The Authentic Eccentric

One of the oldest blog memes is the “25 things about me”. I’ve always generally avoided it, not out of some odd fear of stalking or social engineering, but more from the “not enough time to write what I’d like anyway” perspective. Now that I have a little more time to focus on blogging again, I thought I’d bow to conventional wisdom and share a bit more.

Of course, I wouldn’t be either authentic or eccentric if I did it in the same old way, so, instead, here are 25 ways in which I am authentically eccentric:

1. I believe people get what they accept for themselves, often because they think they have no other option.
2. I love helping people uncover what they’re really good at and helping them turn it into a business.
3. I believe we are all here for a reason, and since I don’t believe in universal mistakes, I assume that everyone I meet is perfect for their journey.
4. I’m an introvert who prefers reading and research to small talk at parties.
5. I get impatient with willfully ignorant people (such as people who see the world in black & white terms, ignoring the spectrum of colors in between).
6. I think about business models and streams of income versus keeping up with the Jones’ or what’s on tv.
7. I get all kinds of excited by technology I believe has the power to transform society, like blogs, community websites, wikis, splunking, digg and social networking (friend me while you’re there!).
8. I think open book businesses married to social endeavors, like Habitat for Humanity’s ReStore, are sexy.
9. I’m an enthusiastic starter but get easily bored by mindless repetition or people who are unwilling to make decisions.
10. I think the internet has the potential to solve broad scope issues such as poverty, terrorism and education, if people could understand what was in it for them by leveraging it to do so.
11. I don’t work well with people who are afraid to question authority or to create beneficial change for themselves.
12. I sleep at odd intervals due to health issues; consequently I can be found answering emails at very strange hours.
13. I am equally comfortable in suits with heels as I am sandals and hawaiian shirts.
14. I’m better at participating on other blogs than I am about updating my own, but I’m working on improving my posting rates.
15. Many of my conference calls are held pond-side in my backyard.
16. I’ve never actually drank a cup of coffee and much prefer a cup of hot tea, thank you very much.
17. My favorite city in the world is Copenhagen; if the weather were nicer, I’d consider immigrating in a heartbeat.
18. I love investing in other people’s success and seeing them get what they want. I’d rather do that than talk about myself, which means I seldom spend time marketing myself, yet my client list never gets smaller.
19. Reading is my passion – between the internet and a broad spectrum of consulting clients, I’m priviledged to get to spend my lifetime learning new things. That is why I’m strongly drawn to coaching and teaching – it’s my way of giving back.
20. Chicago Cubs all the way – I grew up going to games in Chicago, I can’t help it.
21. I like to dance in my chair while I’m online, but if I’m in a meeting, I’ll often get up and move around because I think better on my feet.
22. I once knowingly posed for glamour type photos and then wouldn’t show them to anyone.
23. I never use makeup, and I’ve stopped dying my hair.
24. I’ve been solicited as a hand and foot model.
25. I like to debate with facts and statistics, not emotions and tears.

There you have it. Proof certain I’m an odd duck.