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Nice post! I guess "Bad-ass" sums it up. It's also interesting to follow the recent development in the Wordpress community, where they are trying to move towards a more portal'ish look, rather than the classic entries sidebar layout. I think it started with www.revolutiontheme.com.
(There's a (slightly amusing) typo in your second paragraph: "Matt Mullenweg, is #16 on The 50 Most People on the Web list")
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Hi A!
Oops! Nice catch! I'd like to be one of the "most people" on the web ;)
Tim
Maybe with a copy of your book glued to each one.
Hey, you never said it had to be *good* PR!
That's funny! :-)
Thanks for sharing the insight Tim. I am just preparing to launch my blog @ www.AnimalAbatementSpecialists.com using Wordpress so it is nice to have this view from the inside. I've been inspired to do so by your blog as well as Jay & Sterling @ www.InternetBusinessMastery.com so thanks again!
I will see you at Dolce Saturday night!
www.jbrides.com
Picked up 4-Hour and have sent a couple to friends...now I just need to read it! Thanks Tim!
Look for an email to Amy from me.
My partners and I work with the Fortune 500 and Baxter's billionaire boys but no one can match your vision and verve and with what we're manifesting, we know you're the one to talk to. So I plan to steal your ear for ten minutes this Saturday.
This is just to whet your appetite enough that you request to read my email I'll send through to Amy. =)
I'll share the rest of the details there.
But this is not about Matt. This is a real coup for Tim. There is an entire book in your blog strategy - I can't wait to read it - so I will have to watch and learn :)
Dan
But the permanent link to this blog is *really* long ;)
You do know that you shorten the slug, right?
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Hannes!
Thank you. This is great advice. Now I just need to figure out how to edit the permalink this way :) I'm still a novice, but I'll check it out...
Tim
Thanks for the good interview-
I wish I could buy you a drink at Dolce- Let me know how it goes.
your pr stunt should focus around the fact that labor organizations are dying and useless.
labor day created in 1880 to boost the morale of labor and trade unions is a note worthy but worthless holiday. (wikipedia)
are their trade organizations and workers movements in call centers in india? don't know don't care - would be a good case in point if not.
go in front of the knights of labor (union that organized the first labor day) hall in nyc and declare the modern union dead.
author of the 4-hr work week and (insert accolade here) declares the modern union movement dead and cites rapid industrialized growth in other nations. at least in india that have degrees ... what do our unions promote?
apprenticeship?
Love your book & blog. It's so refreshing to have something that's so practical & how-to, instead of just regurgitated rah-rah inspiration (which has it's place too).
As for the PR stunt, you should flex your influential muscle and challenge Gov. Arnold Schwartzenegger to an arm wrestling match. People could make bets (votes) on the winner for a small fee online or by phone with the money going to charity. You could challenge the Governator to bring to the table new reform policies on extended mandatory holiday time and improved labor policies in California. Headline might read "Wrestling the state for less labor days". Maybe even do it at half-time of one of the big football games.
Ah-nold's been kicking butt with new environmental standards and stem cell research policies for his "nation state"...why not extended holiday for everyone as well! Then hopefully it would spread to the rest of the country (and hopefully here to Canada too :-).
Alternatively, you could take him inside the cage for a good ol' fashioned death match and see how rusty he's gotten since the Running Man. He might be too chicken, but either way the real winner will be your chosen charity and overworked Americans all over.
As for your interview in this blog, I found it ironic that it has an underlying theme about simplicity with so many $10 words. Or maybe I just need to read less Esquire, more Economist.
I look forward to meeting you someday. I'm hoping you can participate in my own upcoming experiment called Project Gearshift (rough manifesto at www.AintoG.tv). The idea is similar to RoadTrip Nation, but instead of curious, clueless college students, it will be about (clueless,curious) me leaving my job & hitting the road with my wife & kids. It's about getting out of self-imposed ruts (aka boring,unfulfilling jobs) and doing something remarkable. Like yourself, my goal is to interview as many uber-successful change-makers and mentors as possible. Maybe we can be a case-study for your next book.
We'll be heading down there in late Sept/Oct. Hope we can catch you before you head to Dubai.
Best of luck with your PR stunt. I'll be watching. Hope to speak with you soon. I'd call you, but you'd probably get it by email anyway (or rather your VA would). Looking forward to getting your auto-responder.
Let me know if there's anything I can do to help.
Hasta la vista baby,
Craig
But next time you write a blog post with a very long title you should look for the "Post Slug" box to the right of the editor. There you can write something like "this-is-a-shorter-slug" and that will be used in the permalink instead of "this-is-a-really-really-long-title-of-a-yet-another-great-blog-post" :)
Anyway, I outsourced the set-up to my virtual assistant, of course. She couldn't figure out some stuff, and neither could I, so I told her to find out the answers from Wordpress support.
She said she went to the Wordpress site and it said that support is currently closed. Then it lists the support hours as 9-5 PDT. I just checked and it still says that support is closed. What's that about? I'd pay for support, but I guess that's not an option. I know we could look up the FAQs, but I'd like to have the support option.
Quick question: why do you feel like you "should" know how to code? What will coding enable for you that you don't already have? Coding seems like a prime example of the kind of thing you should outsource. Saying you "should" know how to code sounds like a case of "knowing for the sake of knowing." Either that or you're trying to gain credibility with the techies around the blogosphere. ;-)
The comment struck me as odd, and seems like it goes against so many of the principles I found in your book. I need to develop a website of my own, and have SOME HTML/CSS experience, but not a lot. I'm thinking about tackling a CSS-heavy website and learning to code it myself, but the motivation would be solely monetary. Paying someone to code a site I design would be ideal, and would free up so much time for me to focus on other aspects of the business that deserve my attention... and is probably a much better way of getting an "in" with the blogging community.
Anyway, can't say enough good things about the book. It's currently making its rounds at my office.
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Hi W!
Ha.. the dreaded "S" word! It's not guilt-driven. I actually really want to learn a programming language just because I'm interested in learning computer syntax/diction, etc. and comparing them to natural languages.
Cheers,
Tim
I too have recently made the swap to Wordpress.
There were a couple of things I wasn't too sure about but found answers came quickly on their forum (that might be of help to you or your VA Margie?)
Tim - if you're ever in Sydney or Melbourne, I'd love to host one of your 4HWW parties... know quite a few young (and young at heart) entrepreneurs and adventurers who would make it a great night.
Cheers
Tara
Have you seen the 4 hour workweek spoof?
Workweek: NEVER Escape Your Job, Live Alone, and Join the New Poor.
Thought it may amuse your readers: http://retiredat21.com/the-100-hour-workweek-ne...
I see that SXSW just put up the new site for this year... are you going to speak again there? It would be cool to attend if you are. Let us know!
I'm curious what you found nauseating about Matt's interview. As an English major myself, I appreciated a coder's connection to poetry and the economy of words that is lost on so many of our verbose brethren.
If it's your opposition to the multitude of big words when more simple words would do...you should connect with more programmers and developers. They aren't being arrogant; they're simply fascinated by complexity (I know, we were targeting simplicity here). And the fact remains that most coders (at least that I've worked with) enjoy the nuances of etymology, numerical and coding syntax, and even sacred geometry.
So I would say, before we judge someone as arrogant, we should consider that perhaps he is simply passionate.
maybe we just saw each other in berlin, today, 11pm Tram M10, blue adidas shirt, green gym bag. If so I assume this was not by chance but a hint for something to explore. Interested?
Here's your PR Stunt:
Skydive into a live Good Morning America segment (maybe while playing a tuba or juggling or something like that.) Explain that these are all skills that you learned literally minutes before (from a master skydiving tuba instructor in India via live webcast over your iPhone while waiting on the circling plane above) thus efficiently utilizing your extra 36 hours a week by utilizing 4HWW principles. Teach Robin Roberts to Tango in 3 minutes. And if you have the time, kick Sam Champion's butt with some brutal Muay Thai knee strikes. Triumphantly high-five the cheering crowd while handing out 4HWW books to the adoring throng.
It doesn't get much better than that!
Okay, I know it's a bit unrealistic, but could you just try and fit in the Sam Champion thing with any of your other PR stunts? I really wanna see that. Pretty please?!
Gotta run now. I'm batching my emails in 3 minutes.
Good luck on your stunt!
Media can be 'freedom falling from the sky?' or something to that effect...
How about releasing the broomstick from the sphincter death grip. Nice interview Tim, but whenever I read anything by Mullenweg, he comes off like the biggest primadonna poindexter this side of the moon.
I had a chance to hear Matt keynote at the 2006 San Francisco Future of Web Apps conference. He was exceptional and impressively followed up some excellent speakers.
Direct MP3 link, for those interested: http://media.libsyn.com/media/carsonsystems/Mat...
Offer all the profits of your #1 best selling book from now on to go to Charity. To get users involved, allow visitors on your website to submit and choose which charity they think the money should go to, then give to that charity the percentage of votes that it has earned. Send out press releases to all the major TV, newspaper and other contacts you can think of.
I have a stunt suggestion:
72 hours of streaming video, showing you in the process of starting, organizing, and automating a new business venture. Show off to your fans just how easy it can be to get a new business venture off the ground once you've done some market research.
In one weekend, you can start with an idea and a little research, then move into obtaining rights to a product, developing your marketing, hiring the outsourced workers, getting the product distributed, automating the system, and.. well, all the other great info you cover in your book :)
For an extra media-attention-grabbing challenge, do it on budget that is within most peoples' reach, say $500. Traffic on the website to watch the video could be huge, and serve as the start-up marketing for whatever product you launch.
A word from up-north (Montreal, Canada).
Learning to program is good because it will open up new horizons for you - same as learning to drive. Sure, you could hire a driver (admit it, you can even afford it now :), but knowing how to drive gives you "freedom".
Same with knowing how to program. Knowledge is power !!!
I'd suggest installing python and going through the "excellent" tutorial that comes with it - see www.python.org. Python was developped initially to introduce kids to programming (if I recall the story correctly). Mission accomplished.
Oh yeah, and your book has changed my life, in a way, by helping me adding another layer of "freedom" to it, so I guess I should say thanks. I instinctively wanted to do it myself, but knowing that some other did it and it works, clearing the path of imaginary mines, helped.
Here's an assignment for you, after completing the python tutorial: translate the WP code from php to python. And sending me a copy, because I'm too lazy to do it myself. I know, you'll love it :)
No, really, you will.
Eventually.
Going on the Labor Day theme:
1) Brainstorm 4 ideas for a new venture and post them on this site for readers to vote on this week, deadline Friday.
2) On Labor Day, "live-blog" taking the winning idea to completion with 4 hours of your time, using principles from the book.
3) Donate all proceeds to buying copies of your book to donate at libraries across the nation. Alternatively, pick a charity tied to Labor issues.
As a "PR guy" by trade, I like some of the other ideas too, but PR for it's own sake is beneath the point of your book (and the "4HWW movement") IMO. Do something tied to reality and to demonstrate how workable and easy the practices in your book are, and it will reap huge benefits and make a difference. Isn't that the whole point?
Can't wait to see how things shake out!
1) Brainstorm 4 ideas for a new Muse, post them here, and let the community vote for the winner.
2) On Labor Day, "live blog" the creation of this new venture, using no more than 4 hours of your time, plus the recommendations from the book.
3) Donate proceeds from the creation of this muse to getting copies of your book out to libraries across the country, or to a labor-related charity.
Good luck! As I mentioned previously in my missing post, beware "PR stunts" for publicity's sake -- IMO that's counter-intuitive to your book's message. As a PR guy by trade, my suggestion is to go for something meaningful to you... the media can generally see through self-serving stunts, and even if they bought a "stunt", it would likely do more harm than good if there wasn't some steak included with the sizzle.
It seems to us that your PR Stunt has to have certain elements:
1. Draw the masses (i.e. be really fun and entertaining)
2. Possess a great story or spin to draw massive PR coverage
3. Drive home the importance and possibility of pursuing a 4 hour work week
So here’s the perfect PR stunt for Labor Day Weekend:
Host a beach party on Mission Beach strip in San Diego where beach-goers can have alcohol and activities. Because of that, this is an extremely popular destination for Labor Day Weekend so you can leverage its popularity to draw a wider audience. You can thank Jason Moffatt (JasonMoffatt.com) for telling us about this great beach. Go here to learn more and request a permit:
http://www.san-diego-beaches.com/public-places-...
However, this is no typical Labor Day Party. No, this is the 1st Annual Creative Life Design Party that challenges anyone who desires or doubts a 4 hour work week to come down for 36 hours (a typical 40 hour week minus the 4 hours of work. We suggest 8am-8pm Sat., Sun., and Mon.) of creative life design. Attendees will experience how fulfilling your work model is by sampling various passions they may like to pursue, given the free time. This will inspire a newfound drive to outsource their work and reduce their hours.
If you can pull it off in the next week, we would recommend reaching out to your star case studies to come out and teach their own passion, such as surfing, tango, break dancing, language, cooking, etc. Party attendees, for free, can sample these various passions to see which ones strike a chord with their deeper self.
You can also host various areas that encourage one to let go and open up to new possibilities. For instance, you could include round tables where volunteers take attendees through your creative life design worksheets to help them plan out what they want and how to reach it in record time. Round table participants can then keep in touch and help each other reach their goals.
We will be in San Diego and are happy to help orchestrate this event (including drumming up some volunteers).
We wish you the best,
Jaime & Rachel
P.S. It was great meeting you at Dolce.
I ran both of my business from Europe via a cell phone, Internet Cafes, and Google tools (no laptops, they are too heavy).
I'm just finishing putting together an ebook on how assemble websites based on The 4-Hour Workweek template you defined. It uses WordPress, plugins, and themes to build these sites. I will drop you an email when they are done.
Thanks again for showing me how to build a 4-Hour Workweek!
Steve
I like to use WordPress for the same reasons as you described. It's easy and I set it up in about 10 minutes. I've read an am implementing many of the 4-hour workweek ideas.
Hope SXSW was fun, I've alwasy wanted to go. Someday....
Your book can be read on many different levels, thanks for writing it.
Will
You took great decision to fix your Indonesian (and Arabic) first before moving on with Phyton and those time consuming language. You don't even need to code by yourself, do you?
Approaching Indonesian beauty should be done by you. Yourself. If missing the experience won't bother you, you can give the task to any VAs you can find ;-)
Matt mentioning Philip G. reminds me his quote: "The future of internet is so bright you should wear your sunglasses!"
Thanks for the interview, Tim.
PS.
I can teach you "off the book" Indonesian if you want to ;-)
Just buy me a beer for that...
I love the book! Thanks for writing it. It is funny. I have done a ton of the things you talk about in the book. I wanted to learn about theatre lighitng design so, Why not learn from the best. I went to NYC for a week and took a Master class with about 20 Tony Award winning designers. There I took a class on Intelligent lighitng equipment (rock concert stuff). Loved the class but didn't have access to any. So I just emailed folks and started asking to borrow equipment for a show I was working on for a local HIgh School. Wihin a month the I had over $40,000 of hot off the production line equipment being shipped to me for free (the shipping alone was thousands of dollars). I borrowed all this equipment (moving lights and a top of the line control board), for free for a month. (then I wrote an article for THE international magazine for Lighitng design http://livedesignonline.com/mag/lighting_varili...)
But that wasn't enough. I heard that a Tony Award winnning designer was coming to town to design for a show at the 5th Avenue theatre in Seattle. So, I found his email and asked if I could just come watch (of course I think he thought I was hitting on him to begin with). He said yes and I took a week off work to learn one on one with one of the best designers in the world.
As you say in your book the FACT is people are just people and if you just ask you can get just about anything. Most of the other people just don't show up.
Now if I can just build a business that works by itself... Thanks for the tools. If you are ever looking for someone to work wtih as a new case study I would love to talk about the projects I am working on to work on my lifestyle design plan.
Thanks Tim
Peace
Joseph
Wordpress can be absorbing, I find it motivating me to learn php so I can do more than cut and paste stuff into my themes blindly.