Imagine with me what it’s like to look  inside of Facebook. To see all of the data produced from the 600 million users in real time. Assuming this is possible (which in one fashion or another I suspect to be true), it can only be compared to starring at the sun.

So much of the world is sharing so much personal information on Facebook that if you were able to look at it all – unrestricted – that on a macro scale you could almost predict the future. The trends that this data creates could potentially predict the winner on election night, identify where uprisings or protest were going to happen and indicate what stocks and companies are on their way to soaring gains.

Do you think Zuck ever pulls back the curtain to sneak a peek at what the world is thinking? Maybe after a few drinks he impresses a date with a behind the scenes look at the worlds online circus?

Who knows… but I wouldn’t blame him.

Have a comment or idea to add? Ask me on VYou.

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“Find a partner and build a team. No one changes the world alone.” – Alan Khazei

As part of the live video podcast Rule53 Alan Khazei brought his passion for social entrepreneurship and his experience founding City Year to a room of young entrepreneurs Sunday the 22^nd.

The podcast – a production of DartBoston – pairs a proven entrepreneur with an under 30 Boston professional who has an early stage startup. On Sunday Alan was paired with Ashli Stempel a Northeastern senior who is founding PULSE. PULSE is a non-for-profit with a mission to help juvenile offenders transition back into their communities through activity based workshops.

The event brought out some of Boston’s young bright stars including entrepreneurs, social media folks and tenacious students. Based on my informal pole post event (“Hey, what did you think?”) The crowd was genuinely impressed by Alan’s deep experiences as a business man, entrepreneur and social activist. Alan’s ability to articulate and transfer his knowledge and experiences maybe his greatest strength as a public speaker. Several times during the show he provided one line bits of genius:

“We need a system to celebrate social entrepreneurs, like the system for entrepreneurs.”

“You need 5 people to start a project…you need a team”

“Sun Tzu – every battle is one or lost before it is fought….it’s not the battle, it’s the training and preparation.”

The show centered on how Alan was able to establish City Year and then turn it into such a successful non-for-profit. He also talked about how he had to fight to keep Americorps (modeled after City Year) alive after funding was cut for the program. This transitioned nicely into Alan telling the story of why he is running for senate. He made a great name for himself as a champion for big citizenship at City Year and that’s what he wants to bring to the senate.

There are 9 days left before the special elections on the 8^th. I hope you all get out and vote and choose someone who will be the kind of person you want in the senate. I’ve been working with the Khazei campaign for the last month and he is the candidate I want to fill Ted Kennedy’s old seat. He is a savvy business man, a tough negotiator and the peoples champion.

If Alan wins this election it will be because of a groundswell of support from citizens. It wont be because of money, TV ads, political leverage. I find this one of the most attractive ideas behind this campaign.

The word-of-mouth for Alan’s run, generated by the event was tremendous. The live podcast reached an online and offline audience of over 50 people and the video has since been watched over 100 times. The link to the show was shared on Twitter, Facebook, blogs and through email and was clicked through by over 300 people. On Twitter over 30 people sent over 100 tweets to a combined network of 27,020 people.

You can watch the whole show here:

Alan Khazei and Ashli Stempel – Rule53 DartBoston

If you are reading this you are probably involved with social media or online communications in some fashion. If this is indeed true I think you will be impressed by the support that Alan has demonstrated for our community and his understanding of the big ideas behind it. The video below expresses this.

I would love to hear your thoughts about how Alan can improve his chances in these final days. As always I appreciate any and all comments!

Thanks

-Marcus

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Startup companies amaze me, better said the people behind startups amaze me. I’m attracted to the entrepreneurial spirit like a moth to bright lights. There is something just sexy about the excitement and risk involved that makes this game so much fun.

When I moved to Boston I got a job at a startup and it was a wild ride, now that I’m no longer working there I’ve started doing it myself as a social media consultant. I attend young entrepreneur networking and development events each week and soak up their tales of success, failure and ingenuity. I have been meeting more and more with young entrepreneurs in coffee shops, bars and living rooms to help them figure out how they can use social media tools and enter the content game.

What I have been seeing is that each business no matter where it is in the development stage comes with a philosophy. These young entrepreneurs are very passionate and it’s because they have a mission behind their work that drives them. You ask them about the weather and in an instant they have you convinced that their product of service is going to change the world.

That’s why it blows my mind when I ask these people if they are blogging or creating content and they say “Well, I’m not really sure what to talk about”. The internet is the greatest platform in the world for disseminating information about your passion. And also it’s not just one-way! You get to hear from all those people who love your idea, can help you, want your product or have criticisms you need to hear.

Are you a young entrepreneur who wants to, build a network, get feed back, build an army, sell product, make connections, change the world, get VC funding and get credit? Of course you are! So then you need to get into the content game. Start a blog, blog everyday about what you know best for 30 days and see what happens. Keep track of twitter followers, readers, traffic, comments and leads. I’m positive that at the end of those 30 days you will have more defined goals, know your business better, have a ton of contacts, build your personal brand and become an expert in online communications.

Do you have a brilliant idea for entrepreneurs to use when getting started? Please share.

Thanks to Beepie K for the photo and @GaryVee for the inspiration.

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