How does success go so terribly wrong? And could it happen to you? Oh yeah. It's as simple as having a great idea, promoting it, and discovering that you are utterly unprepared for the impact your business idea will have on the world.

It started about 18 months ago, when our company was just me and my business partner, two bright guys with what we thought was a great idea to promote. And that's how Article Marketer was born.

Word spread like crazy...apparently there are enough business owners out there looking for a reliable way to drive web traffic that we touched a nerve. It was a classic case of "finding a need and filling it." Online business owners signed on in droves, submitting tons of articles and referring new customers all the time

Enter success... the success you dream of, hope for, work towards, expect to achieve in maybe two or three years...and it ends up in your lap overnight. Would YOU be ready for it? We weren't. Sure, we had plans for scalable solutions, staffing, new features, customer support. Plans that we expected to implement over the next year or so, not overnight.

When "year" becomes "now," and you outgrow your operations in a matter of weeks, success can become excruciating! Anyone who's been on the Warrior Forum or other internet marketing sites has heard about our pain.

"What happened to Article Marketer?" "What's going on with those guys? They've always been so reliable!" "Are they done?" "Are they nuts?"

We were working like crazy to fix what was broken, and improve everything else while we were in there. It's been an enlightening, and exhilarating, process. (And, in the forums, people are talking nice about us again.) I've learned that you can have wild overnight success without the ugly, if you keep just a few things in mind:

1. Expect the best, and plan for better. If you truly believe in your business idea (and if you don't, get out right now), expect great things from the start. Then double those expectations and be ready with scalable solutions. Make the decision now how you'll handle growth, and simply implement it when the time comes.

2. Consider staff growth in a more tangible way. Imagine your company at a vastly different level of success. Picture the staff you'll need, and even create the perfect person for the job. With a recruiting plan and job descriptions in your hip pocket, you'll be ready to hire in a hurry when the time comes.

3. Stay true to your roots. Success comes from finding a need, and meeting that need really, really well. Dance with the one who brung you, as they say, and stay focused on what you do so well. Sure, plan to add new features, new services, even branch out to new products and new markets. Just don't lose site of what actually secured your success in the first place. It's that unique selling proposition that will see you through the good times and the rough spots.

While it's been painful, I've discovered that when things look bleak, it's time to rip the lid off and work your way through it. We've drained the swamp, tied down the alligators, and all is right with the world again.

Given the tremendous response we've seen in the last few weeks, not only are we back, we are better than ever. Our company is demonstrating this every day, serving thousands of authors and submitting tens of thousands of articles every day. We've made significant improvements behind the scenes, with lots of new features coming in the weeks ahead. We have a winning combination of people, process and technology, and are walking straight into the light of our company's brilliant future.

Are you on board? We are moving ahead at light speed. Article marketing is booming, and we are leading the band.

Oh, and success? It doesn't have to suck. Go on, get yours.