Hyperlink to False Promises

http://www.flickr.com/photos/53611153@N00/316668966

wrote this last March 9, 2010.

 I have wanted to access a hyperlink that discussed online placements. According to the news that superceded that link, it promised more income earning than the eight to five job. I saw the hyperlink from a friend’s Facebook status.

For months, I kept on reading the news article that I copied and pasted in MS Word. For one, the man on the street interviewed was a Filipina from Iloilo. Based on the interview, she was just like any of us – trying to make ends meet, especially now that we are still experiencing the after effects of the global financial crisis. When she found out about the possibility of having an online job (or work at home placements), she grabbed the chance and is now earning U$ 5,000 per month.

“U$ 5,000 a month? Ka-ching!” the cashier inside me said. That is roughly Php 230,000, presuming that the peso-dollar exchange rate is Php 46 to U$1. In a year, I could be Php 27.6 million richer than any of my alter-egos and relatives.

And so I tried to click the hyperlink. Bad move – the hyperlink is blocked by the office Internet. I frowned in disappointment. I promised myself that if I get tot read what’s in the hyperlink and be successful, I would quit this day job and I will never return. Never!

Months passed and due to workload, I forgot the existence of the hyperlink. If I do get the chance to read the article again, I would find myself staring at the hyperlink. I felt that I am not given the opportunity to earn more because I can’t access it.

Then, I resigned and moved to another job. I again happened to read the article and saw the hyperlink. The cashier inside me said, “Maybe it could be opened here.” I placed the cursor at the hyperlink and pressed the left click of the mouse. And then, the unthinkable happened – another window opened. This is it! Pathway to richness, here I come!

It was a long marketing speech of how easy the job will be, and with commitment and persistence, earning money will also be easy. Training for the job will also just take a few hours, and one can start working. You know what the job position is? Auction Listing Agent for E-bay. Sounds interesting and looks good in resume.

As I continued to scroll down, I found out there was a catch: I need to pay almost U$ 200 to get access to the training certification program. Sure I could get it immediately once I started the job, but U$200? Where will I get that? I thought this was another hindrance to my opportunity to earn more.

While I was pondering on this thought, I saw that online marketing mentor, Jomar Hilario (www.jomarhilario.com), was available to chat. I took courage to greet him and told him everything about the hyperlink.

“Hahaha. Did you pay your employer for you to get hired?” he replied. Honestly speaking, it was like a cold water poured in my head. I immediately replied, “No.” He said, “Ask your friend if he or she really earned. If not, then it’s a hack. You don’t even know them!”

From then on, I removed the news article file that I saved in MS Word. I erased with it the hyperlink that I used to stare on, with hope that it would help me earn more. I can’t imagine how fast technology could keep up even with “easy money” scams.

Be careful of hyperlinks that give false promises.