Ryan Stephens Marketing

In short, yes.

But I’m not that Ryan Stephens.

Judging by my recent traffic, someone with my namesake is pedaling some “work from home and make millions of dollars” nonsense.

Stop wasting your time. I assure you that it’s a scam.

Here’s the rub. If you’re one of those people looking to get rich quick exerting minimal effort and working in your pajamas then you landed on the wrong blog. I’m not rich and neither is the clown trying to convince to throw away $97 dollars.

I have news for you. If it sounds too good to be true… IT IS!

Look I get it. I really do.

You would love to pay off your debt. You hate your job and fantasize about being your own boss. You want spend more time with your family. Maybe you just want to supplement your income.

Most people have been there at some point in their lives. I assure you that the Adam Baker’s, and the Ashley Ambirge’s of the world exist. They did it.

But guess what!?

They worked their asses off.

I know a lot of people that make a full time living online. And I’d be happy to link you to their blog(s) or even introduce you to one of them if you’re serious about learning.

But if not — if you’re just trying to get rich quick with some online home career bullshit, then kindly hit back and don’t come back to this blog.

I have a full-time job that I love for an organization I believe in.

I make a little beer money on the side helping people with the following:

• Creating integrated digital strategies that drive revenue.
• Establishing a relationship between social media metrics and business metrics
• Facilitating intelligent growth for online communities
• Leveraging social technologies to scale external marketing efforts and an internal culture of sharing

Beyond that I’m particularly interested in extending the internet/web/mobile disruption we’ve seen in media to other industries like education and healthcare in order to address the challenging economic and social issues of our time.

I also read a lot of business books and bitch about education in America.

If any of those things tickle your fancy then by all means, let’s connect. Or if I can help you achieve your goals (or connect you with someone else who can help you), I’d love to hear from you.

But to reiterate, if you stumbled across this blog because you were looking to get rich quick and start a career working online from home you’re shit out of luck.

Stop waiting for hand outs and start grinding.

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In order to efficiently jam as much testable data into a generation of kids, we push to make those children compliant, competitive zombies.

Every teacher, every student, every administrator, and every parent should read this manifesto. Seth Godin’s Stop Stealing Dreams is free and quick to consume. You really have no excuse.

I’m tired of seeing smart talented people thousands of dollars in debt while they mindlessly drone around in a cubicle doing a job they’re not passionate about.

Seth’s manifesto gets at the heart of the problem. The industrial revolution is long gone. The economy has changed and yet school’s haven’t. They still insist on rote memorization, crushing dreams, amplifying fear and churning out obedient factory workers that adhere to the status quo and fit into “the system.”

The good jobs of the future aren’t going to involve working for giant companies on an assembly line. They all require individuals willing to chart their own path, whether or not they work for someone else.

Here’s some quotes that hit home:

On shitty teachers:
If all the teacher is going to do is read her pre-written notes from a PowerPoint slide to a lecture hall of thirty or three hundred, perhaps she should stay at home. Not only is this a horrible disrespect to the student, it’s a complete waste of the heart and soul of the talented teacher. Teaching is no longer about delivering facts that are unavailable in any other format.

On the irrelevance of facts in today’s world:
In the connected world, reputation is worth more than test scores. Access to data means that data isn’t the valuable part; the processing is what matters. Most of all, the connected world rewards those with an uncontrollable itch to make and lead and matter.

On linchpins:
Scarce skills combined with even scarcer attitudes almost always lead to low unemployment and high wages.

The future of our economy lies with the impatient. The linchpins and the artists and the scientists who will refuse to wait to be hired and will take things into their own hands, building their own value, producing outputs others will gladly pay for.

On being a dreamer:
Dreamers aren’t busy applying for jobs at minimum wage, they don’t eagerly buy the latest fashions, and they’re a pain in the ass to keep happy.

On memorizing facts:
If I can find the answer in three seconds online, skill of memorizing a fact for twelve hours (and then forgetting it) is not only useless, it is insane!

When access to information was limited we needed to load students with facts. Now, when we have no scarcity of facts, or the access to them, we need to load them up with understanding.

On what schools should be teaching:
The two pillars of a future-proof education: # 1 Teach kids how to lead. # 2 Help them learn to solve interesting problems.

• When we teach a child to make good decisions, we benefit from a lifetime of good decisions.
• When we teach a child to love to learn, the amount of learning will become limitless.
• When we teach a child to deal with a changing world, she will never become obsolete.
• When we are brave enough to teach a child to question authority, even ours, we insulate ourselves from those who would use their authority to work against each of us.
• When we give students the desire to make things, even choices, we create a world filled with makers.

On the cult of ignorance in the U.S.:
The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that “my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.”

This is something I’m very passionate about.

Here’s my rant on the fact that American education deserves better.

Here’s some great articles/videos on education reform. (Feel free to send me more to add to the list.)

And finally, here’s some wicked smart young professionals discussing what they wish they would’ve learned in school.

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“One option is to struggle to be heard whenever you’re in the room… Another is to be the sort of person who is missed when you’re not. The first involves making noise. The second involves making a difference.” — Seth Godin

Growing up playing multiple sports I was always the kid that had to be first. You may say, “That’s great. You should be pushing yourself. You should be challenging your teammates,” and you’re probably right.

But… what I slowly began to learn was that there was a time and a place for being first, and there was another time. A time when being a teammate and not showing others up mattered more (i.e. warm-up laps and long, slow days for those of you who ran long distance).

Running full speed during warm laps is a great way for your teammates to start resenting you and the same thing holds true when you’re the person who ALWAYS has to talk during team meetings at your office.

Whether you’re an employee who thinks you’re getting ahead by standing out or an employer who encourages and reinforces this behavior I hope you’ll watch this quick video and reconsider.

Are you making noise or making a difference?

Tweet This: (Copy & Paste into Twitter):
[Video]: Stop Running to the Front of the Pack –> http://ow.ly/9HDzO

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