Self-improvement books for Bitcoins - a guide to dating

[SelfHelp]

Hello everyone

We're a very small team of self-improvement book authors, and we're curious about Bitcoin as a way to sell e-books. For some of the subjects we write about, we believe customers would enjoy the anonymity. But we're not sure there is enough of a market to build a whole website yet.

That's why we're launching an experiment. Our dating and seduction author, Alejandro, is writing a new edition of his "Guide to women, relationships and sex", exclusively for the Bitcoin market. You can find 8 pages from the guide here: http://www.bitcoinservice.co.uk/files/83 for the symbolic price of 0.1 BTC. We will use the number of downloads as an indication of the size of the market. If we reach more than 50 downloads, the full book will be published. If we reach more than 100 downloads, we will create a dedicated website and expand our book catalog.

Please note that we'll never ask for customer info, and that our books will never have any kind of DRM.

Of course, even if you don't want to pay for the excerpt, feel free to voice your opinion and/or offer suggestions. Would there be some topics of self-improvement you'd like to see in book form ?

SelfHelp Authors, in search of a bitcoin-related new name

[kiba]

The bitcoin market's size is dependent on the number of goods and services. You temporary expanded the market with 8 pages, but without other books, the market won't expand to support your preferred download counts, and hence revenue.

If you think bitcoin is likely to be widely successfully in the future, then it make sense to sell at least one book for bitcoin.

If you, on the other hand, think bitcoin will eventually fall out, then it make sense to conduct some experiments stretched out between several months to gauge the trend of growth and loss of the bitcoin economy.

[SelfHelp]

You're right about the number of goods influencing the market size, of course. But we have no idea of the market size today, and whether we can pay our authors right now for writing books for the bitcoin market exclusively. If the experiment fails, we may try again in the future, or we may choose to publish non-exclusive material.

I hope you'll notice that the target number of downloads is very low for that kind of book. If we can't reach 50 downloads now, we can hardly justify developing a website and signing contracts with authors.

[ColdHardMetal]

You're right about the number of goods influencing the market size, of course. But we have no idea of the market size today, and whether we can pay our authors right now for writing books for the bitcoin market exclusively. If the experiment fails, we may try again in the future, or we may choose to publish non-exclusive material.

I hope you'll notice that the target number of downloads is very low for that kind of book. If we can't reach 50 downloads now, we can hardly justify developing a website and signing contracts with authors.

I think trying to sell books developed exclusively for purchase via bitcoins is the wrong approach. You're better off just offering your entire catalog with BTC as a payment option next to whatever your current methods are. This eliminates the risk you have of the BTC market not being large enough and you don't have to launch an entire new website dedicated to BTC, just add on to what you are using now.

This also serves the development of bitcoins by exposing your current customers to BTC rather than merely those of us who are already aware, which might get some of them interested in participating in other aspects of the BTC economy which helps grow the whole pie.

[FreeMoney]

You're right about the number of goods influencing the market size, of course. But we have no idea of the market size today, and whether we can pay our authors right now for writing books for the bitcoin market exclusively. If the experiment fails, we may try again in the future, or we may choose to publish non-exclusive material.

I hope you'll notice that the target number of downloads is very low for that kind of book. If we can't reach 50 downloads now, we can hardly justify developing a website and signing contracts with authors.

I think trying to sell books developed exclusively for purchase via bitcoins is the wrong approach. You're better off just offering your entire catalog with BTC as a payment option next to whatever your current methods are. This eliminates the risk you have of the BTC market not being large enough and you don't have to launch an entire new website dedicated to BTC, just add on to what you are using now.

This also serves the development of bitcoins by exposing your current customers to BTC rather than merely those of us who are already aware, which might get some of them interested in participating in other aspects of the BTC economy which helps grow the whole pie.

This is good advice. It seems like you have a gift shop near the boarder and want to start taking Canada bucks, but are only going to accept them on one new untested item and determine your future with the currency based on how that item sells.

There is just no reason I can see to write books especially for the bitcoin market, unless they are going to be about bitcoin or currency or something, but even then why wouldn't you sell them for dollars since you are already set up for that?

[SelfHelp]

Well, like I said, we're testing the market, it's an experiment. If nobody cares about buying ebooks sold exclusively for bitcoins, then we'll try something else. Now, a few pragmatic reasons to sell books exclusively for bitcoins, and you'll see we're not bullshitting you:

- we can target our audience better, as bitcoins early adopters will tend to be more geeky and scientific people
- people might want to support a bitcoin project, and pay a little more in bitcoins that what they would pay in dollars
- having bitcoin-specific material is an incentive to use bitcoins
- some authors don't want to get paid in bitcoins yet, but will feel robbed if we pay them at the current exchange rate, and the rate goes more favorable to bitcoin in the future. It's much easier to have with specific contracts for bitcoin sales, and our first author wanted to write a new edition of his book, so...

Anyway, there won't be any hard feelings if the experiment doesn't work, and we won't turn our back to Bitcoin.

[FreeMoney]

Well, like I said, we're testing the market, it's an experiment. If nobody cares about buying ebooks sold exclusively for bitcoins, then we'll try something else. Now, a few pragmatic reasons to sell books exclusively for bitcoins, and you'll see we're not bullshitting you:

- we can target our audience better, as bitcoins early adopters will tend to be more geeky and scientific people
- people might want to support a bitcoin project, and pay a little more in bitcoins that what they would pay in dollars
- having bitcoin-specific material is an incentive to use bitcoins
- some authors don't want to get paid in bitcoins yet, but will feel robbed if we pay them at the current exchange rate, and the rate goes more favorable to bitcoin in the future. It's much easier to have with specific contracts for bitcoin sales, and our first author wanted to write a new edition of his book, so...

Anyway, there won't be any hard feelings if the experiment doesn't work, and we won't turn our back to Bitcoin.

Thanks for explaining. That's a lot of stuff I hadn't though about.

[fabianhjr]

Hey, how are the sales doing btw? Can you release it in another format which isn't PDF or closed?(ODT, HTML, etc)

[SelfHelp]

Sales are not doing well, so far, but it's been less than one day.

We might release the final book on several formats, but PDF has been an open standard since 2008 and we don't use any kind of DRM or Adobe-specific features. I don't really see the point in releasing an ODT version, but an HTML one could be useful if you want to read the book on a small device.

[caveden]

Please also keep in mind that not every bitcoin-owner will read this forum topoic.

[morpheus]

Since I have been involved with the seduction community for several years now, I thought it would be a good idea if I shared my thoughts about this guide.

Executive summary for the impatient: Though it is hard to tell what the full guide is like based on only a few pages, I cannot recommend this guide to anyone.

In depth review:

I've read a lot of guides and self-help books in this area. I enjoy learning about new perspectives, and this case is no different. However, I doubt it would be useful for anyone serious about dating.

First, I know a lot of people in the seduction and dating coach community, but I've never heard of Alejandro, the writer of this guide. To be fair, the community is very large and I can't know everyone. Since I don't recognize him, I can't evaluate his abilities as a seducer or dating coach.

The writing could use some work. In the introduction, the writer promises to write in a clear and simple language which he mostly delivers on. However, there are extensive typos throughout the 8 pages as if the guide had not been reviewed before release. Also, the grammar and sentence structure becomes awkward in places. That being said, I found it easy to read and I was never left wondering what he was talking about.

The goal of the book is to break down the seduction process and teach each step to the reader in an easy to understand and apply way. After reading the guide, I'm not sure the writer actually applies what he writes. The information seems vague as if the writer doesn't have a firm grasp on the concepts he's teaching. It is possible, this being only the introduction to the guide, the writer simply hasn't had time to go into depth on any one topic. If that is the case, he doesn't say anything about going into more depth later on many of the topics covered.

Notes on specific points in the book:

Step 1: You.

After the introduction to the guide this is the only step covered in this excerpt. Apparently, not all of step 1 is covered in this excerpt and it's not clear how much more is in this step. I hope it is considerably more. The concept of improving your psychology for dating, often referred to as "inner game" in the community, is huge. Many instructors I've met consider "inner game" the only concept in the field.

Step 1 is broken down into 3 sections, A few myths about what women like, How is this about you, and Being interesting.

"A few myths about what women like" simply lists five myths many men have about women. It's not exhaustive, but it does hit the most important ones. I have quick notes on each myth:

Myth 1: Women like jerks, not nice guys

The writer refutes the myth well by listing several facts. However, he seems to miss the big misconception about why women like jerks (assertiveness). In the end, he almost seems to suggest women really do like jerks.

Myth 2: Women are attracted to money

He pretty much nails this one. My only problem with his debunking is the use of the word "power". He seems to be using it in place of "social status" which is what most science articles and journals call it. In the seduction community, they call it "value" or having "high value" vrs "low value". It's clear he knows of the seduction community terms in other parts of the guide, but completely misses or ignores "social status" which seems to fit his explanation of what's going on much better.

Myth 3: Women are attracted to good looking men

He pretty much nails this one as well. Again, he talks of power though.

Myth 4: Women don't like sex

Nails it. Enough said.

Myth 5: Women can be manipulated

Not only does he nail this one as well, but his answer should be shouted at everyone in the community. Best part of the guide.

Now that he's covered all of the myths, the writer turns theses myths back on the reader in the section "How is this about you". Each myth above is restated as a belief you have about yourself which perpetuates the above myths. My first issue is with the way he phrases each belief. Though I'm not exactly sure how, I think nearly all of them could be worded better.

Belief 1: You're too nice, you're too mean

The writer totally screws this one up. The problem is, he completely ignores assertiveness and boundaries. Instead he simply tells the reader to be a little mean sometimes (among other things).

Belief 2: You're too poor

Again he talks of power and introduces influence. Yet, he doesn't really relate the two (though it's obvious how he thinks they should be related). In both cases he could use "social status" and the explanation works. It even works with this counter examples, better than power or influence does. Otherwise, he seems to be correct on this point.

Belief 3: You're too ugly

Ok, my experience, even within the seduction community which prides itself on being ugly yet still being successful, I've found not having good looks is very hard to overcome. But his explanation is the same as any one else in the seduction community. Except, again he talks of power instead of social status or value. He even mentions "displaying high value" as a community term for his term "radiating power". There is a lot more which could be said about this topic. I'm guessing he cut his explanation short and will return to it later in the guide.

Belief 4: You're too shy

Completely wrong! First he tries to guess what you think the consequences will be and gets it wrong. Then he basically says, get over it. Not only is this wrong, but potentially damaging to people with this problem. He doesn't mention anything about where this belief really comes from. Not even the no actual way to prove it but it sounds plausible evolutionary psychology theory of why we're anxious around women which is all over the seduction community.

There are two major problems guys have when trying "pickup" or date women. One is not having the skills, and the other is "being too shy". There are plenty of good techniques out there which deal with "being too shy". The writer seems to totally not understand the issue, and brushes it aside.

Total fail.

Belief 5: You're trying too hard

He has three explanations for this. The first two are basically the same. This belief is really part of Belief 4, but he doesn't mention it. Probably because he doesn't understand Belief 4.

Now that the writer got some background out of the way he introduces some actual techniques in the section "Being interesting".

"Being interesting" is broken down into 3 parts, Culture, Passions and Hobbies.

In Culture, the writer basically says, go study a little about everything so you can sound knowledgeable. Knowing a little about everything is useful for small talk and getting conversations started sometimes, but he doesn't explain this. Instead he just tells you a bunch of things you should study without really explaining why. On top of that, some of the things he says you should study will be dated or are already dated.

In Passions he says... Find a passion. There is a little explanation of why this is important, but he misses at least one important concept with passions. The section is very short, and could easily be rolled into the next section, Hobbies.

In Hobbies, the writer tells you to find a hobbie. Then he gives you a list of reasons why they are important and offers suggestions for hobbies.

In all of the "Being interesting" section, he seems to miss the overarching and far more important concept of identity. Maybe it's in a later section. Though, I would have expected it's introduction in the very beginning of this section to tie the following parts together.

Finally, I have to mention the bibliography. Though he mentions concepts from the seduction community, the only book he lists in the bibliography is "The 48 Laws of Power". That book is only very indirectly related to seduction. He doesn't even mention anything from the book from what I can tell. The only thing related is his use of the term "power" everywhere. Interestingly, the same author wrote a book called "The Art of Seduction", which definitely is related yet gets no mention in the bibliography.

Anyways, I spent way too long writing reviewing this guide. Honestly, it's only 0.1 bitcoin. If you're interested, check it out. Just don't expect to get much use out of it.

[SelfHelp]

Thanks for your review, morpheus. We'd be happy to provide you with the full book for free if you're interested. It is, at the moment, being polished and proof-read. We're glad to see that, even if you don't recommend the book, you often state that it is spot on. I hope that some of the negative points you saw will be corrected in the full book.

A few points:
- Alejandro is not american, that may be part of the reason you never heard of him if you are american yourself. This is also the reason why his grammar might be sometimes a little rough around the edges. Anyway, he is no world renouned pick-up artist.
- I believed it is stated in the excerpt that the concept of power is expanded upon in a later section of the book. Alejandro believes that social status is only a part of power.
- The reason the bibliography contains only one item is that it's an excerpt: you get the only reference quoted in the text, but there are a few more, including "The Art of Seduction" and some famous seduction books, including those by Mystery and Style.
- Some of the points are treated in more details later, including the part about being shy. Some techniques are treated in the part about meeting women. The point of the chapter you read was to skim on every misconception that one might have about himself, but not be too chatty about them. So the paragraph just says: there is no point in being shy, there is no risk in talking to women. How to actually overcome shyness is a more difficult and could not be explained in one paragraph.

[genjix]

having good game is not an excuse to make up for your poor life. it should be supplementary (gaming chicks) fun. sometimes in my life girls becomes an everyday part, and in other times it's not even thought about for a while.

so all of this "get a hobby", "learn culture"... you should be doing that anyway to be a well rounded person! not because you think chicks will like you for it- otherwise it's just a false dichotomy.

some people care too much about stupid shit (mental baggage) that really they just need to gain emotional freedom & stop worrying.

[kiba]

so all of this "get a hobby", "learn culture"... you should be doing that anyway to be a well rounded person! not because you think chicks will like you for it- otherwise it's just a false dichotomy.

autodididacticism.