I don't know what it is, but some how the wheels and joints in my mind are suddenly starting to not only spin and work , but doing it in over time as if I'm tripping on acid! Maybe its because I am gonna start a fresh with my studies, or maybe reading one or 2 of those motivational books knocked my wheels into motion.
See, as I was waiting for my bus at Melaka Sentral, I was reading this book (yes, I am starting to read) which compiles short stories about people on how they overcome failure, take risky moves that pay off or believing in themselves to succeed when no one else did, basically to motivate the reader la. From what I have read and recalling those from other books, the people that are involved in the story are usually 1) old enough to be my grandfather 2) dead already 3) famous but only to their work circle (like a president of a university or a CEO of some investment bank). I'm thinking to myself, how many of us today, youngsters in our own rights, actually know about them? Sure there are the stories of the average Joe making it big, but it does get kinda boring doesn't it?
So that was when my first brainstorm hit me.. And I kid u not, it actually begain to rain n there was thunder n lightning. Those in Malacca will confirm it providing they are up at 10+ la. Anyways, I wondered wouldn't it be better if those stories come from people who we can relate to or at least know of their existence? In which I meant famous people of today, like David Beckham, or Beyonce or Johnny Depp or Sir Alex Ferguson even 50 Cent and Gordon Ramsay. I'm sure they have stories/ past experiences that define them and made them who they are today. I'm sure they have gone through a lot of hardship and sacrfice that would make most of us just drop dead trying to get where they are. And I'm sure that their stories would be more appealing to us , people of today, than some dead president or minister. Don't you agree?
Then I thought, if I were to compile each of their stories, just that 1 defining moment, and put it in a way that can motivate/inspire people, wouldn't that be great ( I don't think there is any in the market yet rite?)?? Of cos a whole line of road blocks immediatly popped up like getting consent, publishing, resources, funds, etc. Which led me to ponder, 'Wouldn't it be nice if I knew someone who is in the publishing line, or someone who knows someone who knows how to get consent of the people involved?'. But no, as of now, I do not have a freaking clue on how to get started!
So putting that book publishing idea, which is quite a lofty one, on hold, I decided to go ahead with another idea which seemlessly drifted into my mind : getting networked. Now we all know how important networking is these days rite? And quite frankly, my network is not as big as I would like it to be. Sure I have friends who are going to be future doctors, lawyers, accountants, engineers, business related, PR related and even pilots but instead of having just that, it would be better to have more right?
How am I going to extend my network base? I have come up with a very simple yet effective way ,IMHO, by just keeping in touch or KIT (fuyoh, come out with my own short form weh!) with people. Basically just like a pen pal thing, writing/typing mail to that person with intention of getting to know the person better, taking interest in whats happening in their lives (Of course not to the point of being kepo la). Like in primary school when our teachers would ask us to write an unoffical letter to a friend/pen pal and we most of the time would let them know about the vacation we took last holiday. Thats my purpose.
Of course I'm not going to ask any Tom Dick or Harry "eh how are u ah? how u been?". My plan is this : I'll send a letter on Facebook to almost all my 178 friends (yes thats all I have) letting them know of my intention and this experiment. Of cos I'll get the ball rolling by letting them know my recent events (the part where we tell our pen pal about the vacation to the beach we just had). And hopefully they will reply personally to me about things that are going on in their lives. Ideally, I hope this tru n fro thing be at least once a week or fortnightly cos if it was any shorter, there won't be much to share right? And of course it is not a must to keep the same time period cos undoubtedly, they will have other commitments to attend to. So what I do want is a regular reply, once a week, fortnightly, heck even once a month is oso regular right?
I have to be realistic about this project, I do not expect everyone to reply and start this thing with me. Even if 1 person replies, I will still carry on. See the beauty of this is down the line, with that one contact, who knows, he/she might be able to give me opportunities in life like a job, place to stay, good functions to attend, etc and I might be able to do the same for them. Even better is the chance of connecting 2 people who don't know each other yet has things to offer one another. Like if friend A is running a business and wants to promote and sell their items and friend B works for an advertising company. It would be nice if they knew each other right? Or if I professional help on a certain matter, I can just open my address book rather than open the yellow pages.
It does sound that at the end of it, I am making use of them, hoping to get easiest route to the big cheese doesn't it? Well, isn't this what networking is all about? And I am sure I will be able to offer my services in return (not to explicit I hope!). I hope to be able to type out the 'letter' by the end of this week and it is gonna require some smart thinking as I need it to say I am serious about this project yet I'm not forcing anyone to participate and I have to keep it as short and as simple to read yet it has to be detailed enough so my message can be reached across.
Oh, I will update the progress of my experiment, good or bad, here on a time to time basis, and if you are a frequent visitor here and are replying to me, you might find it redundant so bare with me ok. At least I can know more about you too right? And for those whom I regularly meet up or chat with online, you don't have to partake in this. My aim is towards those who are not one of the regulars so to speak.
What do you think? Will it work?
