Eric Ryan, co-founder of Method, and the co-author of  The Method Method: Seven Obsessions That Helped Our Scrappy Start-up Turn an Industry Upside Down has just made my job really easy.

In the video below, he explains four reasons why he and his co-author Adam Lowry wrote The Method Method. These reasons include:

1) A book is a way to scale advise.

2) A book is a way to attract talent.

3) A book is a way to boost credibility.

4) A book makes you a better leader.

Enough from me, here’s Eric explaining it in his own words.

I’m excited to share with you the opportunity to attend a one-of-a-kind workshop dedicated to increasing your income and boosting your success. How to Profit from a Bestseller is a two-hour interactive workshop designed for small business owners and other professionals and entrepreneurs who want to increase their income, expand their opportunities, and attract high-level publicity by becoming a bestselling published author.

Join me on March 14, 2012, from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. and learn how to find the real money in your business. In this two-hour LIVE (+WEBCASTED) intensive workshop, you will learn:

• The benefits of writing a book and how to make it a Bestseller
• How to create a personalized “Bestseller Profit Pyramid” you can apply to your business and income stream
• Five proven steps to earning a six-figure income
• How to establish credibility, attract exposure and clients, and increase profits
• How becoming a bestselling, published author will create revenue streams that will make a real, lasting difference in your life and your business

Make 2012 the year that you make the leap to success. Join me and like-minded business owners in this intensive and exciting workshop. Register today for How to Profit from a Bestseller and learn the benefits of writing your way to success. I’m here to help you get ready, get inspired, and get moving!

Reserve your registration for this one-of-a-kind event! Register for How to Profit from a Bestseller today!

http://bestsellerprofit.eventbrite.com/

I’m excited to announce the winner of the Bestseller in a Weekend ‘Longest Book’ Award. Co-authors Sherry Platt Berman and Julie Gleeson won the award, creating 120 pages of content for their upcoming book in two days.

During the workshop, Sherry Platt Berman and Julie Gleeson surpassed the average page count of 81 pages by 39 pages, proving that it is possible to create and write a quality, professional 5 x 8 book in two short days.

I was truly impressed with the commitment and progress Sherry and Julie made during the January 2012, Bestseller in a Weekend workshop. It was exciting to watch them push through the challenges all writers face and produce an exciting manuscript that provides valuable information. Their book contains information that can propel, even catapult, people toward career success—and they wrote it in just two days!

Berman and Gleeson are co-owners of The Career Wisdom Institute, a business they founded to help people revolutionize their careers and future opportunities, while creating career clarity, job satisfaction, and employment resilience. Their concepts help their clients align with their unique career design, resulting in career satisfaction and opportunities, success, and wealth. Their book is scheduled to be released on May 30, 2012.

For more information about The Career Wisdom Institute and its founders, visit www.CareerWisdomInstitute.com.

This article is contributed by Patti McKenna, professional ghostwriter and editor. Patti has provided exemplary editing and writing services to my clients for over 4 years.

1. Conduct Interviews.
Contact at least three people who have expertise in your subject matter and schedule an interview. Hopefully, you’ll find three people who have knowledge in different areas of your book.
Tip: Let them know that they will be given full credit, thus receiving publicity and a plug to their business and/or website. Therefore, this shouldn’t be a competitor.

2. Conduct Information Surveys. Find Surveys.
Develop a questionnaire asking 10 questions and post it online, distribute it at your business, ask Twitter and Facebook friends, etc., to answer it.
Tip: Offer a discount or incentive to get people to respond.
Tip: Don’t worry if you only get 5 people to respond! You’ll be referring to this as an informal survey, not a study. Don’t say “3 out of the five people who responded”—you can word it in percentages: “60% of the people who responded.” No one knows only 5 people responded, and you’re being totally honest about the survey results!
Or you can find existing surveys online which support your message. Don’t replicate it, but do refer to it…”A September, 2010, survey conducted by the Wall Street Journal reveals that this problem is more common than previously thought—a whopping 75 percent of people admitted that….” Then, take it from there.
Tip: Write down your resources! Web links, print magazines, authors, etc.

3. Visit online forums which are centered around your subject matter.
Perform a Google search for online forums that are based on your subject matter. Review the threads. These forums will tell you the most common questions or issues people are facing in regard to your book’s central message. What are people asking the most? What’s their main problem? What, if any, unique questions and situations are posed? Take that information, and using your expertise, provide them with the information and solutions they’re seeking.

4. Peruse major print and online magazines and websites for the most common, current events and talking points in your subject matter. Incorporate that message into your book – IN YOUR OWN WORDS! Add stories and experiences which support your stance.
Tip: If you can find well-known people or celebrities to use as an example, your readers will relate to it. For example, a book about Parkinson’s disease could include Michael J. Fox’s well-known journey and what he’s done to promote a cure. You get the idea.

5. Check out Google searches and FAQs.
What are the top ten Google searches related to your subject? Those are ten chapter or core concept ideas you can use to center content around or support your content. The bonus, Top 10 ranking on Google proves that there is a need and a market for your book!
Go to the FAQ page on websites relating to your subject matter. You’re going to find information on the most commonly asked questions in your subject matter.

6. Use other people’s writing to support yours.
This does not mean to plagiarize or steal anyone’s intellectual property! But it’s quite okay to refer to the works of notable people in your industry to support your message. People do this all the time with Napoleon Hill’s Think and Grow Rich. They take his message, talk about it, and show how it can be applied to their topic. Books in the public domain are great starters for this type of work. Or as an example, you can say something like, “Motivational leader Tony Robbins teaches a similar philosophy in his programs and this is how you can use it in your business, life, etc.” Then embellish on what he teaches and how people can use it in your specific niche.

7. Look for little-known info—trivia, history, statistics.
Providing data, facts, and interesting tidbits supports your content and appeals to the reader. Trivia is always interesting, and it often provides the reader with something they didn’t know. For instance, I ghostwrote a book about building financial independence, so I did a search for businesses that opened or thrived in a recession. Not only did I receive a lot of content about franchises and well-known businesses that opened and thrived in a recession, but I got content for sidebars—Successful Businesses that Began in a Recession. I did the same thing with a book on adoption and came up with sidebars and callouts: Top Adoption Travel Tips, 5 Adoption Tax Credits, The 7 Steps to International Adoption. It’s bullet-point information that’s factual, helpful, and content rich.

Tip: Now that you’ve developed valuable information, offer valuable solutions!

Many of you may know that I’ve been named one of the founding members of  TV host Rick Lake’s new, innovative social television community, #FriendsofRicki.This is the very first social television community, and great place for participants, experts and authors to get exposure.

The Friends of Ricki was founded by Ricki Lake in partnership with  Dabney Porte and Britt Michaelian of Girlfriends Productions LLC. Ricki met Dabney and Britt via their global community Social Media Girlfriends and are the producers of the Friends of Ricki Community as well.

Last week, I had the opportunity to join Ricki Lake and a handful of the 30 incredible founding members to  discuss Friends of Ricki and the impact we are having in the social media community and the world. The good news is you don’t have to be a founding member to get involved  and impact this amazing community – Friends of Ricki is for everyone who wants to express their unique voice, such as my community of aspiring bestselling authors.

As the founder of Bestseller in a Weekend, I work with many business owners who want to write a book so they can increase exposure, attract more clients, and express their voice as a business leader and industry expert. That’s why I’m so ecstatic to be part of the #FriendofRicki collaborative community, as it is such a great resource..

Why?

Well the more you engage and speak up in this community the more exposure you will receive. And, get this: I heard that Ricki Lake’s producers are going to look to this community to get ideas and guests for The Rick Lake Show set to air September 2012.

So you may be asking, How do I get involved? Well, it’s simple. Here are 5 ways to participate in the Friends of Ricki Community :

1. Follow @FriendsofRicki on Twitter.  Introduce yourself to the community and join the conversation. (Don’t forget to use #FriendsofRicki hashtag and cc: @AliciaDunams, I’d love to say HI!)
2. Like the Friends of Ricki Facebook Page and comment on posts on the page that interest you. There are all kinds of weekly activities and hot topics on this page that are fun to talk about and share.
3. Follow @RickiLakeShow on Twitter and Facebook and tell the show that you are one of the #FriendsofRicki.  Retweet posts in the stream that you and/or your audience will resonate with and look for people to connect with in the stream.  Be courteous.  Never include multiple community hashtags in a tweet and enjoy!
4. Subscribe to the Ricki Lake YouTube page and stay updated on our #FriendsofRicki playlist
5. Tell your friends who love social media communities to join the #FriendsofRicki party!

The Ricki Lake Show doesn’t air until September 2012.  However, the Friends of Ricki community will be having a blast on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Ustream and at live events starting now!

Ana Maria Sanchez "AFTER"

They say the definition of insanity is doing the same things and expecting different results. I would like to extend that definition to business owners: The definition of insanity is doing the same things, expecting excellent results and being frustrated when you are still operating in a state of mediocrity.

I have an example of a woman who wanted excellence, a business makeover (if you will), and to achieve this excellence she decided to do things differently, and now it is paying for itself with dividends that are both rich in experience and her bottom line.

Her name is Ana Maria Sanchez. (Note/Disclaimer: Ana Maria attended Bestseller in a Weekend in April 2011. She also attended my extended program, Bestseller Business Blueprint, and now is a member of my Bestseller Profit Mastermind. I might be a wee bit biased, but I’m so proud of her!)

Biased or not – the proof is in the pudding! Since launching her book on September 28, 2011 and becoming a bestseller on Amazon, Ana Maria’s entire business shifted. The following has occurred since publishing her book:

• Interviewed on Local Cable TV (in San Jose and other bay area locals)
• Increased visibility attracting more TV producers and event planners attention (increased inquires and bookings)
• Signings and presentations at book stores including Barnes and Noble, East West Bookstore and Moonfrye (Holistic/Spiritual bookstores in SF Bay area)
• Booked for a broadcast Channel 2 Interview
• Classes fill up quicker and programs are selling out.

If you are looking for a business makeover, I suggest the following:

1. Visualize the person you want to be. What does he/she look like? Sound like? What is she wearing, doing, saying? Write it down and set the intention to be that person.
2. Align yourself with people you want to be like (or who can get you there). We are the average of the 5 people we hang out with. If you want to be a speaker, connect with speakers. If you want to be a bestselling author, hang out with other bestsellers. If you want to have a 6-figure business, connect with those people. You net worth is your network. Even paying to be around these type of people is well worth it. Hiring mentors with a significant following and network is a wise investment.
3. Act. Use the principles you discover from your new network or mentors and act. Find the resources to write your book, or start that business, or travel around the world. You have the same amount of hours in the day as the Oprah, Bill Gates, and x [add your ideal mentor here], so there are no excuses in creating the ideal life you want.
4. Timeline. When do you want to be that person? When will you contact that mentor to work with them? When will you act? A goal is a dream with a deadline. Nothing happens without scheduling in. So take your dreams and schedule them on your 12 month wall calendar.

If we are not always changing, we are not growing. Stretch yourself more in 2012. Leave the before and chase the after.

Ana Maria Sanchez "BEFORE" with another bestselling author Jen Duchene

Mike Wolpert, host of Social Jumpstart TV, interviewed me on the value of being a published author, especially in today’s social media ecosphere.

Here’s what you’ll discover in the video:
1) All business owners need to create content (Kindle ebooks, books, professional video, etc) so that are discoverable online.
2) Amazon.com is a search engine. Are you coming up in the results?
3) How to write a book fast.
+ much more

Of course, the video is 28 minutes, so we go into more depth. I hope you enjoy. – Alicia Dunams

Last week, I had the pleasure to attend the TEDx Bay Area Women event, which highlighted speakers
doing great work in the areas of global and social entrepreneurship. There was, of course, significant discourse on empowering Africa and women worldwide, and why more women need to get involved in starting and funding technology start-ups right here in the United States.

[Click here for for a tweetview of the event.]

One speaker to note was Ann Winblad. Ann Winblad is the co-founder and a Managing Director of Hummer Winblad Venture Partners (a Venture Capital company), which is solely focused on software investing and “manages over $1 billion in cumulative capital.”

Winblad shot off tons of “not-so-shocking” statistics regarding  the VC community. Most notable, that the majority of venture capital to distributed to white men, who are graduates from Harvard or Stanford, very similar demographics to the majority of VCs (White men over 40 who are graduates from Harvard or Stanford).

Winblad encouraged the women in the audience (and elsewhere) to become Venture capitalists to stop the cycle, so to speak. She mentioned that in 23 years, no mother has called to ask how their daughter can get in the VC industry, but she get fathers consistently asking about how their sons can make it a career.

Then her speech was over.

About two dozen women rushed over to Winblad after the event to ask individual questions on how they can become a VC. Questions such as: How can I become a VC? Do you have any resources? What are the next steps? What should I put on my resume? And on and on. It took about an extra 35-40 minutes for Winblad to field all of these questions.

Obvious that scenario doesn’t work very well.

Many of the questions went unanswered or she just scratched the surface. Many of the women needed more information on how to get started, or what would be the next steps.

All of these problems could be solved if Winblad had a book or ebook called, How Women Can Get Started in the Venture Capital Industry (you get where I’m going here.)

As I viewed this interaction, I realized that there were 3 signs that Winblad needed a book.

1) Answering Individual Questions is not possible at such a large event. The fact that two dozen or so women surrounded her to ask her individual questions on how they can get started in the VC industry. Obviously, they were excited about learning more. Answering everyone’s questions doesn’t scale, but if she had a book to refer them to (there was actually a book store at the event), there’s a good chance that they would buy the book to answer the questions that they needed answered.

2) All careers need a “How To” Book. The fact that for 23 years, Ann has been fielding calls from fathers about getting their sons into the VC industry. Obviously, people need a “how-to” book on this sought-after career.

3) A book is available anytime, anyplace, when you are not. The fact she had to stay additional 40 or so minutes to answer people’s questions . That’s wonderful that Ann stayed after the event to answer questions, but we always don’t have the time to do that. It would have disappointing if she needed to zoom of to the airport and not answer their questions. A book is available anytime, anyplace, when you are not.

All of the above have to do with leveraging your time for the maximum benefit of your audience and yourself. In all three cases, if she referred them to a detailed book it would have been more efficient in terms of time, resources and energy.

Disclaimer: Ann did write a book in 1990 called, Object Oriented Software.