Monthly Archives: July 2011

Non-Profit Hunger Relief Organization: Rock-Can-Roll

Yesterday, I was fortunate to have a face to face meeting with a brother serial entrepreneur, Andrew Hazen.

Amongst a slew of powerful projects and businesses Andrew is involved in, the common theme is “humanitarian” and eager to help “people”.

Please have a look at this project and GET INVOLVED:

rock CAN roll, Inc.,® is a volunteer, 501c3, non-profit, hunger relief organization and think tank. We collaborate with rock concerts, schools, corporations, and private individuals to collect healthy & nutritious non-perishable food for distribution to local agencies and into the hands of children, seniors and families who live with hunger and in poverty.

Please visit their web site and learn all about it!

http://www.rockcanroll.org/

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Norm’s Suggested Readings for the Summer

Hey All!

As I wish everyone a happy, healthy & social summer ahead, I wanted to offer my suggestions for what to  “Read”  on the beach or the hammock.  I enjoyed these tremendously and HIGHLY recommend them!

  • The Thank You Economy – Gary Vay-Ner-Chuk
    • Social media explained by a guy that’s been there, done that!  A must read for anyone who wants to remain (or become) current and relevant
  • Anything You Want – Derek Sivers
    • You will not find a successful entrepreneur more eager to help other entrepreneurs than Derek.  He is one of the most unique, generous, creative and successful minds of our time.  Read it now.
  • The Money Class – Suze Orman
    • Read this book if you want to take charge of your own personal finances!
  • The Tipping Point – Malcolm Gladwell
    • The tipping point is that magic moment when an idea, trend, or social behavior crosses a threshold, tips, and spreads like wildfire
  • Trust Agents – Chris Brogan/Julien Smith
    • This is a great journey through the social media jungle and how best to exploit it
  • Viral Loop – Adam Penenberg
    • Learn how all of the “house-hold name” social media and internet companies grew virally.  Lots of great insight & fun!
  • The Facebook Effect – David Kirkpatrick
    • While the movie was entertaining, this book is the “REAL” deal of the beginnings and inner-workings of Facebook.
  • The Outliers – Malcolm Gladwell
    • A great explanation, with examples, of how break-out, exceptional people became that way.  Get outside the Norm:-)
  • Ice T – Ice: A Memoir of Gangster Life And Redemption From South Central To Hollywood
    • Real Talk by a REAL Dude!  He’s the ONLY Gangsta that is adored and loved by teenagers and parents alike!
  • The Icon The Memoir – Flavor Flav
    • If you want to truly get in the head of turmoil and hardship and understand the life of one of the most fascinating “Icons” of our time,  and find out what makes him “tick” (no pun intended:-) you will squirmish through each page of this book
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Word of Mouth in Social Media

I played a fun game with myself and listed all of the ways that I spend my money.  When I listed my car, the restaurants I frequent, the wine that I drink, the beer flavor of the month I enjoy, the style shirts I buy, the movies I see and the concerts I buy tickets for, the incredible fact is that EACH of these purchasing decisions were in some shape or form,  based on friends’ suggestions.

More interesting is that when thinking about this, it was more often than not that I would *not* buy other products or services due to experiences shared by friends in my social circles.

It is no wonder that ad display click rates on the internet, especially on social media sites like Facebook and MySpace are so rarely clicked on.   We do not like to be interrupted and we do not typically appreciate in your face advertising campaigns and being told to buy products and services by people that we do not know, let alone trust.

What are your thoughts?  What influences you?

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