Looking forward to being along for the ride, sir

Glad to have you on board, as always, my friend.

Ha! This is gonna be FUN! Can't wait to see how we're going to do it on 8/11

So, so great to this opportunity to do good for others. Can't wait to see how many lives we can all touch together.
#HiJackFC

Isn't this in itself an accomplishment of the project? The fact that they managed to get this many people united together? I would say that your hijacking of the project will make the fast company project an even greater success. Just a thought!

Working on the plan right now, Mani – it'll be good.

Quite right, Annie. They've done the hard work with this project so far, and now all we're doing is giving it a bit of a nudge in a different direction, so that the whole project will leave a good impression and make a meaningful impact once all is said and done.

So yes, the goal is to make the whole thing an even greater success. Great observation.

You can try but I'm the king of onfluence anyway: http://www.socialemailmarketing.eu/2010/08/onli...

Oh, and have you asked Mari to join?

Please define “Changing the world by making a positive impact in the lives of the people around us”.

Hey, kick me out of here, I'm the Zeus of influencers and hijacking your comment feature by adding links to my post about the Fast Company project: http://www.socialemailmarketing.eu/2010/08/onli...

One more like this, and you're banned from the comments completely. As it stands right now, your four comments may remain.

It's actually pretty clever/funny, but you're not comparing apples to apples. Close, though.

Check out some examples here: https://docs.google.com/fileview?id=17×6pkVZOju...

Or Love Bomb here: http://dropalovebomb.tumblr.com/

Come on, you've got @ConversationAge , you can't loose this one. I'm still curious about what Fast Company will do with the project? Use the results to kill the myths about online influence? What are you going to do? The same? I Promised I would, here's my link again, that's three: http://www.socialemailmarketing.eu/2010/08/onli...

Please ban me. And if you want to change the world: http://www.facebook.com/WorldWithoutTorture They have built less influence in months than one stupid Fast Company project has. Why? Because no one cares. So please ban me.

Dear Nate followers of Influence Project…

While making plans, please consider there are so many causes respresented in this and to us that is the real value of the project. It's not about ego, it's about the first time in history to be able to use this media to truly call to light.

Rather than hijack, let's make make a miracle happen an abused and abandoned little boy in India who was left in an overcrowded orphanage and is too poor to have a computer. Tonight when you put your head to your pillow there are 138 M children in the world without. They won’t sleep. If they sleep, they won’t dream of a home. They won’t even remember having one…Most will grow up on the streets becoming beggars, drug addicts, prostitutes, or worse. Many do not survive to their 18th birthday.

Prashanth was born in a small village in south India. A precocious child, he often got in trouble. Believing that the soul resides in the belly, the religious figure he traced a circle around Prashanth’s belly button, then went up and down his skin creating horizontal and vertical lines with a fire hot iron. Prashanth, only 4 at the time, grabbed for the hot iron burning his first 2 fingers. This was meant to kill the demonic behavior.

Prashanth’s father died, his mother remarried; her new husband refused to raise him. He went to live with his Grandmother. Too feeble and poor to take care of him, she sent him to live with his Aunt, who was poor and raising her own children. He did not go to school; he wandered the streets, seldom returning even at night until he ended up in an abandoned in an orphanage.

Having been burned and not treated his fingers healed fused, rendering them unusable. We took him to see a surgeon at Apollo Hospital and he invited he kindly offered his services. During the two-hour surgery, the scars were removed, new skin grafted, and his fingers straightened by placing a pin in one and a splint on the other. Due to a lack of sanitation at the orphanage, Prashanth stayed with us for the next six weeks. The day came when the doctor removed the pin and splint. He asked Prashanth to move his fingers. Slowly, tentatively he wiggled them; he smiled and said, “Thank you for my fingers.”

Prashanth's URL: http://fcinf.com/v/appe

Peace and blessing from Ed Cohen and Priscilla Nelson

Changing the world with social media: hijacking the Fast Company Influence Project: http://www.socialemailmarketing.eu/2010/08/chan...

So excited for this!! Awesome, awesome idea Nate. Way to stop talking and start doing.

Yeah, awesome

I am currently ranked 290 on the Fast Company Project – this has solely been through a fan page following of 377 on Facebook and a 1000 following on Twitter with 2 posts a day – NO contests, NO bribery, NO tricky ways to get people to click my link, NO mass email compains (no email actually)…

I find it interesting that you contacted the “big players” on the Project – if you were so serious about doing something for the good, you would have gone through every single 22000 people and invited the ones who have written in their BIO the cause they are entering for. My bio reads – reducing stigma and building awareness for mental illness and suicide by sharing my story.

Instead of focusing all your energy on HIJACKING someone else's hard work (no matter what your thoughts and others are) focus on creating you own, without impacting the 22,000 people who have taken the time to influence people online (for whatever reason) through Fast Company's Influence Project.

Here is a blog post I wrote http://simpleeserene.com/blog/the-influence-pro...

Have I ever told you how awesome I think you are? Yes? Well let me tell you again. YOU'RE AMAZING.

Hi Ed and Pris, I tried to contact you but unfortunately don't find contact data. Can you DM me please? Do you also have this story somewhere online? I would like to share it through the Facebook page of the IRCT, World Without Torture.

That has been the way Nate operates since I first joined ISWU. Not a whole bunch of “you know it would be nice if someone blahblahblah” but rather “Heres the plan, lets go make it happen!”

This is something I'm excited to be a part of. I fully trust Nate and the ISWU team. Everything that we have done in the past has been awesome and I trust Nate by his track record.

I think this is one of the greatest things I've read since I heard about LoveBomb. In complete honesty, I don't understand the issues that many of the commenters have with the hijacking. I think it's made quite clear that this is not a project to “BEAT THE COMPETITORS!” or to “PROVE ItStartsWith.Us IS THE MOST POPULAR EVER!!!!!” this is a work of a good heart, a love for humanity, and a desire to take the focus off of a winner and work together to do good and make a difference. Sure, most of the other people involved have a good cause they're working for–may one good cause never be invalidated by another. That's not what this is about in the slightest. Of course one person can make a difference–we've all seen it. But think about what hundreds, even thousands could do. Working with people, loving each other and setting aside competition is essential to making the biggest difference possible. Be a team–love people. We make a bigger difference together.

Thanks guys – I appreciate the trust.

I love that you “get it,” Paige. So young, yet so wise. Love having you on the team.

Don't answer, sent you an InMail via LinkedIn, Ed. Thanks.

I would love to pool all our resources and find a way to have each and every deserving cause be helped. However, hijacking, without everyone wanting to be a part of it is a form of terrorism and what kind of a statement does that make.

Here is our letter to your group and the story of our cause. http://nelsoncohen.com/?p=441

We so agree with you Lee, if Nate has a way to turn this project so everyone can call attention to their causes then we are all for it and want to be a part of it, if it means have someone else decide to do this then it is totally unfair and we hope they will see it.

Dear Paige,

I am one of the obvious commenters and I'll explain you why. Taking into account Mr. St. Pierre's comment, I assume you are young and wise. I have been young as well. And I still am, inside. But there comes a time when you learn that it's not easy to bring people together to share a cause and make a big difference. When you have travelled the world and saw poverty and misery you also…change.

Many people have decided to join this Fast Influence thing because they wanted to use the platform for something they tried to achieve and prove, knowing that you can only change by acting. Now all of the sudden Mr. St. Pierre, whom I don't know and who might be the reincarnation of Buddha himself for all I know, decides to use the whole thing for a good cause. And that's fine, I'm happy that there are people who still seem to care.

But what I am very allergic to is:

1) The way this whole hijack initiative is buzzed makes me, an old sod, wonder
2) There is no explanation whatsoever about what the intentions are, neither about the cause
3) It seems that this blog/community/whatever decides what is a good cause and does not think about the work and time other people have invested to support their ego/cause/whatever
4) The last time I checked someone who did something good didn't feel like shouting it out but worked hard behind the screens. I have now explained all my rallying on my blog and feel sorry I did, because I don't seek spotlights on my private life
5) Has anyone ever considered that there might be cultural or other differences regarding what is a good cause. I'm sure the people in the US will have other ideas on several topics than people in Europe for instance. Just a few examples: consumerism, captalism, wars and religion. Let's not get started on the first ones but a word on religion. I am an atheist as many Europeans are. In the US it's “In God we trust” (check your dollar bills) and there have been many attempts (did they work?) to more or less ban the findings of Darwin regarding the origin of species. It is the good right of the people of the US (and still quite some Europeans as well) to think so. But the other way around counts as well.
6) The last time I checked you ask people what they think, you involve them and then you decide
7) Has anyone ever wondered why people believe they can change the world? Has anyone ever questioned himself? I did. If you want to, I advice you to read Jung and a few philosophers if you have time one day.
Well, I was going to add an 9, 10 and 11 but I think it doesn't make a lot of difference

I am wishing you the best of luck with your project and you won't hear this old sod, or as I noticed in some tweets, nutcase anymore. What a relief, right?

Dude, you've totally earned it.

Well, I lied Nate, you'll have to read one more thing. I just checked your homepage. You seem like a guy with a good heart and, seeing the trust you get here, I suppose you are. But why introduce yourself as “Hey guys, I'm Nate, the founder of ItStartsWith.Us and the guy responsible for just about everything you see on this site”.

Wasn't it about a team, a group, working together? Again, good luck and enjoy your lives.

If you personally choose not to take part in this and stand by your original intentions with the project–I think that's great! You're no doubt a passionate person and (from what I've read) seem to have a good cause as well. What I do have an issue with is your attempts at tearing down -this- project. I do understand that's it's not easy to “bring people together to share a cause and make a big difference” I do. But why? We make our own decisions. We decided to make and I believe that we can decide to make it easy. No person has any more authority what we give to them. I think part of what makes it so difficult is people with what I think could most diplomatically be called “misguided passion”. People who instead of working toward their own good, come to speak negatively about others'. I feel that the reason it' difficult is that comments like yours make it so. No disrespect–but I don't exactly admire your plan of attack.

To address the parts of your 8 allergies that I feel call for addressing:
-I don't feel in any way that this is an effort to tear anyone down. You all seem to have good, no, GREAT ambitions and goals. If you want to carry on with single handedly “winning” then by all means! No one is going to your site and tearing you trying to stop you! This is an effort of community. Using people in groups to make a positive difference.
-I don't feel that this is a way of “shouting it out but worked hard behind the screens” but rather spreading the word. You can't work with people if you don't talk to people. This (in my mind) is not a lack of humility but a way to get people involved. Sometimes stepping out of your comfort zone is part of that.
-I am not an atheist– but in all honesty, I fail to see what that has to do with anything aside from throwing in a hot topic issue making a problem where there is not one. We can all agree that love is our objective–no? I think that was a slightly irrelevant point to make.
-I actually have asked myself that question! And I have read some of Jung's work. Though my reading him and my answering that question were in no way connected. But again–I'm not sure how that's an allergy of yours.

Thanks for taking the time to reply.

That's the beauty of why this group works so well, J-P . . . we don't come together for “a cause”. We make a tangible difference in people's lives. The lives of the very people around us. Our own family, friends, neighbors, co-workers, strangers at the grocery store or sometimes online.

Great point on #5 – that's why “cause” stuff doesn't work with a group like ours. We have 3,500 people on the ItStartsWith.Us team, from close to 100 countries. All ages, all races, all nationalities, all religions, all political leanings. And we all work together. And there are no fights (well, there was almost one once).

And guess what? It's EASY. You know why? Because there are no “causes.” Everyone makes a difference in his or her own life, in a way that works for THEM. I don't tell the group exactly what to do – I tell them to “fix something”, or “motivate someone”, or “write a letter”, or “offer help”, or “give it away.” And then everyone in the group does that in a way that makes sense to them, to benefit someone in their own lives. And then we all discuss it in the team forum and hear hundreds of inspirational stories, and from them we all learn practical ways to make a tangible difference . . . for the people that matter to us.

All in just 15 minutes a week. It works remarkably well – the results speak for themselves. Lives are changed, man. Every single week.

You're right, I do have a lot of trust with this group. That's because for 1.5 years I've done nothing but show people small ways to come together and make a difference for others. That's what I'm about. You can choose to believe it right now or not. But you don't have to take my word for it. Next week I think you'll better understand what this concept is all about.

We're going to let Fast Company do their thing (they got another article out of this event, didn't they? ), and at the same time, we're going to ask this group to help us illustrate a concept that can help people understand something a little more about influence – that the people you usually have the most true influence with are those close to you, and the small positive impacts you make in their lives can ripple outwards to many, many more.

Thanks for taking the time to give all the examples; I appreciate it.

Oh, here's something that may help those of you who are on the fence about what this group does. Check out the results from our first six months of existence last year – as we grew from 30 to 500 people. We did 25 of the “weekly missions.” I pulled out 12 as examples. In each of those 12 I pulled out 3 stories that people told about how they accomplished that particular weekly mission in their own lives. There were hundreds more stories to share, but space was limited. Pay attention to the incredible impact that small, fast actions have when done on a personal level in a meaningful way. That's what we're going to be doing next week. Anyone is welcome to participate. I hope you'll join us.

https://docs.google.com/fileview?id=17×6pkVZOju...

All this in just 15 minutes. And I haven't even touched on what the Love Bomb team can do in 5.

This is gonna be fun.

Hey Paige, thanks for answering. Listen, I just mailed Nate to delete my comments if he can or wants. Thanks for your response but I guess this is not the place to answer to some of the things. One thing though: no, people dont' want love. If people only see that side in themselves: empathy, love, caring, compassion, they have not looked in the mirror really really deep. But that debate would carry much too far. The shadow side, the egotic side of wanting to do good and the narcissism of the influence of man. Never mind, I stopped the whole thing and focus back on trying to change in my small backyard, have fun, peace and love. Although I prefer revolution, that's what you get when you're born in the sixties. Good luck. Too bad, I can't unsubscribe from the darn FC project. Aren't there any laws against that? It's like freaking Facebook. I guess Zuck was right when he said privacy is dead.

Appreciate the answer. Sent you mail. Good luck. Surprised people have to be motivated and work together to spend just 15 minutes in a week to do something for another, no matter how small. Thought that was a normal daily thing that everyone does (and more than 15 minutes, come on). Guess I'm old school or nuts after all. Will miss the party because I will be on holiday for the first time in six years if all goes well. Have fun.

Haven't checked the email yet, but thanks for the reply. And yeah, a lot of our team members are people like you – people who have certain causes they are passionate about, and then on top of that consistently spend the time to make a difference for the people around them.

Good stuff, man. Enjoy your vacation!

Nate – I just have to say Thanks! In all of this you have never strayed from who you are are, what you represent, and have been very respectful. I can't wait to see how our communities can join together and make an impact!

Thomas Jefferson once said, “A little rebellion now and then is a good thing.” I would add “hijacking” and “piracy”. It took a bit of rebellion to change 13 colonies into an amazing country. Not everyone was happy, but it happened anyway. And while some posters here may be concentrating on the “parts” verus the “whole” of this project, the greater good that is (I think) intended here is proof that people , basically, want the “good” in this world to outrun the “evil”. It starts with us, right?
So Huzzah to Captain St. Pierre and the ISWU Pirate Crew for sending good vibes into the Net!

Hello Mr St. Pierre

Thanks for your participation and interest in The Influence Project. I'm sorry it's been such a negative experience for you, that was never our intention.

I appreciate the choices you've offered, but we're going to pass and continue to explore our direction (and others as they present themselves).

One request I have: As you continue to reach out to people engaged in The Influence Project, please let them know you obtained their contact information through your own sources. Fast Company does not give out email addresses and your disclosure will help eliminate confusion.

Best of luck in your endeavors…cheers…mark borden

@J-P De Clerck – Enjoyed your comments, and see a lot of similarity in the way we think! Yes, I too don't believe 'change' is 'out there' – but begins with us. And that 15 min. a week doesn't even begin to cut it (think 40 HOURS a week, and you may be a bit closer!)

With that said, I joined Nate's group recently because the idea of touching lives in 15 EXTRA minutes a week sounded cool. Then, I saw what happened with the first 2 'love bombs' I participated in… and now, I'm hooked.

There's so much we can do… so many ways we can do it… yet some folks hold back searching for “the best” one. Not me. I jump on as many band-wagons like this one that I can afford to.

Thanks again for sharing your comments.

Hey there, I have a pronoun question. You wrote:

“We will help everyone in our own communities to touch hearts and change lives in a way that’s meaningful to them. To use their influence in a positive way. Just one day to work as a team and make a difference – together.”

Who do you mean by the “them” that's the last word of the first paragraph? It seems like you mean the people who are on your email list, the ones doing the act you'll suggest – do I read this correctly?

Thanks for answering my question!

@Mark Borden – “Negative experience”???? *I'm confused* All I see is a lot of positive energy around what you kick-started – and a sense of purpose and direction in making a difference in a real way.

P.S. – Of course, I may have missed something!

Mr. Borden, I understand that it was never your intention to create a negative experience, and that there are in fact many positive aspects to your endeavor. And yet the fact remains that there IS a large negative connotation surrounding the project. I'm sorry to hear that Fast Company is going to pass on working together with our group to create something a bit more meaningful; we would've been happy to have you on board.

It is of little consequence, however . . . we will simply go ahead and do it ourselves. We're a sturdy lot.

I do thank you for the polite and timely response, sir. And as for clarity on contact information, I've only been asked by one person, and I disclosed that I obtained their info alone, and had no affiliation with you. I wish I had thought to do that in my initial contact, but alas, I did not.

Thus concludes our parley – I shall now retire to determine what – and how strong – our next course of action shall be.

This sounds more like cyber-terrorism that trying to do good.
Or maybe it is EGO too big!

Funny how everyone seemed to gloss right over Lee's comments. Have to totally agree with you Lee. There are those of use out there working The Influence Project to do better works in our communities.

I find it a darn shame that It Starts With Us is not working on something similar, finds it necessary to move the “Project”, etc. etc.

I'm wondering if either of you two have read any of the articles on this blog or in the summary (here: https://docs.google.com/fileview?id=17×6pkVZOju...) of what this team does. Because your quote “those of use out there working The Influence Project to do better works in our communities” is EXACTLY what this is about. See my big response to J-P above. I'll be happy to talk with you guys once you understand what I'm about. Lee, you're about raising awareness by sharing your story, which is awesome. The link to your site didn't work, but judging by the URL, I'd probably agree with the article. Ty, you had like 5 art/design sites, but I didn't see any opinion sites in there, unless I just missed it.

“Them” being “everyone,” which includes all the participants from the email list AND every individual in their community to receives the message. This is a way to enable everyone to make a difference for the people in their own lives, not to rally around someone else's cause.

This just may be my favorite response. You, like young Paige, really get it.

Thank you so much – that means a lot to me right now. I do my best to represent the principles of this team faithfully and true.

Albert Camus (French philosopher): “What is a rebel? A man who says no”.

Hi Mark,

I think the “negative experience” is more the disappointment that, at the end of the day, it's all about numbers again, not influence. Who can get the most clicks to their link. You can say that shows influence, but does it?

Twitter user A has 100,000 followers and gets 10% to click – 10,000 clicks. Twitter user B has 1,000 followers and gets 10% to click – 100 clicks. Same influence, huge difference in results.

Real influence is seeing what happens after the call-to-action, and how impacting that reaction is. Short-term popularity or long-term change and effect? I know where my influence cap lies.

Hi Mr Brown

Thanks for your thoughts, I must say that I respectfully disagree with your assessment of The Influence Project. In my experience, I'm finding that a large number of people are not only connecting with their own networks, but have found other like-minded people and networks to engage with through this experiment.

I understand that there will always be some people who will be disappointed by things that don't align exactly with their goals or thoughts on a subject. Pleasing everyone is impossible.

As far as your Twitter example goes, I agree with you. But when the question gets interesting is when Twitter user A has 100,000 followers and gets 10,000 clicks for 10%. Then Twitter user B has 100 followers and gets 97 clicks. What does that say about that person's relationship with their network? What is the potential there?

After looking at your website, I understand that you're a professional social media consultant and have a deeper understanding of these things than most people. I respect that. But many of my readers are not as far along in understanding the power of social media, and part of this experiment is to help explain this complicated and enigmatic subject.

I do appreciate your thoughtful dissent and want to thank you for your interest and participation in The Influence Project…cheers…mark borden

I totally agree, Mark. We have actually reconnected with many people through our extended network because of this project. When they read about Prashanth and his situation they are reaching back to us to see how they can help. I think more are having great experiences than not. Regards, Ed

OK OK, now I get it )

OK Mark now I get it, great idea and I think they can both exist together, one does not have to outdo or oversome the other.

I had a lot of fun with this whole thing, Mark – I hope you guys did as well. I officially surrender to Fast Company.

You can find my final thoughts here:
http://www.itstartswith.us/blog/2010/08/03/the-...

Have a great day, man.