It is good to break away from that because there are only so many things a silhouette can convey. The first book cover design had near unanimous feedback that it looked too much like Seth Godin’s Tribes book: Argh. We worked so hard on that cover and the creative process is so time consuming and demanding.

In a parallel story, and crossing paths with Seinfeld, comedian Orny Adams has been working in standup for several years and is looking for his big break. In the documentary, "Comedian," Jerry Seinfeld has decided to scrap all his previous material from decades of success as a standup comedian and TV star, and start over with a new standup act. This film shows the challenges of this monumentally successful performer as he makes his rounds from comedy club to comedy club, trying out first five minutes of material, then ten, then twenty, attempting to work his way up to a full hour of

Of course, there are a variety of ways to break into the speaking circuit, and these rules can be creatively broken, but they will help you get started learning the system (if only to hack it later). I shared a ‘Core Conversation’ yesterday afternoon at SXSW with the consummate professional speaker Tim Sanders , author of Love is the Killer App , The Likeability Factor , and Saving the World at Work . Aided by some great comments, suggestions and questions from the audience, we discussed some of the important rules to follow if you want to develop a paid professional speaking career.