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Excellence Sought ...
Somebody asked me what I was "up to" this year. Been there; translation: "Got a book in the works?" Me: No! In fact, No! No! No!
What am I "up to"? First and foremost, I have 60 priceless opportunities "on the books." Speeches-seminars-events. Starting with a healthcare gig in Dubai in a couple of weeks. My Aim.2006 is to: Make each event a Masterpiece, a Meticulously-crafted & Relevant & Provocative & Startling & Passionate Call to Dramatic/Revolutionary Action/Re-imagining. Will I bat 1.000? Of course not! Will I change the course of the lives in those 60 audiences? Of course not. But I will have the incredible-amazing-gadzooks opportunity to directly confront about 90,000 people with my vision of the energetic, Wow-engorged, change-hungry life. Suppose I somehow manage to dent the consciousness of 5%, and lead 5% of that 5% to take some pretty significant steps down Revolutionary Road. That would add up to 4,500 folks affected-infected, and 225 folks marching smartly to a different drummer. Wow! What a year it would have been!!
What am I "up to"? In our NCF (New Cool Friend) Stephen Shapiro's Goal-Free Living there's a chapter epigraph I loved:
"My only goal is to have no goals. The goal, every time, is that film, that very moment."—Bernardo Bertolucci
That film!
That speech!
That audience!
That individual in my sights!
That particular point!
That moment!*
(*There is no other.)
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Before blogging became all the rage, Tom was posting book reviews and Observations (essentially early blog posts) to this site. You can find the archives below.
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Comments
I would love (LOVE LOVE LOVE) to be able to listen to/watch some (if not all) of Tom's 60 events. With today's technology, that's easily achievable. And it wouldn't undermine the market for the events. If anything, it would strengthen it.
Any plans to make the audio and/or video from some of these events available to the public for free or for a charge?
Posted by Jon Bischke at January 5, 2006 5:06 PM
I attended a tompeters! event in Tulsa, OK - ooh, 5 years? ago. Definitely dented my consciousness, at the least.
I was so enraptured by the challenging statements, the unabashed determination, and the freshness of IDEAS! that I lost all objectivity.
Meanwhile, the countenances on many faces of those around me implied a collective thought, "That was IT?"
I didn't get why they weren't as abuzz as I was.
NOW...
...here I am roughly 5 years later (I first visited www.tompeters.com to get the slides from that Tulsa event). And I sense this blog has played a part in my (seemingly) "pretty significant steps down Revolutionary Road."
Thanks Tom!
-from one of the 5% of 5%.
Here's to hoping we're worth you doing that thing you do.
Posted by DUST!N at January 5, 2006 6:53 PM
Tom,
Thank you. I haven't been able to attend one of your seminars in person, but I have been impacted greatly by your writings and presentations. So I am outside of your 5%. Late last year, I started my own business and when I sent out the change of address notices, some of the responses started with WOW. I immediately thought of Tom Peters and basked (for just a second) in achieving a WOW response. I plan on having lots more WOWs this year. Keep up the good work.
Posted by Darren Fast at January 5, 2006 8:48 PM
I'd always choose to have 5 percent of a fortune over 100% of fools gold. I can't even imagine how inspired I would be by actually being part of the live interactive buzz of your seminars; but I do know that even the snippets of your thoughts that make it to this blog are pricelessly insiring.
Viruses spread one person at a time. You may not even realize how viral your message is. I'm so inspired, I feel sick!
Thanks Tom. And thanks to the team around you who enable you to concentrate on the core, and "to the thousands of scientists who had worked" ... for you! ... and "to the incredibly hard work that the authors of the books you read, and the airline mechanics, pensions severed, who were still determined to make your flights safe. And on. And on."
Posted by Tom O'Leary at January 6, 2006 6:16 AM
Always trust your judgement since our first meeting in Montreal in late 80's
Read all your stuff and most books you mention...
However......
Looked high and low for Goal Free Living. Found it after 3 days and six stores. I am a serious Goalaholic looking for rehab..
What a disappointing book..
Wondering how/why you would recommmend such drivel
Posted by Todd Spare at January 11, 2006 10:45 PM