#startexperiment

So if you follow me on twitter, you’ve probably noticed that I’ve added a new hashtag to my profile. I’ve also used said hashtag voraciously. 

#startexp

What is that all about, anyway?

It’s about, as Jon Acuff, (author of the blog Stuff Christians Like, and books such as Quitter, and Start) says, punching fear in the face. 

We’re all held back by our fears; our doubts. Those nagging voices in the back of our minds telling us we’re not good enough. Cool enough. Smart enough. Just plain ol’ enough. 

Let me backtrack a moment. 

I’ve been reading Jon’s blog for a long time. At my old job, five years ago, it was part of my morning routine. I’d arrive at the office, get my cup of coffee, and turn on my computer and catch up on the news. And my blogs. Jon posted every day, and he was FUNNY. So I’d keep up with it.

I watched as his blog took flight. He had just a blogspot in the beginning, then migrated to his own website. He started working as part of the Dave Ramsey team. He started publishing books and having conferences. 

But that wasn’t enough. 

Not only did Jon want to experience living his dreams, he wanted others to have that same fulfillment in life.

So he posted on his blog that he was looking for 24 people who wanted to START something. I wish I’d taken a screen shot; it was looking for 24 people to be part of the start experiment. People who wanted to go from average to awesome. 

I still read his blog; follow him on Facebook. 

So I sent the email. What do I have to lose? And if I didn’t get picked, I wouldn’t get picked. Whatever. 

Turns out, more than 2,000 people like me responded to that post. 

And more than 2,000 people were added to a group on facebook for the #startexperiment.

Jon has 24 days of activities for those of us who are part of the experiment. We’ve been divided into groups of 24, and have been given accountability partners. We’re all over the world; from all walks of life. There’s a thriving #startsingles group on Facebook; an online community of like-minded single people. We’re funny. And honest. I love it.

So here’s the deal. I want to chronicle as much of my involvement in the #startexperiment here on my blog. I’m on day 2, since I’m ahead of American time, I get my emails for each day a little too late. So I’m a day behind the America folks. But I’m on day #2 for now. 

I’ll post more about what I’m doing.

But this is about punching fear in the face. We’ve all got those voices that whisper in our ears, telling us that we can’t do anything. Not so. This community is going from average to awesome, and I’d like to chronicle that journey.