A New York Times article highlights the fact that 98% of twitter users are within 6 degrees of separation from one another and the average number of degrees between users is only 4.67. Just as everyone in the world is thought to be connected to one another within six steps (and the  movie star  Kevin Bacon is linked to just about every other actor in the trivia game “Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon”), data from the social media consulting firm Sysomos finds that the same holds true for Twitter users. Interestingly they quote research suggesting the average degrees of connection of Facebook users is 5.73.   Twitter’s high connectivity makes the site a lucrative web spot for marketers, who can reach large audiences with just a handful of retweets.

People in the UK might be a little surprised to discover the great social media, marketing and personal branding guru has just introduced an ‘unconference’ in Doncaster, Yorkshire, of all places. But the power of social media being what it is Chris met Rob Wilmot, the very enterprising Chairman of Doncaster College Board of Governors, through Twitter. Having now met Rob I can understand how Chris was unable to say ‘no’. Rob – for UK readers – was the guy who developed Freeserve. Need I say more. I had never experienced an ‘unconference’ before and found the concept fascinating and of course very democratic. No agenda. We were asked who wished to lead sessions or ask discussion questions on social media related topics then we opted which sessions to go to and then the event was summarised at the end of the day along with podcasts, videos and written reports. Chris kicked us off with a brilliant keynote summarising everything he had learned about social media in the past 11 years. Future postings will return to that but what I have posted here is his views on the changing nature of work in the US and his  answer to our question ‘And What Do You Do?’ – “I’m a typist”.

As you know from time to time we like to feature some of Hugh MacLeod’s drawings on this site as he contributed a dozen for our book. Usually we just publish the drawing but this time I have taken his words too which were stimulated by Steve Job’s oft quoted expression.

“It was always Steve Jobs’ mantra: ‘Let’s make a dent in the universe’.

I liked that phrase so much, I incorporated it into the Hughtrain Manifesto:

Whatever you manufacture, somebody can make it better, faster and cheaper than you.

You do not own the molecules. They are stardust. They belong to God. What you do own is your soul. Nobody can take that away from you. And it is your soul that informs the brand.

It is your soul, and the purpose and beliefs that embodies, that people will buy into.

Ergo, great branding is a spiritual exercise.

Why is your brand great? Why does your brand matter? Seriously. If you don’t know, then nobody else can- no advertiser, no buyer, and certainly no customer.

It’s not about merit. It’s about faith. Belief. Conviction. Courage.

It’s about why you’re on this planet. To make a dent in the universe.

I don’t want to know why your brand is good, or very good, or even great. I want to know why your brand is totally frickin’ amazing.

Once you tell me, I can tell the world.

Really, is there any better way to spend one’s working hours? I don’t think so…”

Scary but true according to the research quoted by Tom Peters.

…….which is why in our book we talk a lot about how important it is to define your passions, tell your story and communicate it to the appropriate audiences. This recent TED talk by Jamie Oliver, fascinating in its own right, is a wonderful example of how to communicate effectively when you are driven by a passion. He uses some fascinating techniques to make his point too and remember this is a guy who is dyslexic. Wonderful to watch.

I was recently contacted by Bill Vicks who is a portfolio worker and amongst other things has a site called BoomersNext Step.com.  Bill interviewed me about the work that Mike and I have been doing relating to the over 50’s and it kind of moved over into the work that I have and currently am doing with Katie Ledger on portfolio careers. I do apologise for the length but as Bill put it I am a recovering academic! So be glad I did not talk for 50 minutes without stopping. This is only 19 minutes so would just have qualified as a TED talk……

This gets syndicated to a multitude of sites in the US.

Anyway if you are really bored do have a look.

We often get asked just why we quote Seth so much on this site. Easy – he is so opinionated and whether or not you agree with him he always stops you in your tracks and makes you think. This TED talk is another example of this as well as being succinct and amusing. There is much learning in this for any portfolio worker. I dare you to take up his challenge that he presents at the end of his talk!

Some good corporate advice here from Dan Schawbel. How to brand yourself without alienating your company.