Adventure

What It Takes For Ideas To Spread

Garth Beyer

Ideas That Spread

As I’m ironing out speech ideas and book ideas, I’m ruminating on the difficulty of introducing an idea that spreads.

We no longer need a book or a speech or a consultation to tell us how to solve a problem we have. Google and YouTube is there for that. If you’re searching for a “How to,” the Internet is your friend.

But the “Why do” …that might be worthy of print media or a Ted talk or a podcast.

Instead of producing something that shares a solution to someone’s problem, we have the opportunity to share something we are passionate about with someone who might not know they had a problem with their “why,” which, may in turn alter the “how to” they seek.

Our goal, then, ought to be to find those who don’t know they need help and proceed to inspire them with an idea worth spreading.

For a spreadable idea, you few things must fall into place:

1) You must be passionate about an idea that is, at minimum, different from what has been done before. The cue here is often the saying, “We’re doing things just a bit different.” For an idea to spread, there must be both a sense of security (doing things that we know already works) and a little adventure (but doing them a bit differently).

2) The audience must understand the basics of your idea, which you typically don’t need to go in depth about. Recall, Google has you covered as well as bookstores when it comes to the basics. Ideas that spread aren’t sent out to beginners, they are given as a gift to those who 1) understand the foundation of your idea already and 2) trust you. Which leads us to the third and final variable.

3) Ideas spread as quickly as the path established for them allows; that is, the relationship you have, the connection you have built determines the speed at which an idea can spread. The stronger the relationship, the easier it is for an idea to go viral. This goes further than just making a connection between you and someone in your target audience; it requires you to connect your target audience to each other, ultimately creating multiple pathways for the idea to spread.

Lastly, ideas don’t spread simply by throwing them out there. Ideas spread when they are remarkable, as in, worth making remarks about, worth talking to others about, worth sharing.

For an idea to resonate, the idea must focus on the part of doing or thinking about things differently.

 

Stay Positive & Go Spread Something Remarkable

Photo credit

Been Too Long Since Your Last Adventure?

Garth Beyer

It’s been awhile since I have updated you on my progress with A Manual For Daily Adventure.

7. Dance.

I had completely forgot that this was on the list. I happened to start dancing in my apartment the other night … yes, I was alone, that didn’t make it any less fun!

20. Try a new restaurant

Always.

72. Write on a napkin.

Two girls, one napkin with my number on it. Still waiting for the second girl to txt me, she was prettttttty.

22. Walk home from work a different way.

I did this and had to walk by a guy who walked behind trees in front of a church and began urinating …

25. Set aside fifteen minutes to write. About anything.

“15 minutes start now, Fear travels through your entire body. Pretty girls need that light, very subtle laugh, it is so adorable. Style has changed so much, and I mean gangnam style is almost becoming the norm. Personally I love mid-high fashion. Writing articles for my employer got really old pretty quickly. I didn’t see how it benefited me anymore. Note to self, don’t get a cappuccino, it doesn’t taste very good. There are about five men that come in the [coffee] shop every single day. I often wonder what they talk about and how they know each other. It isn’t like the five men who all play chess or anything like that. It’s an interesting group, almost as if they don’t want to go home. I’m writing so fast I’m making the water shake in the cup, it reminds me of Jurassic Park It so bad that writing doesn’t warm you up. The real reason for my shakes and fast writing is because I am freezing. How do you hit on girls in a coffee shop? Muffins are delicious … none are better than the ones from middle school but they were so unhealthy. The girl isn’t putting her jacket on for quite possibly the same reason as me. We look good 😀 makes me laugh. I think back to that damn spider. I’m sort of happy its cold again because it prevents the bugs and spiders from creeping on my window. Writing nonstop makes me think back to the writing test, and how you had to write fast. I always wondered why I never did as good with my essays as I thought. Boots are gorgeous on women. I wonder what other companies are like Johnny Cupcakes. John had written about how he knew its a good idea if he writes it down. Does a good idea ever arise from writing like I am now? Overcharging is crazy, it makes me want to bake my own food and pastries to bring with. Hey you might as well do the same with coffee. One girl out of 20+ at a coffee shop. [Unreadable writing] is exciting to make fun of other people. Where will I study abroad? I wonder about making an article in the Madison newspaper called the girl in a Cafe and it will be a creative piece talking about one girl in a cafe obviously. I can write about these girls all the time, when will I ever see them again though. Time runs out so what do you do? Well this exceeds my 15 min writing session. The only question left is will I talk to her before I leave? B-E-A-U-T-I-F-U-L!”

Yes, I wrote all of that in pen. Writing is still my passion but I was too limited within the writing job I had. A second reason to not get a cappuccino is that it packs more of a kick than any other caffeinated drink I’ve had. I free wrote early that morning about a spider that I let survive on the edge of my ceiling above my bed, and then it disappeared when I woke up. I did in fact talk to her, she was one of the girls I gave the napkin with my number on it to.

27. Ask a friend for a book recommendation.

Girl with dragon tattoo.

40. Support a local business owner.

Farmers market and I no longer go to Starbucks, I go to local coffee shop!

41. Take your workout outside.

Run + pullups at the park.

42. Don’t send an email. Walk over to your colleague’s desk.

Easy enough. Exercise is hard to come by in a cubicle.

45. Look up. See the sky.

It was better than art. It was real abstract.

50. Consider the book you’d write.

A book on writing. I am going to use Seth Godin’s Ship It journal to do it!

53. Initiate conversation at the coffee shop.

Would you be surprised that I talk with the Baristas and pretty girls?

56. Sing loudly in the shower/your car/your backyard.

Happened to combine singing loudly with dancing.

57. Doodle.

It was terribly bad doodling, but doodles nevertheless.

59. Allow yourself 5 minutes of nothing.

60. Set out to scare yourself.

-sigh- I’m going to haunted houses …

71. For one day, don’t make any plans.

I’ve done this too many times, unintentionally. Why is it so hard to be booked up?

75. Clean. Throw out junk. Organize

On the phone the other night, a friend of mine said how cool it would be to go through absolutely everything you have and get rid of everything that you don’t vitally need. I laughed and said that is what I have already done.

Jumping at opportunities to check adventures off the list has created one great ongoing experience. It’s a hot conversation starter and motivator for others to do the same. 43 more adventures to have until I complete the list!

 

Stay Positive & Cheers To Adventures

Garth E. Beyer

Re: A Manual For Daily Adventure Pt.2

Garth Beyer

The 2nd round was just as fun and adventurous (in an even more unique way) as the first. If you’re just catching up, I’m working on Michelle Welsch’s A Manual For Daily Adventure. She has provided 80 ways to get started shaking things up in your life. I have done four already and including the one’s I am reporting today, I have 62 more adventurous activities to partake in!

36. Concentrate on nothing except pouring yourself a cup of tea

67. Hide a note for your partner to find (I no longer have a partner so I have written a note for my future partner to find when we kick it off)

24. Stare out the window (How can I not with the view I have over Lake Mendota?)

19. Write a pageful of questions. Don’t worry about answers.

33. Compliment a stranger. (A girl who I recognized from seeing at school pulled her tank-top up really high at the mall. As she walked by I had overheard her and her friend questioning whether it looks good or not -obviously sarcastically, likely making fun of someone- and I replied, “that looks good”. They were zoned out and probably didn’t hear me, if they did they probably gave me a really dirty look as I kept walking. #awkward)

46. List 4 things you are thankful for in this moment. (I typically list five things every night before sleep, but as I read this “to-do adventure”, I pulled my Gratitude Notes out and wrote down: sleepless nights worth staying awake for, sunlight, good tasting water -didn’t get my brita pitcher yet-, deep conversations that lead to action)

47. Pick up your favorite book and head to the park. (I wrote this post in response to taking this action.)

52. Set a new fitness goal. (I decided to have a goal of 50 pull-ups, I can already do 25 which means I’m already half way there!)

11. Stroll through a book store and notice which section pulls you in. (At first I started walking to the New Age Thinking section, but then my feet took me directly to the Writing Reference section. From there I was pulled to old classic novels and from there to Seth Godin’s books. I hoped to end up walking to something new, but what pulled me in is currently relevant to my life.)

17. Start a scrapbook with images you tear out of magazines, newspapers, funny office memos. (I prefer using my huge tack-board as a replacement for a scrapbook. I’ve filled it up much more since I took this picture)

18. Schedule a coffee date with someone you admire. (Scheduled a coffee date with Katie Christensen, entrepreneur and great friend to discuss business ideas and upcoming events.

68. Put your other shoe on first.
I actually didn’t know which shoe I put on first, so I did both… Overachiever?

34. Brush your teeth with opposite hand. (Weird, but not difficult)

69. Be a slob. Don’t make the bed. Leave it on the floor. (This slobbish enough?)

Stay Positive & Always A Bit Awkward

Garth E. Beyer

Re: A Manual For Daily Adventure

Garth Beyer

You’re in rut. Maybe you agree, maybe you don’t care. But you are.

I can’t say that I am or was in a rut, but I could ALWAYS use more adventure in my life. Lucky for me, and now you, Michelle Welsch created a list of 80 ways to get started. She calls it her manual for daily adventure.

I was not going to accept the challenge at first, but after fighting the lizard brain, I said “What the hell? Let’s do it!”

I’ve done four out of the eighty ways to get started. I’ll keep you posted later in the week with more accomplishments.

62. Visit a farmers market (Madison, WI farmers market on the square)
64. Buy yourself flowers (got them from farmers market)
14. Ride a bike (I have one but I rented the B cycle because I never have before and always wondered how they worked)
66. Style your hair differently (angled fohawk)

 

This wasn’t one but I got excited to try new things so I told the Smoothie Crafters to make me a surprise – it was a win!

Stay Positive & Adventurous

Garth E. Beyer

Kabir: Breath Inside The Breath

Garth Beyer

The 37th Name of Allah

Friend, hope for the Guest while you are alive. Jump into experience while you are alive! Think… and think… while you are alive. What you call “salvation” belongs to the time before death.

If you don’t break your rope while you are alive, do you think ghosts will do it after?

The idea that the soul will join with the ecstatic just because the body is rotten — that is all fantasy. What is found now is found then. If you find nothing now, you will simply end up with an apartment in the City of Death. If you make love with the Divine now, in the next life you will have the face of satisfied desire.

So plunge into the truth, find out who the Teacher is, believe in the Great Sound! (Bly)

The marvelous work of Kabir was introduced into my life this past summer while I was reading a book of assorted poems. While I was an extreme fan of Kabir’s masterpieces, I wanted to know more about how he came to be the poet I am so fond of. As a poet, I know that to best understand a writer’s poetry, you must understand the writer. While poetry has been one of the highlights in class, I decided it would be beneficial to explore a specific poet in the time of the Bhakti movement (Argis). I believe the knowledge gained from the learning adventure of Kabir’s mystic life, will give a better understanding of our recent study of the Islamic World. Kabir offers deep but simple philosophies about life and the Divine. After recognizing the life of Kabir, I appreciated his work even more and feel as though I have been enlightened twice from each poem I read. While I discuss Kabir’s life from a few different sources, I will be making connections to the current study of the Islamic World and quite possibly ancient Asian poetry from class.

To begin, some say he was the son of a Brahman widow and others that he was of virgin birth. The only known fact is that he was brought up in a family of Muslim weavers in India, which is the main source of his reference as “Poet, Saint, and Weaver of Medieval India” (Life Story). Immediately, one is shrouded with mystery of his birth. From the beginning of his life we can make connections to an idea that he may have been as great and saintly as Jesus, having been giving birth by a virgin. It is also possible that I have read the saying that, the whole of Indian philosophy is reflected in the warp and weft of the loom, because of Kabir. “But early in his life Kabir became a disciple of the Hindu Bhakti saint Ramananda. It was unusual for a Hindu teacher to accept a Muslim student, but tradition says the young Kabir found a creative way to overcome all objections” (Granger). Growing up Kabir was referred to as the servant of humanity and thus a servant of divinity (Colors of India). I deem this reference as one that may be used to label Kabir a prophet of the combination of the divine and humanity. This concept makes me think of the Confucius term of Ren. “He was a man of principles and practiced what he preached” (Colors of India). Kabir acknowledged and celebrated the Divine everywhere and focused on bringing the truth to all. This is an example of a connection that could be made here to Confucius. Confucius focused on bringing the truth to all of his followers and the cities he travelled to. Kabir gives this a twist and involves God into the truth. In addition, just as Confucius did not write anything down, Kabir was almost completely illiterate (Kabir). Throughout his life Kabir preached and worked as a weaver in the neighborhood of Benares (Argis).

Before long, Kabir played the role of a teacher and social reformer by the medium of his writings, which mainly consisted of the two line verses called Dohas (Colors of India). A beauty of Kabir’s poetry is that he picks up situations that surround our daily lives. It represents a synthesis of Hindu and Muslim concepts. “From Hinduism he accepts the concept of reincarnation and the law of Karma. From Islam he takes the affirmation of the single god and the rejection of caste system and idolatry” (Life Story). He also had a strong belief in Vedanta, Sufism, Vaishnavism and Nath sampradaya traditions (Colors of India). So unlike other great thinkers, Kabir has experience in many different cultures and religions. According to Kabir, all life is an interaction of two spiritual values. “One is the personal soul (Jivatma) and the other is God (Paramatma). It is Kabir’s view that salvation is the process of bringing into union these two divine principles” (Life Story). Thus, even today, Kabir’s poetry is relevant and helpful in guiding and regulating our lives, in both social and spiritual context (Krishan). He had a strong faith in the concept of oneness of God and this was expressed through his basic idea that whether you chant the name of Hindu God or Muslim God, the fact is that there is only one God who is the creator of this beautiful world (Colors of India). This idea has been expressed in class when we noted that Allah and God are the same. The major three religions are all worshiping the same God. While it is clear from Kabir’s background that Hinduism, Islam, and even some Christianity are mixed into his teachings, I cannot help but notice a hint of Buddhism. In fact, it is common knowledge that Buddhism originated in India where Kabir grew up. Through reading some of Kabir’s poetry, the eight elements of the Eight-Fold Path can be noticed. Kabir always offers an enlightening idea about right action, effort, livelihood, meditation, mindfulness, motives, speech, and understanding. Kabir touches the soul, the conscience, the sense of awareness and the vitality of existence in a manner that is unequalled in both simplicity and style (Life Style

Lastly, the belief that six hundred years ago Kabir was born in India in 1398 AD is questionable. He lived for 120 years and is said to have relinquished his body in 1518 (Argis). He died at Maghar and immediately dispute arose about the rights to his remains by Hindus and Mohammedans. “While they argued, Kabir himself appeared and made them raise the cloth which covered his corpse and the body had vanished and left a heap of flowers to occupy its place. Half of these were burnt after the Hindu custom at a spot now known as kablr Chaura in Benares, and the rest were buried at Maghar” (Argis). A person can understand that Kabir had a special spiritual power just by learning about his birth and death. While in his life, “Kabir openly criticized all sects and gave a new direction to the Indian philosophy due to his straight forward approach that has a universal appeal. It is for this reason that Kabir is held in high esteem all over the world” (Krishan). It is clear that to label Kabir a worldwide Guru is not an over exaggeration. The followers of Kabir, known as Kabir panthis, are estimated to be around 9,600,000 worldwide (Kabir). Kabir’s name is actually the 37th name of Allah: Al-Kabir, meaning The Greatness (Al-Halveti). We learn from Kabir as we learned early in class that poetry is not a luxury. Kabir uses poetry as his voice, giving language and structure to everyone’s experiences, offering them the power to decline ignorant beliefs or hold close divine values. In response to the opening lines of this paper, Kabir says “When the Guest is being searched for, it is the intensity of the longing for the Guest that does all the work. Look at me, and you will see a slave of that intensity” (Bly)

– Garth E. Beyer

Works Cited

Al-Halveti, Tosun Bayrak Al-Jerrahi. “The Most Beautiful Names of Allah.” The Threshold Society & The Mevlevi Order. 1985. Web. 10 May 2011. <http://www.sufism.org/society/asma/>.

Argis, Ali. “Kabir Presented in Philosophy Section.” Newsfinder E-magazine: A Literary Favour   to World Culture. 24 May 2003. Web. 09 May 2011.     <http://www.newsfinder.org/site/more/kabir/>.

Bly, Robert. “The Heart of the Matter: A Six Pack of Kabir.” Creativity, Innovation, Team            Building, Leadership, Brainstorming, Idea Champions. 19 Nov. 2009. Web. 09 May             2011.             <http://www.ideachampions.com/heart/archives/2009/11/a_six_pack_of_k_1.shtml>.

Granger, Ivan M. “Kabir : Poems and Biography.” Poetry Chaikhana – Sacred Poetry from            Around the World: Sufi Poetry, Zen Poetry, Hindu Poetry, Buddhist Poetry, Christian   Poetry, Yoga Poetry. 2002. Web. 09 May 2011. <http://www.poetry-   chaikhana.com/K/Kabir/>.

“Kabir.” Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. 24 Apr. 2011. Web. 09 May 2011.             <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kabir>.

“Kabir – Kabir Biography – Sant Kabir Life History – Story of Kabir Das – Facts about Saint          Kabirdas.” Colors of India – All Aspects of Indian Culture People & Civilization. Colors           of India. Web. 09 May 2011. <http://www.thecolorsofindia.com/kabir/index.html>.

Krishan, Rajender. “The Mystic Poet.” Boloji.com – A Study in Diversity – News, Views, Analysis, Literature, Poetry, Features – Express Yourself. Sept. 1999. Web. 09 May 2011.           <http://www.boloji.com/index.cfm?md=Content>.

“The Biography of Kabir – Life Story.” PoemHunter.Com – Thousands of Poems and Poets..         Poetry Search Engine. PoemHunter, 18 Aug. 2009. Web. 09 May 2011.     <http://www.poemhunter.com/kabir/biography/>.