In a post at LinkedIn, Luke Havard addresses the complaint that "You're too expensive." We've all heard that from prospects or clients, and sometimes it's true. If it's the wrong client or if that client doesn’t truly need your services, then it's time for a friendly farewell. But Luke points out three sources of that observation: The prospect doesn't see any difference between you and your competition. The prospect doesn’t believe you can solve the problem or help reach the goal. … [Read more...]
Three Questions to Get Your Book Started Right
As with many kinds of journeys, when you set out to write a book, it’s best to plan before you start. Even before the outline, you need to answer a couple of deep fundamental questions that will set your direction for the rest of the book. If you answer these questions clearly, they will — Help you write a better book Make you more satisfied with the results from your book — and better able to adjust in the future Set the direction and course for your book marketing Let’s look at these … [Read more...]
Finding Your Voice
You don’t have to be different to make a difference. How many mothers sing the same lullabies to their children? A baby doesn’t care half as much about the song as she does about the sound of her mother’s voice. — Michael Port, Steal the Show Words of wisdom from Michael Port's new book, Steal the Show. He puts together the seeming contradictions of authenticity and performance in a way that helps overcome the inner critic and allows you to go big and deep at the same time. We see people … [Read more...]
Podcast Interview
Thanks to Business Creators Radio Show for the opportunity to be a featured expert. Learn about how you can leverage book publishing to jet-power your career. … [Read more...]
New Post on LinkedIn Pulse
I just posted the introduction to my forthcoming book on LinkedIn Pulse. It talks about the challenges of the business world now, and how to overcome them by becoming an author. … [Read more...]
Make Money as an Author, without ‘Selling’ a Book
There are more than half a million books published in the United States every year, and on average they sell fewer than 250 copies each. So when I tell you that you ought to write a book for your business, it’s easy to be skeptical. After all, you’ve got too much to do with your time to waste it on a time sink with no payoff. But for the kind of book I'm talking about for you, a client-attracting book, the ordinary rules of "how to make money in publishing" don't apply. Traditional Publishers … [Read more...]
Have You Thought about Writing a Book?
I'm sure that someone has said to you, “You ought to write a book.” Am I right? Maybe you pooh-poohed the idea because, well, writing sucks the life out of you, and it takes too much time, and publishing is a shark tank, and writing is for other people. Yes, there are people who people who find pleasure in the flow of words that comes before having anything to say. That’s fine. I’m one of them and have been since I decided to be a writer in third grade. But I also know that it’s not only … [Read more...]
Traditional publishing vs. self-publishing: Which is right for you?
Until not too long ago, self-publishing wasn't an option for professionals who wanted to build their reputation with a book. Traditional publishing was like the huge shiny skyscraper downtown, and self-publishing was like the rundown office park out in the boonies. But now self-publishing has moved uptown, and if you look closely, you can see cracks in the facade of those shiny office buildings. But here's the thing: I can't say, "Pick this one" or "Pick that one," no questions. It just … [Read more...]
