Personal Branding Interview J.D. Roth - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

Personal Branding Interview J.D. Roth - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career Today, I spoke to J.D. Roth, who is one of the blogospheres most beloved personal finance experts (Get Rich Slowly) and the author of Your Money: The Missing Manual.   In this interview, J.D. talks about his new book, how he got the idea of it, how hes differentiated himself in his niche, how his blog led to his book deal and more. How did you get the idea for writing Your Money? It wasnt actually my idea. I started Get Rich Slowly in 2006, and by the end of 2007, I was being approached by agents and publishers. I explored the book idea a little bit, but never pursued it. Why not? Because I was filled with self-doubt. Ive shown that I can blog on a daily basis, and people apparently enjoy what I write, but I just didnt feel like I could do a book. For one thing, when you do a book, you usually have to have a concept that you pitch to a publisher. I didnt have a concept to pitch. Last spring, however, I was approached by OReilly to see if I was interested in doing Personal Finance: The Missing Manual. I liked the idea, and thought I could use what I knew to create a book that would be useful to folks. I suggested the title Your Money: The Missing Manual, which they took, and then drew up a proposed outline. They liked the outline, signed me to a contract, and the rest is history. So, short answer: I didnt have the idea; a publisher did. But I liked the idea, and was pleased to be given the chance to write the book. Is there a connection between personal branding and money management? I dont see any inherent connection between personal branding and money management. HOWEVER, I do believe that money management is important for *everyone*, so its just as important for somebody tying to brand herself as it is for anyone else. Does that make sense? How did you become a personal finance expert and differentiate yourself from the Suze Ormans of the world? Im an accidental personal finance expert. Seriously. I never set out to become a voice in the personal finance community. Originally, I had a blog about cats and comic books, as I always say. I just happened to write a post about personal finance that spread across the internet. On a lark, I started Get Rich Slowly to write more about the subject as I learned more. For some reason, my journey and writing really connected with people. I still dont understand why, but Im grateful for the audience Ive built. The folks who read Get Rich Slowly are smart, and I learn as much (or more) from them as they do from me. I really feel like the blog is a collaborative effort. I dont have all the answers, and people know that. We discover them together. In a way, Your Money: The Missing Manual is the culmination of everything Ive learned over the last four years at Get Rich Slowly. Its the sum of the entire communitys knowledge not just my own. So, I guess if I differentiate myself in any way, its because I dont pretend to be an expert. Im not one. Instead, Im sort of like a moderator, highlighting the best money advice from around the internet, and giving other writers a chance to share what they know. Did you blog make it easier to write the book? Do you think youll be able to sell more copies because of the blog? My nearly ten years of blogging *did* make it easier to write the book, and in a number of ways. For one thing, I felt like I had some of the muscles I needed already. The analogy I use is this: Writing Get Rich Slowly every day is like running sprints. I know I can sprint and do it well. Writing Your Money: The Missing Manual was more like running a marathon. Now, sprinting and running are very, very similar, but there are some key differences. I was able to run my marathon, but it wasnt always easy, and I stumbled a couple of times along the way. But in the end, Im pleased with how things turned out. Get Rich Slowly also helped me write Your Money: The Missing Manual in another way because Ive been writing about the same subject for four years now, Ive developed a sort of philosophy. I know what I believe, and I have certain ways I phrase things. I was able to draw on this past experience to produce the book. (And I was able to re-use some material from the site in the book. I tried to keep that to a minimum because I dont like blog-to-book dumps, but it seemed foolish to reinvent the wheel when Id already written something good that could be used in a specific spot.) Will I be able to sell more copies of Your Money: The Missing Manual because of Get Rich Slowly? Absolutely. Theres no doubt. If I didnt have this audience, OReilly would never have approached me, and Id never be able to sell any books. I have a proven track record, and that makes people confident that the book wont let them down. What strategies did you use to get people to trust your financial advice? I dont have any conscious strategies to get people to trust my financial advice. I just go out there every day and write about what Ive learned and experienced. I try to be honest, open, and fair. I listen to opposing viewpoints. Im willing to change my mind if I discover something doesnt work or if I find a better option. For the most part, Im not trying to sell one point of view. Im trying to get others to take responsiblity for their own situation, and to see that they *can* destroy debt and build wealth if theyre willing to put time and energy into it. Though it sounds sort of lame, my goal is to empower other people to do the same things Ive been able to do. J.D. Roth is the author of Your Money: The Missing Manual.   He is an accidental personal-finance experta regular guy who found himself deep in debt. After deciding to turn his life around, he read everything he could about money and finance. In 2006, he started the award-winning website Get Rich Slowly, which Money Magazine named the Webs most inspiring personal-finance blog. Over the past four years, Get Rich Slowly has grown into an active community where thousands of readers a month share ideas on how to improve their financial lives. J.D. lives with his wife and four cats in a hundred-year-old house in Portland, Oregon.