April 2007 the Surf for Cash industry died.

I am passing this belated obituary notice regarding the Surf for Cash (autosurf) industry. This industry sprung up a few years ago, had a high point with 12 Daily Pro, and people had continued to try to make it work. The industry had been noted for, besides outright fraud, failed investments, glitches, member fraud and cybertheft. The idea was to get people to look at web pages (surf) in exchange for paying them high interest on money they put in.

The basis of blog entry is the news that a major surf for cash company, running multiple programs, is leaving the industry completely. They were noted, paid well. However, this company ran into multiple problems and found the rates unsustainable. They are going into the hedge fund business, in addition to their other side companies they run. I currently have over $40,000 waiting to be received from them, and hope they make it and pay out.

Once I get funds out, I can mention the company itself and what they are doing now. Until them, I am not going to mention them. Anyhow, people who are involved with the surf for cash business (or had been) probably know which company I am referring to.

The reality is the rates surf for cash programs pay are NOT sustainable. They are higher than what Charles Ponzi promised, and just is not sustainable. That is the reality. Again, get skills, and don't expect that you can do some low skiled job pay you. Want to do something no skill and get a lot of money? Well you better have a bunch of money to invest and be lucky.

A word on "No Skill Income" (NSI) Programs

I am commenting here on something I am calling "No Skill Income" (NSI) Programs. These are programs like passive income programs, but require people to do things that anyone can do and require no skill.

NSI programs are arguably a "Holy Grail" in the business opportunity arena. Even network marketing gets pushed sometime like this. Just join program X and do these three simple things and you will make a TON of cash.

Well, want to know the truth? Unless such programs are actually have people doing investing in a business in some manner, where the money is used by the company to make money, what is being pushed is a lie.

In reality, people make money in one of two ways, if they aren't working a job. You either have your money working or you own systems that make you money that enable you to leverage your time. The former is investing, which is a skill unto itself of due dilligence and checking out legitimacy. The later is being a business owner, which involves not only doing due dilligence but effectively running the systems you own so they are profitable. Included in this is the skills of sales and marketing (list building), cashflow management, record keeping, and hiring (hiring includes finding specialists like lawyers and accountants to do your paperwork). All these skills are learned and take time to master. There are also others, but these are mentioned as examples of skills used in business.

In the business opportunity arena you get a majority of people who want to make money without developing any new skills. They will jump from one opportunity to the next thinking that it is the opportunity that is the problem, when it is themselves that have the problem in most cases. Each time, they will try to seek out something promising to be more and more of a sure thing while requiring less and less skills. Then someone rolls out what looks like a "passive income" program, but it is a no-skill program, particularly when individuals fail to effectively research and do due dilligence. Treating things like crapshoots and blindly just doing is NOT doing due dilligence, it is gambling.

All I can say is get skills of SOME sort and keep learning, and don't expect to find something that will just drop in your lap, and demand NO skills from your part and expect it to work miracles just because you joined. Your success and failure are up to you. End of story here.