Domino Theory Blog

Neat Sites: Social Entrepreneurship & Trackable Kindness

Two Sites That Explain My Thinking Better Than I Can.

I'm driven to Social Entrepreneurship...

Thanks to Carol Ross at A Bigger Voice, I found this site: encore.org.  Encore brings together people that for one reason or another are getting involved in businesses that "make a difference."  The site is geared towards people who are late in their career.  Check it out and you'll get a very good feeling of how I view my shift from serial tech entrepreneur to social business...

I Believe In Tracking Actions, especially ones that make the world a better place..

I was amazed when I came across ConnectWithKindness.  They are doing with coins what we're doing with dominos.  Great minds think a like!  I sent them mail this morning see if they want to collaborate.  Looks like they are just getting rolling as well.

Quit Saying You're Too Old

You know, it really bugs me when I hear people say "I would have tried that when I was younger, but I'm too old for that now."  Age is such an artificial barrier, especially when it comes to accomplishing the goals you always wanted to.   What that's really about is fear and self doubt.  Fear of getting hurt, failing, not having the strength to accomplish the goal (mind or body).  Often, the ideas about what's NOT possible are way overblown. 

Take Liz Parrish for example:

From the Anchorage Daily News:
Oregon musher, Liz Parrish, has spent the past 10 years training, dreaming, and saving - all for the 2008 Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race. The self-employed innkeeper of the pet friendly Crystal Wood Lodge in Klamath Falls, Oregon - Parrish accomplished her dream by finishing the 1,049 mile race from Anchorage to Nome while simultaneously celebrating her 50th birthday.

"Since then I have felt incredibly fortunate to have done it and shared it with the dogs. I can't get my head around the whole thing -- it's too huge," states Parrish.

Now that's someone thinking like a Toppler!  She sets a long-term goal, lines things up, works tirelessly, and doesn't let the "you must be crazy" voices win out.  It's really just that simple.

Come on.  Ask yourself: if you could do anything and not fail what would it be?  Not an easy question is it.  All the reasons why "I can't" come flooding in.  That's the mindset I was in when I hatched Domino Theory several years ago.  I wanted to dream big, but the path looked impossible.  But it isn't.  Just try to think like a toppler, you might just find yourself sledding across the tundra, or writing book, or... 

If anyone is brave enough to share with me their dream, I'll be happy to try to coach you how to accomplish it by thinking as Toppler.

Inspirational Message: You Suck

Another post of inspiration that I write to myself, but share with you.

Hey Herb...

You're good at a lot of stuff, but like everyone there are a few things you just need to accept are not your strengths.  As your friend Brad says, "Know what you suck at."  Here's what you suck at: You take on too much. 

So, sure not everything with Toplers is going just how you want right now, but what do you expect when you are trying to do so much?!  Either keep pushing on all fronts and get used to lots of things happing at a slower pace, or clear the decks and push one things really far.  Both are fine strategies, just quit getting down on yourself about the side effects that come with sucking at something.  We all suck at something.  And, our strengths are usually the inverse.  Be happy about the strength, and surround yourself with people that are good at what you suck at.

Topple On....

Can A Domino Knock Over a House?

Today's post was inspired by a conversation with my friend Jim...

Have you heard the story about the guy who traded up from a single red paper clip to a house?  You can read all about it with this link, but basically:

He posts on Craigslist that he wants to trade a single red paper clip for "something."  He gets a taker, then uses that item to trade up, and so on.  14 trades later, and only 1 year of work, he owns a house.  He's now trying to trade the house.  His name is Kyle McDonald and he's kind of a Internet celebrity at this point.

The Domino Theory take:

People participated in this experiment because they thought it was fun.  A curiosity.  It amazing how much easier it is to get people behind something fun than it is something serious.  It's kind of ironic really.  If he had set out to accomplish something like "build a house for homeless kids with aids" he probably wouldn't have made it very far.  In the last few months this point (that fun is good) has played out a number of times for me.   The more fun, the better, no doubt.

The purpose was perfectly clear: A paper clip traded up to a house.  Further proof that chain reactions work best when you keep the message super super simple.  A few people have come to me in the last couple months seeing if we should set up a topple for an idea they have.  I always ask them for the purpose, and to keep it simple.  You would be amazed how hard that can be.  But I know that it's necessary.

One of the Domino Theory core concepts is:Impact Energy Increases as the Topple Grows.  In other words, each domino in the chain tips over with enough energy to tip over another, thus the summation of the entire topple's energy is always increasing.  That increase of energy means it's more powerful.  So, as Kyle's trades continued on, and people saw they were part of something fun, it became easier to get more valuable stuff.

Here's the main point for aspiring Topplers:

Have the courage to try something.  Keep it fun, and simple.  Recognize that the more dominos you get moving, the more powerful each next action can be (so capitalize on it).

Video of the Week: Hard Drives

I received a link to this video from one of my readers (thanks Ben!).

I am making it the video of the week in honor of my nephew's visit this week.  He and I always bonded over video games, although I'm a Sony guy not MS/Xbox... 

For you Taylor...  Keep thinking about how you can set something big in motion.

The Dear Abby Domino

Do you know how many people read Dear Abby?  The circulation is 110 million according to wikipedia.  Whatever % of those 110 million people read it, I would say this makes her a pretty big domino.  When she takes action, there's a lot of energy transferred into other dominos.   

My sister handed me a copy of the following write up in Dear Abby:

My son, a U.S. infantry soldier, left yesterday for a 12-month deployment.  After a tearful goodbye to me and to his young wife at the airport, he flew to Atlanta to join the other members of his unit for their flights overseas.  He called me the evening he reached Atlanta.

He had been eating a late dinner at the restaurant in the Atlanta airport.  A man who appeared to be about 60 years old saw him show his military ID to the waitress when he ordered a drink with his meal.  The man took my son's dinner check when he got up to leave, saying "Let me buy a soldier a meal."  When my son tried to politely refuse, he insisted and said it was his way to thank him for what he was doing.  Because Army privates don't make much money, my son was grateful.  This act of kindness made a strong impression.

To that kind gentleman, I want you to know that this father is grateful, too.  I sent my son into harm's way yesterday, and you, sir, a stranger, took care of him on his journey.  Thank you and God bless you – A Soldier's Grateful Dad.

Let's dissect this a bit:

So, one person buys a meal.  This makes a huge impression on the recipient, and few people the recipient knows.  One of them sends a letter to Dear Abby, which presumably must be vetted by someone.  The "screener" believes the "Purpose" is clear and powerful, so they queue it up for Dear Abby.  Millions read it, and presumably more dominos fall.  So, by tipping that domino in Atlanta that night, this stranger set in motion even more than he would have ever thought possible.  And, he's probably totally unaware of it.

In addition to supporting the core concept that little dominos can tip over big dominos, the fact that my sister noticed the article supports the core concept that once you start to understand Domino Theory you can see it happening all around you.  Sure, she's my sister so she might be watching out for her little brother, but I don't think that's the case.  I believe she has a heightened awareness of these kinds of stories, and with that heightened awareness she will come to believe even more strongly that one of her own small actions might tip over a big domino.

Another thing to observe:  I'm sure Abby is well aware that she's a big domino.  She put that story out there with intention.  Through the DT lens this means she accepts that the world is a highly connected place and that she has enormous power to set big things in motion.  A big goal of DT is help everyone realize the same thing.  See yourself as a domino and begin to manipulate the world around you in good ways.  I'm not simply saying "be good."  I'm talking about knowing that when you do something there's a ripple effect so take full advantage of that!

New Domino Theory Core Concepts

Returning from a nice break from blogging...  Did you miss me?

Based on reader feedback, over the next few months the Domino Theory blog will be less theory and more about showing DT's Core Concepts playing out in the "Real World."  This means more examples and some interviews with people who set things in motion.  There will also be a strong dose of inspiration in hopes that more people will join the community of Toplers. 

But, before I things get too practical, I wanted to post my latest cut at the Domino Theory Core Concepts.  This remains a work in progress, and as always I welcome feedback.  With this latest version I added "corollaries" and tried to make the concept titles link more directly to a real domino topple. 

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Domino Theory Core Concepts:

Topples Start with One Person Tipping One Domino
    Corollary: Fear and Self-Doubt are the Main Reasons People Don’t Setup a Topple

Small Dominos Can Tip Big Dominos                    
    Corollary: Big Dominos Have Exponentially More Kinetic Energy When They Fall

The Most Intriguing Topples Have Compelling Themes               
    Corollary: A Clear, Powerful Purpose Is Important for Chain Reactions                
    Corollary: A Purpose Often Morphs as the Topple Falls But the Theme Remains the Same

Topples Are Made Up of Many Branches
    Corollary: Topples Frequently Start New Topples

Impact Energy Increases as the Topple Grows                   
    Corollary: Domino fail to fall where there’s a lack of Impact Energy

People Who Tip Dominos See Intriguing  “Coincidences”               
    Corollary: Dominos Are Tipping All Around Us Once We Start to Notice

Setting Up A Big Topple Takes Time and Patience               
    Corollary: Being a Toppler Means Learning from Inevitable Setbacks

[note: I created a new page in the sidebar for the blog that links to these.]

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I've been encouraged to write a Domino Theory Manifesto or something like that.  I think that's a great idea as it will allow me to put more meat on the bones.  I have a lot of supporting thoughts behind each of the core concepts, but as I say to people all the time, "it doesn't exist until it's written down." 

So, now it's time to show how these Core Concepts are actually play out in the wild...  This will create a feedback loop between theory and practice, and hopefully inspire more people at act like Toplers.