Domino Theory Blog

What Dominoes Will you Set in Motion When you Die?

I read a very touching article today about Ric Weiland, part of the founding team at Microsoft.  If you're like me, you haven't heard of Ric.  He was one of those people that liked it that way - a quiet toppler. While still alive he gave millions to The Pride Foundation in Seattle (and several other organizations), and then after his death he gave away most of his fortune including $65 million to The Pride Foundation and other organizations who's mission is to fight for gay rights.

I'm not exactly sure why the article pulled at my heart so much.  I know it's not that uncommon for very wealthy people to make large donations after they die.  Maybe it was because he committed suicide at a fairly young age.  Or, possibly because I have a family member who is gay, as well as very close friend.  I think part of it was that I could image just how much it meant to those organizations that received what amounted to the largest gifts they have ever received.

There are many ways to set in motion a big topple, and as strange as it is to say, dying is one of the most powerful.  In fact, estate planning is the act of setting up the topple.  This domino there, this one there, etc.  Obviously it's not just what happens when the money starts flowing, but how that creates second, third, forth order outcomes.

We're all going to be gone some day.  We will start a topple.  It probably won't be energized by millions of dollars, but that doesn't matter.  A few dominoes can tips many, many, many more.  The point of Domino Theory is to be more aware of this, and act strategically.

"My hope is this will inspire others to engage as donors and volunteers," said Audrey Haberman, the foundation's executive director.

If you have time to read the full article please do.  It struck a chord with me - maybe you too....

Pay It Forward Squidoo Page

I was doing some research regarding Squidoo and came across a "lens" (personal web page) where someone writes about their experiences with Paying it Forward.

A few highlights:

- The author is very active in buying dinner for a stranger.  I need to contact this person and get them some dominoes.  I bet they would like to see the ripple effect of their actions.

- There's a neat list of ideas:

Click through to see the plexo

Video of the Week

I liked this one because it expresses the point that the world is full of topples - everything is connected - the more we see this the more we are drawn to set big things in motion - because the impact from one small action can have a huge impact as the topple goes down.

Water as Domino

A few weeks ago I connected with an old friend and learned about a fantastic organization called Blood:Water Mission.  Their purpose:

Committed to clean blood and clean water to fight the HIV/AIDS pandemic, to build clean wells in Africa, to support medical facilities caring for the sick, to make a lasting impact in the fight against poverty, injustice and oppression in Africa through the linking of needs, talents and continents, of people and resources.

What really caught my attention was their "1000 Wells Project."  The goal: build 1000 clean water wells to help stem the countless problems that arise from drinking dirty water.  It's a clear and powerful purpose and it sets in motion several things that help address poverty and sickness.

Blood:Water Mission is the brainchild of Dan Haseltine, the lead singer of Jars of Clay.  They have a nice Myspace profile if you are interested.  Recently they won the Myspace Impact Award (congrats!).

As I prepared this post I noticed they had a quote on their website from Bono:

"As a fan, I don't think anyone has had a bigger voice than the activists in Jars of Clay."

Interesting coincidence...

My friend Rich is on the board, and I hope to find a way to work with Blood:Water Mission to use dominoes to help the 1000 Wells Project.  More on that as it develops.

I hope that you will consider making a donation, but even more importantly, I hope this inspires you to think about how one thing can lead to another...

Domino Theory Website

I'm happy to announce that I've completed the alpha-1 version of the Domino Theory Website.  Basically it's a working prototype with VERY little time spent making it "look nice."  But, there's some beef behind it, and I'm adding new stuff each week.

For now it''s a private alpha - this means you will need a registration code from me to create an account.  Let me know if you are interested.  Even if you don't plan to login, you can check out the site at:

www.toplers.com

As you will see on the home page, it is now possible for people to register/claim their dominoes without going through the lengthy and complex process now in use.  I haven't linked Domino Cat to the website yet, but I will for alpha-2.

My hope is that alpha-2 will be ready about a month.  I will take on more testers at that time.  Then, a bunch of magic happens and the site gets really cool, and I open up for the front door for a public beta.

Why all the formality?  Because it's a one man show back here and it's a nice way to artificially slow things down :-)

A few thoughts from the Toppler Perspective:

This is a critical branch of topple #0000001.  It would be impossible to accomplish the purpose of this topple (to set 1 million more in motion) without it.  The analogy in my mind is when I'm watching a huge topple go down there's usually one main branch that captures the audience's attention for a while (like the you can see in the videos I posted a while back).

This is no small branch, and as that sank in while building it, I definitely had feelings of being overwhelmed by the challenge.  I think that's normal when setting up a big topple.  Along the way I've needed to remind myself that setting up topples takes courage, patience, and perseverance.  Just set one domino up after another and before long things take shape.  Sometimes it's important to not think about all the work ahead.

Building the website forced me to think through some things like: how dominoes travel between people, how topples are created, when people should be notified of activities surrounding the topples, etc.  Another recurring theme in setting up a topple - the problem reveals itself as you work it.  Sure, planning is required, but a plan is only as good as the assumptions its based on.  And assumptions are challenged when the rubber meets the road. Nice cliches huh?

Building a topple out in the open like this requires a bit of humility.  For those that know me well, you can imagine just how hard it is for me to open the door to a work in progress.  Like many topplers, I take great pride in what I do, and an alpha-1 website isn't exactly a work of art yet.  But again, one of the core concepts of getting out there and making a big impact means checking your ego at the door and doing what it takes to get things lined up and tipped over.  We let out fears and self doubt stand in the way too much.  Doesn't mean that stuff goes away, just that to be a toppler you have no choice but to put the fears aside and focus on the purpose.

Topples Everywhere We Look

After I started to blog about Domino Theory, I began seeing chain reactions all around me.  I also received mail for readers saying the same thing was happening to them.  A few weeks ago I was having breakfast with a friend of mine and telling him about this experience and that several people we're saying it was the "law of attraction" at work.   We discussed some of our skepticism about the Law of Attraction and surprise at the popularity of The Secret.  But, at the same time we both shared a common experience about buying a new car...

Why is it that after you buy a car you suddenly notice that at every stop light someone is driving the same car as you?  You buy a red Toyota Camry, and now they're all the rage?  Did everyone decide at once to go buy one at the same time?  Or...  Are you just now noticing Camrys at every corner?

 

I touched on this same topic with my post titled "Coincidences" where I was writing about hearing the band U2 on the radio all day long.  It's one of my favorite posts, so check it out if you haven't.

Well, thanks to my friend Ray I have come to learn that this phenomenon has a name: Reticular Activation.  The term comes from the belief that Reticular Activation System (RAS) in our brain filters out what is not important and brings our attention to things that are important to us.    I came across a blog posting with a good explanation about the relationship between RAS and The Law of Attraction.  From the Article:

"Basically the Reticular Activation System is how the Law of Attraction works.  We get what we focus on; we create what we think about and the RAS system of our brains just helps this process along.

With regards to my skepticism about the law of attraction the author points out:

"A common argument is that proponents of the Law of Attraction claim that all they have to do is think their lofty thoughts and all of their dreams come true.  This could not be further from the truth.  The thoughts create the opportunities and the ideas AND the motivation and inspiration to take the ACTION to make it come true."

That fits with my thinking...

If you are at all interested in the Law of Attraction (skeptic of not) the short article is worth the read.

I was ready to say "cool, that explains it" but as my research continued, the medical information wasn't directly supportive.  The closest I could find to the "filtering" function of RAS was:

RAS: The part of the reticular formation in the brainstem that plays a central role in bodily and behavioral alertness; its ascending connections affect the function of the cerebral cortex and its descending connections affect bodily posture and reflex mechanisms.

Who knows...  All I can say is that Domino Theory definitely embraces the notion that if you take action with a specific purpose in mind that you better have your eyes wide open because you'll be surprised just how many "Red Camrys" are now on the road.  And, they're out there ready to help you get where you need to go, if you have the courage to ask.