Have you joined my incredibly non-annoying, once-in-a-while email newsletter?
This Follow Friday is inspired by, and dedicated to, all the people who piss me off – IN A GOOD WAY. There’s something about them that encourages me, causes me to work harder, run faster, live better, face down my fears, and/or believe in myself when I’m afraid I can’t.
They’re like the trainer who you hope you don’t get, because you know he or she is gonna kick your ass, but you’re so happy after the workout is over, because you’ve DONE IT.
They’re like the hard teacher who busts your ass until the last day, when he tell you he’s proud of you, and you realize it was all worth it.
They piss you off because they move you out of your comfort zone. I wholeheartedly recommend you follow every single person on this list.
So to those on this list, you piss me off. Thank you for that.
@clayman – Greg Clayman publishes The Daily, the iPad-only newspaper, part of Rupert Murdoch’s empire. Greg and I met when he was the head of Upoc, an early predecessor to Twitter. I’ve always admired his work ethic, his ability to know what’s going on before it happens, and his networking prowess. You think I talk to everyone? You should meet Greg.
@flyingwithfish and @johnnyjet – Steve Frischling and John Discala are two of the few people I know who travel more than I do. Whenever I get into a rut, I tend to read their tweets to remind myself that for as much as I’ve traveled, there’s still a whole world out there that I have yet to explore, and that gets me right bcd out of it.
@avflox – Anaiis Flox was a no-brainer-whatsoever add to this list. She’s a truly gifted writer, who writes predominately about sex and sexuality for several major outlets. I’ve met her several times. She’s a classic enigma. I love reading her, in the same way we all secretly love reading “Fleshbot,” and never tell anyone. Anaiis makes it on to this list because she reminds me to never be afraid to speak your mind about that which you’re passionate, even if other people are afraid to, or if it offends social norms. The worst part? She usually shows up in my stream as I’m sitting on a plane with an old proper woman as my seatmate, requiring me to force quit Tweetdeck lest I get a “talking to” for the entire flight. And of course, that pisses me off.
@insidehoops – I went to high school with Jeff Lechiner, and we were both sort of oddballs. Now, Jeff runs Inside Hoops, one of the top Basketball sites on the web. He works from anywhere, landing wherever he happens to be to publish. He’s another one who reminds me that a rut is just temporary, if I happen to be in one. And I’m not even that much of a basketball fan!
@nycswim @nyrr @crossfitjournal @trinityboxing, nyrrmaryruns, paulajradcliffe @usatriathlon – These should all be self-explanatory. When you need motivation to not eat that fourth slice of pizza, read these guys. They piss me off because I want that fourth slice of pizza, and I don’t have it.
@bfas reminds me to take a few seconds out of every day and do something good for someone else, whether a person, place, or animal.
@garyvee @chrisbrogan @unmarketing @jasonkeath @thebrandbuilder @samewen – These guys, all of whom I respect and admire, piss me the hell off. They constantly remind me that no matter how good we are, we’re all just one step away from humility. They’re so good at what they do that they keep me humble, because we do the same thing. They’re my yardsticks. We should all have yardsticks, both personal and professional, that tell us a) not to believe our own hype, and b) to constantly be upping our game.
@vocuschairman and @SaasCMO – Rick Rudman, CEO of Vocus, and Bill Wagner, CMO of Vocus, constantly pound one rule into my head: It ain’t about “Cool.” It’s about “Revenue.” I preach that as well. Their tweets keep me grounded when my feet lift just a little too high from the floor.
@joefernandez – Joe Fernandez is the CEO and Cofounder of Klout. Read his Twitter bio. We should all be trying to do that.
@ArmyGK – The Army Golden Knights Parachute Team reminds me that no one can do it alone. We’re all responsible for our own actions, but when you work with others, and you’re all professional, you can achieve greatness every day.
Finally, @breakingnews (who I’m sure you all follow already) reminds us that it’s not always about us. It’s about all of us as a collective. We should never forget that.
Tell me who I’m missing? Who pisses you off in the same way? Let me know, and I’ll try and include them in the next edition.
