If there’s one thing that will get people to open up their eyes and ears is when you disagree with someone who is seen as a noted expert in their field.
Just the other day I was reading an email that was promoting an internet marketing product. The email claimed that a specific internet marketing guru was wrong when he said that making money with Google’s adsense program was “dead.”
That sparked a controversy that got a lot of people talking about this new product. Here are some experts in our society that many people respect and whose ideas and beliefs are held to be true.
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Dr. Phil (relationship expert)
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Donald Trump (real estate expert)
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Warren Buffet (investing expert)
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Dr. Stephen Hawkings (science expert)
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Roger Ebert (movie expert)
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Jack Trout (marketing expert)
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Dr. Spock (baby expert)
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Jack Welch (business expert)
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Dr. Atkins (dieting expert)
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Alan Greenspan (economic expert)
Imagine reading a headline that says…
“Why the ‘Warren Buffet Method of Investing’ Is Wrong for the Average American Investor”
In the investing community, that headline would get a lot of attention and, depending on the contents of the article, start a whirlwind of controversy. Here’s a brief assignment. Make a list of all the noted authorities in your industry. Next, for every noted expert, list a few things that they preach as gospel. Lastly, write a few headlines for each expert’s belief. Before you know it, you’ll get a flood of ideas that will spark controversy and get you lots of attention.
Over time, people tend to assume certain things are just a fact and they accept them as such. When 
someone comes along challenging that long held belief, it creates a controversy.
someone comes along challenging that long held belief, it creates a controversy.For instance, it was believed for many years that the earth was flat. When one man came along named Christopher Columbus, who proved that to be false. It created quite a controversy and everyone began to know who Christopher Columbus was.
What are some other longstanding beliefs that can be challenged…
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Getting a college education will help you make a lot of money.
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To be successful you have to work extremely hard.
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You have to have a lot of internet traffic to make money with a website.
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It takes money to make money.
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You can only make money in the stock market when stock prices are rising.
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Great marriages are a result of love, understanding, and respect.
Let’s take longstanding belief # 1 for example. Imagine, reading a headline that said…
“Successful 19 Year Old College Dropout Says, ‘If You Want to Be a Millionaire, Don’t Go to College!’”
Wouldn’t that capture your attention? Wouldn’t you want to read what that article had to say. I would.