The "Internet Hotshots" Mastermind Group

Internet Hotshots is a Mastermind group of Internet entrepreneurs, founded by online publisher Randy Cassingham on March 1, 1999. There are scores of members in the group; no matter what your online field, you would very likely recognize many of the names. Membership is by invitation only.

Origin of the "Hotshots" name: a Washington Post editor complained on an online journalism forum that he could not find any "hotshots" to work for him. He wanted people who could write, code web pages, do Shockwave, run servers, guide online strategies, and hand-hold the old-guard reporters into the Information Age. It's no wonder he was having trouble finding a "hotshot": at the time, a typical beginning reporter's salary was about $19K a year. Randy told him there are plenty of "hotshots" out here, but we're already making one hell of a lot more than $19K/year. He didn't reply.

Still, the exchange got Randy to think about the concept, and spurred him to create a group of just that sort of person -- online entrepreneurs who were running circles around what "old media" had to offer. The group has since expanded to encompass virtually all major online entrepreneurial sectors. The group also has a less whimsical name, the International Society of Online Entrepreneurs, but members all still use "Hotshots" to refer to the group.

In addition to an active e-mail discussion list, we also have twice-yearly face-to-face meetings for "high bandwidth" interaction at various locations around North America. These sessions are incredibly intense strategic and tactical meetings where members not only reveal the how-tos and what-fors of online business, but show other members the particulars. Most members come away from these meetings incredibly inspired and sure that they've taken away tens of thousands of dollars' worth of value from the conferences.

If you were invited to join, congratulations: that's a significant accomplishment by itself. Click this link for the application page. The ID and password you were supplied are required, and should not be passed on to anyone else. Thanks!