Become an Expert and Authority

It’s funny how things work or happen … so I need to work in the back story before getting to the headline.

Back story: I started using blogging because I wanted to share opinions, thoughts, and experiences with others. There was a void. My number 1 strength is Learner, so I eat knowledge for breakfast. I love diving in to learn new things and to stretch myself.

Blogging was my addiction for 6 solid months as I built a blog and my reputation with it. I literally ate, dreamt and breathed my blog.

In the process of building a successful blog, I became somewhat of an authority on the matter. I actually started getting people who wanted to pay me (rather well) to help them with their own blog.

OK … back to the headline …

So here’s my advice … become an expert and authority on/in something.

Invest yourself in a niche area or subject, master it, engulf yourself in it … and people might eventually want to pay you to help them understand it … or do it for them … they might have you speak to their own audience about it … they might even fly you to Phoenix to talk to a group of people about it.

So … how do you get started in becoming an expert?

Dive in. Just start. Somewhere. Anywhere. Take the first step. Buy a book. Listen to a podcast. Read a blog. Google it.

I have this quote memorized: “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.”

So just get started.

I have this theory that a lot of great ideas, plans, strategies and businesses never get started because people don’t even take the first step.

So then the question is … Once I’ve started how do I build an audience?

Yes, your mom will indeed be your first reader and only reader for a long time.

Be content with that.

You build an audience with respect and credibility. I think they might be intertwined actually.

But really, ultimately … you start by writing about something you are personally interested in and passionate about. You do it for yourself, primarily.

If you don’t, it’s synthetic. People will see through it.

I wish you good luck establishing an audience if your primary motivation is to get people to listen to you. I’ve seen people try to do that … they invariably ask about RSS scrapping services that is really called content privacy and theft.

There isn’t a shortcut here, sorry …

But after that (writing for yourself and your mom about a topic that you are passionate about), you build an audience one by one.

You start with your mom. She’s your biggest cheerleader anyway. She’ll tell 1,000 people about it anyway.

You talk intelligently. You hone your ideas, your presentation. You focus and rehearse your point of view where it flows naturally. You become a master of your own ideas.

You also read the book On Writing Well. You follow and study outstanding bloggers.

Along the way, you might think about some of the guerrilla marketing ideas I pursued (and learned from others) for helping people looking for your subject find you online.

Do that … and at some point, people will start following, subscribing, calling, requesting …