Insightful conversation with Michael Juiliano, aka Hot Dog Mike, about how he went from hotels to dishing out hot dogs. And more importantly why he did it and how he maintains momentum.

Just over two years ago John went for a 32 minute walk/run...he walked for 28 minutes and ran for 4 minutes. That day marked a dramatic shift in his life...and his purpose. He made a decision to stop letting excuses get in the way of doing something that mattered, prolonging his life and making a difference.

Earlier this month he completed the Umstead 100 mile endurance run in North Carolina. While this is certainly not the end of the journey, it was a monumental achievement and milestone. Surely, there will be many more to come.

If you need some inspiration to do meaningful work and to remove the everyday roadblocks which prevent you from achieving your dreams, please watch this. 

And pardon for some of the poor audio...that will be corrected for next time.

My next WTP Jam Session will be with +Michael Juiliano , better known as Hot Dog Mike. Schedule TBD.

Part of practicing art...doing something remarkable, something that gets noticed is to go where others choose not to go. By putting this sort of skin in the game you almost always get two things…a connection with at least one person who sees the world as you do. And someone else will be offended, annoyed or angered. Art is never appreciated by everyone. Nor should it be. If it were, all things would be relatively the same, alas we'd live in a very boring and average world. Thankfully there are people who enjoy sticking out their necks to do work that matters…the understand the trade-off between risk and reward. And better yet they understand that playing it safe is the most risky thing of all.

Props to the 21C hotel in Bentonville, Arkansas for getting my attention with this little guy at the lobby entry.

As a leader imagine if your front line employees came to you with that sort of initiative. Now imagine what the employee might say if you came to them with the same question…what can we do to help you realize your goals, dreams (different than asking how can we help you improve)?

We're taught that as leaders our job is to get the most out of people…that's management. We're taught to teach, measure and correct…to improve productivity and yield. We're taught that as followers we should do our best to meet standards, fit in and follow the game plan. And if we're not doing so, our bosses will tell us. But what would happen if we moved the waiting game out of the way? What if everyone every once in a while asked themselves (then those around them)…how can I make things better? Imagine how refreshing that would be.

Thanks Hugh for the image

Why do people follow you? Better find out if you don't know the answer.

In terms of creating a legacy, these might be the most important measurements of all.

What makes the story of the video so remarkable is the surprise action by the young man at the end. The real heros might be his parents...thank you.

Problems

The product being sold is unremarkable to whom it's being offered (which makes the salesperson annoying in the eyes of the prospect). This problem has two parts, the product is inferior and/or you have the wrong audience. Both are equally problematic. Having the wrong audience relates to the next item.

The sales person doesn't seek to understand the true motivation of the buyer. The best example of this is the unexpected telephone solicitation (usually done by a person you've never met, who hasn't experienced your product or service and who hasn't done any research to understand your goals...annoying and usually results in a hang-up).

Solutions

Make stuff that the masses will ignore (because it's not easily understood), but a few will find remarkable. Make stuff that some people can't live without. Make stuff that is scarce. Make stuff that matters. Make something where the act of making it is appreciated (often more than the thing being made). Think handcraft. Think like an artist…because you are one.

Find the few who appreciate, enjoy and find meaning in what you do. Connect with them…exchange ideas. Build a tribe, an audience who trusts you. Then sell them your stuff. And don't bother anyone else…it's annoying.

Image credit to Hugh McCloud (I bought this print for a friend of mine…wish I would have bought two).

So don't wait…

• Set the bar
• Tell someone about it
• And start moving down the path, bit by bit

At a minimum, your journey will be more interesting.