Chris Brogan asked for this a while ago. I thought it might make an interesting 5OS. That and actually doing something with the saved post would be good, too.
The thing most people know me for is... my long time involvement in and contributions to podcasting. I was podcasting back in October of 2004, started writing Podcasting for Dummies in early 2005, & launched Podiobooks.com not long after that. In the last few weeks, I've been getting loads of emails and messages from folks tell me that I was among the influences that got them into podcasting. I think they did it just so their spouses have someone to blame.
The people I associate the most with are... strange. No, seriously. My outlook on life and the world doesn't track well with most popular opinions or conventional wisdom. There are 6.3 billion people on the planet to who can recite the nightly talking points or tow the company line without fail. I'm interested in those to the right of the decimal point who take a different approach, have unpopular yet well-thought out positions and tend to work towards making things different -- for everyone or just themselves.
People who have influenced my life are... my mom, to start. She's one of the above mentioned people and tough me to chart my own course at an early age. I'm also influenced heavily by those who know more than I do on a particular subject. I may start off all meetings and gatherings with the assumption that I'm the smartest person in the room, but when I find a person who proves that theory false, I'll do whatever I can to learn from that person -- assuming their particular area of expertise is something I need to internalize.
One challenge I took on and overcame was... just one? How about really wanting to get into the world of IT in the mid-90's without any training whatsoever? I just sorta jumped in with both feed, found a niche I could fill and did it. A couple of years later, I was directing all eCommerce for a $2BB company. I don't know that I considered that a challenge, really. That's just what I do. I solve problems. For me or for others.
My early years, before you probably got to know me were... a lot like my current years. Sure, I went through some adolescent bullshit like most folks, but I was married at 20 (voluntarily) and working on carving some space out in the world for myself. I was young and dumb at the time, but still pretty much me.
You might not know this, but... I'm not nearly as confident as I seem. I know I can and will get the job done and can tackle any challenge, but that doesn't make me constantly question what in the hell I've gotten myself into this time. Each time. Every time.
I’m passionate about... having fun. Yes, I'm stealing Steve Eley's line again. I'm going to have to start paying him royalties. But it's true. The older I get (just turned 39), the more I realize the value of fun. Not all things in my life right now are fun. And candidly, I don't know that they ever will all be fun. But I'd like to reduce the not-fun things to a more manageable number. I think it is possible to have fun and still be successful in life. I want to be a good example of how that is accomplished. And to many, I am. Now if I can just get that way for me.
In the next year or two, I hope to... bail. Seriously. I want to be in a position that, when my son leaves for college, my wife and I can pull up our roots and live a nomadic lifestyle. This rock we live in is pretty big, and I've not seen nearly enough of it. And the coolest part? With advances in technology and communications, I should be able to take many along for the ride.
