Revelations come from the oddest sources. While watching the Nanny Diaries, I heard Scarlet Johanson say that the biggest problem for any anthropologist studying a particular sociological model is that being exposed to this segmented group of people eventually leads to a total assimilation with them and the only way to stop this process is to immediately remove yourself from that environment.

Simply put, the environment you place yourself in shapes who you will become.

Listen to a little story about me.

Before I came to America I was making good money, wearing cashmere coats, driving nice cars, and eating out whenever I wanted. I had never done a day’s worth of manual labor in my life.

When my country’s economy went belly up, I lost everything and came to the United States to find a new beginning.

I didn’t know anybody, didn’t have any money, and the only place that would hire me was a construction company.

My environment all of a sudden changed: from business-development to vinyl siding installation, from cashmere coat to Carhart overall, from a good food to McDonald’s, from sedans to pickup trucks, from my friends with college degrees, clean clothing and intact teeth to a bunch of stinky beat-up dentally-challenged rednecks.

I felt like a square peg being driven into a round hole but at the same time it was kind of funny. Until I noticed that my entire value system was degrading to match that of my co-workers! I began to debate whether or not Burger King was better than McDonalds and wearing anything but coveralls started to feel weird. I even laughed at people who bought sedans because they wouldn’t have any place to put their tools!

At some point it stops being weird to wear a bandana in public places and to admit that you are making only $10 per hour.

It sucks you in! It starts to feel normal and acceptable!

Before I knew it I became a construction worker from some Jerkwater, USA and I actually spent a few years doing construction before I found enough strength to pull myself out of this situation and to come back to being an entrepreneur with clean clothes and clean car.

Now, just a few months after I left my Carharts behind for business casual clothes, I don’t eat whoppers and I don’t go crazy over the Lowes’ sale flyer.

If I had told those guys I used to work with my plans to become a successful Internet marketer or my dream of owning my own home-based business, how do you think they would have reacted? Seriously, I would have sounded crazy.

Was it hard? You bet!

Do I regret any of the hard work I put in? Not one drop of it.

One more time: Being exposed to a segmented group of people eventually leads to a total assimilation with them and the only way to stop this process is to immediately remove yourself from that environment.

What defines your environment?

You kept thinking to yourself that the money (or lack of it) would sort itself out, right? You kept thinking that your business would pick up; you’d get that promotion, and more importantly, that pay rise; you thought your partner would be able to get a job pretty quickly; and so on – whatever the reason, you never imagined you’d be in the position you might be in now where you need money fast.

So, facing up to the fact you now need to generate some money quickly, and assuming you’re only interested in honest and genuine ways to get some money coming in fast (the idea of stealing the local charity box from the corner shop doesn’t really interest you), so how do you solve the problem when you need money fast?

Here’s one way to get your mind excited about making money…

Think about what people want, and show them how to get it!

OK, I appreciate that can sound somewhat simplistic, but it really is that simple. Let’s put it another way – think about what people are looking for right now – billions of people all over the globe and typing something into search services like Google, Yahoo and MSN, and they are typing something they’re looking for. Now admittedly many are just after information, and often free information, but many are actually looking to have a problem fixed, or something resolved, or maybe get information of real value that they can’t get for free so are prepared to pay for it – these are the people you need to target and identify what it is they’re looking for because once you know what these people are looking for, if you can find a product that satisfies that need, and you can make money from selling it to them, you have a ready-made business.

So how can you supply what folks are looking for?

Firstly, build a simple website that promotes the product and service that people around the world are looking for, then get them to your website and bingo, you could potentially have a sale, and be making money.

OK, there’s a bit more to that (I know from personal experience) but realise there are also web-based companies that we found that will hand-hold you all the way in creating , building, and getting live your website with your product. They will even take you through in depth on exactly HOW to get people to your website. All this knowledge is out there for you allowing you to focus on finding more products that people want.

Secondly, if you think you know what people are looking for but don’t have the products yourself to service that need and/or don’t have the desire to build your own website or source your own products, then find a company that does have those products and find out if they have an affiliate programme, whereby you could send potential customers to them, for which you get paid a commission.

There are many successful businesses around the world (many of them simply one-man-band businesses working from home) who simply identify what people are looking for, then become affiliates for companies with those products, and send potential customers to those company’s products, earning themselves a very healthy commission in the process. Again, finding a good company to help you drive people through your affiliate ID number and onto the company’s website does require certain key tactics, but again there are key companies in the market to help you do that.

In summary, a way to make money fast – find out what people want, and find a way they can get it though you, for which you earn a profit or commission.