motivations : The Art of Non-Conformity

Life

The Agenda, Part I: Ask Why

In 2009, I visited with Seth Godin and his Alternative MBA students. Afterwards, I asked Seth for advice. “I know it's a long list,” I said, “But what's one thing you think I can improve upon?”

He said, “I think you need more of an agenda. Consensus is overrated!” That was a very Seth thing to say, and I liked it. For the rest of the year, I thought about the agenda.

This is a six-part series to explain how I think we can change the world. I originally started AONC with the goal of writing for 1,000 people. Now my goal is 100,000 people, and it looks like that's only a year or so away. Lesson learned: small goals turn into big ones if you take them seriously. And also: it's good to be clear on what you're really about.

Update on the Journey to Every Country

I made it back from my recent trip to Asia and the South Pacific. Next up, the two remaining countries in Latin America—Guatemala and Nicaragua—then over to the Ukraine and Cyprus. After that, a big trip to Africa… and so on. I’ve always said that I’m not a real travel writer – see Rolf Potts…

Mountain Climbing, Motivations, and The Deep-Seated Fear of Failure

When I first started doing media interviews in 2008, I noticed that one question would almost always come up: “Why are you so obsessed with travel?” (I learned to call it the mountain-climbing question, because it's the same one climbers are asked about Everest and K2: “Why?”) The question bewildered me until I got used to it. For a long time, I didn't know how to answer; the quest to see the whole world was just something that made sense to me intuitively. I like travel, I like goal-setting, so why not put the two together?