Greetings from the road! The pictures above were taken at the Uluwatu Temple in Bali, a magical place filled with monkeys who will give you (and your stuff) the side-eye, waiting to pounce to steal what they can in exchange for peanuts that you buy in order to get it all back. Thankfully my phone stayed with me, and I could upload these pictures for you! Next travel stop: The Yoga Barn in Ubud, then Chiang Mai on Sunday. Quick shout-out to the amazing Adam for sending me off with a killer music playlist and list of places to see.  

Today’s post is from one of my rock-star coaching clients Eric Lunsford. Eric writes at his blog Coffee & Warm Showers where he has one goal: “to help others wake their true self up and transform into the person they’ve always wanted to be.”

My travels in Bali have been amazing so far and it’s only just the start – hanging out with people like Dan (founder of The Tropical MBA), Tommy (professional travel photographer) and Elisa (blogging BFF and TMBA goddess) are proof of exactly what Eric talks about below: that the best way to live life is bat-shit crazy, baby

Why Successful People Are Crazy and You Should Be Too (Plus: The 5 Best Times To Go Crazy) — by Eric Lunsford

“When we remember we are all mad, the mysteries disappear and life stands explained.”
–Mark Twain

It’s okay to be crazy. In fact, if you want to live the life you dream of, it’s required.

Take a minute to tap into your memory bank and think of a time when you were considered crazy for making a choice or taking action.

You may have been a child, you may have been a “naïve” teenager, hell, it may have been yesterday.

How did it feel? What was the result of you doing something that was viewed as “crazy” to others?

I’ve had my crazy moments.

Times where I’ve decided I’m going to make a big change to better my life. I was going to quit my cushy job and move without a real back-up plan. I was going to get rid of the majority of my “stuff.” I was going to jump out of an airplane at 12,000 feet.

I was a pre-determined failure in the eyes of my boss and even some family when I quit my job. I was looked at as a kook by my fiancé when I recommended we get rid of 98% of our stuff. I was told I was testing fate by my mom when I told her I would be skydiving (who, coincidentally BOUGHT those tickets to jump out of a plane. She gets my crazy. Thanks mom!)

But my life is better after making those decisions.

I’m one step closer to my dream life now.

I realized I didn’t need a secure job to make me happy or a bunch of crap around my house to fit in and experiences, by far, are the best things to spend your money on.

Crazy is different. Crazy makes a difference.

And that’s exactly why the people who truly succeed in life choose to be crazy. Those that don’t take chances are stuck. Stuck in a life they don’t enjoy – waiting for the day their dreams magically come true.

Not. Going. To. Happen.

Not without crazy choices at least.

Take a minute to think:

• If Ben Franklin didn’t have the “crazy” idea for Night Riders to deliver mail between colonies at night, the mail system we have now may not exist. In fact, the entire fate of the American Revolution may have been different.

• If Richard Branson didn’t make the “crazy” choice to sign the (at the time) unwanted band the Sex Pistols, he may have never grown to the position he is at now with over 400 Virgin companies affecting the entire globe in more industries than you can count.

• If Yvon Chouinard didn’t go on the “crazy” 6 month trip to Patagonia his friend recommended, we likely would not have the brand Patagonia or any of the environmental initiatives we have today created by him and his employees.

But don’t get overwhelmed or frustrated by these more famous successes.

Anyone can be crazy.

Anyone can make decisions that are so crazy it affects their lives in the most positive way.

• Jenny quit her job at Google to move toward a life full of spontaneity, travel, independence and freedom. And she’s helping others do the same along the way (me included — thanks again Jenny!).

• Adam Baker and his wife got rid of over $18,000 of debt, sold everything but two backpacks and moved to Australia with no set plans. Oh yeah, with their 1 year old daughter! Now he’s making a living doing exactly what he loves.

• Steve Kamb has combined fitness and…wait for it…nerds! Steve is a self-proclaimed nerd who is obsessed with fitness. He’s making “crazy” decisions almost daily including traveling the world, trying unheard of workouts, and inspiring people to do the same in some of the most unique ways.

• Therese Schwenkler just recently made the “crazy” decision to quit her job and travel around the U.S. indefinitely. What I like most about her is her posts bring her “crazy” personality to life and inspire her readers to “go for it” just as she’s done.

So you see, in order to be successful, you must be crazy.

Here are the 5 best times to be crazy:

1. Immediately after waking up – It’s early in the morning when your mind is the clearest. You have the most optimism at this time as well. Clarity + optimism = a perfect time to make a crazy decision. As an added bonus, it’s much easier to continue something when you start first thing in the morning before you let the everyday hustle and bustle bog you down.
2. After being inspired – I’m sure you’ve had that moment. You watch an awesome documentary or read an inspiring book. You feel a fire inside you. You want to get out there and do something big! Capitalize on the inspiration and let the craziness begin right away!
3. After “damaging” news – I use “damaging” because often things that happen to us unexpectedly are initially viewed as negative. However, there’s always a silver lining. Maybe you were just laid off from your job of 15 years. Well, now seems like the perfect time for you to take that severance, new found free-time and create something big!
4. The status quo just isn’t good enough – This is one of the things I love to do most. Question why we do what we do. If you don’t like something or don’t understand why you do it, make a radical change. Ask questions, push the boundaries, and raise the bar.
5. When you’ve got support – There’s nothing better than a crazy idea that at least one other person agrees with. For example, just the other night I told my buddy that I was planning on building a tiny home and traveling around the country for at least a year, snowboarding and surfing every chance I got. I asked if he wanted to come along and he lost it. As we talked about it, I was running around the house in excitement while he was texting, “I feel alive!!!” A crazy idea gets even crazier when someone else believes in it too.

We all have dreams. It’s just the crazy ones who see them come alive.

We’d love to hear in the comments: 
What can you do to honor your crazy?

***

Video: Here’s to the Crazy Ones

Note from Jenny: On the subject of embracing your crazy, here is one of my all-time favorite videos from Apple.

“Here’s to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes. The ones who see things differently. They’re not fond of rules, and they have no respect for the status quo. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify and vilify them. About the only thing you can’t do is ignore them because they change things. They push the human race forward. And while some may see them as crazy, we see genius. Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do.”

Update: This Just in! 8 Free Kindle Books from Scott Ginsberg

Right after I hit publish on this post, I got a (totally unrelated) rebel-rousing email from my friend Scott Ginsberg, who is known as ”The Nametag Guy” — he has been wearing one for 4,205 days and even has one tattooed on his chest! I’m sharing it with all of you since Scott is a brilliant, well-known author — and this is an awesome ballsy move on his part. From Scott:

Help me prove that thinkers don’t need permission to do so. Help me show which of the mainstream hoops aren’t worth jumping through. Help me lead the charge to risk our faces and step across the lines of artistic safety. Help me reject the invisible jury who no longer needs to stamp our creative passport. Help me make a global statement about the state of the mainstream publishing industry. Help me end the shipping of easy, predictable safe work that appeases our corporate masters.

Tomorrow, I am releasing eight new books on Kindle. All digital. All daily devotionals. And the best part is, all books are $0.00 for the first five days, then $0.99 after that. Grab them here.

Note from Jenny: I’m excited to host Bryan Cohen on one of his 61 stops in 61 days (!!) for The Happiness Blog Tour to promotie his new book The Post-College Guide to Happiness. He’s giving away free digital review copies of the book and doing a giveaway for paperback copies, audio copies and even a Kindle Fire! Read on and check out the info below the post.

Happiness. No Stuff Required. — By Bryan Cohen

“Happiness is an attitude of mind born of the simple determination to be happy under all outward circumstances.”
−J. Donald Walters

When I left college, I was completely spent emotionally. After being caught up in something of a love triangle throughout the second half of my senior year, mixed heavily with a dose of senioritis and no idea what I wanted to do with my life, I felt a lot more stressed than I did happy. I thought that by changing my circumstances, I would immediately be happier.

After first living in the suburbs, I moved deep into the heart of Chicago. I changed up my job from temp work to tending bar at a coffee shop. I even took a trip to France to visit one corner of that triangle. After spending thousands of dollars trying to change my situation and to improve my happiness, what did I learn?

I learned that hunting for happiness on the outside is futile.

A ton of people after school want to give a city a try, perhaps for a couple of years before giving it up. They say that the city didn’t make them happy. Maybe they try out a career, but it didn’t give them the joy they wanted. These college grads may even put all of their energy into a partner, eventually realizing that the relationship on its own didn’t make them happier at all.

Circumstances can only create temporary happiness.

A famous study I read about compared the happiness levels of those who won the lottery and those who had just become paralyzed. After about a year, the joy and the pain they’d respectively experienced had changed back to their original levels just before the incident had occurred. Could a newfound millionaire be unhappy? Could a paraplegic be joyful? Of course. The circumstances only changed them slightly. What remained consistent was their attitudes.

If you want to be happier you don’t need to make a change. You need to make a choice. You need to decide that you’re going to try to be happy even when things aren’t going your way. You have to decide that no matter what happens, you’re going to make the effort to be an optimist.

Through this effort, you’ll find something out about yourself. You’ll find that the possibility of happiness was always there, you just needed to stop believing that buying new clothes or finding a different apartment would make a difference.

Make the choice to be happy regardless of what’s happening to you. Keep walking toward the goal of happiness for it’s own sake. And if you aren’t happy yet, here’s my big suggestion: start heading in that direction anyway, but it’s best to whistle while you walk.

***

How to Win a Copy of The Post-College Guide to Happiness + More About Bryan

Bryan is giving away 61 paperback and audio copies of The Post-College Guide to Happiness and a Kindle Fire between now and May 7th, 2012 on The Happiness Blog Tour. All entrants receive a free digital review copy of The Post-College Guide to Happiness for all entrants to the giveaway. Bryan hopes to give away at least 1,000 copies during the blog tour. To enter, post a comment with your e-mail address or send an e-mail to postcollegehappiness (at) gmail.com. Bryan will draw the names at the end of the tour. Entries will be counted through Sunday, May 6th.

Bryan Cohen is a writer, actor and comedian from Dresher, Pennsylvania. He graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2005 with degrees in English and Dramatic Art and a minor in Creative Writing. He has written nine books including 1,000 Creative Writing Prompts: Ideas for Blogs, Scripts, Stories and More, 500 Writing Prompts for Kids: First Grade through Fifth Grade and Writer on the Side: How to Write Your Book Around Your 9 to 5 Job. His website Build Creative Writing Ideas helps over 25,000 visitors a month to push past writer’s block and stay motivated.

Happy Monday everyone! I’m running around like a mad-woman today getting ready to leave for Bali & Thailand (eee!) but wanted to let you all know that the latest greatest Only72 sale starts today at 12pm ET!

This one is based on Chris’ Guillebeau’s upcoming book release for the $100 Start-up, and features $1,000 worth of business products for just $100. What’s fun about this one is that everyone who purchases the package will get a hardcopy of the $100 Start-up book in the mail. The sale launches today April 30 (Monday) at Noon EST and goes until May 3 at Noon EST (exactly 72 hours). Get it while it’s hot! 

REMINDER: Start a Blog That Matters Webinar – I’m hosting a free webinar tomorrow night with Corbett Barr of Think Traffic called Start a Blog that Matters (based on his larger course) exclusively for the LAC community. The webinar will be held on Tuesday, May 1 at 6pm PT / 9pm ET. We’ll cover 5 incredible case studies of regular people who became big name bloggers, 5 bloggers who earn over $1 million a year and the 9 essential elements of starting a blog that matters. Register here.

Products in this Only72 sale (18 total):

Chris Guillebeau’s The $100 Startup Book (Hardcover w/ shipping included)

Better Blogging ($177 in value) 

• Corbett Barr – Creating, Marketing, and Designing A Blog That Matters ($40)
• Susannah Conway – Blogging From The Heart (eBook version) ($137)

Passion-based Business ($137)

• Jonathan Mead — Identifying Your Passion Module + Workbook ($97)
• Scott Dinsmore — Live Off Your Passion (lite) ($47)

Freelancing ($111)

• Ashley Ambirge — You Don’t Need A Job, You Need Guts ($40)
• Men With Pens — Freelancer Package: Unbelievable Characters, Guest Posting Guide, Beyond Brick & Mortar eBooks ($70)

Confidence & Courage ($129)

• Johnny B. Truant — Tao of Awesome ($79)
• Marianne Elliot — 30 Days of Courage (w/ Yoga Module) ($50)

Selling & Advertsing ($144)

• Pam Slim — Ethical Selling That Works ($97)
• David Risley — Double Your Ad Income ($47)

Technology & Systems ($171)

• Joshua Kaufman — The Personal MBA Guide to Small Business Infrastructure ($49)
• Free The Apps — How to Make iPhone Apps ($97)
• Brett Kelly — Evernote Essentials ($25)

Artists & Writes ($130)

• Alyson Stanfield — Turning Your Hobby into a Career (download & audio program) ($51)
• Chris Guillebeau — Unconventional Guide to Publishing ($79)

Click here to grab your business bundle by Weds. at noon!

That’s right . . . Jenny Blake Enterprises is going rogue!

One of the big reasons behind wanting to work for myself was the freedom to travel and set my own schedule.

So when I found out that my blogging-got-me-a-best-friend Elisa Doucette landed a job in Bali, one of my big travel goals that I had been tip-toeing around became a must-do.

With a nervous feeling in my belly, I inched closer and closer toward making this trip a reality:

1. I mentally (and a bit tentatively) confirmed that I’m ready to take another big trip, and that it’s worth spending my time and money on. Am I really doing this?? Alone?
2. I marked dates off on my calendar. Gulp! What will it be like to be away from work for so long? 
3. I booked the major flights (into Singapore, out of Thailand). There’s no turning back now! I’ll make it work…
4. I signed up for a major life-checklist item (click here to create your own checklist): two-week Thai Massage Training in Chaing-Mai, Thailand to help advance my yoga teaching. For those who are unfamiliar with Thai Massage, it’s almost like facilitated yoga — using my body as a practitioner to move the other person’s body around in various shapes. They lay on the floor in comfortable clothes (as opposed to a massage table) and I do the work! This is going to be a great way for me to learn how to assist people during yoga classes, and I’ll have fun practicing on friends who are nice to me when I get home
5. Squealing ensued over Skype with Elisa as we planned the details of our trip in a Google Doc titled, “Jenny and Elisa Do Thailand and Bali.” Hey — what’s the fun of planning a big trip if you can’t express your Type-A-ness in a massive Google Doc?!

Logistics

I will be treating this trip largely as vacation, responding only to urgent items. It’s nerve-wracking to imagine being mostly unplugged for an entire month, but mostly delightful! That means that things may be quiet around here for the month of May (with a few guest posts sprinkled throughout). I hope you understand

I’d love to hear in the comments:
Anyone got any recommendations or travel must-sees for these areas?
If you live in any of the cities I mentioned above, I’d love to meet up!

Tip-toeing around the idea of starting a blog? Itching to be heard but nervous about how to get started and find your voice? Got something under way but not sure how to sink into the traction you’re looking for?

Then I’ve got just the fix for you — I’m thrilled be hosting Corbett Barr and Caleb Wojcik of Think Traffic, one of my tip-top favorite blogs, for an exclusive Start a Blog that Matters webinar in two short weeks.

If you read no further, save the date and enroll below!

What: Start a Blog that Matters Webinar — exclusively for the Life After College community
Topics: We’ll cover 5 incredible case studies of regular people who became big name bloggers, 5 bloggers who earn over $1 million a year and the 9 essential elements of starting a blog that matters.
When: Tuesday, May 1 at 6pm PT / 9pm ET
Cost: Free!
Register: Here

The three most common questions I get about blogging are:

1. Technical – How did you get started? What platform should I use?
2. Emotional – Do I have anything to say? I’m nervous…what if people don’t like my stuff?
3. Reach – How do I increase my traffic and connect with the audiences that matter to me?

When Corbett and Caleb asked if I wanted to host a free webinar for all of you based on their latest course, Start a Blog That Matters, I jumped at the opportunity.

This is your chance to get inspired, educated and get all your questions answered from the  experts on the subject. They will be delivering ~45 minutes of insanely useful content about how to start a blog that matters, then will share info and take Q&A about the full course toward the end.

Why bother pushing through those fears to start a blog?

Building an online presence has changed and enriched my life in every single area — confidence, friendships, business opportunities, cathartic self-expression and creativity — and I know that it can have the same impact for you.

Deep down, many people know what they want to say — or that they at least want to experiment with sharing ideas publicly — but are intimidated about how to begin. A waterfall of inner critics comes rushing in to say you don’t know what you’re doing, you’re not good enough, you’re not a writer, etc. Fooey!

Starting a blog that matters is about finding YOUR unique, authentic voice, and having the courage to experiment until you find your online groove. Blogging is an evolutionary, growth-filled process — no one expects you to be “successful” overnight. In fact, I’m of the strong opinion that you are successful just for trying and putting yourself out there — no matter how many readers you end up with.

Check out my 4-Year Blogiversary post for the biggest lessons I’ve learned in 4+ years of blogging.

More about the full course

More about Corbett Barr

Corbett Barr is the founder of Insanely Useful Media, and creator of How to Start a Blog that Matters. His blogs including Think Traffic and Expert Enough attract over 100,000 combined monthly visitors.

Corbett has dedicated his career to teaching people how to attract thriving online audiences. Through his courses and one-on-one consulting, he has helped students and clients start over 670 new blogs.

Corbett is also an informal advisor to some of the top bloggers online including Adam Baker of Man vs. Debt and Leo Babauta of Zen Habits.

It’s time to welcome Template #21 to the Life After College collection! I developed the Plan Your Next Career Move template after working with several coaching clients to figure out what’s next in their career.

Many come to me with no clue about what’s next — it’s as if a thick fog is covering everything and they can’t see the path ahead. Exercises like the ones below have helped many clients lift the fog and inch closer and closer toward clarity.

Side note: I’m featured on Monster.com’s Be Known blog this week on a closely related topic — Bridging the Skills Gap in Today’s Economy: Part 1 and Part 2. 

A note on 1:1 coaching

If you’re curious about coaching, I’ve noticed that since I quit Google people tend to come to me for help with one of three primary things:

• Career or major life change (quitting, moving, finding a new “soul-stirring” career path)
• Building momentum around a blog, and
• Building a successful solopreneur-based business

If you’re wanting to make massive progress in any of these areas, check out my coaching page and fill out an application if my program seems like a fit. I only work with a handful of people for a three-month commitment at time, and if price is your primary deciding factor I’m probably not the coach for you (though I’d be thrilled to give you recommendations for other awesome coaches).

Working with a small number of people helps ensure that I can give them my full time, attention, and access to my network. I currently have a waitlist, but will be taking on new clients again in June if it sounds like just what you need!

Enter the Plan Your Next Career Move template!

This template will help you start to lift the fog on your career — it breaks down various categories within a job or career (location, company size, type of work, etc), and provides space for you to brainstorm a list of must-haves (oxygen), nice-to-haves (chocolate), and can’t stands (mine: fish, black licorice) for each area. Think of it like an “ideal mate” exercise, but for a job — arguably an even bigger commitment given how much time we spend at work!

Note: this template is mostly focused on people looking for employment rather than striking out on their own. To think through starting your own business, you might prefer the Decision-Making Template instead. 

Here’s an excerpt of the additional exercises in the template (also a sneak peek at the type of homework I assign to coaching clients):

• Make a list of “guilty pleasure” or alternative careers that you’d pursue if time and money were not an issue. Once you have your list, write a paragraph for each — what is enticing about each one? Identify common themes that cut across all — this will become your “career values” compass.

• Target impact & audience: Do you have a sweet spot of who you feel called to work with? Who do you want to help? List three companies that support that audience, and even brainstorm types of people who you really think could benefit from your work. For example: Google – the world (organizing info), Kiva – entrepreneurs in the third world, Pandora – music lovers.

• How do you define creativity? What’s your ideal way to be creative on the job? Outside of work?

• Review the table above. Look back over the table and see if anything is missing or needs to be explained further. Consider this the sifting tool to use as you consider/look for jobs.

• Make a list of 25 people doing jobs you admire. What aspects of the jobs seem appealing to you? Choose 10 to reach out to via email; optional to ask about setting up a call or meeting.

Bonus resource: You might also really enjoy Sarah Peck’s handy One Page Career Cheat Sheet, particularly if you are debating whether your current job is a fit or not.

Business Aside: I recently checked my template stats and was BLOWN AWAY.

Check out the following usage stats!

• Job Interview One-Sheeter – 14,414 users
• 4-Step Budget – 5,960 users
• Life Checklist Template – 4,062 users

For access to all 20 templates and the full Organized Like a Ninja Toolkit, sign-up for my monthly(ish) Inside Scoop Newsletter. If you hate it, you can unsubscribe — but most people seem to find the peek behind the curtain interesting . You can also review the archives to see if it’s for you — I know how precious inbox real estate is these days!