Seth Godin is one of many remarkable people who have played a role in helping me to rediscover my dream. We are in violent agreement on many, many topics, not the least of which is education.
Seth has generously published a 30,000 word manifesto that’s a part of the answer to; “What should we do about education?”
He is asking all of us to read it and share it. I hope that you will find the time to check it out and pass it along.
by the way you can read it on your Kindle or iPad.
Today my friend John is saying good bye to his Dad, Ed Savickas. Ed was a remarkable man. I don’t believe that I have ever met a more gentle, authentic or purposeful soul.
Ed grew up in poor section of Worcester, MA and became a shining example of the American Dream. He created his own business, settled in peaceful town and raised a wonderful son. Ed was successful for sure, and stories like this are not uncommon for the World War II generation.
But Ed’s story is worthy of remarking about because of the genuine way in which he served others. Every interaction with Ed was uplifting and full of wisdom. Ed stands out among hundreds of adults in my youth not because of what he built or had, but because of who he was. Ed served first, he was an example first, and success just came along for the ride.
Ed will be remembered for the stories, meaning and love that he shared, and his remarkable journey will carry on in the actions of the friends and family that he inspired throughout his remarkable life.
Thank you Mr. Savickas.
http://paganomedia.com/videos/savickas_boys_club/
Posted in Uncategorized
With all the noise in today’s media infested world it’s dang hard to stand out. Even if you have the money to make me laugh at your commercial during the Super Bowl it’s unlikely that you will capture my heart, trust, and loyalty.
There has only ever been one way to truly attract followers and keep them; Meaning. We respond to people who stand for something bigger than what they sell. We trust people who stand for something bigger than what they sell.
In fact we prefer people who ‘sell us’ what they stand for instead of their product or service. We just happen to support their business as a byproduct.
Being remarkable is about standing for something that engages your audience first and proving it through your service.
I believe that Coach Glassman, creator of Crossfit, cares about redefining fitness and me getting more fit because he has designed Crossfit to actually make it happen. He could put up a glossy site and sell all kinds of crap, but he stays focused on the implementation of true fitness. He is loyal to his cause and Crossfit is the manifestation of it.
In the new economy, remarkable alignment is a competitive necessity. The world is saturated with claims, we’re filtering it all out and seeking proof. And proof sticks out like the sound of your child in a crowd.
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Heresy I know. Isn’t success enough?
Success is being above average. To get promoted to supervisor in most organizations I just have to be a little better than average. If I work hard and stay above average I probably have a shot at manager in a few years. If I make manager aren’t I successful? What if my car, my house and vacations are above average? Am I successful now? What if my kids go to college?
These are all fine things, but everyone is above average (and therefore successful) in something. Being above average almost always is vague, generally self-centered and generally speaking unremarkable.
Let’s face it most often, above average, no matter how you slice, is still pretty average.
In the remarkable economy, ‘above average’ IS pretty normal. And in the remarkable economy, being ‘average’ is a formula for blending in.
In the remarkable economy, blending in is failure. You weren’t’ meant to be like everyone else. You weren’t even meant to be a little bit better than everyone else. You were meant to be like YOU. Being a little bit, or even a lot, better than everyone else in material terms rarely holds anyone’s interest or loyalty.
So success as we defined it in the last economy is not going to cut it in the new economy. Time to focus on remarkability.
