What does it take to be an MVP?

One question that I have been asked a lot lately is what does it take to become a Microsoft MVP. Being that I have received the MVP award five times for a variety of different areas of expertise, you would think that I would know. The truth is though, that I have no idea.

I write hundreds of articles every year, and I contribute to the IT community in various other ways. Even so, in October of 2007 I was not renewed as an Exchange MVP. I ended up becoming an MVP in a different area in June of 2007, but I have no idea what I did to get it.

The only thing that I can tell those of you who are wanting to become MVPs is that Microsoft likes to see contributions to the IT community that help people, and activites that reach large numbers of people. Of course those aren’t the “official” requirements. Last year I asked one of the MVP leads what the official criteria is, and she told me that she was not allowed to say. Apparently, Microsoft wants to see people performing MVP worthy activities on their own free will, and not just because a check list says that they have to.