Are you responsible for your obesity or is placing the Windows 7 Whopper in your mouth the result of a Microsoft and Burger King plot to destroy your health?

Are you responsible for murder or is pulling the trigger just a tiny step after a long line of corporate maneuvers designed to coerce you into buying and using a gun against your will?

Are you responsible for the environmental impacts of your consumer choices or is atmospheric pollution something ExxonMobil should be expected to take care of because they failed to offer you a better energy solution?

Complacency is a vicious beast best fed by an overwhelming quantity of information.

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Here’s a phrase you have probably used before:

“It’s impossible to find good people to hire these days.”

A more honest version is likely:

“I lack the necessary drive and vision needed to take regular people off the street and turn them into productive members of a work environment I actually put very little effort into because I don’t have a real reason to be here, either.

If you care about the work you do and strive to lead a team instead of herding a group of paycheck-gatherers toward Fridays, I don’t think you’ll take my rewrite as harsh. It’s probably something you’ve considered before.

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Seth Godin, in a nice suit (Take note, social media scruffies – classy is still a workable brand) with some much-needed thoughts on project management. [video]

So what can you do today, right now, to begin implementing what Elder Seth talked about?

1. Outline your ideas – Put that Moleskin to use for a simple “What does this idea provide to others?/What does it provide to me?” outline.
2. Get a friend to help you thresh your ideas - (A real friend, not a Twitter follower or Facebook mutual) Type the outlines from your Moleskin (I like to use the back of junk mail envelopes) into a Google doc and share, share, share. Godin uses the term “Thrashing” but I like threshing better because it refers to the process of revealing value through effort instead of catatonic project management.
3. Ship something - Pick an idea you have the resources to develop and make it happen. It doesn’t have to be complex. In fact, it’s best to start with something simple like a well-researched article for your blog. Set out to ship something you know you can ship and build up some confidence before you go after the bigger projects.

What are you going to do?

Photo: Jim Frazier

How To: Ship On Budget and On Time Every Time

The Billboard Model relies on shock and awe to impart messages to consumers via peripheral inputs. The need to drive insane amounts of traffic trumps introspection, innovation, and increased quality. Income is derived from third parties who have little or no contact with consumers. In crisis, the billboard model’s only solution is to scream louder, hire exotic dancers, and give away more swag.

The Tollbooth Model operates on the understanding that consumers will gladly exchange their money for a useful good or service offered at a fair price. Competition drives innovation, customer service, and an increase in quality. Optimally, consumers are in near-direct communication with the supplier of the good/service provided. In crisis, prices can be raised to counteract lower volume.

It’s that simple. Don’t tear yourself up with long discussions touting the benefits of producing and broadcasting mediocrity for free.

Produce something of value. Invest in reality.

Tollbooths are where it’s at.

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photos: ray moore, bill jacobus

Twitter has finally admitted to a portion of its monetization plan with the introduction of “sponsored definitions.” [See screen capture] Their look and feel are quite similar to the sponsored results we’ve grown accustomed to from Google. (Could there be a future partnership involving Google handling the ad space while Twitter takes the cash?)

The first definition to appear as part of the sidebar redesign described Twitter as a noun and gave a brief definition. Soon other definitions followed. We Follow, Threadless, and Tweet My Gaming are among the links currently “defined” just below the number discussed so often on Twitter: The follower count.

Twitter is finally advertising.

Where do you think this is headed? Will text links in the sidebar attract enough attention to give Twitter any sort of substantial income? What about 3rd party users? (Most hardcore twitterers use systems like Tweetdeck, Seesmic Desktop, or any number of mobile applications.)

It seems unlikely that Twitter would create much revenue from just a few text links on the service’s web interface.

Perhaps this is the start of sponsored Tweets? I know I’d be willing to pay for my “stream” to run clear of ads. Would you?

Update: (10:25am EST, 6/24) Parisian Thierry de Baillon just pointed me to the Japanese language version of Twitter. According to Baillon, the image ad block was a part of the initial release!

You can see for yourself by visiting the account settings of your Twitter account and changing the language preference to Japanese. (Don’t worry about finding your way back to the English version. The layout is identical.

Does this change your initial thoughts on Twitter publishing ads in the sidebar? Once again, 3rd party system users won’t see these ads either. I think in-stream ads/premium services are the way to go. You?

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