Why We Listen to the Gurus

I hate the word guru - just find a real expert online and learn from him - this "guru" thing is b.s.

I learned from experts a lot, now if you can't figure out who is and who is not that's another story.

Those who have just a "make money fast" sort of thing product aren't experts.

I enjoyed reading your post, Bernard.

Selling a product online, any product, really boils down to one key ingredient: if the person selling it has had success with it, or if other people have had success with it, then those seeking similar success will likely be more interested.

Example: Get Your Ex Back niche.

If I can prove to you that my product can help you get your ex back - you're interested.

Example: Make Money niche.

Have I made money? Have the people who purchased my product made money? Those are compelling reasons for you to take action and buy the product, too.

Reputation

A guru (and, yes, I quite loath the name, too) is really like a badge, a medal, a trophy awarded to people who have had success in the MMO industry. I say awarded, because this is the mark of a true guru; in other words, not the self-proclaimed guru (this being the reason I quite loath the moniker these days, since it gets banded around so widely and seemingly arbitrarily). We know, in essence, that this person has had success. They've made money. They've had the $1,000.000 affiliate checks. So, naturally then, when they speak, we listen.

GRM

Congratulations Bernard,

It seems that Florida agrees with you (or at least the time change), and you should do more thinking in the peace and solitude of 5 am.

You've discovered the ever elusive, "magic button".

The differentiator isn't the product, the bonuses, or the guarantee so much as it is one's ability to sell (both themselves and the product).

While most people that we might consider to be "gurus" would shy away from using that term to label themselves... there was nothing accidental about them acquiring that label. In fact, they do everything they can to achieve that status.

They project themselves as an authority, without ever actually saying it out loud. "Authority" and "guru" status are labels that must be conferred upon them by their audience.

The confidence they project, the phrasing of their sales message, and the professionalism of their presentation, all contribute to immediate levels of success - and those successes just feed the fire. Those successes create "buzz", and the personal branding that results allows them to reach an ever larger audience and helps insure that their next offer will be even more successful.

All the techniques and strategies that we learn over the years are important to having a "hit product", but at the end of the day our ability to project the right image is what creates success after success.

P.S. Inadequate attempts at projecting one's image usually result in what we consider to be "hype" and will damage (rather than enhance) that image.

I should agree with the statements above sincerely. However, there is a hidden underwater stone in a river you are going to enter when listening to a guru (or expert) and following their advice.What they did in the past may have worked then, yet it DOES NOT MEAN it will 100% work for you. Because success of every action is defined not only by the action itself. but mostly by the reaction of the environment.

What I mean is that when these "gurus" introduce you to some trick - this most likely means it does not work any more. It has outlived its usefulness and can be given away without regret. You listen to their advice, you follow it in full - and you do not achieve the results they had. Or their advice was only a short-time solution that worked for them only because it was applied for a short period of time.

For example, IMF had recently acknowledged their strategy on overcoming the results of the 2008 financial crisis was totally wrong. Yeah, 6 years after the crisis, after significant decrease in level of life of people in many countries and huge increase of debts of many countries...

Instead of investing more money in consuming, they suggested to cut expenses on social projects, freeze subsidies and invest in rebuilding infrastructure and production. What do we have as the result? Many new roads nobody needs to use, plants ready to produce hi-tech equipment people do not need - and people lacking money to buy all this new stuff, which is being regularly thrown in the market and lies unsold for months.

Several countries in EU chose the other way. Estonia, for example, refused to take a loan from IMF, refused to follow their "expert" advice. They gave more money to their citizens via social financing and subsidies - and encouraged them to buy domestic products. As a result - people had a lot of money to spend and were eager to buy local goods - money were working constantly, instead of lying on banking accounts. Estonia is not rich - but their currency is stable, all requests of their people can be satisfied by their government and they stand on solid ground.

I understand that IT industry differs a lot, but I think that common sense tells the same:

You can trust any expert, but their advice should be used with caution. And sometimes results may differ a lot from expected. After all, experience is a sum of errors you did. Even if you study and use somebody's experience in order to avoid their mistakes - you will inevitably make your own. What will your response to situation be? Answer to this question vastly determines the chance that knowledge of some expert can be of any use for you at all.

p.s. Sid Hale gave a great explanation while I was writing mine.

Most people trust "gurus" due to their eminent image and charisma, not due to the quality of their product or advice. Which means that other people, using the same technique and selling the same product may fail where guru succeeded. Just because they cannot talk so smoothly and encourage their customers to buy the product.

I am a self claim Guru!

Wikipedia: Guru (Devanagari गुरु) is a Sanskrit term for "teacher" or "master"

I'm a qualified teacher which makes me a guru

That being said, it really depends on how you personally interpret the word guru.

Oh, on a side note! I can almost guarantee that no one claims to be a GURU in the MMO industry. Even the cheesiest, acting, push button software type of sales video all start with something like "I'm Not like those Fake Gurus etc etc etc.

It's actually the complete opposite. EVERYONE Bashes GURU.

So when you people throw the word guru around and saying stuff like Gurus are scammers or Gurus are fake or stuff like that. What they're really doing is associating Guru to scams and it's really just to join the "Common Enemy".club.

So, I guess my question to anyone hating on Gurus is.... Who the hell are these gurus?

As I said, I've never heard someone self claim that they are a guru. Being perceived as one is a different story.

Again... I'm seeing lots of people bashing gurus.

Can anyone of you PLEASE point me to a "Guru".

Anyone please?

Or are you just labeling them as guru because you don't like them?

Trick is to know enough to see the truth.

Having been at this for 2 decades now, I can tell you that I've picked up great information from veterans as well as industry newcomers.

GRM

I think most people listen to gurus because they want to imitate their success. They show checks and paypal accounts and then they tell you this is how they did it to get this money.so we can do it to until we end up in a situation like yours.

I prefer to read and listen to Case Studies, whether they come from "gurus" or average Joe/ Jane

But if there is some who I considered "guru" that would be people with really genuine, revolutionary strategy like Derek Halpern or Ramit Sethi.

I guess I try this one last time...

Does anyone here actually know someone who calls themselves a guru?

Or are you guys just assuming vendors who sell junk and hype gurus?

Cause I've bought countless products and almost every single one of them say stuff like

"I'm not like those fake gurus" or "I'm just a regular guy" blah blah blah!

So for the last time can someone please point me to someone who claims to be a guru?

Pulling this back on topic...
Why We Listen to the Gurus?

It comes down to rather basic but possibly universal ways in which we are persuaded. Ancient Greek 'gurus' used similar rhetorical techniques to raise the speaker's appeal to the audience. Ethos, Pathos, Logos (no, not your corporate identity)

Modes of persuasion - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Cliff's note:
They Speak with Authority, use Facts, instill Fear. .Authority, Facts & Fear. Many like to hit the happy 'emotional' cord which just doesn't sound as catchy but that's what these 'gurus' are doing and have been doing since before written history.

Because gurus (at least the real ones) have made millions of dollars online and they speak from first-hand experience, so obviously you want to listen to those more successful and with more experience than you.

When someone more successful than me (guru or not) speaks, I shut up and listen. Period.

That's the great point - it has been said plenty of times before (at least I heard it often) - when the prospects see you as an authority figure, a true expert their trust towards you increase - when they trust you they buy from you.

Creating content, adding helpful videos, etc are all ways to build this authority (but it's actually more complex than that).

I think a big part of it is our current tendency as a society to get instant gratification. A guru is going to give us the fast path to where we are going. We would rather spend money than time to become experts ourselves. Jut my $.02

social proof is also a powerful effect on a persons psychology.