Contemplating a trip to my country of origin can be a daunting experience. Who doesn’t remember that scene from “Clear and present danger” where Harrison Ford is warned not to stay still or run the risk of getting shot? Or the one  where his car is ambushed in what looks like a really, really poor city, and the car in front of him is blow to bits with an RPG? Then there’s of course the whole fear of being kidnapped, so vividly depicted by Russell Crowe in “Proof of Life”.Who in his right mind would want to go to such a dangerous place? To a place that the US Department of State has recently warned that “(…)While security in Colombia has improved significantly in recent years, violence by narco-terrorist groups continues to affect some rural areas as well as large cities.“?

I do.

I am not suggesting that everything you read or hear about Colombia from the news is false. Not at all. Crime does happen in its cities. Kidnappings have happened since I can remember, and I have family and friends who have gone through that ordeal. But I also know that when you choose to travel, you are by default willing to take some risks.  And unless you are totally risk averse, you likely will be willing to accept some level of risk if the reward is big enough.

Ahhhhh, the reward. (hint: make sure you watch the video I linked to just now. Go do it now)

Rather than write about the wonderful rewards of coming to Colombia, let me show you with a short promotional video. Be aware this is pure marketing and it is showing the best of my country; yet what you see is (a lot of) what you get. I invite you to come at your own peril; as the marketing campaign puts it, “the risk (in coming to Colombia) is wanting to stay“. I hope you enjoy this video. ‘Til next time.

(Please click here if you can’t see the video above)

I recently gave a presentation where I discussed  how the explosion of processing power and communications networks have enabled collaboration across boundaries like we have never imagined.

Today’s video showcases an example of off-line collaboration that has taken the internet by storm. Playing for Change is a movement that aims at connecting people throughout the world through music. The twist? Songs are compiled virtually; a technical crew travelled the world, and with recording equipment, asked people who were on the street “playing for spare change” to collaborate. The result is incredible, and has now been shared with millions through social media and other platforms on the internet.

I hope you enjoy the music as much as I did.

(Click here is you can’t see the video above)

Today’s review is going to be short.The above video was created by a small firm (Grasshoper) to remind everyone that with turbulence comes opportunity; that uncertain times push us to discover new ways of doing things. I found the  messages in this video a wonderful reminder that ideas + action = success. It was a modern reminder of the Law of Action.

I was also drawn to this video because of my fascination with Creative Commons licensing. As you would know, a lot of my work is released under this licensin (see links at the bottom for some examples), so when I read this article about how Ogilvy & Mathers used similar music and message to create an ad for American Express, I had mixed feelings.  On the one hand, the Amex ad was not a direct ripoff from the above video; yet it was clearly inspired by it, and there is enough evidence to demonstrate that the O&M’s creative team heavily borrowedi from this inpirational video. At the end of the day, one has to answer the question of whether grasshoper deserved at least attribution for the idea, and whether there is enough in common in these 2 artistic executions to warrant a notice for copyright violation. What do you think? Share your thoughts with us in the comments section below.

Before I go, I would like to highlight some of the messages that resonated most with me from this video:

• As an entrepreneur, risk isn’t the reward; the reward is changing people’s lives, fueling world, and making a better world
• Entrepreneurs are everywhere, and can be anyone… even YOU.
• Remember when you were a kid (when everything was within your reach) and then say to yourself quietly but with determination: IT STILL IS.

If you liked this article, check some of our previous video reviews below:

• January : Benjamin Zander at TED (video) (review)
• February: Story of Stuff (video) (review) (web site)
• March: Feel like the Incredible Hulk with Tim Ferris (video) (review) (web site)
• April: Pike Place Market video about the Fish! Philosophy (video) (review)
• May: Building a great team – a tribute to Herb Brooks (video) (review)
• June: Reflections of a Crazy Colombian Video Blog # 1 – A review of AMPlify 2009 (video) (review)

Links to some of the works by The crazy Colombian released under a Creative Commons license:

• Zen and the art of photographic story-telling (Online) (Print)
• The crazy Colombian’s manifesto (Online) (Print)

Click here if you can’t see the video box above

If you read the article from last week, you know that over the coming weeks I will be discussing the four principles of the Fish! philosophy: Choose your attitude, Make someone’s day, Have fun, and Be present.

This month’s video is a sample of what the Pike Place Market is really like. By watching it you will get a glimpse of how these principles translate into every day actions for the employees of the Pike Place Fish market in Seattle.

If you follow the link to Wikipedia, you will find a criticism of the Fish! philosophy: a link to another Youtube video where a Pike Place Market fishmonger argues that ‘the Fish! philosophy was just a show for the people that make the videos [and the books]; they’re just trying to sell something. It is just not possible to continuously work like that all year long’. Yet a simple search in YouTube for the words Pike Place Market will show you a large number of amateur videos that prove the contrary.

I hope you enjoy this short preview of the Fish! philosophy, and stay tuned for more in-depth discussions of the upcmoming articles in this topic.

Since 1984, Richard Saul Wurman has created extraordinary gatherings about learning and understanding. Entertainment Gathering is a rich extension of these ideas – a conference that explores the attitude of understanding in music, film, television, radio, technology, advertising, gaming, interactivity and the web. This video captures the presentation from Tim Ferris, best-selling author of The 4-Hour Workweek. In this video, Tim discusses how he conquered his fear of water and became a proficient swimmer; How his attempts at learning Japanese taught him that often times the secret to success is  what you do, not how you do it; and how he became a Tango world-champion by understanding the difference between explicit and implicit communications during learning.

Tim is an interesting character who pushes the boundaries of life design, providing what often seems like radical advise for getting the life that you want. In his famous book The 4-Hour Workweek, Tim provides advise on how to change your life so you work to live, rather than live to work. As Mike Maples (Co-founder of Motive Communications and Founding Executive of Tivoli) said, “If you want to live life on your own terms, [the 4-hour workweek] is your blueprint.”

I hope you enjoy this video; if you do, you might want to pay a visit to Tim’s blog, or buy his book at your favourite bookstore.

Disclaimer: I have no association with Tim Ferris; I simply like his thinking and published material. However, the links to Amazon were generated with my Amazon Associate account; if you enjoy this blog and decide to buy his book, we’d appreciate if you buy it through the links in this page.

Source: Victor Lebow, quoted in Story of Stuff

Consumers are buying stuff at twice the rate 50 years ago, and only one percent of goods are still in use 6 months after they are purchased. Scary, isn’t it?

Policies and laws are designed to increase Gross Domestic Product, and the amount of production that each resident in the country spent over the last year (GDP per capita) is used as a primary measure of affluence. We could well say that as a society, we are obsessed with production as a measure of well-being.

But this obsession has led to an extreme and dangerous situation. Annie Leonard, an expert in sustainability and the environment with over 20 years of experience, has created a simple yet powerful video that explains the critical issues we all face. This short video takes us on a journey that begins with Extraction of raw materials and Production of goods, moves on to Distribution and Consumption of finished goods, and ends with their Disposal. Along the way, she explains in simple terms the traps that we’ve built into our current economic system.

Anne does not pretend the issues are simple; and certainly is far from having all the answers. But her video certainly explains things in simple terms, and helps us increase our awareness of the problems we have created. I hope you’ll watch the video and learn something about the sustainability conundrum.

Image: Through a Child’s eye courtesy of DownTown Pictures

During my teenage years, my home was filled with the sound of Mum playing classical music. Of the many pieces I listened to, Chopin’s 24 preludes earned a special place in my heart. In the video below, you can listen to Benjamin Zander show you why: A famous orchestra conductor, teacher and public speaker, Benjamin shows the emotional power of music with one of those 24 Chopin pieces.

But the part of his talk that made me think the most was when he talked about success. Towards the end of the video, Benjamin says the following: “You know, I have a definition of success. For me it’s very simple; it’s not about wealth and fame and power. It’s about how many shiny eyes I have around me.”

As a leader, you need to inspire those around you by touching their hearts and minds in unimaginable ways. If you are in a leadership position and want to test how effective you are, ask yourself the following question: How many shiny do I have around me?

I hope you’ll enjoy the video.

What wisdom would you try to impart to the world if you knew it was your last chance?

A number of academic luminaries were asked to deliver a series of lectures at Carnegie Mellon on the basis of this question. One of them, however, made history. On September 2006, Randy Pausch underwent a whipple procedure after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.  About one year later, on September 18 ‘07 Randy delivered his last lecture to a crowd of over 400 coleagues at one of Carnegie Mellon University’s lecture halls.

How to achieve your childhood dreams was recorded and quickly became an internet sensation. Randy’s lecture was truly inspirational, and full of wise advise. Although he seriously considered canceling the lecture after learning that his cancer was terminal, a quick conversation with his wife led them to the conclusion that he should take this opportunity to leave his legacy through this medium.

When you watch the video, you will see Randy talking in a surprisingly upbeat mood. He truly embraced his life, and decided to make the most of it. I encourage you to view the full one hour and sixteen minutes of video from Randy’s lecture; you will be inspired, and will learn many valuable lessons.

(If you can’ watch the embedded video, click here to watch it from YouTube)

Do you always feel tired? This is rather easy to fix. As Jack Lalanne suggests on the video below, all you need to do is:

1. Exercise regularly
2. Eat a balanced diet
3. Relax

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vBVk071N88M&feature=related

If it is so easy, and given the knowledge has been around for a very long time, why do we have a society full of exhausted people?

Maybe in our quest for ‘quick fixes’ and ‘how to’ esoteric techniques, we have forgotten that it often is about coming back to basics. And to put it into practice does not take a lot of time, energy or money. Here are some ideas on how you can start to improve your energy levels:

1. Exercise regularly

All it takes is 15 minutes. I kid you not. Use the ‘Exercise Ladder’ from John Walker’s “The Hacker’s Diet” to build an exercise routine into your day that is DESIGNED not to take more than 15 minutes.

Still too much time?

Then how about following Dan Millman’s “The Peaceful Warrior workout“, which can be completed in as little as 4 minutes per day? If buying the DVD is too much money for you, get Dan’s book Everyday Enlightenment in which he describes the exercise routine.

2. Eat a balanced diet

We all love our hamburgers, our french fries, our milkshakes. Right? Well, how about saying ‘No’ to your wants at least once a day, and choosing a healthy alternative instead?

3. Relax

Again, you can take as little time as 10 minutes and do a relaxation exercise. You can do a Google search for the word meditation, and will find hundreds of ‘how to’ guides to this relaxing practice. Incorporate it into your day for 10 mins, and you will feel a noticeable difference in your stress and energy levels.

Want something more esoteric? I suggest you head over to Schwartz & Loehr’s web site Performance Programs, or to Matt Church’s own web site where he discussed the 5 lifestyle keys and our own chemistry.

But it really is far simpler than that, as Jack Lalanne said in his video.