Knowledge, not ignorance, creates bliss

While it sounds like a plug for teachers and universities, it is a true foundation for feeling more happiness from your every day life. The over worn mantra is that ignorance is bliss. Nothing could be further from the truth.

If you are ignorant about how things work, the history of a piece of art or the difficulty of an athletic maneuver are seen as one would look at an avocado for the first time. Wow, that’s interesting and strange. What’s in aisle two.

Knowledge on the other hand begets appreciation and happiness for witnessing the product of hours of training, years of technological development or centuries of artistic evolution. Learning the history of architecture and art nouveau makes a walk through Riga, Latvia a jaw-dropping experience while an ignorant visitor would point with mild interest at the faces on a wall. Learning the intricacies of the strategies of soccer and histories of rivalry makes watching a 90 minute soccer battle a thrilling test of wit and athleticism while a casual observer might only enjoy the goals.

There are many moments when everyone can recognize and appreciate beauty. A walk past the Statue of David will move the most ignorant hearts. However, the more we know about a topic, the more we can appreciate and feel true happiness from the opportunity to enjoy it.

As Paul Bloom notes in his Ted Radio talk, to enjoy more, learn more. If you want to enjoy expensive wine, you don’t chug more wine. You learn about wine. If you want to enjoy art more, take an art history class.

Education is the secret to happiness

Education is thus not merely a method to gain knowledge in order to do something (like get a job or build a spaceship) but also a means to uncover intrinsic value. The best part is, the more you study learning, the more you’ll also enjoy the process of knowledge gathering and happiness-building.

If you invite me to your wedding, I’m ready to share the secret to happiness, and together our band of explorers will help one another learn more and uncover happiness.

Photo: LinksmanJD, Mar.tin

The big change however is in my outlook. I have been working as an entrepreneur and explorer since graduating from college at the age of 23. Seven years later, I’ve had numerous adventurers, great stories and developed personal and meaningful relationships.

Now, however, it’s time for legacy.

Legacy Work

It’s easy as an entrepreneur and business owner to make busy-ness your key metric. If I’m busy and working hard, I’m doing well and moving forward. Most of the time, however, there is serious wheel-spinning occurring. In my own business, it feels great to be busy and do work. Rarely however do we force ourselves to step back and think through what we want to be remembered for.

My 30th birthday has reminded me to take a step back and think through that question. As the birthday reminded me, there is no time like the present to begin legacy work. The work that people will remember you by. The work that defines you.

My first step in my legacy work journey was to complete the Travel Hacking Guide to Norway, now available for purchase. I want to be remembered as an inspiration to help others explore, and this book is the first step.

My second step in helping others explore is beginning now. I’m aiming to bring a band of explorers together to push the limits of business, education and travel on this site. If we can collectively inspire, encourage and teach one another how to live a thoughtful and exciting life, I will be closer to completing my legacy work. Learn more about the band of explorers here.

How will people remember you?

As you go to work this morning or try to decide what to do this summer, ask yourself what you want your legacy to be. How can you create that legacy? It may take years or decades, but that’s why it is legacy work. It shouldn’t be easy. It shouldn’t be quick. It should, however, help you get out of bed every morning with excitment to work on your life’s mission.

Maybe you’re approaching the 30 milestone or are well past it. I think it’s great. I’m pumped to be 30. The true milestone is ahead as I seek, with your help, comments and participation, the chance to explore and inspire our band of explorers.

Along with my journal (which of course had an image of Edvard Munch’s The Scream), my other hand held the travel guide. A photo-filled book with all of the facts, must-see places and photos that I should attempt to take myself.

For years, this is what a travel guide has been. A book of facts, providing an all-in-one source of information.

Today however, we have another name for an all-in-one source of information: Google. In fact, whether walking around the historic center of a city, looking for the best restaurant or searching for the best transportation routes, information is best when it is fresh and from multiple perspectives. While a book is out of date the minute it is published, online reviews, website and connections with locals through social media are always fresh.

It is with this in mind that I am setting out to change the world of travel guides with The Travel Hacking Guide to Norway. This book is more than a guide, it is a challenge to rethink the possibilities of travel, technology and social connections. By directing readers to important resources online and connections with locals via social media, Travel Hacking Norway is a blueprint to experience Norwegian culture the way the locals do. Even though Norway is one of the most expensive countries in the world, using technology and travel resources, you can make it an affordable and enjoyable destination.

Most guides stop after publishing, but again The Travel Hacking Guide differs in that respect as well. This site will share updated information and resources about Norway as well as contacts and locals on social media who could help travelers when they arrive. In essence, the guide is the first step, but the resources online here and around the web provide the on-going value of the guide.

Just as iTunes disrupted the music industry and eBooks changed the publishing industry, it is time for the world of guidebooks to be forever changed. Let’s throw the first stone. Get started for free this week at: http://travelhackingnorway.com

“What do you do?” she asked.

“Well, we teach people to use technology so they can find customers and grow their businesses. We call it digital literacy.”

“That’s so great. You always said you wanted to connect people and now you get to do that as your business.”

I’ve reflected on that comment from someone who knew me 10 years ago. It’s true, when I was in college I was a connector. I loved getting groups of different friends together and introducing good people that I thought should know one another. This continued as I travel across the ocean and forged relationships with friends from around the globe. It seemed wherever I went, I wanted to meet and connect.

Somehow, this goal faded in my mind. I started to focus more on learning and creating a company that educates and inspires others. Now with the mirror held up I realized I am doing what I always said I wanted to do. And I didn’t even know it.

We all had that response. What we truly wanted to do. Maybe it was when we were young and too naive to kill a dream (I want to be a baseball player!). Or maybe as we grew up and went through school/work/life we mentioned to our close friends what we would love to spend our time doing.

Most of us could not even imagine 10, 5, 1 year ago what types of jobs are possible today. However, despite the change of titles and roles, the goals remain the same. You may want to connect people, like I did. You can do that in innumerable ways. Maybe you want to teach people, or help people, or excite people or entertain people.

Whatever your goal, you can find a way to do exactly that. It might be in your current job, it might be on the side or it might be sometime in the future. But every now and then, don’t forget to hold up the mirror and look back at that younger version of yourself and ask, am I doing what I always wanted to?

“They did not know it was impossible, so they did it.” -Mark Twain

Oblivious to the extraordinary

Every so often you meet those individuals. The people who are doing something extraordinary but seem oblivious to the fact that it is. I had such an opportunity at ThincIowa.

Ben Milne, founder of Dwolla, spoke about his dream of creating a world-class company while still having a cornfield in his backyard. He’s raised money, he’s developed an all-star team and he’s created Dwolla, a product striking fear into the heart of the banking industry. And he’s done this all in Des Moines, Iowa, seemingly unaware that he’s not supposed to be able to do this.

The middle frontier in Sioux Falls

Here at 9 Clouds, we want to take people to the frontiers. The frontiers of their ideas, the frontiers of their passions and the frontiers of their perceived limitations. And while the frontier seems to imply the edge or far away, as Ben has shown, it can be right in your home town. In fact, what place is more on the metaphorical edge than the middle of the middle of the country.

Tomorrow, Ben will come to Sioux Falls, a center of finance and a launching pad for bright minds to leave and find creative work elsewhere. However, it doesn’t have to be that way. If we don’t know that it is impossible to start a business, raise money and live in the Midwest, we’ll do it. And Ben is.

I’m excited to hear him speak at the Innovation Expo tomorrow, and if you can make it, you should come see what the frontier looks like in the Midwest.

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I’ve had the pleasure the past week to work with a mentor and friend, Curt Rice, and together we learned how to get published in the New York Times (or other major publications on or off-line).

Curt is a thought-leader and an amazing theoretical linguist who made his way from Minnesota to Tromsø, Norway where he is now the second-in-command at the University of Tromsø with the title of Vice President of Research and Development. In addition to his busy schedule with the university, he also writes and speaks extensively on leadership in higher ed, gender balance and open access in research.

After the Nobel Peace Prize announcement, Curt had a strong reaction, noting that the Peace Prize Committee exposed two uncomfortable realities:

(1) The men who speak on behalf of the committee are ambivalent about the importance of making the award to women, and (2) the consequence of dividing the prize three ways in practice diminishes the value of each woman’s contribution.

Based on this thesis statement, he immediate wrote a 1000 word piece in response to the Peace Prize and wanted it shared as widely as possible. Within a few days, he was contacting major publications around the globe, both online and offline, and quickly learned a few tips that he should have followed to get published.

1. Contact the major publications immediately, even before writing

Curt spent the first couple days writing and perfecting his piece, but after speaking with the Guardian in London they told him: you’re already too late.

Time sensitive material has the best chance to get published, but it has to be published quickly. The Guardian recommended contacting them immediately with an idea for a story and a sketch of what it will look like. If you can convince the publisher you’re an expert and have a unique angle, you can solidify your chance at getting published first and write the piece immediately after.

A similar strategy is recommended for guest blogging. Contact a blog you would like to use for exposure, pitch an idea and if they bite, you can write the piece.

2. Be controversial and take a stand

Write what makes you excited and take a stand. News outlets want to generate views, and copywriting and headlines are key to attracting eyeballs. In a world dominated by social media, the 140 character headline drives traffic. In Curt’s case, there was concern about how it would affect his job and if it would offend colleagues…but taking a halfway stand won’t get published. Curt put the bold title “The Nobel Peace Prize’s problem with women” to attract attention and controversy and the first sentence draws the reader in saying:

This year’s Nobel Peace Prize award makes it clear that the current Peace Prize Committee has a serious problem with women. In fact, they have two.

The combination of powerful headline writing and an effective lead-in sentence will bring readers in and keep them reading.

3. Do it in 800 characters and in HTML

Most of the major outlets are looking for pieces around the 800 word mark, so that’s a good number to shoot for. Additionally, guest blogs will appreciate having a post already formatted in HTML. You can write your post on a blog site like WordPress, which will give you the html version of your post (just click HTML instead of visual on WordPress). Insert all your links, photos and make sure you have a bio linking to your site and a way for readers to subscribe to your blog (Mailchimp is a great way to start a blog list). You can subscribe to my list to get an idea how it works!

Then, copy the HTML code and paste it to a site called Paste.ly. This will give you a short URL that you can share via email. The recipient can click the URL to copy and paste the HTML code to their site so all the links and images work as planned. Sharing the HTML code is great for you because it ensures your bio is exactly how you like it, with links pointing back to your site or newsletter subscribe list.

4. Keep your ear open for opportunities

While you are looking to publish, others are looking for sources for their stories. You can act as a source and generate links to your site or even have your content act as the story. The best way to find journalists looking for stories is through Help A Reporter Out or HARO.

On HARO you can sign up for emails three times a day with journalists looking for sources for stories in specific industries such as travel, science, media, entertainment, etc. If you quickly glance through the emails and respond if there is a story you can help out with, you can get published immediately and start generating traffic.

Ready for the next story

In Curt’s case, he was a little slow on the draw. Now however, Curt (and you) know what to do. Since he didn’t get published, Curt posted the story on his blog and promoted it through social media. If the story gets shared and read by the right people, it might be enough to get the story published later on. Most major publications require exclusive publication, so if you put it on your blog they won’t publish it, but online aggregators might pick your story up or contact you for input on the story.

There are enormous opportunities to have your content published through major outlets like the New York Times. As news outlets cut budgets, the opportunity to be given a story (already in HTML!) will make it more attractive for them to publish your content. For writers and bloggers, traditional media provides an opportunity to get in front of a new audience that is often very large. With links back to your site or email list, you can continue to grow your audience and convert those new readers into loyal subscribers.

Next time you have an idea, think: Is this “All the news that is fit to print.” Most likely it is…and can be.

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Photo courtesy of: Jaded One

The past months a similar calm has overcome me. Thinking about my relationship with my partner and our future together created a sense of peace. Of course we should spend the rest of our lives together. Of course we should get married.

Two weeks ago I listened to this calm and asked my loving soulmate to marry me. And it felt…exactly how it should. It was not a huge relief or a huge celebration, but instead a feeling of doing exactly the right thing without any question or doubt. It was peaceful.

Now for the story…

I couldn’t wait honestly. The minute I had the ring I wanted to ask her. Unfortunately she was away all day and was suspicious. I wanted to surprise her so I closed the living room door and was washing dishes when she arrived home. I told her I had already cooked and eaten and that there was left-over pizza in the living room. In what felt like days, she slowly changed clothes, dropped off her bag and started telling me about her day. I was waiting and waiting for her to enter the living room and finally went in myself and asked her to join me. As soon as she opened the door, there was homemade pizza on the table, wine and candles and an engagement ring waiting for her on the table. I awkwardly started to go to one knee but was sitting on the chair so I ended in a half squat as I asked for the honor of marrying her…and she said yes!

The peaceful decision

The planning to ask her took a bit of thought, but the act of asking took none whatsoever. It was one of those times when the path was smooth and my mind was clear. It was exactly what should be done.

You may encounter some such moment. Maybe it’s when you’re deciding whether or not to start a new business, whether or not to go to school, whether or not to take a trip or whether or not to get married. Listen to your mind and body and see what leaves you with a sense of peace. Although not all decisions are this easy, some are, and often they’re the biggest and best decisions you’ll ever make.

Kindergarten hacker

When I made the bold step into kindergarten at Central Elementary and sat on the S in the circle of letters, I also enjoyed my first interaction with Steve: a new Apple II GS computer. With only two 3 1/2″ floppies I could start-up the computer and quickly began exploring new worlds through Carmen Sandiago, Myst, California Gold Rush and Oregon Trail. The adventure combined with Math Blaster and Reading Rabbitt was enough to pique my interest in technology and soon I was trying to code my own baseball card database program.

While I never made it as a coder, I did became an Apple fan. I saw the potential of technology in learning and enjoyed solving problems with help from technology. The beautiful products made it easy to create and express myself with a few clicks on the mouse.

Had Apple just been about the technology however, it would not have inspired the fanatical following it has today. The fandom was a combination of great products with vision.

Vision of the world

Like many of us, I grew up wanting to change the world, to make the world a better place. Traveling around the world confirmed one thing in my mind: the best place to start was in my own backyard.

Steve started in his garage and had a vision of the world. A world where technology could make life easier, more enjoyable and more beautiful. When he started, it’s doubtful he had visions of changing the entire globe. Instead, he and Woz were more concerned about impressing their local computer group and making a splash at a conference in California.

Deciding to change the world is an expectation too great to be fulfilled. A deman so grandiose and undefined that it gives us an excuse never to start. However, if we decide to change OUR world, it becomes more actionable. We can help one person in our community or solve one problem for people in our lives. If we focus on creating a useful product or service for the people we know and understand, we are half-way to being like Steve.

The Breakup of Mass

Increasingly in our daily lives we are thrust into situations that leave us totally clueless. Situations that prove “we’re not from around these parts.” Instead of learning one discipline, topic or skill and being able to focus solely on that task, our worlds are interdisciplinary battle grounds where one needs to understand Greek politics to make sense of the economy, technology to call their kids or physics to lose weight.

Some say the world is flat, others call it the long tail and Seth Godin simply says We All Are Weird. Whatever you call it, we are undergoing a breakup of mass. We do not all watch the same television program, we do not all listen to the same music and our worlds are influenced by a multitude of actors from within and outside of our communities that now can be understood and better identified. In previous times, we would not find that homemade YouTube video about the 1987 Twins that we love to watch or hear that small indie band on Pandora that plays the exact type of electronica we like. We were forced to watch and listen to what the masses wanted. Before we were unable to track international markets and street protests in real time or collaborate across borders instantly. Now we can.

Not only do we have access to an endless array of information, but we are expected to be generalists. We need the ability to understand scientific principles that could be applied to our business plans. We need to study nature and art to build smarter buildings. We need to understand psychology to build better websites. The more we know about other disciplines, the greater insight we have into our own discipline or business. The companies that are succeeding in this age of the individual are those who can draw on a large pool of knowledge OR teach themselves what they need to know.

Teach yourself everything

Fortunately for those of us whose public education may have failed them in certain areas, we have access to teach ourselves for free. We do not need to pay $100,000 for a graduate degree, instead we need a little discipline and an internet connection. While you miss out on the built-in interaction with other students if you don’t study at a school, teaching yourself and seeking out people to discuss ideas with whether online or offline is a pretty good (and economical) substitute.

To get started, visit 400 Free Online Courses from Top Universities. Here you can learn Roman Architecture from Yale, American Economic History from Berkeley or Astrobiology from Stanford. Never got in to Harvard? Doesn’t matter. Sign up for that String Theory and Black Holes course from Harvard you always wanted to take.

The Rise of the Renaissance Person

With so much knowledge available to us, we will increasingly be asked to find and learn information on seemingly unrelated topics. However, this knowledge will prepare us to survive and thrive as workers or businesses in a mass-less world.

…After a few awkward seconds of judgement by those eating at Jigger’s Restaurant, I quickly struck up a conversation with a local rancher. My knowledge of ranching and farming, as inadequate as it may be, was sufficient enough to break the ice and learn more about Kadoka.

This ability to communicate regardless of topic and make connections across disciplines is an invaluable skill. And one that makes you incredibly interesting at dinner parties.

* * * *

Where do you go to learn? What resources can you share to help us become Renaissance people?

As we previously discussed, this a great opportunity to earn some big time mileage. If you haven’t registered yet, you’re out of luck. But if you have registered, it’s time to get a few hits.

Hitting a double

I got started this past week as I was driving across South Dakota and falling asleep. I wanted to make it all the way home but couldn’t, so I was looking to stop at a cheap hotel for a few hours of sleep. As I pulled into Mitchell, SD, I saw a number of hotels and immediately thought: I can get a hit!

A look through the list of hotel partners made my choices pretty easy. With 9 hotel group partners comprising almost 50 hotels, any time you stay anywhere you should have a great chance for at least one hit.

I stopped at the Days Inn and checked in and went upstairs. I then realized I didn’t have a Days Inn rewards account. I logged into their website, created an account and selected “Send my points to Dividend Miles.” This last step is important. Make sure that whenever offered the choice that you choose to convert your points to Dividend Miles.

Upon check-out I made sure my new rewards number was on the reservation.

Thus I got my first hit for the hotel stay and then was able to convert my Wyndham points into miles for hit number two. A double!

Hotels are obviously more expensive and at retail price may not be worth it just for the hit, but since I needed to stay somewhere anyways, I might as well get credit. With that in mind, it’s great to prepare. You can get a triple by signing up with Starwood Preferred Guest, meaning you’ll get triple points with any stay before December 18th. After you sign up for SPG, make sure that you register for 2000 free points after your first stay. That way if you happen to stay at a Sheriton, Westin, W hotel and others, you will get one hit for the stay, plus 2000 points that you can convert to miles which will give you another hit. We’ll have tips on staying cheap at an SPG hotel soon.

A free hit

My final hit was much easier. A quick download of the US Airways search bar and three searches later I’m on third. That’s it.

There are more hits to come, especially with trading and sharing points on points.com. To start, get the freebies and make sure you’re ready when your daily activities (flowers, Netflix, hotels, etc.) can lead to hits and miles.

Photo courtesy of ExpressMonorail