Traveling Geeks

My Traveling Geeks Meme: WDYDWYD?

I am an enabler, helping others be successful through business education and personal relationships.

Why Do You Do What You Do?

It’s a sweetly simple question that whaps you backside your head when you actually think about the ramifications of it.

Why DO you do what you do?

Do you know?

This week, all through London and Cambridge, I’m meeting with super powers like Nokia, BT, Microsoft and a raft of early-stage technology innovators like Playfish, Digitrad, Weeworld…the list goes on.  I will be blogging about the companies that I think are the most interesting to DishyMix readers. But you know me, it’s the people that matter to me more than the technology.

Tonight at the TweetUp, a very nice young man came up to me and told me his name and company concept and said, “who here from the Traveling Geeks would I benefit most from meeting if I’m looking for funding and feedback on my business model?”  Now that’s  true entrepreneur, showing up and trying to deliver on his pre-ordained outcomes for the event. I bet he will be successful.

It’s that drive. That laser focus. The determination to make something happen that is an addictive part of the technology business. If you’ve ever listened to one of my DishyMix Podcasts, you know that I spend as much time getting to know the person behind the company as I do talking about business.

DishyMix: Success Secrets from Famous Media and Internet Business Executives

It’s that essence of the person, what makes them uniquely talented, that I love to articulate for you. So this week, I’ll be doing it via a series of blog posts and Twitters ala Tony Deifell, a Burning Man friend who invented this WDYDWYD? meme.

Let me know if you like it. It’s my first time trying outside the Playa.

This is the first in the series, of Jeff Saperstein, of the Traveling Geeks.

Jeff, explaining why he does what he does.

JD Lasica and Susan Bratton in a London Cab Leaving the TweetUp

– Posted using MobyPicture.com

Howard Rheingold and Susan Bratton at the London TweetUp #TG2009

– Posted using MobyPicture.com

Joe Neale aka @Joe from Symbian at the London TweetUp #TG2009

– Posted using MobyPicture.com

Megan Asha and Craig Newmark, Two of The Traveling Geeks

– Posted using MobyPicture.com

On my way to London and Cambridge, part of Traveling Geeks tour

Hey, here I go, the next Traveling Geeks tour

(remember, I'm more of a nerd, becoming a bit of a nonk, nerd+wonk)

first up, a Tweetup at JuJu in Chelsea

then, we do Rebooting Britain

Traveling Geeks off to London

Below is the press release of our second Traveling Geeks blogging tour to London this week.

LONDON – July 3, 2009 – Traveling Geeks is sending a group of 12 influential bloggers to the U.K. to collaborate with technology innovators and influencers in London and Cambridge from July 5 to July 11, 2009.

The mission of Traveling Geeks is to connect with technology innovators and influencers in various regions of the world, then share what they have learned through blogging, video, podcasts, meet-ups, Twitter and other social media tools.

Through idea exchange and reporting, both countries can become better informed about how to use new technologies to improve communications and productivity, more effectively promote products and services and strengthen communities for corporations, non-profits and the public sector.

The bloggers hope to learn about how the U.K. is effectively implementing emerging technologies, social media tools and e-government initiatives to better serve its citizens, as well as enhance the way government and corporations work together.
The group is a collection of writers, content creators and entrepreneurs who cover technology, business, innovation and social media.

The U.K. Traveling Geeks team includes: Meghan Asha, Renee Blodgett, Susan Bratton, Tom Foremski, Sarah Lacy, JD Lasica, Craig Newmark, Ayelet Noff, Howard Rheingold, Jeff Saperstein, Sky Schuyler and Robert Scoble.

They will participate in a Greenwich Observatory event; a NESTA-sponsored conference about moving forward in the new economy, a U.S./U.K. Speed Date with Seed Camp Winners and UK Leaders; eConsultancy Innovator’s Open Discussion; the TechCrunch Europa Awards; University of Cambridge’s Judge Business School Roundtable on Open Innovation; as well as meetings with Nokia Labs, Microsoft Labs, East of England International, Skype and others.

The bloggers will also be speaking and participating at a Reboot Britain event and the Guardian’s first Media Talk Live event, as well as organizing a TweetUp in central London on the evening of July 5, 2009, which is being sponsored by NESTA and The Conversation Group.

There will be numerous gatherings that will bring together individuals and organizations in the U.K. who are making a global impact through the innovative use of new technologies and social media tools.

Traveling Geeks was founded by Jeff Saperstein and Renee Blodgett in 2008, beginning with a blogging expedition to Israel.

News, updates and other content from the tour can be found at tg.planetlink.com, as well as on flickr, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and other social networking services.

Sponsors include: Intel, Nokia Ovi Maps, NESTA, East of England International, Skype, British Telecom, Rackspace Hosting, Digitrad, Symbian, Flip Video, and ProPhotoRental.

About TravelingGeeks

The mission of Traveling Geeks is to collaborate with technology innovators and influencers in various regions of the world, then share what we’ve learned through blogging, video, podcasts, social media tools and meet-ups. Traveling Geeks was founded by Jeff Saperstein and Renee Blodgett in 2008, beginning with a blogging expedition to Israel. Our hope is that we can inform, educate and connect on behalf of innovators who are changing the world with like-minded people on the planet. Trips are funded by sponsorships from corporations and governments.

More about Traveling Geeks here.

Backstage Pass- Howard Rheingold

Howard Rheingold, who I’ve known casually for a few years, is one of my heroes. Not only does he write well, about current social media topics (Smart Mobs) but he is an artist at heart and like me a child of the 1960s. Though Howard paints (and wears painted) shoes and gardens and does a lot of work from his idyllic Mill Valley (CA) location.

Howard will be a speaker at some of the events we’re visiting, but he’s a listener too, so dear UK native, be sure to get together with him and let him know what’s happening in London and Cambridge.

Backstage Pass- Tom Foremski

Tom Foremski is the Silicon Valley Watcher. We met up at Green’s in Fort Mason, San Francisco, to get phones working and try out some tiny Internet-enabled portable devices. Here’s what Tom is looking forward to learning on the London trip.

Why is this a short post? Well, I have to go catch the BART (train) to the airport in a few minutes. Thank goodness for fast Internet connections.

Behind the scenes with @garyvee at one of the best wine stores in the world

Gary Vaynerchuk’s dad came to the United States with nothing in his pocket. He worked for less than minimum wage and built up a business, Wine Library, that today sells $50 million a year in wine in a sizeable store in New Jersey.

Today Gary is building on top of his dad’s work and is taking the store global with a video show, Wine Library TV, that gets about 100,000 views a show. I remember when I first saw the impact he was having when I walked into a meeting at Revision 3 and the team was sitting around watching his show and drinking the wine he was talking about.

Here we visited Gary’s store and got more of how he’s using the 2010 web to bash in the skulls of his competitors. He calls it “bringing the thunder.” I call it the most innovative marketing I’ve seen on the web to date. We talked about a range of things from his dad to how he would compete with his show, if someone else had done Wine Library TV and he wanted in on the action.

This is part of our Building43 series of videos. Come over and join the community there, we’re looking for people who are fanatical about the 2010 web and who are looking to help other people and businesses get into this new world.

By the way, I’m a huge fan because Gary has never mislead me and he’s very willing to tell a CEO his/her wine is crap to his/her face (I’ve seen him do it, even after the CEO threw us a party).

Hope  you enjoy, tomorrow Rocky (behind the camera producer at Building43) and me are headed to London to find out what’s happening on the other side of the pond with regards to the 2010 web. Join us on Sunday night at a Tweetup in London.