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Feedback makes the world go round

Seriously, when was the last time you remember doing something meaningful and not receiving feedback along the way? Pouring countless hours into education (feedback = grades). Working passionately at your job (feedback = response from customers or users). Athletic goals (feedback = binary). We all crave and need feedback in our lives. It brings meaning. It keeps us moving.

At Bolder, we're working tirelessly to build a place for you to discover new experiences that improve your world. Meaningful, fun experiences. It is absolutely imperative that you get awesome feedback on Challenges you take part in.

Feedback on Bolder = Challenge Updates.

We'll send you an email once/week with all the Updates to Challenges you've completed. Revolutionary technology. No. Something we think you'll truly enjoy in your Bolder experience. Yes.

Why? Because people & businesses are doing cool stuff on Bolder! Each update is inherently unique and action-oriented. For example:

- Our business partner, Oboz Footwear, just planted 180 trees because of people's hikes. They made sure to update folks when the seedlings were planted.

- Lots of regular people are starting Challenges on Bolder these days. They're using updates in the same fashion as businesses. Nate keeps us updated on the 1,000s of miles we've caused him to ride, Annie shares her final donation to NPR, and Galen lets us tag along for his bone marrow registry mailing. We're still waiting for TheBeerRunner to run his beer mile :)

If you've completed a Challenge this past week, you should be getting some fresh-baked Updates in your inbox right about now...

If you haven't completed your first Challenge yet, get involved. And as always, if you don't see one you like, create your first Challenge today.

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We leave you with this quote:

"The types of activities which people all over the world consistently report as most rewarding - that is, which make them feel best - involve a clear objective, a need for concentration, a lack of distractions, clear and immediate feedback on progress toward the objective, and a sense of challenge - the perception that one's skills are adequate, but just adequate, to cope with the task at hand."

Reading this and have feedback/ideas, please don't hesitate! [email protected]

#Bolder Is #Product Features

Carol Sanford: It’s time to re-imagine business success

If you care about what a successful business looks like in the future, pay attention to Carol Sanford. We met Carol in person a few weeks ago and were really impressed by her ideas. Accomplished author, speaker, past Bolder Influencer and deep thinker, Carol is on a mission to re-imagine business success and help businesses become both profitable and responsible.

When we think about corporate social responsibility today, we tend to think in terms of add-on programs that focus on reducing the negative impacts of doing business. Carol reminds us that we need to think much bigger if we want to enact real, lasting change. Her new book, The Responsible Business, argues that in order for businesses to be truly successful, they must go beyond being “less bad” and strive to meaningfully improve the communities, ecosystems and governments within which they reside. In other words, responsibility can’t be bolted on. It must be built into a business’s DNA.

Carol calls on businesses to measure the effects of their decisions on all the company’s stakeholders – employees, suppliers, customers, the community and the planet, suggesting not just a triple bottom line but a quintuple one. When businesses understand themselves a part of this living system of relationships, everyone benefits.

It's a lofty goal, but we were amazed at the companies that Carol has helped become responsible. She’s worked with Fortune 500 brands and start-ups alike, and her book is filled with success stories of companies who have transformed themselves from the inside out, to the benefit of employees, communities and the planet as well as to their bottom line.

The most inspiring part of Carol’s message is that any company can be responsible, from manufacturing companies to retail and high tech. It’s a message that we’ve taken to heart as we continue to grow Bolder. We’ve always believed that it’s not only possible to be both profitable and responsible; if we’re serious about building an awesome future, it’s absolutely necessary.

What makes a business responsible in your eyes? Are businesses making progress? We'd love to hear your ideas below.

#Bolder Asks

New Challenges - Unplug

This week, Bolder Challenges want you to try something you don't normally do in our connected lives: get off the computer. That's right, Benny Crosby's challenge wants you to close your laptop, unplug your desktop, and do something else. But what to do? Well, why not go outside? While you're out there, make sure to protect yourself from the sun and tell Nature's Gate all about it on their "Outsmart the Sun" Challenge. Maybe even try Jungmaven's Challenge to water your plants using reclaimed water. Either way, you'll get hooked up with sweet rewards, just for cutting that electronic cord tethering you to your desk.

#Bolder Is

New Challenges - Share because you care

For the week of July 4th, 2011

Just like that, the beautiful days of summer are upon us. Time to get outside and enjoy it while it lasts. Our Challenges this week encourage you to get outside and eat healthy, and to share it with the rest of us! Weleda wants to know your favorite travel spot, Alec S. wants to see the awesome pictures you take from your adventures, and to help power you through all the fun times, why not share your favorite healthy lunch with ECOlunchbox in 7 words? Tell us your plans, and you never know, you might just inspire another person to have some fun too.

45 pictures from KEEN's recess Challenge

Keen just Challenged people to share their next recess adventure. And share they did! People responded in force and with some really amazing pictures.

Take a minute and look at these 45 pictures submitted with actions for KEEN's Challenge. We promise, you'll feel a little more relaxed after you flip through them.

Link to Challenge photo album

Here's a preview...

#Bolder Is

Challenge reminders make doing cool stuff easier

It's a busy world, and it's hard to remember everything we have to do, let alone the things we actually want to do.

On Bolder, more Challenges are going live everyday, and we're seeing some truly creative ones with an increasing 'degree of difficulty' (DOD). Take Karol Gajda's 'sing karaoke' Challenge, for example. He'll lend $10 to Kiva.org for every action (up to $1,000). Yes we want in! But we can't break into song sitting at work... or can we?

Solution = Challenge reminders.

An incredibly simple feature, but very powerful. On the Challenge page, just set the date you want to receive a reminder e-mail to complete the Challenge. When that day rolls around, log your hilarious karaoke experience, and Karol lends another $10 to Kiva. Sweet!

Reminders can be used for all Challenges, easy and hard. Check out a few of the newest ones today. And as always, if those don't inspire you, create your very own!

David takes a fresh approach to his commute

by David Stewart

I became a runner when I got my first iPhone. I had always run casually but using the iPhone and the Runkeeper app to track my runs made me in to a die hard runner. Just seeing how long I had run and what my pace was motivation to go farther and faster. I went from running *maybe* 20 miles a month to easily knocking out 100 in a month (117 in a month is my personal best). I also have a great running partner in my best friend Nick Fedoroff. We keep each other running even in the dead of winter.

I had run to work a couple times but never home from work. It's a great trail through Hoyt Arboretum and Arlington Heights. Going home was definitely harder than running to work. The initial climb is brutal (892 feet). I had also broken my arm snowboarding so I had a cast on as well. I knew that at the top of the hill a beautiful view would be my reward.

Here is the route: http://runkeeper.com/user/Skylark/activity/32405564.

I run because I am spiritually, emotionally, and physically recharged by it. The sound of the trail under my feet, my breathing, and the scenery whizzing by puts me in a Zen state that can't be replicated. Much different than my usual bus ride home with headphones on and my Mac on my lap.

I plan on doing it again at least once a week and even both ways. It's a great way to start and end the day. And with those hills, it's great training.

The Bolder challenge was a great jumpstart to an idea that had been percolating in my head for a while. Getting feedback on it and knowing it might motivate others is great.

Challenge: Make your next commute human powered from Atayne Action link: http://bolder.is/action/21434/

[We love to highlight cool & inspiring stories from the people using Bolder. This is one of them. Let us know if you have a story we should feature [email protected]]

#Bolder Is

What happens when a Bolder Challenge ends?

As we mentioned in our recent product update, we've been focused on closing the loop when a Challenge ends. But what exactly does that mean?

Since Influencers (Challenge starters) put something on the line when they start a Challenge, and Challenge takers put in time to complete a Challenge, we want to ensure you get an update with the end result. A meaningful takeaway, if you will. With the release of User Challenges, we've seen some truly fun and creative closing loop updates coming through. A few of note:

- Mat R embarked upon a journey of eating veggie for 38 days - Nate R began his journey to bike thousands of miles & blogs his results - Tommy L donated $21 to San Francisco Bike Coalition - Galen T submited his bone marrow registry kit (with video)

We wanted to point out the above examples out because a) they're fun and inspiring & b) we see this as just the beginning of a new kind of interaction: A fun, meaningful interaction fostered online that motivates us to do a single, offline action together.

We are excited because we think you can have this type of interaction with your friends, community, and favorite businesses. We'll keep you updated on the creative ways we see people using the Bolder platform and remember, start your Challenge!

Bolder's Next Step: Recognizing Influence.

From the beginning, Bolder set out to find innovative methods to motivate positive action in the real world. Initially, we saw an opportunity to help businesses and brands use their online influence to inspire offline positive action. What we’ve realized is that influence exists within individuals towards their networks of friends and family, as much as it does within businesses and brands towards their fans and followers.

We're very excited to announce that we're taking a big step starting today in launching the Beta version an entirely new Bolder feature: the ability for anyone (and everyone) to start a Challenge.

A quick bit of history: From day one, we've focused on the concept of influence and how it can inspire positive action. Every individual has influence on their friends, family, and even the broader populous in some capacity. Have you ever stopped to think about your influence on the world? What an individual chooses to influence, or motivate/encourage, can really be anything – some people influence friends to run more, some influence family to spend time together, some influence people to be kinder, to recycle, to get involved, to think before you act, to smile more.

As Bolder has grown our team and refined our product, we realized that woven into the core of our founding principles was the ability to allow anyone and everyone to leverage their influence and inspire action. Now is the time to unlock the true power of Bolder and open it up to everyone.

We wanted to share some tangible examples of fun and creative uses of the platform so here are some awesome User Challenges. Anytime you want to motivate people, we hope you start a Challenge on Bolder. Just make a Challenge with a fun & meaningful action, put something on the line as the reward, and invite people. It really is that simple!

A. Do you have a blog or social media presence? Use Bolder to turn your posts into tangible actions that are fun for your fans.

Example: The Beer Runner, out of Milwaukee, is running and drinking a beer 365 days in a row.

TBR's naturally grown quite a following and blogs here. He challenged his fans to join him in his run streak by 'Running a mile at least 5 consecutive days.' If 30 people do it, TBR will run a beer mile (quite a unique reward :). So far 62 people have joined in and started a run streak of their own. This likely wouldn’t have happened without this Challenge. Cool!

B. Are you a person with a passion or an interest and friends you can email to join you?

Examples: Both of these two care about something. Katie cares about keeping in touch with loved ones via snail mail. Nate cares about getting back in shape through biking.

Katie H - 'Write a letter to your parents.' If 50 people do it, Katie is going to buy a surprise flight home to see her parents (p.s. you should take this Challenge now!)

Nate R - 'For every mile you bike, he'll bike 2.' Vikki F just posted a 1,300 mile ride, so Nate has some work to do!

C. Are you making a donation? Spread the word & make it more exciting by getting your friends/family involved.

Examples: Annie F - Annie wanted to make a donation to NPR, so she asked her friends to 'Listen to NPR and share what they've heard.' For every action Annie's donating a dollar to NPR.

Tommy L - Tommy wanted to make a donation to SF Bike Coalition, so he asked his friends to 'Ride their bike to work.' Tommy ran his Challenge on bike to work day, and for every action logged, donated $1 do SFBC.

D. Are you competitive with your friends? Make a personal Challenge between just a few friends/family members.

Example: We noticed that a subset of our friends had been talking about doing a big run on the local set of stairs. Matt decided to see if he could turn the talk into action by posting the Challenge: 'Run 30 times up/down the Waller street stairs.' If 5 people do it, Matt will run 50 times up/down. Both relatively hard physical efforts. Who's going to be action #5 ?

Admittedly, Challenges from individuals aren’t getting huge actions numbers yet, but we know they will! The point is that Bolder realizes the potential of your influence and we see how it can motivate, inspire, and encourage some real life action. We'll report back with interesting experiences and case studies on how people are using Bolder, and please send us feedback and let us know your thoughts!

We're extremely excited to see your creativity at work. Now, go start your Challenge. Don’t be a stranger: email us if you need a little help ([email protected])!

-The Bolder Team

#Bolder Is

Bolder profile included on resume

(full disclosure: Galen is a friend of the Bolder Team, but we didn't know about this until we asked him how his job search was going. This is the first time anyone has done this, to our knowledge.)

Why Galen included his Bolder profile on his resume: "I have a header on my resume with a link to my blog, my twitter account, and my bolder profile. I think if someone were to scan those three things they would get a pretty good sense of my personality, my values, my sense of humor, and my social life."

Why does this matter? This is just one guy.

From the beginning, we've envisioned Bolder being a fun place where you can truly express your values and do something to back them up. Whether you complete challenges or start your own (Galen has done both), your actions on Bolder are a powerful indicator of your influence in moving things forward.

As we move towards a full beta rollout of 'user challenges' next week, we're excited to see more of you using Bolder to create action from your passions. And also being proud of what you accomplish, like Galen. Stay tuned.

#Bolder Is

Stonyfield Farm: Small, Mighty and Bold

Stonyfield Farm is best-known for its delicious organic yogurt and dairy products, but when it comes to positive change, they're not content to just sell awesome yogurt (though we can personally attest that their yogurt is awesome). Since partnering up with Bolder last November, this self- described "small but mighty company" has sponsored 6 challenges and inspired over 6,000 actions on the Bolder platform. That is darned impressive! Amy and Jesse, the brilliant minds behind Stonyfield's social media team, were kind enough to chat with us about how they use Bolder to inspire deeper loyalty, engagement and just plain fun among consumers, while encouraging a whole lot of positive action, too. What inspires you the most about Bolder? Bolder gives us the chance to interact with consumers in a unique, meaningful way. We've seen great engagement with the platform and love giving people a way to connect with our brand that also makes a positive difference in the world. We also love the simplicity of the Bolder platform and how sharable it is. It's easy to connect our Facebook page to the challenges and integrate our other marketing efforts, too. It's simple, streamlined and effective. So far, we've been impressed and inspired by how well-received our challenges have been.

How did you first learn about Bolder? Bolder reached out to us, and the unique platform piqued our interest right away. We're always on the lookout for new ways to connect with consumers, and we were very intrigued by the opportunity to offer them a chance to do something that had meaning behind it. As a company, we're very active in social media and try to find new ways to engage with people, especially those who are passionate about Stonyfield yogurt. We believe in the power of organic and think our success hinges on our ability to connect with people who feel the same way. What made you decide to do a Bolder challenge? With Bolder, we saw a great opportunity to educate people about organic, both in terms of personal health and the health of the planet, in a way that's fun, shareable and part of a larger community. Bolder's focus on the power of individuals to make a difference aligns well with Stonyfield's mission. We had a lot of fun experimenting with different kinds of challenges that allow people to experience organic and share their thoughts. How do you decide which challenges to run? We want challenges to be fun, of course, and offer the chance for coupons to try new products. It's also important that they tie into our mission and represent who we are at Stonyfield. Social media is a big part of our larger marketing strategy, and the Bolder platform is a great way to round out our efforts. We try to run challenges that energize and amplify the enthusiasm of the Bolder community. Sometimes our challenges tap into an existing campaign and sometimes they stand on their own, but our goal is always to bring more impact to the positive things you're already doing.

Your challenges have inspired over 6,000 actions today. How do you feel about that? We think it's amazing! It's fantastic and very exciting to see such deep engagement in the 6 months since we started using the Bolder platform. We've also seen high redemption rates for the coupons we offer, so we're thrilled (and hope everyone is enjoying our organic yogurt!). Anything to add? We're excited about the possibilities that Bolder offers. The team has been really fun to work with so far, and we're looking forward to continuing on this path as a company. We'd also love to hear what challenges other people would like to see. Mostly, we want to keep it fun, interesting, and of course, completely organic!

#Bolder Asks

Bigger. Better. Bolder.

We have some exciting news that we are so happy to finally share with all of you! Over the weekend we unveiled the bigger, better, Bolder – a full product update that incorporates much of the great feedback we have received and demonstrates the culmination of a whole lot of learning. We’re especially excited to share this news, as it’s likely to have a huge positive impact on your experience with Bolder moving forward!

Bolder Beginnings As you may or may not know, we first launched Bolder in 2010, based on the thinking that the world could use more positive action. We recognized that businesses had a big influence on social media, and saw an opportunity to create positive action by developing a platform that would help businesses engage with consumers in a new, meaningful way. The way we saw it, we could offer something with Bolder that let everyone win: Businesses, individuals, and the world as a whole. Today, we are happy to say that what started as an idea has been proven and we are poised to take Bolder to the next level.

Here’s some visibility into the product updates and our motivation behind each new feature:

• Completely new site design/usability upgrade: It was time for the look and feel of Bolder to reflect all the amazing things that are happening with our tools and the actions being taken by all of you. The Challenge-Action-Reward loop is now customized to the activities that you enjoy.

• Influencer Pages: On the Bolder platform, Challenge creators influence positive action. In line with that, we now offer dedicated Influencer pages. The point is to showcase the collective positive actions taken against all Challenges an Influencer has ever started. Think of it as the history of all actions that an Influencer has inspired on Bolder. There are a few new things here too, like the ability for you to suggest new Challenges to Influencers and to see who the top users are for any given Influencer.

• Reward System: With this new release, we took everything we’ve learned and developed four unique reward types: Deals, Donations, Prizes, and Action-for-Action. Each reward type now creates a unique experience while driving participation in meaningful ways. Action-for-Action (ex: I’ll do something if…) is a brand new addition, and one that we are excited to see utilized.

• User Challenges: We realized that everyone has influence over their own communities online. As a result we are currently testing User Generated Challenges – in the coming months you can plan on starting your own Challenges and motivating action, as well as interacting in meaningful ways with your own networks! We’re having fun with it currently, and we’ll have more details soon.

• Challenge Creator - Making Things Simple: At the core of Bolder lies the Challenge-Action-Reward loop. We’ve built and implemented a Challenge creator that lives right on the home page to make the process of starting Challenges easier for everyone.

• Interactivity through media: We’ve increased the presence of multi-media in Challenges to help bring them to life and to make sharing your real life actions more visual and telling, online.

So, while we are on the subject, and have your completely undivided attention (right?), we’d also like to take this opportunity to recap some of our successes to date, as well as offer some insight into where we are now, and where we are headed.

The Bolder Community is growing and taking action Let’s take a minute to revisit our humble roots. Whole Foods Market Palo Alto sponsored one of Bolder’s first Challenges – to “Reuse something you normally throw away,” which inspired 60 people to act and share their story. It’s great to think back to that Challenge and see how our first small-scale Challenge success has steadily grown in the past year!

Acting Bolder is where it's at Not only do we hear about participants generally enjoying being Bolder, people seem to just be having some good ol’ fun too! Check out this ridiculously awesome story that Atayne inspired with their Challenge to “Plan an active date” Or, this inspiring story from Nova R. from a Challenge that Stonyfield issued to “Eat an organic breakfast.” And then, this great pump up from Katrina from KEEN’s recent Challenge to “Take a 15 minute recess.” Especially with our upcoming launch of User Generated Challenges, we’re excited to see what this next phase of our business holds and what answers surface to the question:

What Bolder story can you inspire?

Businesses are reaping the rewards, too Businesses have been our strongest partner to date in driving positive action by sponsoring challenges and helping to inspire individuals. The interactions that you have with businesses on Bolder are meaningful engagements that you should be proud about. It appears that this is the case as Bolder offers an average feedback rate of 26% in 2011, meaning that 26% of you that visit a given challenge homepage complete the action on that page. This makes us fairly confident in thinking most of you like the Challenges and Rewards we are offering, but please keep the feedback coming! We’re extremely proud of this result, as it is many multiples higher than engagement metrics from other Social Media Marketing tools or traditional search. We also think it shows that people want to be inspired and motivated to improve their lives.

How much Bolder can we be? Today, we are happy to say that our ideas have been proven and we are poised, with your help, to transition Bolder to the next level. But we’re just getting started. We’re beyond excited to move Bolder into this next phase with you. There’s so much we want to do, so keep the feedback coming! We’re hoping to ultimately provide a platform for businesses and individuals to build stronger relationships and unlock value through the power of collective action.Information is power, but action is change.

Matt, Rob, and Jeremy Bolder Co-Founders

#Bolder Is

3 Ways to Start a Movement

We loved this short TED talk by Derek Sivers on how to start a movement, using the hilarious example of how one shirtless dancing guy was able to start a big dance party in a park. It's funny, it's only 3 minutes, and it's Friday, so have a look below:

If you want to start a movement of your own, Sivers offers 3 things to keep in mind:

Have the guts to stand out and be ridiculed.

Nurture your followers as equals. because it's about the movement, not you.

Most importantly, remember that leadership itself is overrated. It's the first follower that makes the movement, because s/he "is what transforms a lone nut into a leader."

First followers, not leaders, are what make movements happen. They're the ones with the courage and guts to stand by the "lone nuts" and make a difference. So thanks, guys, for being our first followers. Bolder wouldn't be here without you.

And because it's Friday and sunny, which means we're feeling extra bold, we'd like to ask: If you could start a movement, any movement, what would it be? And, of course, where can we sign up?

Nothing Says Recess Like Cartwheels

Challenge: Take a 15 minute recess Sponsor: Keen [ See All Actions Here ] Katrina's Action: "Went for a brisk walk around the nearby public gardens, then threw in some cartwheels for good measure. Talk about feeling like a kid again!" I walked around the public gardens outside of the Phipps Conservatory in an area called Oakland in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Oakland is the part of town where the University of Pittsburgh campus is. It felt so freeing to let loose and take a flying sideways leap onto the grass. You can't help but laugh after you've tried to do a cartwheel and failed miserably. As I kept trying I think I got better, but it's hard to tell without someone there to tell you if it actually looked like a cartwheel. Okay, so if I had really succeeded, I think I would have known. Lately I've been looking for ways to insert some silliness into my days and feel a little like a kid again. Call it a quarter-life crisis. ;) Seriously, though, it makes your day so much brighter to laugh at yourself a little and make others smile. My hour-long lunch break outside gets me through the rest of my day. It's so wonderful to soak up some sun and feel the wind on your face ...and look at something real for a little while, i.e. not a computer screen. Thanks, KEEN and Bolder, for inspiring us all to take a few minutes out of our day for fun and renewal! Let's re-institute recess everyday and everywhere!

#Bolder Does

Optimists and Pessimists

We stumbled across this wonderful series of drawings on the SFMOMA Open Space blog and had to share. Just a small reminder of how our perceptions can and do influence the world around us. For the record, we like the path of the optimist a lot more!

#Bolder Is

Got Any Spare Characters? Donate Your Tweets to World Fair Trade Day on May 14

Those incredible ice cream studs at Ben & Jerry's are at it again. In honor of World Fair Trade Day on May 14, Ben & Jerry's is asking you to donate your spare Twitter characters to a good cause. Fair Tweets takes your unused characters and inserts a message and a link to more information about World Fair Trade Day. Pretty slick, right? Check it out:

In addition to just possibly getting the award for the coolest use of Twitter for a good cause that we've ever seen, Fair Tweets is a simple and elegant way that individuals (like you!) can act together, raise awareness and make a difference. We're so there.

Grown-Ups Need Recess, Too

One month ago, KEEN challenged us all to take a 15-minute Recess. We at Bolder took that challenge seriously. So seriously that we decided to take recess every day for an entire month. WARNING: The following photos are rated F for gratuitous amounts of festivity, frivolity, foolery and of course, fun:

It's amazing what 15 minutes of playtime every day can do for your perspective. Whether it's playing duck-duck goose for the first time in 20 years, running around outside, or eating ice cream in the park, we all found ourselves feeling more relaxed, more productive, more focused, and way less stressed. All from 15 minutes a day! It's official: Grown-ups need recess, and at Bolder, it's here to stay. You can view all the photos (and a video!) from our month-long recess adventure here. Now if you'll excuse us, it's time for recess.

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