What's love got to do, got to do with it? As with any domain entrepreneur, I have lost countless hours and money by being too emotionally attached to a domain or business idea. This is like betting on potential in a dead end relationship because in essence you are investing in the idea that a domain will eventually give you significant returns. Just like in relationships (whether it be romantic, friendship or partnership) holding on to a domain or idea that was doomed from the start can often be disastrous. The motto to learn is: potential doesn't mean a damn thing.

Educate Yourself

There are hundreds of topics to learn about related to the domain industry. I was talking with Danny Pryor this morning about how we as web developers always feel as though we are still in college because the internet is constantly changing and introducing new techniques, scripting languages, methods and so on. It is a lot to keep up with but staying on top of how things change will help you make smarter domain purchases.

Do Due Diligence

Almost anything can sound good in theory but do the necessary research before investing too much in a domain or related concept. You don't want to find out that an idea cannot even fly off the launch pad after you already invested in development and advertising expenses. You don't want to find out that nobody really searches for a domain's keywords or that no affiliates exist for a given product niche that you are trying to monetize.

Find a Niche

They say stick to what you are good at. Do you have a hobby, passion or skill? You don't necessarily need to invest in the typical domain category money makers to make money. There are thousands upon thousands of niche interests and thousands of people who share them. This serves two purposes: you have a much better chance at creating a successful network and you are less likely to become unrealistically emotionally attached to a domain name.

Stay Realistic

If it walks like a turd, acts like a turd and smells like a turd then it isn't going to turn into a pot of gold later down the road. Bad ideas will always be bad ideas and will never turn into good ideas no matter how much money or time you throw at it.

Be Willing to Walk Away

Always be willing to walk away at any time no matter what you have invested. I had to walk away from a development project after spending a year and thousands of dollars on research, development, branding, etc, etc. Had I held on to the deceiving feelings of hope and potential then I would still be waiting on a magic return.

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