Becky is one of the applicants to Seth’s Alternative MBA program, and probably the most visible applicant belonging to Triiibes. She is hugely motivated and exceedingly persistent. (I am 100% certain that she will, in the end, get exactly what she wants. And, well—I’m rooting for her!) Because of the uncertain nature of this undertaking, her goal is two-fold: She is raising funds to participate in Seth’s Alternative MBA, and if that doesn’t work out—for any reason—she is raising the same funds for her small business road trip, an absolutely fantastic concept that I’ll explain in a moment. Those who contribute funds (at her Fundable page) should be willing to support either project, but I assure you they are both incredibly worth it.

Becky’s road trip just blows my mind, and I’m hoping against hope that she’ll come through Austin on her way. She’s going into rural areas to film and write about a variety of different small businesses to find out what they’re doing and how it’s working for them. Ultimately she’ll use this information to teach small business owners how to use the internet to connect with their tribes, their communities and other businesses in the name of helping them grow. (I’m all about growth, as you well know.) If you’d like to be one of Becky’s stops and let her showcase your business, contact her here!

It’s so important to me that we “use our powers for good”, and Becky is totally aligned with that. She’s all about using the work she does to empower other people to change the world. The stories she tells are astonishingly touching and inspiring, and I’ve been choked up more than once reading her blog (in Triiibes, and on her public sites). She has overcome some hardcore obstacles to be where she is today, and I see her going much farther. Donations, resources, encouragement—ANYTHING you can provide to her, two bucks sitting fermenting in your PayPal account, kind words, networking connections—please take a moment and give her that tiny bit of help. She appreciates it, and I know I do.

Becky’s Alternative MBA application lens is here, and her fundraising page is here. Read her stories. Support her if you can. (Regardless of whether you have a single dime to your name, if you’re reading this, you CAN send her a note and tell her what she’s doing is amazing—BECAUSE IT IS.)

I don’t have a lot of readers, but the ones I do have are spectacular people. So I know you’re up for this. And thank you so much for caring. I love you guys.

For whatever it’s worth, Becky—my vote of confidence is all yours, many times over. You can do this thing. I have no doubt whatsoever that you WILL.

You know the thing where you’re having trouble seeing something for yourself, but you help someone else with the same problem and suddenly it’s crystal clear? That’s what’s going on with me. So regardless of whether anyone gets anything out of this—me going on and on as if I know what I’m talking about, which I assure you I DON’T—it’s hugely benefiting me, and my process, and probably my application too.

...Which is awesome.

So… here we go!

The first thing I did was use the flood of initial motivation that I felt when I read through the Alternative MBA lens. I actually got a late start, but the one thing I did right was this: Once I had made my decision, and recognized that motivation, I acted. I knew that if I waited too long, I wouldn’t be in the zone anymore. Venture forth!

I focused on Seth’s questions… And started scribbling.

I knew I wanted to take a multimedia approach if I could. The more media, the more time, but I felt (and still feel) that images and video are going to represent me better than text by itself… and they’d be more exciting for me to look at, in the end, which is sometimes a great reason all by itself. ;}

I grabbed the nearest paper (fresh printer paper, and backs of other things) and emptied out my brain. I wanted to be completely authentic, and I didn’t want to forget anything. Here’s what I scribbled:

• Give yourself some time. Walk way from it and do something else, then come back and fill in the bits you remembered. Give your brain a break—don’t just push constantly if something’s not working. Do some Shiva Nata or yoga and get a glass of water and see what your unconscious comes up with when you’re not looking.
• Just be real. Don’t spend a lot of energy trying to figure out what you’re supposed to say. Reach down deep inside yourself and find out what you really want. (If you find out you don’t want THIS, that’s okay. If you find out you do… BONUS!)
• If you’re having trouble seeing yourself clearly, think about other people in your life who have complimented you, or reacted to you in some way. I bet you have some kind words stored up for a rainy day, and they might serve to remind you how awesome you are when you’re having trouble getting it. Sometimes we see ourselves through fuzzy lenses that don’t look so good. Find a way to see yourself clearly. You might be pleasantly surprised by what shows up.

My next step is to start typing out a working document based on my notes, so that I can easily tweak and move text around. And then I think I’m going to start DRAWING —because so far, that’s part of my plan. ;}

Thank you for doing this with me! It’s like an !MBA application party. For which I’d totally make raw zucchini-lasagna. (Dude, all this typing makes me hungry…)

Don’t get all codependent about it… but DO YOUR DAMNEDEST.

This could be a wonderful opportunity that changes your life and the direction of your career—but it’s not the end of the world if it doesn’t happen. “Once-in-a-lifetime” events come along twice a month if you’re open to them, and paying attention. This may be your time, but if not, don’t sweat it! Make the journey one worth traveling, enjoy yourself, learn something new, and let it go.

Do NOT take that as advice not to do your very best work on this application. What’s the point in putting forth the effort if you don’t make the result spectacular? You have a chance to do something amazing here, not only because of the doors it might open but because of the growth that will happen—in you. Making the journey worth traveling means doing your best work and helping yourself grow along the way. Hard work, discomfort, reaching beyond our preconceived limits, these create growth. Take a good hard look at yourself and make sure you’re putting forth an effort that’s really worth your time—you’ll thank yourself later.

There’s something inside you that is just incomparable. So push yourself.

This is not a race. This is not a boxing match.

This isn’t as much a competition as you might think. Sure, some people will get to go and some won’t. But Seth has built cooperative effort right into his application process—and you’re not going to gain ground by keeping this to yourself or trying to sneak ahead of the pack. Tell your friends and colleagues what’s going on—offer to help them look over their applications to make sure they didn’t miss anything. (I’m sure they’d do the same for you!) And support them. Some of them will be brilliant minds like Becky Blanton, who need to raise some money in order to do this thing. Most of them will need a little emotional encouragement. Do what you can to help them. We’re all in this together.

I’m not freaking kidding here: If you really want this, do your research.

If you’re not terribly familiar with Seth Godin and his exploits, I’d spend some time reading his blog and looking at similar events he’s put together in the past. If you’re a member of Triiibes, you have an insanely useful resource for helping you put together a spectactular Alternative MBA application, so you should be using it. If you’re not a member of Triiibes, Seth still has a huge body of material that’s completely public and completely free. Check out his blog, his Squidoo lenses, take a look at Google Blog Search (and the regular web search, for that matter). Read Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us (it’s great, and a quick read if you’re not stopping to bawl in visceral recognition every other chapter like I did) and then take a look at the Tribes Casebook and the Tribes Q&A—all free, all great resources for changing the way you think and getting an idea of what this is all about.

Seth HAS talked about the decisions he’s made in regards to hiring and internships, and that should inform you here. Find that stuff, and keep it on your list of things to take into account while you’re putting your application together. It could make the difference between getting to participate and missing out. You might think that Triiibes members have a huge advantage, but they really don’t—Seth may know them better than a stranger off the street (well, in a purely intarwubs sort of way), but you have access to just about the same knowledge they do, if you try. You can SHOW him who you are by submitting a great application. Be cool, and don’t kid yourself. You can do this.

Whew. Okay, now for the good stuff. My notes! Let me, uh, get those together and get back to you. ;}

Chances are, next week I will have a beautiful and complex understanding of exactly what this thing is and how to eat it—but right now, I’m stumped!

[Edit: Thank you George!! It’s purple kohlrabi, and it sounds like it will make a delicious stir fry…!]

I have absolutely NO idea what criteria Seth uses to review applications, other than the information he’s given freely already. These are my opinions on what would make a remarkable !MBA application, but I could be completely wrong. I suggest that you take my advice with a grain (or a bucket) of salt and go with your gut—it’ll steer you true.

Please let my ideas serve as inspiration for your own, and create your own process (don’t just use mine). If you do everything exactly the way I’m doing it, chances are it won’t work nearly as well. Go with something that really represents your individual flair and personality. I’ll do my best to give vague, variety-encouraging instructions, but I’m going to show you exactly what I’m working on, so keep in mind that you’re YOU (and I’m ME) and we’re both better off that way.

And seriously, guys: I might make mistakes! I am a flawed human being, and I will probably make mistakes. Don’t just take my word for things—look them up yourself and make your own judgment on them. I can botch an application with the best of them (and this one isn’t like most). ;}

Have a little fun, would you? Stick to Seth’s guidelines, but put some happy juice into the process. “Application” can be a stodgy, preconceptions-kinda-word, but it doesn’t have to be a chore. You’re trying to do something amazing—so make your experience amazing right now.

Later or tomorrow (depending on today’s tasklist) I’ll post my first batch of notes in their entirety. I’m sure they’ll be a complete pain to decipher, but I’ll try to explain my process and you can take from it what you will.

So read through Seth’s post and the !MBA lens one more time (or maybe three) and start thinking about the questions he’s asking. What do you want to say about yourself? What really means something to you? And take a few notes—you’ll need ‘em!

PS. As you already may have guessed, I’m using !MBA as shorthand for “Alternative MBA”, or “not MBA”. I think Mike made this up, but someone please correct me if I’m wrong. (Can’t hurt to give him a free link just in case, right?)

...In which I go on for six minutes about Seth’s !MBA program and why you should sign up, especially if you’re in a better position to do so than I am. I’m not shilling for anyone—the thing is functionally free, but involves some courage and determination. I feel very strongly about this (as you will see), and I think more people need to know about it.

• Seth’s post about the Alternative MBA
• Alternative MBA information & application instructions

I’ll be posting more about this soon—I’ve had a very interesting 48 hours or so, and I’m working on my own Application Of Greatness (so I’ll probably tell you about that, too).

Go read about the program. Don’t put it off—the application deadline is December 14th, so you want to have something great put together by then. There’s also an informational call you can connect with on the 4th (Thursday!), so best to go take a look right now.

Whew, what a week! Already!

Great posts elsewhere about Seth’s Alternative MBA:
Ed Welch’s “...Great Opportunity for a few Remarkable People” @ Tribe Building
CoCreatr’s “Ready to change your life? (not MBA)” @ Purple Pointr
Jonathan Morrow’s “Will You Be Seth Godin’s Apprentice?” @ CopyBlogger

In case you needed a reminder: Paul Durban is a design god. Would somebody syndicate Bolofeesh already? ;}

Previous posts about the Tribes Q&A ebook:
The Tribes Q&A (by the Triiibe)
The Tribes Q&A (teeny addendum)
Tribes Q&A on SWIMBERT
The Tribes Casebook (courtesy of Triiibes)

Pouring ideas through my fingers and into the universe.

Making people THINK.

Doing something so crazy I might throw up.

Seeing a response, knowing it might WORK.

Having faith in an idea, having to wait for results.

Believing in people.

Believing in myself.

Being sure in the face of uncertainty.

Reaching out. Making. Building.

I’m mostly done, but still working (with some ambitious ideas about what the final results will be). If y’all would do me the favor of feedback and glitch alertment if encountered, I would be very grateful. And if you have any wacky requests… well, now would be the time. ;}

This morning I had a bonafide revelation about videoblogging and Toastmasters. I also joined Vloggerheads on a bit of a whim (though the serendipity of Tom Guarriello belonging to Triiibes played a large part). They’ve been very warm and welcoming so far, so we’ll see what comes of that. I admit it… I had fun playing with video this afternoon. It’s been tempting me for so long—and now I actually have a good reason to add it to my repertory!

Think of it. Public speaking without waiting for a Toastmasters slot! Not the same, but not freaking bad. Let’s see how much practice time I can muster! ;}

PS. Way more entertaining than my paltry vloggage…
PPS. Unless this counts, of course…