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Be Interesting (this may require ridiculousness)

By writing these words (technically, about 40 words from now) I’m contradicting one of my most important career messages, which is: be more interested than interesting. For the record, it can also look like this: interesting interested.

The message about showing interest still stands – because people should always try to impress others by knowing the most about them, not by showing off self-congratulating coolness – however, Friend of the Blog (FOB), David Singh, recently shared an Inc.com article by Jeff Haden called “The Six Habits of Truly Memorable People” and, well, the author made a compelling case for having fun and living a richer, fuller and more exciting life by being interesting.

Here are Haden’s six steps:

  1. Don’t see. Do.
  2. Do something unusual.
  3. Embark on a worthless mission.
  4. Embrace a cause.
  5. Let others spread the word.
  6. Get over yourself.

The last two points were what sold me. One becomes memorable – if not a legend – by collecting stories so compelling that others spread the word on your behalf. Which is what I will do right now for another FOB, Zac Whyte, whose Road to Sparta campaign represents a story worth telling about an unusual character bent on ridiculousness (re: causes/missions) who has clearly gotten over himself. Zac, like so many members of our Get to Know Your Community, um, community, have stories worth spreading and I encourage you to share his within the Twitterverse with some clever Facebookery.

I’ll wrap it up with a gem of a closer by Haden – here’s all you need to know about why being memorable transcends resumes, value propositions, and even perfection to build and sustain powerful relationships:

Personally and professionally, you feel compelled to maintain your all-knowing, all-achieving, all conquering image.

And you’re not a person. You’re a resume.

Stop trying to seem perfect. Accept your faults. Make mistakes. Hang yourself out there. Try and fail.

Then be gracious when you fail.

Remember, you are a person. Whether for personal or professional reasons, you build relationships with people to make change. And people like stories. So make sure that yours are interesting ones.

Thanks to the good people at zacwhyte.com (Zac is the best people) for sharing the photos – send Zac some encouragement as he embarks on the Road to Sparta.

John Horn is the Founder and Principal of Potentiality Consulting. Over the past 25 years, John has helped leaders reach their community-building potential, bringing a unique professional, intelligent and edutaining style to his seminars, presentations and essays. John applies his talents as a senior people and culture leader, coach (from youth athletes to executives), DIGITAL Canada Advisor, and as an advocate for career development, rare diseases (EPP), and building healthy communities. John lives in Victoria with his wife (who is her own person) and two kids - he loves exploring neighbourhoods via bicycle and making friends through basketball, boardgames, and conversations over coffee.