Infopreneurs vs. Entrepreneurs
I don't know if Stephanie Chandler coined the term "infopreneur" but I found it catchy when searching Amazon. I ran across her book when checking out the customer reviews for "Rules for Renegades" by Christine Comaford-Lynch. I won't link to that book because it's not necessarily worth it. The reason I was checking out the review for Christine's book is because I'm in the process of reading it and I have to admit it's quite bad......another book which may remain in the "to-be-finished" stack. Further, the reviews of the book are too good, and would you look here, one is by her husband.....not good form. I feel that this book simply falls into the category of self-promoter product. There really aren't any "renegade" ideas in it and I've heard it all before. OK, Christine may have earned her millions and had a one-night stand with Bill Gates, but somehow this isn't what I really cared to read about (and sure isn't "renegade" even though I have to say I have a whole new view of "wanna watch me solve some puzzles" Bill).
Well, back to the point, here's the reason I found "infopreneur" so interesting as a term. It basically is the concept of taking an idea or a skillset and marketing the hell out of it after putting it into print on paper or online. The marketing is done via presentations, blogs, commentary posts, TV and radio, and so on. An absolute rockstar at this is Tim Ferriss whom I've already wrote about a couple of times. His book on the other hand really is worth reading and one of the few infopreneur-style books which I have recommended to others. At the same time, I came across Christine's book via Tim's blog.......bad on you Tim! OK, bad on me since I fell for the infopreneur's "pitch" and put a coin in her bank!
What I am now wondering is how do I get around falling into the infopreneur's trap. It's great to run across great authors via their books or online but at the same time, the majority will probably be crap. I admit to having bought many books which fall into this category and for some reason, it's been tough to determine beforehand which author was good and which author was simply out to make a buck. In hindsight, the time lost reading these poorly written infomercials could have been put to much greater use. Further, I am also questioning the need to really read any more of these types of books. I am tired of repackaged material and the real gems are few and far between. Unfortunately, with the ease of becoming an infopreneur, we're only at the beginning of a wave and not at the end.
Jeez, I could even be seen as a self-promoter via this blog. Actually, on second thought, I am going to re-purpose my reading time into presentation time....anyone want to book me for a speaking gig? I'm cheap!
