don't agree with that! They think that plan B is not important, you just can do it with one plan if you have it right! I like that because we don't have much time these days, and also we must succeed or better find another job :) Happy New Year
Ling says:

My advice is be unflinching with your goals, but be flexible with your methods.
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  Good advice Ling, thanks a lot for stopping by.
abhiz says:

Ohh! hesham I'm didn't noticed your annual earnings its more than $10,000! Its really an inspiration for me i want to earn huge like you.
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  mmm.. maybe you need to read again :) Thanks
julie says:

whats the new sofa for? tee hee, seriously though, well done you Hesham and hope you double your fugures in 2012 (ive a good feeling you will)
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  Haha.. It's just a wish for buying new furniture, however the one I have was actually new, but that was 2 years ago :) Thanks Julie
Abed Saragih says:

Thank you very much for the information you provide I hope it's useful for me and others.
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  No problem, thanks!
Agatha Tefora says:

I just started with my blog this year. It is a private blog but now, I would want to share it with my friends. I don't think I'm ready for profit yet. All I want is to share it with the closest people. Anyway, congrats Hesham!
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  Hi Agatha, Only this year? That's cool, I mean your blog is really awesome, and it shouldn't be private! Keep it up. Maybe do some guest posts here and there will help you to get notices by others as I see you have an affiliate program. Good luck, and Happy New Year.
Swamykant says:

You right.. it is better to have Plan A and B but it should not be completely different. All the best for 2012.
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  Haha, you got it :) Thanks Swamykant, my wishes for a big success in 2012
isnan says:

very inspiring for me, ucan earn $50.000/year. iam new blogger. revenues from which, and the largest of which my goal is: make money from my blog $5000/month get top 10 google in my keywords any suggestion for beginner like me? tks
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  Hi Isnan, The problem is not in the making money process, there are plenty of bloggers and internet marketers out there doing it, and you can do it! You need to have the passion, and work towards achieving your goals, stop writing posts like "High Pagerank and benefit from High Pagerank Backlinks", write about the stuff you know about! It's complicated as believing! Good luck, and Happy New Year.
Dan Keller says:

Hesham - Great job with your blog. It has been a while since I stopped by and it is amaizing how much this site has grown in the past year. Wishing you the best in 2012 . 100 grand is a lofty goal but if anyone can do it - it is you.
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  Hey Dan, Yeah! Long time my friend, I hope all is good! I see many people doing the 100 grand thing, it's not an easy job though, but nothing is impossible, I will work for that goal from the first day, well.. actually, I don't have to wait for another couple of days, let's the business begin right now! Thanks for stopping by, it means a lot. My wishes with big success at 2012.
abhiz says:

This year 2011 give me a good start! Me created my blog 1 month ago and working on it!! Hope next year will bring me some cool cash
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  Hi Abhiz , good to know that 2011 treated you well, my wishes for more success next year.
Bhupendra Sharma says:

Congrats Hesham for a successful year 2011 and I hope it will bring more in 2012.Here are my blogging goals for 2012 is that i want make successful blogging in 2012 and make lot of money with blog.
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  Thanks Bhupendra, I wish you big success in 2012.
Shabnam Sultan says:

Congrats Hesham :) wishing you more success in 2012.
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  Thanks Shabnam, you are the best, same to you... Happy New Year :)
Ruth Sayson says:

My goal for 2012 is to make my blog full of interesting content that reader will love, upgrade to the latest wordpress blog and lastly to make it more income generating than before. So how thus it sound like?
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  Hi Ruth, sounds great, good luck!
Pritam says:

Congrats for a successful year 2011 and hope it will bring more in 2012. I am also aiming to make my blog a better one in the new year ahead. When you are making money, its good if you pay the advance taxes quarterly so it won't be a burden at the end of the year.
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  Thanks Pritam , quarterly is a good idea for big business, however I am still growing! I appreciate your advice, and good luck in 2012.
Jon Anscher says:

I think my main goals in 2012 are to focus on a career plan and make it happen. I have a lot of different ideas out there, and I want to figure out how to hone in on one focus and make sure that I make the career shift I'm looking for.
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  Hi John, I think many of us have a lot of different ideas coming and going, the question is which one should you focus on, When I am not sure, then .. testing out things probably the best idea! Good luck!
Mark says:

In 2012, I have two goals: 1) To grow my newsletter that I have come to love. 2) To increase conversions . I have gone the the high traffic route and have learned that if you don't convert it when it comes through, you are simply wasting resources. Hope everyone here has a great 2012 :) Mark
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  Hey Mark, I believe that conversion is the most important goal for the next year, it's the shortest way to more profits. Good luck buddy, and thanks for sharing.
Mark Lefebvre says:

Human is planning, God is leading, but I plan to make my first 4 figures month next year and also create my first affiliate product and start list building. I am not making huge plans but have accumulated a lot of knowledge and experience, this is the reason I believe these plans may become reality. Wish you all successful year of 2012!
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  Thanks for stopping by Mark, I appreciated it. I wish you good luck with your plans and goals.
nate says:

Congratz Hesham. I have been a long time follower. You are doing great, keep it up! I am so happy your building a foundation using Thesis too!
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  Hi Nate, I appreciate it. Yes, I really found success with Thesis, and looking forward to develop more. My wishes.
doug_eike says:

My main goals are: 1. to double my organic traffic 2. to increase my email list by 30% 3. to improve the design of my blog 4. to speak with a broader voice Thanks!
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  Hi Doug, Thank you so much for sharing your goals with us, I wish you good luck!
Mavis Nong says:

Congratulations on your success, Hesham! You're a true inspiration :) In 2012, I want to: a. Double my traffic b. Increase my conversion rate c. Create more products Have wonderful holidays, Hesham. Best, Mavis
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  Hey Mavis, It has been a great year so far, I hope things went good for you as well :) I see.. traffic and conversation is something we all are looking for, and of course own products are the best! Good luck dear.
  - Mavis Nong says:
    
    Thanks very much, Hesham :) All the best in 2012! Mavis
Gregg Camp says:

2011 has come to an end and a new year awaits us. Its also the right time to reflect on what we've achieved so far and study what we lack, our shortcomings and our plus points. Glad to know that 2011 was a successful year for you. May the coming year be a year filled with great opportunities.
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  Thanks Gregg for you wishes, I appreciate you stop by the blog.
Ileane says:

My dear Hesham, congratulations on all of your success in 2011. You are destined to achieve your goals for 2012 and beyond because of your positive attitude and your kind and generous heart. My goal for 2012 includes building an email list and growing my corner of the blogging empire. Thanks for all you do and enjoy the holiday time you spend with your lovely wife and your extended family.
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  Thank you so much Ileane for being such a great friend, you've became a real super blogger in 2011, I am watching :) Cool goals, I've released an updated version of the BlogSkin that might help you achieve your goals, and there is much more coming next week. My wishes goes to you, big success in 2012.
David says:

Congratulations. Best of luck with the taxes and the sofa!
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  Haha.. Now, and after I thought about it, I realized that Taxes is much easier to deal with than getting a new sofa :) Thanks David, I really appreciate your continues support, best of luck to you and your business.
Dave Lucas says:

Thank-You, Hesham! You have worked hard! You are an inspiration to others - a GENUINE role model and "blogebrity" - not a phoney-baloney "guru" trying to sell a bunch of junky products anyone who knew where to look could Google for free. You treat everyone equally. Peaceful Blessings and Much Prosperity for you in the coming year 2012!
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  Oh Dave, Thank you so much for the kind words, I know that I wasn't good enough in supporting you, I apologize for that, and will do my best! I think one of your goals for 2012 should be moving to WordPress :)
Ryan Biddulph says:

Hi Hesham, Passion. Do all you do with passion and you can do awesome things. Super inspiring stuff here. Your passion drove you to keep going, to build a plan to stick with the plan, to succeed, to keep reaching higher. Passion is the fuel which drives successful people. Which kills excuses. Which helps you persist, when, as you said, you really had no other choice. Keep driving forward and each and also, keep working on your mental tools. I feel personal development is absolutely critical to any inspiring entrepreneur, or veteran entrepreneur, because how you use your mental tools determines how far you will go in life. As for my goals I intend to make cash gifting the sole focus of my online efforts. No more inspirational quotes, no more law of attraction stuff. I released on these other exploits a few months back and the laser sharp clarity of my marketing campaign has produced instant tremendous results. Eye opening stuff, the power of clarity, and doing exactly one thing so you do not confuse your audience. Keep up the great work/play Hesham. RB
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  Hey Ryan, my man.. I love to see you around with all the inspiration in your work! Great advice like always, and good stuff buddy! Good to know that things are working well for you, even though your niche is not an easy one! Stick to what you are good at! My wishes with big success at 2012
DiTesco says:

Wonderful achievement my friend. It is so rewarding when we see what we planned doing go through and succeed. You my friend are among those that I truly think deserve much success as you have been contributing a lot to the community. I only see 2012 as your "consolidation" point, where great things will happen. And I will be here (there), watching you like a hawk :) My only advice, is to continue what you are doing... you are doing a hell of a good job, that's for sure. As for me, I am satisfied with my performance. Business is doing great and I have some projects lined up for 2012. Hopefully, they will be very helpful for the community and a success, lol Here's to a Happy Holidays and a great new year for you and your family.... and also for all your contributors, readers and friends :)
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  Haha.. You are a great friend DiTesco, and I appreciate all the support you gives to me and to the community. Thanks a lot for the advice, this gives me a big push! Looking forward to more cooperation between us, and can not wait to see your coming projects, my wishes for a big success, and more power to you my friend.
Faissal Alhaithami says:

Great achievements Hesham :D you are really an inspirational to all of us as a new bloggers. I've too many goals that I want to achieve in 2012 but my main goal is to launch my first product ;) thanks hesham for sharing :) I actually enjoy reading this kind of posts :D
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  Hey Faissal, I bet you have too many goals to reach in the coming year, and this is really good! What I like about you most is that you try a lot of things to see what works for your the best, that's a good way to do it! Good luck with your first product, let me know if there is anything I can help with.
Raj says:

Congrats you your achievement Hesham. Maybe you'd like to use ',' instead of '.' in between the numbers? Just to make sure that no one has misunderstood anything ;) I hope to come back to a post during the next year perhaps same time... All the best.
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  Hi Raj, Haha.. you are right, that would make things looks better :) Thank you for your wishes, and I hope 2012 will be the best year ever for you business.
David Britt says:

Congrats to your success! We had the same goal before 2011 approaching.... I only want to earn to support my family's needs but God has given me so much.. Blessings are pour heavily good and bad still a blessing.. I can't thank enough God for all the blessings.
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  Hi David, That's a good goal and purpose to earn, I am sure that God wouldn't disappoint those who work hard for their families. Best of luck, and thanks for stopping by.
Tushar says:

Congrats Hesham. Not many are able to achieve their goal and I am a big time defaulter. You have executed your plans really well and I hope I can emulate you in the coming year
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  Thank you Tushar, I wish you good luck with your online business plans. I appreciate your stop by my post.
Harleena Singh says:

Congratulations Hesham! Wonderful achievements and may the coming year be better than this one for you :) Thanks once again for those great tips for bloggers, I guess we all need to learn a great deal from your success and achievements. Great going :) Wishing you and your family Merry Christmas and a very Happy New year as well :)
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  Harleena , thank you so much for you kind words and great wishes! This means a lot to me! Man, you always make me feel good :)
Ricardus says:

Hi, I wish your blog have the success like how you do it now. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  Thanks Ricardus for the great wish, same to you and WPwebhost.com
Derek Morton says:

What a great article. Thanks for sharing your goals with us other bloggers. Here are my blogging goals for 2012: 1) Double my traffic 2) Begin to monetize my blog
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  Hi Derek, This is great blogging goals for the coming year, keep it up, and thanks a lot for stopping by.
Sally Brown says:

Hi Hesham, Congratulations for doing so well. I am sorry about you having to leave your country and everything behind, but you have succeed in your goals. I also wish you much success in the coming year. I would suggest you start putting away money to pay the income taxes at year end. That way it may not hurt so much. LOL Good luck. Sally
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  The most painful truth about online business is that expenses is too low compared with income, that could hurt, so yeah, that's a great advice Sally, I should put away some money to prepare myself, however not sure if it's too late, but that's will be something to consider for the next year. Awesome! Thanks a lot for stopping by, I really appreciate it.
Wong Chendong aka The Bad Blogger says:

Well, my plan for 2012 is to make more money, though I always never talk much about how much I earn online and offline, but at least it can buy me a house and a long vacation holiday. 2011 was really a year where I had started to relax myself more then working because I had hired at least 3 more talented freelance to help me with my business online and that add up to 6 people running different jobs for my 16 niche business and also helping out in running my "Bad Blogger" Blog:) Anyway, I have a goal but had yet to actually achieve it, and that is holding a bloggers meeting somewhere in this world because it will be great to see bloggers you had seen along the way face to face and talking together, don't you think?
- Hesham Zebida says:
  
  Wow, I didn't know that you run 16 niche businesses, awesome! Of course, that would be a great idea, I am starving to meet those great people that I never had a chance to speak with them face to face, maybe in BlogWorld expo next year?
  - Wong Chendong aka The Bad Blogger says:
    
    Well, talking about BlogWorld expo, it is strange even famous Blogger such as Alvin Phang from gathersuccess.com doesn't even show up , what I mean is, I'm not sure if I will get to go there, I guess BlogWorld should change the name to BlogGathering Expo, because if you look at it, the only speaker I knew of is ProBlogger. I still prefer, to have you, me, Brian from Blog engage, IIeane, and many others that we usually see weekly on social media sites rather then going to an expo, you don't even know anyone there...
    - Hesham Zebida says:
      
      Alright, I got your point :) That would be awesome man!

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