Ep538: Rick Gilbert – Most Likely Nobody Will Buy Your Book
Andrew Stotz
I help mid-size family businesses double profit in 12 months (without overwhelming their team)
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Quick take
BIO: Rick is an author of several books and performs one-man shows, bringing alive the stories in his books.
STORY: Rick spent $22,000 to produce his first audiobook and made just $500 in sales.
LEARNING: Accept that there’s most likely nobody who will buy your book. Figure out how to get your product to the market.
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“The chances of you doing your memoir and anybody cares about it are almost zero.”
Rick Gilbert
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Guest profile
Rick Gilbert is the retired founder of PowerSpeaking, Inc, one of Silicon Valley’s most successful communication and training companies. Before founding PSI in 1985, Rick was a psychologist and held management positions at HP and Amdahl. Rick is an author of several books and performs One-Man shows, bringing alive the stories in his books. His latest book is an audiobook, Sharing Our Stories, featuring interviews with 65 people, including Gloria Steinem, Daniel Ellsberg, Chris Brubeck, Anna Eshoo, and Don Garlits.
Worst investment ever
It took Rick about a year and a half to put his audiobook together. Because he didn’t understand the technology of audiobooks, he hired people, including lots of editors, to help him with it. Rick ended up spending $22,000 on that book. Over six months, Rick sold 50 copies, only selling at $10 each. So for his $22,000 investment, he made 500 bucks.
Lessons learned
Andrew’s takeaways
Actionable advice
Do your homework so that you’re aware of what you’re getting yourself into.
No.1 goal for the next 12 months
Rick’s goal for the next 12 months is to stop worrying about the future and live in the moment.