Don’t Buy Seth Godin’s New Book Tribes
October 27th, 2008
Here’s the thing: I have never done a book review on this site before and probably won’t do another, however, as someone who has lived amongst, and worked with, actual tribes in Papua New Guinea who up until about twenty years ago were still practicing cannibalism, I had a lot of hesitancy when I first heard the title of the new book.
image: Village Big Man and Tribal Leader Erukai and family; Kakoro, Papua New Guinea
What could this marketing guy from New York possibly know about tribes? Does he know that in Papua New Guinea the tribal leaders are known as ‘Big Men’ or that in Samoa they call elders ‘Matai’ and they have different designations whether they are a village orator or in charge of land resources.
I have been a reader of Seth’s blog for quite some time now, and he has even been kind enough to answer simple business questions for me from time to time. But, for this book, “TRIBES,” I was not prepared to drink the Kool AId just because Mr. Godin wrote it.
Quite possibly, because the tribes I am most familiar with (literally) rely on each other for survival. Promoting products or trying to increase brand awareness could quite possibly be the furthest thing from their minds. If the tribes I know stop functioning or have a leadership breakdown, the reality is, they face life-threatening circumstances.
97 Remarkable Ways to Diversify Your Network in a Down Economy
October 15th, 2008
Are you looking to expand your network? Or, perhaps create some new connections to make yourself even more recession proof…?
image source: 24oranges.nl
If I hear the words “down” and “economy” in the same sentence one more time I might just hurl my laptop out the window!! And, to be honest, this post could actually be titled, “97 Ways to Diversify Your Network in ANY Economy.”
A couple of weeks ago I wrote about the value of using your indirect network and how you can capitalize on its potential to expand your business, or grow your ideas, by engaging the followers of your followers (who can be just as valuable).
Case in point, I came to know Sean Bohan of Core Performance via a Twitter message sent out by Chris Brogan and to date, Sean has been one of the most ardent supports of Train for Humanity.
Whether you are looking to start a small business, travel the globe, gain some traction with social media, or even maintain your current existence…creating a network of like-minded individuals can help to keep you focused, informed, and on task. As a small business owner myself, and someone who is attempting to launch a humanitarian initiative, I think it is paramount that we all assist each other in these times of uncertainty.
What I thought I would do today is list out 97 people that I follow on Twitter and whose blogs I happen to read. To help you to identify whom you might be interested in following or reading I have included everyone’s Twitter profile, blog link, and brief bio.
Under the various topic headings I have not listed people in any particular order…just how they happened to fall while I was researching this post.
Please NOTE - this is NOT a popularity contest! These are people that I happen to follow. I am not stating that they are the most popular, but to me they add value to what I am trying to accomplish.
This is how we help each other…we meet, we connect, and we exchange ideas! Some folks below you will recognize and others you won’t. Truthfully, I don’t want to see ANYBODY fail, sink, or go down with the ship!! (Myself included.) So, let’s expand our networks, join forces, be proactive, and kick some ass.
Happy connection making!
image source: www.FinancialAidPodcast.com and www.ChristopherSPenn.com
So I Ask - What the Hell Are You?
March 12th, 2008
Yesterday I met this person and their personality had a repulsive air that can best be described as a glaringly obvious faker. I wish I could say the person was abrasive but it was subtler.
image source: zach klein
According to Seth Godin Tim Ferriss is a LIAR
March 9th, 2008
That’s right, Godin is quite clear, Tim is a BIG FAT liar! I am rather happy to break this news, although, I am surprised that it has not been written about before now.
For those of you who don’t know, Tim has a best selling book entitled, “The Four Hour Work Week.” The title alone conjures up visions of pina coladas, bikini clad beaches, and unlimited amounts of low effort, high paying work. If you are currently employed and find yourself stuck in a cube, or facing the monotony of a dead end job filled with daily drudgery, what could be better than a four-hour work week?
The Cat Is Outta The Bag - How Top Bloggers Divide Their Time For Maximum Exposure
January 8th, 2008
Would you like to have more traffic for your site than you ever thought possible? How do top bloggers and online marketers like Seth Godin and Darren Rowse divide their time between social media, search engine optimization, and interacting with readers to ensure continued growth of their sites…?
Value Added Blogging - The Art of Growing Traffic Organically One Reader at a Time
January 1st, 2008
Would you like to have slow growth for real blogging success? Are you interested in pursuing quality (daily readers), or quantity (quick one time visits)?
5 Must Ask Questions On Your Quest For Personal Freedom
December 6th, 2007
Would you like to successfully Quit Your Job, Travel The World, Pursue Your Dreams, and truly do your life’s work?
Some of the most popular posts on the internet today seem to be about taking control of your life and removing yourself from the corporate setting to travel the world, become your own boss, and fulfill your dreams.
Really, it is all simply a euphemism for creating and living the life that you want rather than accepting the status quo of the commuter and workaday grind.
image source: jepoirrier
Because the ‘personal freedom’ topic is so broad and entails many aspects which are required to achieve success (unless you are rich) I am going to break this up into a series that will run every Thursday.
Today, I have a short post to kick everything off and I would just like to offer up five questions or thoughts for you to ponder and ask yourself to determine if you are indeed ready to “chase your dreams.”
1 Are you caught in a rut? Whether at work or personally?
2 Are you prepared to be an active participant in your quest personal freedom?
3 What would you ideally like to be doing with your life?
4 Do you have personal or familial obligations that you need to sort out?
5 Would you like to make a change?
Whether you are interested in moving overseas, changing jobs, or starting your own business. All of these goals require one thing, a positive mindset and a plan with room for flexibility. With that you can achieve anything.
Please join me on Thursday of next week for the first post in this series when we will look at “How to Remove Yourself from a Negative Situation.”
Now, I ask you, are there other questions that you ask yourself when thinking about pursuing an aspiration, or change? Let me know in the comments.
Editor’s note: in case you have recently noticed the new tagline above -
Living Overseas | Blogging | Inspiration and Motivation | Entrepreneurship
MyTropicalEscape has taken a slight turn to include more niche topics. For those of you that are interested in my new editorial calendar, every Monday I will have a post on blogging or marketing, on Tuesday’s there is the flagship “Ten Questions With” interview series, Thursday will focus on the new series about personal freedom, and Friday will be a day to give back where I will discuss social or humanitarian issues.
The Importance of NonVerbal Communication Ten Things Your Handshake Says About You
November 26th, 2007
Nonverbal communication is one of the key components when it comes to conveying confidence and self-assuredness when meeting other people. This post regarding handshakes is the start of an ongoing series to help you project poise in any situation.
