Bright shiny objects are designed to attract us.

Maybe it’s because precious metals are bright and shiny.

Maybe it’s some other reason.

But if you’re forever chasing them, you probably suffer from bright shiny object syndrome.

Which almost certainly means you’re spending more time chasing rainbows than you are actually doing things.

What can you do to overcome your bright shiny object syndrome?

The first thing is to recognise you’ve got it.

That admission isn’t always as easy as it seems – ask any other addict!

But it’s a good first step.

The next thing to do is figure out what you’re attracted to buying.

This is an internet marketing blog, so there’s a good chance that it’s the latest brand new offer that promises untold riches if you just follow someone else’s “simple” system that’s explained in their “no fluff” report.

Or maybe it’s that “all” you need to do is buy their push button software or WordPress plugin and watch the millions pile into your bank account.

Other areas in life have the same issues: it could be shoes, it could be leather wallets (I knew a wholesaler once who admitted to that), it could be anything that you’ve accumulated more of than you’re ever going to use.

Then figure out what attracts you to the bright shiny object

Chances are that this is to do with the advert or sales letter.

There’s a reason that copywriters and advertising creative types are often very highly paid: they create sales!

It could be the hype and the unusually precise figures – notice how it’s always a weird amount of dollars, often followed by an odd number of cents, all achieved in a short period of time such as 7 or 10 or 30 days.

Or it could be constantly checking Facebook, Twitter, emails or just generally being addicted to social networking (in which case, check this).

Whatever it is, recognising what is attracting you is an important step.

If you’re not sure, either ask a close friend or check through some of your recent purchase receipts.

Work out what attracted you to buy – often the shine goes off shiny objects very soon after we buy them – and whether or not you’ve done anything with the object since you bought it.

That should give you a good clue

If it doesn’t then maybe it’s time to go cold turkey.

Put yourself on a self-imposed ban for the next month.

And if that sounds scary then it’s getting close to the truth.

Treat this a bit like a diet but without the rebound afterwards

When you start a diet, you’re usually keen and follow it at least reasonably closely.

The same should happen when you try to cure yourself of bright shiny object syndrome.

Start keen – really do resist the temptations put in front of you each and every day.

Unsubscribe from the email lists and Facebook groups that are the most addictive.

Unfollow people who are leading you astray on Twitter and Google+.

Don’t store your credit card or PayPal details in your browser or on a file on your computer.

Log out of Amazon each time you leave the site and don’t let your browser store the login details in a cookie.

Anything to give you a bit of breathing space.

Then ignore the big countdown timers.

You know – the ones that look like this and are forever ticking down to some (probably mythical) deadline:

[embedit snippet=”countdown-snippet”]

Sales pages often use countdowns as there needs to be a sense of urgency to make sure sales are maximised.

That particular countdown is a perpetual one – it resets daily.

Lots of sites use that.

So do shops with almost perpetual sales.

Because it works.

It emphasises the “scarcity” of the shiny object even if the scarcity is like some Franklin Mint adverts I remember reading as a child where they were selling “limited editions” and if you read the small print you found out that the quantity limit was the number of people ordering before the deadline.

Then find something better to do – something that furthers what you want to work on

it’s not a shiny object but setting aside a productive hour each and every day will move you a lot further ahead in your internet marketing journey.

Maybe you’ll become the person selling other people their shiny objects – there’s nothing inherently wrong with doing that so long as what you’re selling still works providing someone does the work involved.

That’s the thing – not everyone will use what they buy.

It’s not just you that doesn’t necessarily take action on everything you buy.

And it’s not limited to internet marketing.

Take a look at your bookshelf or your CD or MP3 collection or the gadgets in your kitchen cupboard.

Chances are that a lot of those have – at best – been used or read or listened to once and then put to one side. Possibly for “later”, possibly because what they delivered wasn’t what you expected, maybe for another reason.

That’s normal.

The trick is to makre sure that at least some of what you purchase does get actioned.

If you haven’t got a 30 day plan for your business, it’s time to create one.

If you have got a plan – congratulations! So long as you’re following it of course.

And if you need help with a plan, check out my Internet Marketing Blueprint.

But whatever you do, resolve not to be chasing those bright shiny objects quite as often.