Reinvent Yourself: Be Generous (2/7)

I apologize for the brevity and any differences in style you may observe in today's post. I am writing this from my mobile device as electricity has been off in my area for over 48 hours now.

Yesterday, we started the discussion about reinventing ourselves by talking about 'Connect'. In summary, to 'connect' is to leverage social media and other platforms to interact with people beyond our immediate social circle. We can learn by reading blogs or taking online courses; we can influence by creating content for others to connect with, and we will grow immensely in the process.

Today, we will talk about generosity.

Seth says, "The new economy often involves trading in things that don't cost money. There's no incremental cost in writing an essay, composing a song or making an introduction. Since it doesn't cost money to play, we have the ability to give before we get... Tribes of talented individuals who are connected, mutually trustful and supported by one another are in a position to create a movement, to deliver items of value, to move ideas forward faster than any individual ever could."

The first thing that came to mind when I read the above was Wikipedia. Solely funded by donations from well-wishers across the world and based on a community of individuals who are willing to share information and edit articles for free - Wikipedia has grown to overtake powerhouses such as Encyclopedia Brittanica and Microsoft Encarta. Mofesola Babalola might have an issue with their not-for-profit model, but the fact remains that Wales and his team have proven that you can make a huge difference simply by being GENEROUS.

Do you make beautiful graphic designs? Make some, stamp them with your name or twitter handle and contribute them to sharing websites; put them on your blog, upload them to Facebook. Do you write beautifully? Don't go 'gaga' when people reproduce your work, so long as they acknowledge you as author; in fact - ask blogs to copy your pieces! Do you sing with an angelic voice? Record a track and upload to HulkShare for free!

Get your name out there! Be generous!

Koye.

PS:
I will update this post to adequately reflect paraphrases from Seth once I have Internet access from a computer.


Koye-Ladele M.
www.koyegbeke.blogspot.com