Chapter 6
From Entrepreneur to Icon
Achieving Expert Status
How can you squander even one more day not taking advantage of the greatest shifts of our generation? How dare you settle for less when the world has made it so easy for you to be remarkable?
—Seth Godin
Becoming a recognized expert in your field is an excellent way to boost your business by adding additional streams of revenue to your current model. Whether through extensive education, years of hands-on experience, or a natural aptitude for a specific area of business (or a combination of all of these things), there are plenty of entrepreneurs who could justifiably be considered experts in their fields, even though many of these experts are not widely recognized as such. In fact, some who are considered to be “experts” could actually learn a thing or two from others in the same field who no one has heard of. That's because you don't have to be the most knowledgeable or successful person in your field to be seen as an expert; you just have to do what it takes to become recognized as one.
This assertion tends to get many protests from entrepreneurs who have a specific notion of what constitutes an expert. People tend to put experts on a pedestal that sets them apart from us mere mortals. The truth, however, is that they're no different from you or me. In fact, anyone who knows more about a topic than most people can be considered an expert on that topic—and just about everyone knows more about something than most people. ...
