Why I Am Not Afraid To Think Different
Filed under: Domain News, Random Stuff, business development
I have had people tell me I am a bit of a goof ball because I approach things a little different. I do not post the same thing all the other domain bloggers post or people say that I am nuts for saying invest in .COMs, .NETs, and .ORGs but then I go and build a business on .MEs.
Well, it is all about thinking different, most of the very successful people I know have always thought differently, they tend to have quirks and they tend to say or do things that people think are just a bit odd because, in the end, they did not think of it themselves first.
Most startup companies that do great things are successful because they were different, their founders were different, their idea took an old idea and made it something new. People said no way but by looking past that and seeing what could be (having vision) they succeeded in showing people that they need to quit looking back and start looking forward, or thinking different.
Well, I have a long history of being just a bit different and people telling me so at the time but I always felt my direction was going the right way even if I had headed down a different fork in the road than the person that went long before me.
A few examples of where I was a little "different":
I road Freestyle BMX (back in the day, mid to late 80s) before it was part of the multibillion dollar alternative sports industry. On a domaining note, I own BmxFreestyleBikes.com:)
When my mentor at AT&T told me to focus on something other than the Internet because it was a fad like the CB radio, well I did not listen. Good thing huh...
While at ATT I was asked to work on the first VoIP network team, all the 30 year Bellhead guys said get away, it is not going to work, you are wasting your time. Well I made it through the several years of telecom layoffs without ever losing a job because VoIP took off and grew. Heard of Skype or Google Voice, yep VoIP services.
In other words, I am ok with people questioning why I choose to do things a certain way that may not be the same path they took because in time a different approach may be needed for people just entering a certain area.
The point here is at times a different fork in the road may be needed to find success. In many cases the people that came before had a different set of circumstances that led to their success. But in most cases it took someone thinking differently, its ok, be different. Build that .TV or that .ME. If you cannot afford that 100K .COM find a new way to build your business.
Bruce you are certainly different!
@Chef Patrick – I knew I could rely on you for a good comment:) I was hoping some fun comments would come out of it.
I was once told by my Harvard MBA boss it was a waste of time to learn Spanish. I now live in South Florida, my wife is from Colombia and three of my last four high $XXX domain sales were Spanish.
I guess birds of a feather flock together… who the heck wants to be like everyone else? Maybe it’s guts, maybe it’s intuition, or maybe we’re just nuts?! In the end it certainly pays to listen to that inner voice and take a different path sometimes. If more people had the nerve to “listen” to that guidance, then they’d probably have a lot more success. At any rate, I hear you Bruce… keep blazing that trail. Just look out for that TREE! Doh, keep you head up man!
@Leonard – That is classic, those are the kinda stories I love. Good stuff.
@John – Your a good man John, yep, that is something that is hard to explain, it is great to think different but you need to see that there is a path, not just think different for the sake of it. But if you feel that gut feeling that you are onto something there are times to just not question it.
I see 3 roads –
1. Not doing anything = Zero to Zero success.
2. Taking someone else idea and make it better = Average to High success.
3. Invent your own idea = Zero to Very Very High success.
Great post bruce…
@Arbel – Nice way to lay it out, thanks!
It’s good to be different, but it doesn’t make sense to tell people to do one thing (like invest in .com) while doing something else (investing in me). It’s like a financial advisor telling clients about investing in stocks while socking all of his money away in gold. If what you are doing makes sense to you, then you should tell your readers why you are doing it and stand behind it. As they say, practice what you preach.
Most wealthy people didn’t become wealthy by following others. However, most also didn’t publicly say one thing while privately doing something else.
@Jacob -
Ahhh, you miss the point or have not read my posts on the difference in buying domains as investments and buying them for development. Big difference, and that is the problem most domainers make. I have did a couple posts on that. I am very clear on my thinking there. I admit freely that .COM, .NET, and .ORG hold more inherent value but you can develop a .ME or .TV just fine if you have the proper strategy.
I do practice what I preach, have talked about it many times. Feel free to contact me if you want some links to the posts.
@Jacob – Sorry, thought I would point you to the posts here:
http://brucemarler.com/focus-on-what-could-be-and-not-what-is/
http://brucemarler.com/buying-domains-for-investment-vs-development/
Let me know if you still agree with your comment, its about stepping out of the domainer mindset and more the pure build a business mindset.
Not knocking you, just saying your comment is not valid based on previous posts I did. I do practice exactly what I preach.
This is great.
I only found fault with the title of the article. Not being afraid is not something you have to say if you are a visionary. Also, buying domains other then .com is a matter of evolution, so it appears that you are more advanced then the others, someone to be taken as an example…
Change is less like a disruptive wave washing away castles in the sand and more like an opportunity for some great surfing…
Angie
It’s nice to be different, people might not understand you today but, when you’re successful, everyone follows you.
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Bruce,
I always enjoy your posts. Unlike some domain bloggers, you don’t parrot the party line or simply repeat the same hot story.
Of course, we all know that .com is the preferred TLD, but I like the way that you keep an open mind about other possibilities.
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In HS, my mother recommended I take a typing course. My response, “Mom, I’m not going to be a secretary”. I was right, I’m didn’t become a secretary – but thanks to Bill Gates and Al Gore – I type more than a normal secretary. Mom’s know best.
Yep….I get the “you think differently than anyone else I know”….alot
@Angie – Funny enough, originally the title was simply Think Different.
@TechFilipino – Not sure anyone will follow me:) But you are correct, a good portion of the business leaders of new companies I know were questioned in the beginning and then became leaders because of the path they took.
@Ms. Domainer – One word, Thanks!
@George Pickering – I am cracking up at your Al Gore/Bill Gates comment:)
Bruce, I don’t think you and I can ever work together…
You’re too odd, too innovative, too wiley (who else would get hundreds of thousands of dollars of free domain industry advertising by wisely choosing to promote a few .me domains publicly?)
Me, I walk that straight line, punch a clock, put on my monkey suit every day, and follow what the old school domainers say to help me….ummm… not make money… ummmm… wait…
*Transformation occurs*
Of course the comments above about myself and how I feel about your thinking is farcical…
It absolutely feels great to see a “New Domain Guard” being formed with your thinking and determination to win.
Count me in, along with a lot of other free thinking domainers who quietly work hard every day to change the status quo.
Bruce, you`r the strange bird, doing well on the way you choosed. Many of us don`t like risk. . Very human. But when the foolish time comes it can be your ex to follow.
I dared to buy xqs.me, xalt.me, naturise.me etc and it feels good to own them.
Good luck and dont change your style, please
@Stephen – Thanks much. You walk a straight line, sheesh, we all know better:) And the free advertising is a secret, let people keep thinking I was crazy, it is ok with me:)
@Nagger – At this point in my life the chances of me changing are pretty slim. I appreciate the support very much.