I've been thinking recently about the fact that I don't always define my terms here at Bootstrapme.com quite as much as perhaps I should.

In part, this is due to the fact that blog posts, almost by definition, should be short and to the point.

However, I just ran across a simple explanation of the most important term we use here at the website and wanted to share it with readers.

A recent post at the Business Quiz and Trivia Blog explains the origins of the technique for which our blog is named in this way:

The use of the term bootstrap derives from the phrase to pull oneself up by one's bootstrap, widely thought to be based on one of the eighteenth century Adventures of Baron Munchausen, by Rudolph Erich Raspe.

One of these adventures apparently included the Baron pulling himself from a swamp by either his hair or his bootstraps, according to Wikipedia.

The expression stuck.

According to the Business Quiz and Trivia Blog:

[The] larger meaning is [when] you "pull yourself up by your bootstraps," you succeed - on your own - despite limited resources.

Read more about using the technique to start a business with little or no investment today in Guy Kawasaki's post The Art of Bootstrapping and enjoy your own bootstrapping adventure.

Photo Credit: Mary R. Vogt, MorgueFile