Happy One Year Anniversary to Triiibes

A tribe, is a social group of humans connected by a shared system of values and organized for mutual care, defense, and survival beyond that which could be attained by a lone individual or family. -- Wikipedia

July 29, 2008 -- just one year ago today that something incredible was set into motion. Something of a first in that Seth Godin would be launching his next book, Tribes. Before that book would go live, a limited number of us were offered the opportunity to reserve a copy of that book and to then register for an additional opportunity to get in the Triiibes a community on Ning. Looking back on this experience, I am honored to have been a part of it all. There are some of the most remarkable people with whom I got to interact and help to do something I normally wouldn't do in my daily life.

I got the opportunity to think outside the box -- I have been changed -- I am not the same. And it is a good thing. Thank you all my co-Triiibes friends. Thank you Seth Godin.

Tribes, Godin says, can be within or outside a corporation, and almost everyone can be a leader; most are kept from realizing their potential by fear of criticism and fear of being wrong. Change isn't made by asking permission, Godin says. Change is made by asking forgiveness, later.

Search for Seth Godin and Squidoo on Searchme

This morning I got sidetracked a bit when I started checking out the Searchme.com search site. It's looking pretty cool -- I searched on Seth Godin and then Squidoo. The cascading stacks, like an open book pages, of results were very topical and spot-on for Seth Godin.


The Squidoo search results were a little more well, eclectic -- and could seemingly use some type of organization. That's the cool part -- that you can control what search results, or mini stacks, you want to be in your saved search results.



Check out Searchme.com and do your own search. Check out Jaguar Julie's Blog for a bit more information on Searchme.com.

Blog Blog Blog and You Reach Milestone

It is amazing to note the number of search results from doing a Google web search for "blog." What is equally amazing is to note that Seth Godin is the #4 blog listed after 2 Google sites and Wikipedia. That is pretty darn good remarkable -- especially considering that searching on "blog" yields some 2,890,000,000 results! That's nearly 3 billion. Wow.

1. Blogger: Create your free blog
   Blogger is a free blog publishing tool from Google for easily sharing your thoughts with the world.
2. Blog - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
   A blog (a contraction of the term weblog) is a website, usually maintained by an individual ...
3. Official Google Blog
   Official weblog, with news of new products, events and glimpses of life inside Google.
4. Seth's Blog
   Seth Godin's riffs on marketing, respect, and the ways ideas spread.

Today is a noteworthy day in that Seth Godin achieved his 3,000 consecutive blog post. It's further noteworthy in that to be able to have 3,000 relevant, topical posts is a remarkable accomplishment.
In the Summer of 2000, I was introduced to Seth Godin's writings when I received a copy of his Permission Marketing from a fellow webmaster. After that, one by one, I would receive more of Seth Godin's books through my work with BzzAgent.

My very first blog post was over four years ago on December 22, 2004. Looking back to that blog post, what resonates with me today is this:

... it is important to have relevant and current content. Market or promote your blog by trading links ... use a lot of outbound links.

It makes just as much sense today that blog posts should be topical, relevant, and spot-on to be worthy of readers. Additionally, a blog achieves more credibility when other bloggers are backlinking to the blog.

May I recommend that you read Seth's blog post for today AND that you also take some time to read the Wikipedia entry for a blog. I've been a fan of Wikipedia for eons; there is really no other place comparable on the internet where a reader can find such a conglomeration of information that rivals the old hard-copy enclycopedias. Reading about the history and evolution of the blog reveals some amazing facts about bloggers.

A blog can be mightier than the sword! A blog can lead to 'other things.' Take Julie Powell for example. She wrote a blog about her experiences mastering the cooking of Julia Child. That blog led to a book, which led to a movie! That's pretty cool I think.

Six Months with Seth - SusanVillasLewis

Congratulations to fellow Squidoo lensmaster SusanVillasLewis who is one of several talented individuals who have been tapped to spend six months studying with Seth Godin -- as outlined in his Squidoo lens. What a remarkable opportunity! Not your standard MBA, but a new twist on getting experience in the real world.

Susan describes herself as "just a good old Texas gal having some fun online!" Susan has been a Squidoo lensmaster since August 21, 2007 and is a Giant Squid having created 180 lenses. She's also quite an active blogger with Life of Lewister, a personal blog about her life and Squidoo activities. Book Bindings is her blog about books in her life. Baby Quilt Queen is a sweet blog about baby quilt patterns. Sesame Street Birthday is a fun blog with tips for throwing a Sesame Street Birthday Party! Those are just a few of her many blogs!

In Seth's blog post, the best and the brightest, he says, "The ten people I've chosen are just astonishing, each and every one of them." I'm thrilled to hear that Susan Villas Lewis is one of those 10! The six month session begins on January 19, 2009 in New York. You go girl!

Tribes Casebook released as companion to Tribes book

Today I downloaded a copy of the official Tribes Casebook that Seth Godin just released. It's a companion piece to his Tribes book which was shipped this week. The Casebook is an interesting read in that it contains case studies by many of the Triiibes members. It's 228 pages long; while the Tribes book is 151 pages. I couldn't help but notice that Ed Welch is quite prolific with many of his case studies being featured. Ed has an interesting blog entitled Tribe Building.

So, what about the collage of Triiibe member photos on the inside of the Tribes book cover? We must have been out of town when Seth blogged about submitting your picture in May 2008 to be included in the collage. Yes, I'm sure of it.

Well, this is the first cover of its kind that I can ever think of that you may want to seriously consider framing it. It'd even make an interesting mouse pad with proceeds benefitting the Acumen Fund!

If you look closely at the middle of the "S" you can find my dear Squidoo colleague and lensmaster ChefKeem! His lenses are some of the MOST amazingly touching and creative that I think I've seen in all of the >740,000 lenses. In addition to his tremendous creativity, he has the kindest soul. It is a pleasure to count him as a friend and colleague.

Learn more about the Tribes book from Seth on Squidoo. Or, better yet, go ahead and buy one for yourself. What are you waiting for?

Hearing more and more about Tribes

On October 7th I received my advance copy of Tribes by Seth Godin. At 151 pages, it is a relatively quick-read -- quick enough that you may want to go back and reread it before you opt to pass the book on to a friend or colleague. By the time you get to page 146, you'll realize that you have not found any checklist follow this type of instructions or the Tribes for Dummies how-to how-tos.

I'm really NOT sure what I expected to find in this little book, but it has got me thinking -- thinking more and more about what it is that matters.

What it is that matters.

You can choose to lead, or not. You can choose to have faith, or not. You can choose to contribute to the tribe, or not.

For me, I had a bit of an epiphany when I reached page 114 -- realizing that in one of my roles, our organization is a bit 'stuck on stupid.' No, my colleagues aren't stupid, don't get me wrong. But our organization works with an industry that is dramatically changing since the advent of digital. Trying to convince a former retiree, now partner, that fax-blasting may be a practice out of the past and not the best form of communication can be challenging indeed.

Tribes, the book has shipped this week from Amazon. As is usual with Seth's new-to-be-released books, the buzz has already generated a huge interest. Searching on Squidoo for 'tribe' produces some 386 lenses. Tribes yields 419 lenses while triiibes yields only 7 lenses for now. If you'd like to hear more about the buzz on Triiibes on Twitter, you can search on #triiibe.

On August 2nd, I joined Tribes, the community. As of this writing is up to 3,650 by-invitation-only members and will soon be open to the public.