#cubby graham

[iusemytimesagely]

[emilyblincoe]

cubby graham

san francisco, california

november 2013

[10000kevins]

Spreading the Word: The People I'm Looking For

As you might imagine, getting 10,000 Kevins to sign an online petition is an insane goal. 1,000 is ambitious, but sane. 10,000 is insane. It's a number so high that it cannot possibly be achieved through the networking of one person. The project has to go viral. It has to be a national phenomenon. There is no other way.

I set it up that way on purpose.

Yet when I tell people about the project I mostly hear, "I think I can get some Kevins for you." Wait! Let's do some math. Getting 10,000 Kevins in ten months gives us 300 days. So every three days I need 100 Kevins. I'm glad you know some Kevins, but I don't just need people; I need propagators. Though I've explained this before, it's been a month now and that mindset hasn't caught on.

Finally tonight I came to an epiphany: I'm working too hard. Why I am I trying to change the thinking of masses of people? Why not reach the few people who already think like me? People who dream big dreams and make them happen. You can call them entrepreneurs. I call them visionaries. They set huge goals and figure out how to get there. They have huge networks of people they inspire. And here's the best part: they love projects like these.

The people I met at Charity: Water last week were among them. They brimmed with excitement like me at wanting to reach this goal, and offered me practical ways to get there. I left that office with a fire of renewed energy. I don't think I've ever felt such great encouragement in my whole life. It's one thing for a person to say they support you. It's another to give you a shout-out to their friends. But it's a completely different realm of support when they get in the ring with you, using their time, expertise, and connections to get you where you need to be.

Those are the kinds of people I'm looking for.