And I think intellectual property is the most slept on (underrated) type of property there is.

It’s pretty much the only property you can own & use repeatedly that becomes more and more valuable every time you use it 🤯.

Most things we own wear down with use, but with IP . . . after you turn just one of your smart ideas into an intellectual property asset, the more you write books on it, and speak on stages about it, and host workshops around it, and get interviewed on podcasts about it, etc., the more widely accepted, sought after, and valuable it becomes.

Say, what? I repeat . . . 🤯.

I first experienced the magic of IP in 2008 when I started publishing ideas online and taking coffee meetings with friends and acquaintances who wanted to “pick my brain” on how I started and ran my first businesses—a cleaning business with three service providers and, later, a graphic design business.

I found myself happily answering the same questions over and over, but I knew I could be more efficient and more helpful. Finally, in 2012 I decided to package up everything I’d learned operating my own business (and some of what I’d learned in business school) and teach some continuing education courses at The University of Texas at Austin.

My best friend had to swoop in and save me the very first time I stood in front of a room full of eager learners, a.k.a. strangers, helping them create their first WordPress websites. She co-taught the second half of the class with me so I wouldn’t be so nervous.

It was an epic save, and gave me the boost I needed . . . and I haven’t looked back since that first day. I taught dozens more classes in person and transitioned to teaching online.

All those convos during free coffee dates with friends had matured into my course materials. They were making me a lot more money and I was reaching a lot more people.

So, a year later I published my first print book (The Small Business Manual, 2013), and it became a required “textbook” at multiple colleges in the United States. My second independently published print book (Epic Blog, 2014) sold 12,000+ copies—earning over $100,000 in profit—in its first few years.

You get where I’m going with this. Intellectual property can be magical. Highly impactful, highly profitable, and extremely long-lasting.

I was so amazed at what a person could do at the intersection of independently publishing their own IP & using the internet to spread their work that by 2014, I was fully launched on a mission to help others create an amazing income online through their IP. I felt that under-recognized people (like me) finally had a way to “level the playing field” a bit on income opportunities.

Writing, online and in print, became my primary vehicle for personal growth, business growth, and impact. My two main sites (this one and a health-focused blog) each had more than 5 million pageviews in 6 years. Teaching online (for 20,000 amazing learners and counting) soon became my life's work.

But, as the years passed, my mission changed. Now, I work not just to help people become infopreneurs (information entrepreneurs) profiting off their IP, but to become the gold standard of thought leadership in their industries. It’s no longer “enough” for us to be making great money. I want you to prolifically spread your ideas and transform the world (or your industry/community).

You are a thought leader. This is your year to publish radically helpful ideas/solutions for the problems your industry, society, community, or clients are having . . . and to be paid for your ideas, not your labor.