The “Virtually No One” Community – Join the Initiative!

Inspired by Seth Godin’s blog posted on January 2, 2023, my twin Don and I are starting the “Virtually No One” community. This community is for people who personally and professionally take “the road less traveled” and, in the long run, are making a compelling difference for themselves and their world.

Virtually no one is enough. Our lives and this community are committed to believing that a small act, thinking differently, and using our talents to solve problems, one individual does make a difference. We trust this to the core as we have seen proof throughout our lives and careers that our early adopter mindset, combined with a vision of potential, has exponentially rewarded, over and over. We know our beliefs and actions are “changing the world, one interaction, one person, at a time.”

Seth’s blog notes:

“Compared to the overall population, virtually no one built Wikipedia, virtually no one voted for that senator and virtually no one starts a business. Virtually no one cares enough to help a stranger in need, and virtually no one leads the way.

And that’s okay.

Because virtually no one is enough.

When we “see” the potential of thinking and working differently, the space is lonely and only persistence, and long-term dedication provides hope for progress (for example – consider the Slack collaboration tool introduced in 2016 – highly resisted in its early days, but now ubiquitous along with Microsoft Teams, in today’s world). The payoffs when the idea succeeds are very gratifying. To be clear, failures frequently occur, causing many to say, “I knew that wouldn’t work.” Because of the fact that failures do occur, and many folks will not move ahead (late adopters) without convincing definitive proof of success, virtually no one is willing to walk the path.

A few quotes of inspiration:

“Don’t worry about people stealing your ideas. If your ideas are any good, you’ll have to ram them down people’s throats.” –Howard Aiken

Steve Jobs “Crazy Ones” Quote:

“Here’s to the crazy ones, the misfits, the rebels, the troublemakers, the round pegs in the square holes… The ones who see things differently – they’re not fond of rules. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them, but the one thing you can’t do is ignore them, because they change things… Because the ones who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do. Think different.”

In all our actions, we think of helping others and helping the communities in which we live and work. Commit to personal development/self-improvement and lean on your talents to help others. Do what is right in your heart, and do not strive to “fit in” with the masses. To fit in is doing our genuine selves a disservice. We all are meant to and have so much potential to significantly contribute to the world with our unique talents.

A few examples of virtually no one community members:

  1. Don made a trip to Costco Wholesale recently and noted many stray carts in the parking lot. Case in point, virtually no one (other than an employee of Costco) will take the time to collect and return several carts to the appropriate stations and out of the vehicle’s harm’s way.
  2. How about picking up trash in our communities? Again, welcome to the virtually no one community!
  3. My wife Terri published a memoir of our son Ryan’s 5x cancer battles (The Focused Fight). Well, virtually no one writes a book.

Let’s get active and dedicate our talents and energy to making a positive contribution – in ways and areas where virtually no one, unfortunately, is paying attention. Join us, shine the light, and share your stories!

December 31, 2022 – Don Tomoff at Costco Warehouse – shopping carts assistance
July 24, 2021 – Ryan and Terri Tomoff at The Focused Fight Book Launch

What Are You Thankful For? Thanksgiving 2022

What are you thankful for?

This question is given extra attention on Thanksgiving day in the United States. Along with Seth Godin (see video linked to his free PDF “The Thanksgiving Reader” shared in his blog post below), Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday because of the intentionality around slowing down, sharing precious time with loved ones, and feeling gratitude for the gifts in our lives. I love sharing thanks to and gratitude for others. Seth’s blog post of November 24, 2016, Choose better, highlighted that we have a choice in being “more honest, more caring, more generous.” I will also encourage choosing more gratitude. His blog is linked below but is brief and to the point:

“More honest, more caring, more generous.

It’s all a choice, isn’t it?

We can choose to dream better, connect better and contribute better.

Sometimes, in the rush for more, we get confused about what better means, and how attainable it is.

If you are lucky enough to be with family today, I hope you’ll get a chance to use our beloved Thanksgiving Reader around your table. It’s a free PDF that you can print out and use for group readings.”

Seth Godin Blog Post – November 24, 2016 – “Choose Better”

The Thanksgiving Reader free PDF that Seth provides in his post has been used by our family for several years. The readings around the dinner table are a highlight of our holiday each year. One of my favorite readings is about gratitude:

Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life.

It turns what we have into enough, and more.

It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity.

It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. It turns problems into gifts, failures into successes, the unexpected into perfect timing, and mistakes into important events.

It can turn an existence into a real life, and disconnected situations into important and beneficial lessons. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow.”

• Melody Beattie •

Page 32 of the reader provides a wonderful list of questions to discuss thoughts on gratitude:

  1. What’s the value of gratitude? Why does it even matter?
  2. Why aren’t people, especially Americans, more grateful?
  3. What can we do to feel grateful the other 364 days of the year?
  4. Are older people more grateful than younger people? Or is it the reverse?
  5. We all know the value of connections, but where did the barriers come from and what can we do to topple them?
  6. Who’s the most grateful person you know? Who’s your gratitude role model?
  7. What is something—a conversation, advice you received, etc.—you became grateful for only well after it occurred? Why did it take you so long?
  8. Have you lived a life that deserves gratitude from others?

https://thethanksgivingreader.com/

Be The Match! Celebrating Ryan Tomoff PBMT 18-Year Anniversary

If you could take action to save a life, would you do it? My guess, because I believe people are inherently good and kind, would answer, “of course!”

People who choose to join the National Marrow Donor Program (NMDP) marrow registry through the Be The Match organization have made that choice. Joining the registry (see link https://my.bethematch.org/s/join) is available for people ages 18 to 40 (“Studies show that blood stem cells from younger donors provide better long-term survival rates for our patients”).

We all can make a difference, and Be The Match is an opportunity to join a cause that saves lives. YOU may be called upon to be the difference for someone. I will plead with anyone, who is eligible, to join the registry. Why? My son and our family know firsthand the importance of a bone marrow transplant – potentially a lifesaving transplant for the recipient and a guaranteed life-changing experience for the donor!

November 3, 2004. This is transplant day at Duke University Medical Center for Ryan Tomoff. Ryan, my wife Terri, our daughter Olivia, and I wake up eager for Ryan to receive the gift of bone marrow from an anonymous donor. We have no idea how the process works, but we are praying that Ryan’s donor safely arrives at the hospital and that the countless “players” involved are blessed to execute what they need to do to harvest the marrow, process the collection out of the hospital and receive successfully in Durham, NC, at Duke. We know that countless moving parts are involved, and the need for “perfect execution” is on our minds. Unfortunately, so much is outside of our control.

Around 5:30 or 6:00 PM, the marrow in a cold storage pack landed with a flight to Raleigh-Durham Airport, and a courier was transporting the package to the eagerly waiting medical team at Duke. Once received, the marrow needed to be irradiated before transfusion into Ryan. We were made aware that the marrow had arrived and was being prepared for Ryan. Yes, we were excited that the transplant was about ready to happen – Ryan’s preparation through total-body radiation (TBI) had successfully happened over the previous week. November 3rd was his targeted transplant date, the marrow had arrived, was processed to safely administer to Ryan, and at 7:45 PM, the transfusion started. The transplant was not the end, but we prayed the beginning of a lifesaving moment had arrived, and we were thankful and hopeful for his future. Transplants are not guaranteed to be successful, but the transplant was Ryan’s last shot at beating his leukemia. Ryan and our family were embarking on the start of a new journey.

Today, November 3, 2022, we are celebrating 18 years post-transplant. On November 4, 2005, one year and one day after Ryan’s transplant, we met Scott Harris at a beautiful event in New York. Scott was from Teaneck, New Jersey. None of this information is shared without the donor’s consent, and the earliest time to meet a donor is one year after the transplant. We felt blessed and beyond thrilled that Scott and our family both agreed to meet as soon as possible!

Thanks to this experience – the selfless generosity and kindness of a stranger to help a fellow human in such a tremendous and meaningful way – my “lens on life” is enhanced to look for and believe in the “good” of our fellow humans. My energy is dedicated to seeing and celebrating the moments of generosity that ARE all around us.

A thought I hold close that applies beautifully here is:

“The gift of a lifetime deserves a lifetime of gratitude.” – Rajesh Setty

https://bit.ly/RajeshSetty_ThankYou_Gratitude

Scott Harris did not have to show up and save Ryan’s life. He did so because someone was in need, and he was being called upon to help. Wouldn’t we all love the same opportunity? Will you take the step to become part of that community? Please do.

My wife Terri shared heartfelt thoughts about Ryan’s transplant day on her blog, quoting sections directly from her book The Focused Fight: A Childhood Cancer Journey: From Mayhem to Miracles. Her post is available at:

https://www.territomoff.com/post/can-you-be-the-match

Special Love – Childhood Cancer Support Charity

Share what inspires you and provides purpose in your life… #TwinzTalk#SpeciaLove

One of my most significant opportunities and joys is serving on the board of directors for Special Love, Inc. – an organization that helps children and families fighting #ChildhoodCancer. My relationship with the organization’s mission is very personal; my son Ryan and our family have been on the receiving side of their services since 1997.

Please check out this 36-minute No Politics #Podcast for a great discussion with Executive Director Jan Bresch. She explains so well the various programs of support that make an incredible difference for families. Looking for a well-organized and highly rated #charity to support? Look no further.

In the podcast, a portion focuses on the thoughts of a previous camper and now counselor, Julia Jones. The link to the complete reflection is in the comments – Julia does a magnificent job articulating the bonds and magic that Special Love camps create.

Here is a brief excerpt from Julia’s blog thoughts:

“𝘔𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘴𝘦𝘦𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘥𝘢𝘳𝘬𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘨𝘰 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵. 𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘐 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘮𝘦𝘵 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥𝘳𝘦𝘯 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘥𝘢𝘳𝘬𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘱𝘶𝘴𝘩𝘦𝘥 𝘶𝘱𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘶𝘣𝘣𝘰𝘳𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘯 𝘴𝘦𝘦𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵.

𝘐𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘯𝘥, 𝘐 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘤𝘳𝘪𝘣𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘮𝘱 𝘢𝘴 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘴𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘣𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘵. 𝘐𝘵’𝘴 𝘢 𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘬 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘧𝘶𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦: 𝘳𝘪𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘴𝘦𝘴, 𝘤𝘢𝘯𝘰𝘦𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘺𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘥𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘶𝘱, 𝘣𝘶𝘪𝘭𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢 𝘴𝘱𝘢𝘤𝘦𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱, 𝘷𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢 𝘧𝘢𝘳𝘮, 𝘳𝘪𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢 𝘮𝘰𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘤𝘺𝘤𝘭𝘦, 𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘻𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘵𝘶𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘪𝘮𝘢𝘭𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘧𝘪𝘵 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘢 𝘴𝘶𝘪𝘵𝘤𝘢𝘴𝘦, 𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥 𝘢 𝘤𝘢𝘮𝘱𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘦, 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘦𝘵𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘶𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘴𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘭𝘦, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘯𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘨𝘦𝘵. 𝘊𝘢𝘮𝘱 𝘪𝘴 𝘧𝘶𝘭𝘭 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘥𝘰 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘵 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘢 𝘤𝘢𝘮𝘱𝘦𝘳 𝘴𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘦….

𝘈𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘬, 𝘣𝘦𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘮𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘳𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘥, 𝘛𝘰𝘮 𝘉𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘳, 𝘚𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘪𝘢𝘭 𝘓𝘰𝘷𝘦’𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳, 𝘨𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘶𝘴 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘢𝘥𝘷𝘪𝘤𝘦: 𝘍𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘪𝘯 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘢 𝘤𝘢𝘮𝘱𝘦𝘳. 𝘐𝘵’𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘴𝘦 𝘬𝘪𝘥𝘴. 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘤𝘭𝘪𝘮𝘣 𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦.”

Study More to Understand That You Know Little

Study 📚 more. #TwinzTalk tip #924

Morning reading and topic of discussion this past weekend for Don Tomoff, MBA, and me. Always be learning – and be willing to leverage the #superpower of admitting “I don’t know.”

“𝘼 𝙨𝙖𝙜𝙚 𝙞𝙨 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙖𝙛𝙧𝙖𝙞𝙙 𝙤𝙛 𝙡𝙖𝙘𝙠 𝙤𝙛 𝙠𝙣𝙤𝙬𝙡𝙚𝙙𝙜𝙚: 𝙝𝙚 𝙞𝙨 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙖𝙛𝙧𝙖𝙞𝙙 𝙤𝙛 𝙝𝙚𝙨𝙞𝙩𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙨, 𝙤𝙧 𝙝𝙖𝙧𝙙 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙠, 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙝𝙚 𝙞𝙨 𝙖𝙛𝙧𝙖𝙞𝙙 𝙤𝙛 𝙤𝙣𝙡𝙮 𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜—𝙩𝙤 𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙠𝙣𝙤𝙬 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨 𝙬𝙝𝙞𝙘𝙝 𝙝𝙚 𝙙𝙤𝙚𝙨 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙠𝙣𝙤𝙬.

𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙨𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙨𝙩𝙪𝙙𝙮 𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙪𝙣𝙙𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙠𝙣𝙤𝙬 𝙡𝙞𝙩𝙩𝙡𝙚.”

—𝙈𝙄𝘾𝙃𝙀𝙇 𝘿𝙀 𝙈𝙊𝙉𝙏𝘼𝙄𝙂𝙉𝙀

#alwayslearning#personaldevelopment#professionaldevelopment#learning#study#quote#mondaymotivation

Value Sharing – “Financial Stability”

Recently I read Brene Brown’s book “Dare to Lead” and she referenced a discussion with her company CFO, and the importance of “financial stability.” This resonated with me, and I believe financial stability is a value that I have carried personally and professionally, my entire life. When Brene discussed the topic, she articulated it so well that I thought, “this is me!”

“Another example of how value sharing strengthened a relationship was with my friend Chaz. To be honest, we’ve known each other for so long, I wasn’t sure that any more connecting was possible. But when he left his job as CF0 at a very successful ad agency to come work with me, there were some difficult shifts. During our values exercise, I learned that one of his values is financial stability. Now, you’re probably thinking, That makes sense—he’s your CFO and one of your closest confidants. But honestly, I had no idea. And when I wanted to take big risks or make large investments in new businesses, I made up the story that he was pushing back and asking a million questions because he didn’t trust me, or because he thought his job was to talk me out of stuff. When I learned that it was his value—not just his job—I wanted to cry. In that moment it became one of my favorite things about him. I trust him so much I could cry just writing about this. We don’t fully see people until we know their values.”

Brene Brown, book “Dare to Lead”
Bill with Brene Brown book “Dare to Lead”

I now realize that financial stability is clearly a VALUE of mine that runs to my core. This is not just a “nice to have,” but rather is a key part of the fabric of who I am as a person and professional.

Growing up, in a household with 8 siblings, we all learned early on the importance of hard work to achieve goals. We all earned whatever spending money we had, and while our core needs were met, family vacations and trips were not part of the family routine. We all grew up fiercely independent, and I have argued later in life, that this was to a fault.

“People need people.” A favorite quote of mine is

“If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”

–African Proverb

 

When our father passed away in 1974, my sophomore year in high school, hard work and making our dreams come true was squarely on our shoulders. Even when we did not “know” what those dreams were. To this day, I have always taken great pride in earning what I have in life. I stress this personally and professionally, thankful for opportunities, and am always committed to “leaving it all on the field” relative to giving my best effort at every endeavor I chose to pursue. These efforts translated into my running career, college academics, personal growth and development, and work efforts to earn money and save for college.

Personal finance has always been a strong interest of mine. How do I protect assets and provide for my family, over the long haul? The personality that I brought to the family was one of austerity, while truly believing we were “living the dream.” Core practices include living beneath means, saving relentlessly for the future, 401(k) saving contributions were always given the highest priority, steady work to assess and reduce spending, refuse to take a home mortgage beyond 15 years, refuse to carry credit card debt, and drive cars for many many years, as reliability allowed. A consistent mindset of make the most of what we have, and treasure what we have.

In 1996, when my son Ryan was diagnosed with Leukemia, the need for full-time employment, insurance coverage and concern about financial demands of our family life and Ryan’s health out-of-pocket costs, created intense focus on managing our financial resources. Desperate to survive, cash was protected wherever possible, and this again drove back to my concern for financial stability. The reality is that treatment costs, employment stability, etc. amount to stresses that unfortunately can bankrupt families who are forced to travel the childhood cancer road. My family has been blessed with emotional and financial support that helped us survive the journey to today. Today, Ryan is a five time cancer survivor, and we are living our lives concerned for his future and financial needs he will face. Yet, we are so blessed, and treasure each day that is gifted to us, as a family with both our daughter Olivia and son Ryan.

During my business career, I grew to understand and embrace the importance of financial stability and the need for a strong balance sheet and cash position. As Abe Pollin, Washington Sports & Entertainment owner, once said to me, “cash is king.” I had always, inherently, felt this way, but now Mr. Pollin was emphasizing it from the perspective of the survival of his business world. This thought is embraced to this day, and one that I take very seriously. In my job responsibilities as CFO with InstallNET International, my concern for the organization cash position and building up the financial strength of the balance sheet, was a part of my “fabric” of who I was. This revelation really hit home when reading Brene Brown’s book! It turns out that a career in accounting was perfectly suited to the demeanor of the person who I was. That connection never was fully noted, in my case, and it was gratifying to see the value of financial stability so perfectly articulated.

You Will Get Tired. Finish Anyway.

Recently, Blinkist introduced their First Original Audio Series titled “Two Minutes with Seth Godin” comprised of two weekly audio clips for the next 26 weeks.

This week, one audio addressed “Where to Put the Tired.” This topic discussed the difficulty of running a 26.2 mile marathon…if you have ever done one, it is clear you can’t finish a marathon without getting tired. To succeed, you must “find a place to put the tired.”

This audio resonated with Don Tomoff and I due to our past history of being competitive college distance runners and marathoners. The “tired” is unavoidable! We both credit our past sports experiences with contributing to our professional perseverance throughout our careers.

As Seth notes:

“The people who finish, they figured out how to do it. To be tired, and finish anyway. And that is the art of being persistently generous, of showing up again and again to do work that has exhausted other people.”

“The act of being a professional is not to do everything when and how we want to. The act of being a professional is to do it despite the fact that we are tired or afraid. We need to figure out where to put the tired.”

Bill and Don Tomoff | Personal best in Revco Cleveland Marathon


Share Your Thoughts! Exposure = Awareness = Leverage

Over the last five years, my interest in social media has evolved and I have become a huge fan of the power and potential of social engagement. The ability to learn, and connect, with others has impacted me in incredible ways. People that I may never meet in person, provide insight and thought provoking content that is invaluable and enables me to continually develop my interests personally and professionally.

Thanks to the kindness and generosity of so many that share their thoughts and expertise with the world, I commit to challenging myself every day to help others and continually pay it forward. In person, and online, I have found that the world is full of people that genuinely care about adding value for others…with no expectations. Selfishly, I do hope that others will share content with the hope that their followers may enjoy value and pass along in their world!

I recently watched an excellent video from Robbie Abed where he talked about the impact Gary Vaynerchuk had on him. The discussion was around that observation that Gary is often asked about the business ROI of his video content for the #AskGaryVee Show. Robbie’s discussion in this 7 minute video elaborates on an excellent observation of Gary’s that “exposure = leverage”. Enjoy!

Coffee With Robbie – Gary V. Exposure = Leverage

Gary V. full thoughts on the business value of the #AskGaryVee Show are worth reading:

The Business Model Behind The #AskGaryVee Show

If you have not seen the #AskGaryVee Show, I encourage you to check it out! I have been watching for quite a while, and find it informative, entertaining, and fun yet serious points are made. Linked below is one of my all-time favorite episodes.

#AskGaryVee Episode 127: What Keeps Good Bosses From Becoming Great Bosses?

Full disclosure – I was so happy with the free content Gary provides in the #AskGaryVee Show that I have now purchased and read all 4 of his bestselling books. As he would say, provide so much value that you “earn the ask”!

Please share YOUR thoughts, expertise, and passion with the world. I trust you will find that Robbie and Gary are spot on…indeed, exposure = leverage! For my purposes, the phrase that resonates with me is “Exposure = Awareness = Leverage“. As you provide value genuinely and consistently, exposure will occur and develop into awareness for those consuming your content. Ultimately, awareness WILL create leverage for you in many ways that cannot be anticipated! Good luck!

 

What if we approach with “this is my problem?”

In recent reading, messages from Seth Godin and Gary Vaynerchuk resonated with me and I was inspired to ask the question “how could I help by approaching challenges with the statement “this is my problem?”” What if we all cared more?

Too often in our daily lives, we encounter folks that avoid responsibility and accountability by simply stating “that is not my job” or “people are paid to do that.” How often do you hear this in your world? Worse, are you guilty of deferring or ignoring challenges / opportunities to contribute, by using these phrases?

Gary Vaynerchuk – Positivity Wins

Continue reading “What if we approach with “this is my problem?””

My Journey of 100 TED Talks

#JourneyOf100TED

In years past, I would occasionally watch TED Talks. In July 2015, this changed after reading an article about Erin Freschi in California. She adopted a practice of watching a TED Talk each night with her 8 year-old son. To read the article: TED Before Bed: One mother’s nightly ritual with her son.

The idea of watching a steady stream of TED Talks resonated with me, and I committed to watch 100 talks. This is referred to as my “Journey to 100 TED Talks” and little did I know the impact this process would have on me! The journey started on July 15, 2015 and completed June 19, 2016! While the challenge has been completed, I am inspired, and have continued the journey. As of this writing, the count is 122 talks watched. For more information on the TED Talks organization, check out About TED Talks.

As I started my journey, one rule was that the talk had to be watched completely from start to finish. The quality of most talks was amazing and I honestly picked up something from every talk I chose to watch. By committing to watch a talk completely, I found that I became more open to other viewpoints and my overall perspective evolved to be a bit more “rounded”. One early talk that was difficult for me was Amanda Palmer’s “The Art of Asking” but I now look back on that talk as the kick-off to exposing myself to topics and knowledge that previously would not have interested me. See link below for Amanda’s talk.

Though not all-inclusive, five speakers who were especially enjoyable for me included:

  • Brene’ Brown
  • Dan Gilbert
  • Seth Godin
  • Sir Ken Robinson
  • Simon Sinek

In future posts (follow Twitter @btomoffCPA), individual talks will be shared in greater depth. Below are a sample of talks that I really enjoyed:

  • Susan Cain: The power of introverts

  • Angela Lee Duckworth: The power of passion and perseverance

  • Daniel Gilbert: The surprising science of happiness

  • Seth Godin: Stop stealing dreams

  • Amanda Palmer: The art of asking

  • Dan Pink: The puzzle of motivation

  • Ken Robinson: Do schools kill creativity

  • Barry Schwartz: The paradox of choice

  • Simon Sinek: How great leaders inspire action

I urge you to create your own individual journey of TED Talks. Via Twitter, please provide any additional talks that impact you and let’s share the power of growth and perspective to be gained through TED Talks!

This was originally posted July 24, 2016 to my Medium blog.