My Amazon.com review of "Think Big Manifesto"

The right book for right now
April 18, 2009

If you are looking for a step-by-step how-to book, or a feel-good, reassuring motivational book, look elsewhere. Michael Port says it like it is, and I am so grateful for that.

This book has appeared for me at just the right time. In the past weeks I have taken on some big challenges, and I was feeling bogged down and questioning whether I made the right decisions. His point about "Overthrow The Judge", to "control-alt-delete" my inner critic, was the kick in the rear-end I needed.

I really like that Michael presents Big Thinking as something accessible to all. The examples he uses are short, punchy vignettes that directly relate to my own experience and encourage me to move to action. No mystical guru-talk or quantum mechanics here (Okay a spiel about Fibonacci numbers but that's it).

This book is too valuable to be stored on my bookshelf. I am keeping it in full view on my desk as a constant reminder to "control-alt-delete" my internal critic, and to think and act bigger about who I am and what I offer the world.

"The Think Big Manifesto" is a bold, no-nonsense and heartfelt call to action. Don't just read it, join the Revolution and live it!


Amazon.com link (no affiliate):
http://www.amazon.com/Think-Big-Manifesto-Change-World/dp/0470432373/

Amazon.ca link (no affiliate):
http://www.amazon.ca/Think-Big-Manifesto-Change-World/dp/0470432373/

Main site: http://thinkbigmanifesto.com

This is Think Big Week!

"To be free, is to be bound by something bigger than yourself."
-- Michael Port

Another crisis is looming on the horizon, the morning headlines are screaming at me: Disease! Economic Collapse! Water shortages! Environmental Disaster!

It could be so easy for me to let my dreams and desires be drowned out by the persistant shouting of the doomsayers. It makes me wonder sometimes if it is even worth getting out of bed...

I'm not saying that we don't face challenges, even ones that threaten the future of humanity and the planet. But where are the solutions going to come from?

The true shortage in the world today is of people who can Think Big, who have ideas, projects, goals and dreams that are bigger than the problems around us. Of people who are taking daily action towards building solutions, rather than being paralyzed by problems.

This is why the book being launched today by my coach, mentor and friend Michael Port: "The Think Big Manifesto", is so important. I really like the subtitle: "Think you can't change your life (or the world)? Think again!"

I invite you this week to get the book and to participate in activities to help you think bigger about who you are and what you offer the world...

Now is the time to THINK BIG!

Read my latest newsletter here:
http://www.davender.com/newsletter/20090427.html

Check out my latest YouTube video: "What if you were Ten Times Bolder?"



YouTube link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qRRlWW5Gl2Q

SoloSuccess Discussion: The Think Big Manifesto

Rise up! The biggest "shortage" in the world right now is people who dare to Think Big and change the status-quo! You have what it takes to change the present moment...are you ready?

In this discussion we will take a look at some key ideas from Michael Port's latest book: The Think Big Manifesto.

These are all questions that we will discuss on the next SoloSuccess discussion, Tuesday April 28 at 8:30PM Eastern / 5:30 PM Pacific.

This call is free, simply dial
(218) 339-4600 Access Code: 191192#
You pay the long-distance to the teleconference server. When prompted, enter the assigned access code, followed by the pound (#) sign and you're in!

As a test, this discussion will also be streamed live on USTREAM.tv
See me live by clicking
http://www.ustream.tv/coachdavender
(I recommend that you use the audio of the teleconference bridge to join the discussion)

***GREAT OFFER*** Go right now to http://www.thinkbigmanifesto.com to get your copy of the book and lots of great extras! Also check out the Think Big community at http://www.thinkbigrevolution.com

Looking forward to having you join the conversation!

Book Yourself Solid Radio: Thomas Mangum on Making Strategic Conversations

Join me as I chat with Connection Expert Thomas Mangum on "Making Strategic Connections", during our next Book Yourself Solid Radio episode, Friday 24 April at 2PM Eastern.

This conversation explores ideas about personal branding, being memorable, and conscious networking, always linking back to the Foundation concepts of Michael Port's Book Yourself Solid System.

Thomas helps Service Professionals to Make Connections & Make It Rain so they can Get Their Business Booked Solid on THEIR Terms!

Find out more about Thomas at ​connectwiththomas.com​

Listen to this episode live at http://is.gd/udb1

Join this spirited discussion about how the Book Yourself Solid system can help you achieve business success, even if you hate marketing and selling!

Book Yourself Solid Radio is a webradio show inspired by the bestselling book by Michael Port. Hosted by Certified Book Yourself Solid Coaches Trish Lambert and Davender Gupta, they interview fellow Coaches to help you succeed in filling your practice.

The show takes place every Friday from 2PM to 2:30PM Eastern

Check out the latest guests, listen to the show or download podcasts of past episodes at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/bookyourselfsolid

You can also access podcasts via iTunes (search for Book Yourself Solid Podcast)

Coach Trish's Homepage: http://www.4rmarketing.com
Coach Davender"s Blog: http://www.frompassiontoprofit.com

Book Yourself Solid Community: http://www.bookedsolidnetwork.com

Show how the sausage is made: Transparency begets credibility

For a long drive today I downloaded a podcast of TVO's Big Ideas, featuring Harvard professor David Weinberger on "Knowledge At The End Of The Information Age".

I first came across Prof. Weinberger ten years ago in his book "The Cluetrain Manifesto" where he foresaw the emphasis on conversations and user-generated content which is a key part of the webosphere today.

His recent talk at the University of Toronto touched many points about the nature of information and knowledge, and how we organize, classify and understand it.

A couple of points grabbed my attention (my pararaphrasing of his ideas):

- Save everything: You don't know what information is important until you need it. Digitize everything and save everything. Storage is cheap, and the tools for extracting the info you need are improving all the time.

Comment: I have been saving everything I've written since 1997. Interesting how the volume saved increases from year to year! Unfortunately my e-mails from before 2003 are irretrievable, that's when I switched from Outlook to Thunderbird (and since 2007 I've been also keeping all my e-mails on Gmail which makes them even easier to search).

Also, by saving everything, I can also resurrect ideas from my archives that I started but were not quite ready for prime time, when I come across an opportunity I can retrieve and update the tool or idea, saving me lots of time...

- Transparency creates credibility: Open up how you develop your ideas and your positions. The more people can see your thought process, the more they will understand and trust you.

Comment: It used to be that experts delivered their opinions from above, and it was accepted by the peons. But now people no longer blindly accept what "experts" say, partly because so many experts have been shown to be wrong, but also because we can be much more engaged in the conversation than in the past.

Don't be shy about putting raw ideas out there to be sifted and examined. Be open about your thought process. Log raw ideas on blogs, Twitter, Facebook. Contribute to conversations, comment on other people's blogs.

The context of the comment also gives people a clue as to your thought process. For example:

- stuff on my Twitter stream ( http://twitter.com/coachdavender ) is a momentary fragment of my ideas or things that attract my attention. I use Twitter (or sometimes Facebook http://profile.to/coachdavender ) as a place to grab my thoughts as they occur, and for people to interact with them at this initial stage;
- anything on my blog ( http://www.frompassiontoprofit.com ) can be considered an "idea in formation". Here I take ideas and go a bit deeper with them to see where they lead me (reader input is also valuable here);
- as the idea becomes more solid, it becomes an article, which I post on my website ( http://www.coachdavender.com ), or, for articles that are even more mature, article sites like http://www.ezinearticles.com
- and then the most reliable, mature and reviewed ideas will end up in my published book(s)...

The more you make your thought process transparent, the more believable and credible you become.

I recommend the full podcast - it made my drive home go by in a blink!


Link to TVO.org page (video and synopsis):
http://www.tvo.org/TVO/WebObjects/TVO.woa?video?BI_Lecture_20090207_834116_DavidWeinberger

iTunes audio podcast download link (free):
http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?i=49871209&id=129166905

David Weinberger's blog: http://evident.com/

The game really has changed

I heard a pundit say that what we are living right now is a revolution in our beliefs, values, goals, dreams, expectations, everything... on the same scale as the collapse of the USSR almost two decades ago.

Yesterday a prospect was showing me their business plan and it struck me that the whole concept of a "business plan" in today's world is totally archaic. Go back even 12 months... who could have foreseen the huge spike in energy costs followed by a collapse that was just as fast. And, Mr. Banker, you expect a new venture to predict cash flow five years out, let alone one?

The game really has changed. Business for business's sake is out. We need to rethink the whole concept. Success in business does not have to mean selling one's soul.

For me, business is about exchanging something of value that allows you to live to your full potential while helping me live to my full potential. Business is not about how I can get a bigger slice of the pie, it's about growing the pie. People don't want more consumption, they want more conversation and connection. To go back to the "market" meaning a place of community and exchange rather than a nest full of hungry baby chicks screaming "Feed me!"

You can't play tomorrow's game with yesterday's rules.

---

A great essay on how the game is changing: this week's (April 6) TIME magazine cover story :
"The End of Excess: Is This Crisis Good For America" by Kurt Andersen (link: http://is.gd/pg4M )