Matthew’s Blog

These elephants don’t just live in Minnesota, they exist anywhere the temperature drops below 32 degrees Fahrenheit and precipitated. This elephant has a more common name - SNOW shoveling. As I write this we are having our first winter snow storm. They expect anywhere from 6-12 inches today and tonight.

Now as I look out my front window, it appears that most people are saving up the snow and tucking themselves away in doors, nary a sidewalk or driveway cleared. Inch upon inch of snow keeps coming down. I on the other hand have been out twice already and have removed about 4 inches of snow. Many of my neighbors and perhaps even you might think I am crazy. Why not wait until its all done? What does this California native know about snow shoveling? Doesn’t everyone know that you are suppose to wait until it finishes snowing otherwise its “wasted effort”?

Well, yes I am a California native, and for the first 10 years that I lived in the Midwest I followed suit with the “common wisdom.” After every snowfall you’d see people emerge from their homes to tackle the elephant that awaited them. MN White Elephants are a lot of work. People sprain their backs, dehydrate, and bitch about it for a week. Being the perpetual entrepreneur I kept thinking there has to be a better way.

Then about 3 years ago I read this article in the local paper pining away over the lost art of snow shoveling His argument was that we have forgotten how to shovel snow properly. We’ve gotten lazy with our handy dandy snow blowers (that always break down) and our ergonomically correct snow shovels. He looked at the big orange elephants (snow plows) roaming the streets for guidance.

The art of shoveling snow is like eating elephants - one bite at a time. Don’t try to tackle the whole thing at once. Do it while it is easy. One layer at a time, as it comes down.

1. Go out immediately after the first inch has fallen. We all know one inch is easier than six inches of snow. So take your first bite. Do it before the snow gets stepped on, driven on, or turns to ice. Do it while the snow is light and not heavy with moisture. Also, if the first layer is sleet or ice - take care of it now before it gets compounded with six inches of snow on top.
2. Push don’t lift. All those fancy dancy new ergonomically correct shovels are built to LIFT heavy snow. Do you see the orange elephants lift? No, they push. Pushing is a lot easier, especially when you’ve only got one inch to move. Push a path in front of you. Let it all pile up near where you are going to end up putting it. (saves your back, less energy exerted, and more fun)
3. When you do lift: Lift in bites not chunks. Tackle the pile in layers. Take your time. Be easy on your back. Alternate sides. Lift only an inch or so, not 4-6. Snow gets heavier when packed. One inch at a time will quickly disappear a pile (try it).
4. Go in for some warm cocoa and repeat in two hours or in 1-2 inches. If you are lucky and the snow stops you are ahead of the game because the thinner layer of snow will melt when the sun comes out.

Copyright 2007 Matthew Rochte, Eat Your Elephant, LLC
Will appear on http://www.EatYourElephant.com when the new website is launched next week.

Last year I wrote about Paul Hawken and his presentation at the Bioneer Conference. I just found a video feed on QuantumShift.tv that gets to some of the heart of the speech, how all these movements (environmental, social justice, indigenous rights, bioneering . . .) all are really under the umbrella of one enormous cultural movement shift.

This came forwarded into my email this morning. It think it does a bang-up job showing us globalization at work. I did not author this nor was there any accreditation even when I googled it.

Finally, here is a definition of globalization I can understand and to which I can relate……

Question:What is the truest definition of Globalization?
Answer: Princess Diana’s death.

Question: How come?
Answer:
An English princess with
an Egyptian boyfriend
crashes in a French
tunnel, driving a
German car
with a Dutch engine,
driven by a Belgian
who was drunk
on Scottish whisky,
(check

the bottle before you change the spelling),
followed closely by
Italian Paparazzi,
on Japanese motorcycles;
treated by an American doctor, using
Brazilian medicines.
This is sent to you by
a Pollock,
using Bill Gates’s technology,
and you’re probably reading this on your computer,
that uses Taiwanese
chips, and a
Korean monitor,
assembled by
Bangladeshi workers
in a Singapore plant,
transported by Indian
lorry-drivers,
hijacked by Indonesians,
unloaded by Sicilian longshoremen,
and trucked to you by Mexican illegals…..
That, my friends, is Globalization

An odd site on my walk around the neighborhood this morning.   I came across this conference in front of a church. Two rabbits, a squirrel, a mouse, and a raven(crow?) standing/sitting in a circle with out a care in the world to passers by.   Very odd.  What were they talking about?  Very interesting.

Testing the Mogulus TV stream for my buddy Malcolm.

This is Malcolm “TV” show.

Moved due to size to http://www.matthewsblog.com/vision-tv/

Malcolm Cohan, Vision Story creator extraordinaire, is coming in from Australia to meet all of us wonderful thought leaders and change magicians! Malcolm is the Visionary who started the ViSION Statement craze on YouTube. Malcolm is helping people create POWERFUL Vision Story/ Statement videos.

I was introduced to this man when George Johnson sent me this link along the lines of “You’ve gotta see this! You’re really going to align with this guy!” Boy was he right!

At the time Malcolm’s website had three really powerful vision stories that just knocked my socks off. One was called “Think It So” and the other “Vision for Humanity. The second made me cry. He is currently redoing those two movies and will show the later at our gathering, but I found a copy of the original Vision for Humanity on google.

George was so inspired that I think he is becoming Malcolm’s business manager. George has a 2 minute talk about why he invited Malcolm to come to Minnesota. view video

Malcolm will be here for about a week where he’ll be meeting with the great thought leader energy that Minnesota attracts and keeps.

COME MEET HIM!

George and I have coordinated, well mostly George, an introduction to Malcolm evening program at Horst Rechelbacher’s (founder of Aveda) newest endeavor Intelligent Nutrients. If you haven’t been there you are in for a real treat! Amazing atmosphere, great food, and conscious business.

It will be from 5-7 Tuesday evening the 5th of June at The IN with free hors d’oeuvres and a cash bar. YOU DON’T WANT TO MISS THIS.

Preregister with me if you want to come to the Tuesday evening event so we get a proper head count.

What is a Vision Story/Statement?
It’s an awesome little movie that you make about your future. Write down some very bold statements about what you want, combine this with powerful royalty free images, add in a music track that totally inspires you and there you have your audacious vision of the future.

Want to see some examples click on any of the movies on Malcolm’s homepage, these were all made by students, colleagues, friends of Malcolm.  They are awesome.
http://www.malcolmcohan.com.  If you come to Rocket Ship Minnesota you can learn how to make one too.

Rocket Ship Minnesota Seminar
Malcolm will also be giving on SUNDAY the 10th of June at the Holiday Inn Select (MCA’s new home) in Bloomington from 10am-6pm. Malcolm calls these seminars Rocket Ships because it will take you to a place you have never been before. In this seminar you will learn how to make a ViSION Statement Video and about Malcolm’s “Vision for Humanity.”
To register for the seminar and to learn more about Malcolm goto www.entrevis.com

I woke up from a dream this week with a clearer understanding of Conscious Capitalism. A less technical one than what has been proposed before.

It started with what capitalism has become at the end of the 20th century - Unconscious Capitalism

Unconscious Capitalism had no concern or conflict with the taking advantage of people (employers, communities, or consumers) or the planet (locally or holistically) in the name of profit or shareholder value.

Conscious Capitalism is an awakening to capitalism now being a truly symbiotic relationship where all stakeholders benefit or suffer because of the actions or inactions of one of the components.

The emergence of Conscious Capitalism has leveled the playing field.

Conscious Capitalism becomes an active practice of the “Platinum Rule.” - “Do unto others as THEY would do unto themselves”

In Conscious Capitalism we need each other for our very survival.