What Really Makes A Guru?

Okay, I'm honestly getting tired of all the "guru" threads, not because I
have a problem with people being labeled, but because I wonder if we all
have the same definition of what a guru is.

I've been wrestling with this problem forever and I've finally narrowed it down
to one of three things.

1. A guru is somebody who makes a lot of money in their business.
2. A guru is somebody who is an expert in their niche.
3. A guru is both.

Think about this. A person, if they outsource smartly, can make a boat load
of money in any niche without having a clue what they're doing.

Does that make him a guru just because he's making 7 figures a year?

Would you want to take advice from this person given that all he knew
how to do was throw money at some super smart people in order to have
a business make a fortune? And don't think this isn't possible because it
is.

So it can't just be about money.

And yet, what about somebody who is one of those outsourcees? He knows
just what to do for this, now 7 figure earner, but he just does it as a job.
He doesn't really make a lot of money doing it, but he's certainly an
expert in his niche (SEO, salescopy, graphics or whatever)

Is he a guru?

Or do you have to have both qualities, the smarts and the money.

And if that's the case, does every "guru" who we label as such really fit
that label?

I mean do we know for sure that all these guys who have money also have
the smarts? What if it turns out that they're just copying other business
models and never really came out with an original thought a day in their
life?

That's why I wonder if when people talk about gurus we're even speaking
the same language.

I've been called a guru by some. Hell, sometimes I feel like an idiot, forget
a guru. I constantly have to study and bone up on my skills. I don't have
all the answers and I certainly don't make a boat load of money.

The term has been abused so much in our industry that I don't even
think the "gurus" themselves can define the term.

Anyway, I'm throwing this out there for all of you guys and gals.

Have we commercialized the word guru to the point where it no longer
has any real meaning, or is there without a doubt a clearly defined
definition for what a guru is?

I don't think so, but I'm willing to listen to what everybody else thinks.

Personally, I prefer the term successful marketer. But since success is
so relative, I realize that this term also says nothing.

Makes me wonder...Do gurus even exist?