Your comment comes at an interesting time for me. Through my own journey I’m now convinced that to make your brand voice be heard in a way that matters it’s critical to stand by the convictions of your vision (which I believe is the source of your smell and your feel), as opposed to following conventional wisdom or other people’s visions. And that’s not always easy, because opinions and advice come at you from all directions.

I just read up on the Cluetrain Manifesto – sounds fabulous. Reference to the authors as “irreverent visionaries” is enough for me to read it

Thanks so much for the kind mention of http://www.kevinhoffberg.com. It is indeed a quirky site. And back at you . . . wonderful blog. A few years ago I read the cluetrain manifesto which hit me like a rock . . . it’s a conversation. They have to hear your voice. They have to smell your sweat. They have to feel your breath. As much as anything, I think that’s the key to a great blog, a great site, and a great brand.

I agree that hard work is where it’s at. It’s certainly the foundation of anything worthwhile. I used “pot of gold” as a metaphor for “purpose” – as in, your pot of gold is the “mission” that you really want to pursue.

And I totally agree that sticking it out with something you believe in is hard to beat. I’d say it’s impossible to beat – it’s the ultimate. It’s not easy though, that’s for sure. Along with lots of hard work, sticking at it takes courage and conviction to get you through the times when it seems like nothing is going right. But, for me, the alternative is unimaginable. Besides, the feeling you get when something goes right is priceless.

By the way, I really like your “independent thinking” concept on your site. Bravo.

Danielle

Thanks so much for your kind words… I’m a newbie to this blogging game and I’m finding it quite bizarre! It’s such a fascinating and personal medium. I love reading other people’s posts because you can feel them pulsate with their personality. And certainly that’s true of yours!

Congratulations on all your recent offers and outcomes – fantastic, and well done!!! I hope your blogging mates get autographed copies of your book ..and I imagine that it does feel surreal. Sometimes I think being able to keep up emotionally and mentally is the hardest part. I have to work on that on a daily basis at the moment, so imagine what it’s going to be like when I’m successful!!! aaahahahhahh

And yeah, it sure is a case of perseverance. I met a guy recently who also designed a board game. He’s been working on it for 16 years…yep, that’s sixteen…and had doors slammed in his face for years. He kept at it, and as of next month his game will be on the shelves of all major department stores in Australia, and there’s talk of a TV show and various other bits and pieces. You can only imagine how he must feel. I love those stories.

I loved your PMP meets Dick Richards post, and how bout that for synchronicity. When I started writing my post about creative methods that worked for me, I just couldn’t not include the element of purpose because it’s so much a part of the story for me. And thanks for introducing me to Dick’s work – WOW!

Keep on rockin …cheerio, Dani

LOVE the article! I felt as if I were reading my own tall tale!! We have much in common. I still have to pinch myself sometimes and ask, “Is this really happneing?”

Because it all feels so surreal sometimes. But perserverance and LOTS of SWEAT (I loved that part of your story) have paid off and the seed planting is finally garnering some blooms.

Thanks for inspiring the alchemist within all of us. (Funny synchronicity, I wrote about finding your purpose on my PMP blog just last night)…maybe we’re psyhcic-blogging twins or something?

Keep on keepin’ on,
Kammie K.

I think you’re absolutely right about leveraging strengths, and I like how you describe it as “your own unique way of coming at the world”. I do think though that venturing into different areas and stretching yourself is really valuable – in part because it teaches you what your true strengths are.

And yeah, the journey of discovery is hard, but nothing worth having comes easy, and that’s why it’s so rewarding.

Thanks for your thoughts, and I’m glad you liked the “teaser”!

I enjoyed your post too – some nice insights…

Cheers/Danielle

I enjoyed the “teaser” that gets you to read the rest of the article. I’ve chased my fair share of businesses and ideas that i thought would go somewhere and i realized for myself that one must stick to and leverage strengths in order to grow… its your own unique way of coming at the world and we all walk different paths. I wrote a post about it yesterday actually…

http://commercecubes.com/publication/2006/09/did-anyone-say-leverage/

… finding your purpose takes years and sometimes even decades but its the journey of discovering these things about yourself that can be the hardest and most rewarding. Talk soon Dani,

Luc