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I’m a big fan of Jim Collins’ work, especially the modern day classic Good to Great. Even if you’re not interested in business, the book is inspiring and practical. Nine years after publication, it’s still kicking ass, and deservedly so. I recently re-read my favorite passages, and I especially liked the introduction Jim used to convey how much the book meant to him before publication.
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Greetings from Portland, where spring has arrived outside my window ... at least for today. This is the Sunday Store Update, where I share some brief news about the business side of AONC ...
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I wrote a feature article for Writer's Digest this month, and it looks like it just hit the newsstands. I also received permission to include the full PDF here if you're interested: Changing the Rules for Unconventional Success. You can also read a brief online supplement on their site here.
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Now that the birthday is over, we're officially heading into Year Three of World Domination. A few people said they were surprised that everything has happened so quickly. I regularly receive notes that say “I've been reading your blog for years.” It feels like several years to me too—but we've only just now crossed the second year point ...
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Greetings, friends and readers. A few days ago I went to SFO, then I went to HKG, and then at 11pm local time (after 20 hours of travel), I made it in to MNL — also known as Manila, the Philippines. From here I'm jumping off to Papua New Guinea, but hold on a minute. The last time I was in the Philippines, I was about eight years old. I lived here from 1984-1986 as part of my first big jump in cross-cultural life. I have vague memories of riding jeepneys, eating chicken and rice every night, and occasionally starting small fires in small trees. Twenty-something years later, and here I am again. I don't eat chicken or light trees on fire these days, but I'm still happy to ride around in jeepneys. Fun times! Even when I'm jet-lagged.
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Greetings, friends and readers. After an extended stay at home in Portland, I'm now preparing to head out again. Over the next two weeks I'll be simultaneously traveling through Asia and working on my most detailed business project of the year. It's called Empire Building Kit, and the goal is to help people build a sustainable business in less than one year by doing one thing every day.
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Greetings from World Domination HQ in Portland, Oregon. After visiting the South Pacific recently, I’m happy to be home for several weeks before the next trip. This is the Sunday Store Update, where I share a quick update on the business side of AONC. Here’s this week’s important business lesson ...
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OK, that didn’t last long. We launched the new $100 Business Forum at 10am EST yesterday, and by 1130am EST we had filled up all the spots in the inaugural group. The second group filled up shortly afterwards ...
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This week I finally got around to seeing Up in the Air, a movie everyone’s been asking me about recently. Aside from movies on airplanes themselves, of which I usually watch the first 20 minutes before doing something else, this was only my second movie of the year. Up in the Air, if you’re not familiar with it, is about a guy who loves travel so much that he essentially lives on planes and in Hilton suites throughout the U.S.As he says in the movie, “Last year I spent 322 days on the road, which means that I had to spend 43 miserable days at home.”
Read MoreAs part of my Annual Review series, I’m looking back at the development of AONC and the related business during 2009. I hope you’re having a great December, wherever you are. *** The business side of AONC happened quite organically in the beginning. The only real business goal I had when starting the site was…
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I read an interesting article in USA Today recently, which profiled seven people who unexpectedly lost their job, then turned around to create a situation better than the one they lost. From a bus driver to a piñata maker, each of these very different individuals used the negative experience of being laid off to make an even bigger, positive change ...
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Note: this is a modified excerpt from the Unconventional Guide to Working for Yourself. This week I’m staying in one place and working on my book. Have a great Thursday!
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As I mentioned in last week's survey invitation, when you’re trying to build a business, blog, non-profit, or pretty much any venture, regularly checking in with your peeps is an important way to make sure you know who they are and what they want.
This is especially important when it comes to a) transition points in the growth of your community, or b) product development at any time. Surveys allow you to take the pulse of a large group of people in a short period of time -- and because of how sampling works, you don't actually need to hear from all of them to know what most of them are thinking. Read More
Greetings, friends and readers. This week I’m holed up on the Oregon coast working on my book. Updates will continue as usual, starting with this weekend one where I write about the small business behind AONC.
Since I wrote about $100 businesses last Monday, I’ve heard a lot of fun stories from readers ...
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I'm working on this concept for a longer project, but for now, here's the basic principle: Just as you don't need someone else's permission to be happy, you also don't need a lot of money to start a business.In fact, to start a very small business, you don't need any number of things that are frequently thought of as prerequisites or first steps ...
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