Then one day it happens...you get out of bed and thought of getting near computer makes your stomach queasy. You begin thinking maybe you should get that root canal your dentist has been bugging you about for last six months. Gee, wasn’t my carpet beige at one time, not gray? Maybe I should clean house; mow yard; do my 2000 taxes. Anything...anything...but get on computer.

My friend, you’ve fallen into "Black Hole" of Internet marketing. It’s a place where you are totally apathetic about online promotion; you just don’t want to have anything to do with it.

The first time it happened to me, I had just returned from a tranquil week in mountains of Tennessee. I thought I would return to my computer with a huge appetite for marketing. To my surprise and dismay, I just didn’t want to get back on computer and my routine of spending 10-12 hours a day doing all things we do.

I came out of that period realizing that I needed to moderate my time on computer and to do that; I would need to start working smarter, not harder. So "Black Hole" episode wasn’t a bad thing. I learned from it.

I think anyone who is passionate (obsessive?) about Net marketing goes through this in varying degrees. And everyone deals with it differently. Some are able to "bully" their way through these episodes. That doesn’t work for me because then marketing becomes something I HAVE to do instead of something I WANT to do.

I have fallen into "Black Hole" a few more times and have no doubt I will again in future. This is how I have learned to get through it:

1. I subscribe to 125+ ezines. I receive majority of them in several different HotMail accounts so I don’t overload my main email account. I will set my HotMail accounts up not to receive and automatically delete any incoming mail. This prevents bouncebacks and I won’t lose my subscriptions. I know I’m going through a temporary phase and when I get through it, I can open my accounts back up.

2. I go to library and check out a bunch of books. For me, more Stephen King and John Grisham, better. I spend my afternoons with my butt firmly planted on couch (one cat on my chest and one on my legs) with a bag of potato chips within easy reach.

A lot of websites tell you about someone or something. Advertising runs rampant and testimonials fill pages until you forget what original idea was about. You can purchase anything from A to Z, and in every price range. There are numerous colors to choose from, and size. Foreign travel and recipes are there to satisfy any world traveler and gourmet. You can even purchase your choice of product/service in several languages and with interchangeable parts.

Now common thread - that one ion of sameness. It’s there when your coming and you can’t escape it when you’re leaving. You can’t overlook it and there it is site after site. As an internet marketer, what can you do about it? Well, solution is to be different with a twist. It is uniqueness with a slant. Yes, you will have to use your creativity and your individuality as a person to come up with an original and compelling way of presenting your product or service. Cutting that common thread of sameness is difficult. It’s tough and its strong. Its fibers reach into every nook and cranny and climb up walls of your site. Chopping this vine down takes some doing, but rest assured, it can be done and it certainly is worth it.