Yeah… that’s right.  He’s known as the Chuck Norris of Branding.

John Morgan

He’s also… now… a best-selling author.

He’s worked with the big dogs like… Disney… Starbucks… Seth Godin and Gary V.

And now… he’s talking with us about how we can apply critical branding concepts to our BIG dreams.

That’s right…

Today’s BIG Dream Gathering Podcast is with John Morgan.

Click here to listen:

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Now… I know you’re also going to want to find out more about his book…

Brand Against the Machine.

Click here to find out more about John's book

So… you can dig in by clicking here or by checking it out on Amazon.

Plus… just as John mentions in the interview… if you grab a copy of the book… you can let John know at his website (by clicking here) and his team will send you some free goodies to help you even more!

BIG Dream Gathering Podcasts

We hope this interview gives you some inspiration… and some tools to help you think about some of your own big dreams… and keep going after them!

Because… as you already know… we’re all about inspiring and inspiring you to dream bigger… but we’re also all about equipping you to go out and get those BIG DREAMS DONE!

So dig in… have a listen… and then feel free to share this with a friend who might need it or enjoy it!

Thanks!

Keep dreaming big and helping others to do the same!

Mitch Matthews

Related articles

• BIG Dream Gathering podcast with YouTube Sensation Alix Lapri! (bigdreamgathering.com)
• BIG Dream Gathering Podcast with NBC Daytime’s Patrica Rossi (bigdreamgathering.com)
• Brand Against The Machine – John Morgan’s New Book Redefines Branding (rizzotees.com)

Thanks to the support of some amazing sponsors like Northwestern Mutual…

along with our University of Wisconsin – La Crosse on-campus support from the Campus Activities Board, the College of Business and the American Marketing Association…

we were able to bring the BIG Dream Gathering to campus!

It was an amazing night of dreaming BIG and connecting.

If you were there… you know that we had some fun and launched some big goals and dreams!  Plus, we had fun encouraging each other and helping each other on our big dream journeys!

So we invite you to check out that amazing pictures from the event taken by Casey Cole!  See if you can find yourself and make sure to tag yourself in our FACEBOOK photo album too! (Click here)

Lastly… we want to say a BIG DREAM THANK YOU to Brittany Bozmoski and Kailey Charlton!  They were our BDG Student Ambassodors on campus and they helped to make this whole thing happen!  Why? Because they believe in the big dreams of their fellow students and they want to see as many of those big dreams happen as possible!  I can tell you… the world needs more freakishly cool people like Brittany and Kailey!

Thanks to all who came… and thanks to all who were rooting for us along the way!

Here’s to more big dreams being launched!

Mitch Matthews

It’s hard to imagine but it’s been two months since our BIG Dream Gathering in Topeka!

I don’t know about you… but in some ways it feels like it was just yesterday… and in other ways it seems like it was a year ago!

How about you?

Well… we wanted to check in to see how things have been progressing for you?

We wanted to hear what you’ve been up to.

Now… I’ll admit… I do this with a little bit of caution.  Why?

Well… over the years of doing BIG Dream Gatherings… we’ve realized that all those big dream sheets that get posted on the walls are a lot like seeds.

Yup… when you tape those dream sheets up on the walls… it’s a lot like putting seeds in the ground.

BDG Topeka

And what happens with seeds?

They start to grow… some fast and some slow.  BUT sometimes… even though there’s growth under ground… it doesn’t look like anything is happening.

But there is.

So… likewise… for some of you… you might be experiencing some significant growth.  Something might have popped up out of the ground already… and you’re seeing things happening with some of the dreams you posted.

For others… your dream might be taking root… but you’re not seeing any “real growth” above ground yet.

Well… we need and want to celebrate both!

We want to celebrate:

BDG - Topeka

1. That you planted some big dreams
2. You’re letting them grow (fast or slow)
3. Things are happening (big and small)

Yeah… it’s with expectancy AND caution that we ask.  With expectancy… because we can’t wait to hear some of the fun stories of things that have been going on for you and your big dreams.  And… with caution… because we don’t want any of you with some of the dreams that are taking root but growing a little slower to feel bad about that growth.

Let’s celebrate it… no matter what!

Please send us an update.

Let us know how things have been going.

Here are two questions to help:

• What’s something (small or big) that has happened with one of your big dreams so far?

or…

• What’s something (small or big) that you’ve been able to do to help someone else with one of their big dreams?

  

  BDG - Topeka

Now… you can submit your response by either clicking on “comments” and leaving your update here.

Or… you can send us an email at contactus@bigdreamgathering.com.

Either way… we’d love to hear from you!

Lastly…

Just to help the process along… and to encourage you to send an update (big or small)… for everyone who submits something… we’ll give you a copy of my e-book called “The Power of 3 Project.”  This e-book will not only help you to put a plan together to go after your big dream… but it will also give you the opportunity to possibly have it be featured here on the BIG Dream Gathering website.

So let us know about your big dream… and we’ll send you a copy of the e-book for free!

That’s it for now.  We can’t wait to hear from you!

Keep dreaming BIG and helping others to do the same,

Mitch Matthews

PS… We wanted to say thank you again to our amazing sponsors for the BIG Dream Gathering in Topeka!

BDG Sponsor

BDG Sponsor

BDG Sponsor

BDG Sponsor

• Heartland Visioning
• Washburn University Small Business Development Center
• WIBW TV
• Washburn School of Business

Seth Godin posted in his blog this morning…

(Now… just to be clear… a plan is a GOOD thing.  But a mission tends to stand the test of time better than a plan ever does.)

We’d love to hear from you.

Thanks to the AMAZING support of the RJ McElroy Trust… we were able to hold a VERY special BIG Dream

Click here to find out more

Gathering Experience for The Boys and Girls Club and Teammates in Cedar Falls, Iowa this past weekend!

And we were able hold it on the beautiful University of Northern Iowa campus!

Let the kiddos dream!

We had awesome kids from Cedar Falls and Waterloo… along with their “Bigs” and their mentors come to dream big with us!

There were some great stories of kids and adults dreaming BIG… and writing down some of their goals and dreams for the first time!

Plus we had some all-star connections, ideas and encouragement for the dreams posted!

We also had a new BIG DREAM RECORD HOLDER!

In my talk that sets up the experience… I happened to mention that someone had once written down 27

A NEW record holder... 32 BIG dreams posted at one gathering!

dreams at a BIG Dream Gathering… and I jokingly said that if anyone beat that… I’d give ‘em a t-shirt!

Well… I didn’t know that Ian was in the group!

The minute I got done talking… Ian went to work!

He not only set his sights on hitting 28 dreams… but he “wanted to be the biggest BIG dreamer ever… and keep the title for a while!”

So… he decided on 32.

And guess what?

He made it!

Personally… I have to tell you that I LOVED that Ian was all about dreaming big!  That was inspiring

Ian and his "BIG" that supported him all the way!

for EVERYONE.

But what was equally inspiring was that his BIG Brother… stayed with him to the very end to see him get it done!

It was awesome to see… and the picture of what BIG Brothers and BIG Sisters… as well as Teammates are all about!

So it was an honor to get to partner with all of them to make this very special BIG Dream Gathering Experience happen!

Video

Would you like the see more?  Here’s some video from KWWL from the event:

THANK YOU!

THANK YOU to all that came to dream big and encourage each other!

THANK YOU to the amazing volunteers and supporters from BIG BROTHERS BIG SISTERS… and TEAMMATES!

And THANK YOU to the team at the R.J. McElroy Trust for sponsoring the event and for being fantastic to work with!

Keep dreaming BIG and helping others to do the same,

Mitch Matthews

Patricia Rossi is an expert on etiquette.

Click here to find out more about Patricia

In fact, she’s NBC Daytime‘s national manners correspondent and her nationally syndicated “Manners Minute” airs weekly on NBC, CBS, ABC and FOX stations across the United States.

Not only that… but she’s a freakishly cool person!

So… we did a podcast with her.

Now… you might be saying “What does etiquette have to do with BIG Dreams?”

And that is a fair question.  But here’s my response…

Image via Wikipedia

1st – Her story will inspire you!

2nd – Patricia isn’t about fu-fu cushy-cushy manners AND she isn’t all about loading you up with confusing rules about which fork to use!

Nope… Patricia is all about giving you wildly useful tips that will help you to confidently navigate networking situations… remember people’s names… and say thank you in a way that will truly show someone you’re grateful for their help.

That’s right!

She’s uniquely qualified to teach  you things that will totally help you to achieve your big dreams… and do it in a way that will bless people’s socks off!

In this podcast…

She shares some helpful tips like…

• Simple strategies to help you to remember people’s names
• A powerful idea that will enable you to enter a room with confidence even if you’re scared of networking situations
• Principles for navigating a large table of people in a dinner setting and make maximum impact
  

  Click here to find out about Patricia's new best-selling book!

And a whole lot more!

Click below to download the podcast:

Podcast interview with Patricia Rossi

Plus, we dig into her new best selling book, “Everyday Etiquette – How to Navigate 101 Common and Uncommon Social Situation.”

You won’t want to miss it!

If you’d like to find out more about Patricia and see her in action… you can check out: PatriciaRossi.com.  As you do… you’ll be equipped AND inspired!

Lastly…

We hope that this podcast will help you as you step out on your own BIG dream journey… because that’s what we are all about!

Until we hit a million dreams launched,

Mitch Matthews

PS…

In the interview, we mention how Patricia and I connected at the MAKE AN IMPACT LIVE EVENT last year.  Well, the next MAKE AN IMPACT LIVE event is coming up and Patricia and I both will be speaking there again.  If you want to find out more about it… just click here.

Related articles

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The BIG Dream Gathering in Topeka, Kansas was AMAZING!

First… we wanted to say a very special THANK YOU to our sponsors! We couldn’t have done it with out them!

We want to thank our sponsors for this BIG Dream Gathering…

BDG Sponsor

BDG Sponsor

BDG Sponsor

BDG Sponsor

• Heartland Visioning
• Washburn University Small Business Development Center
• WIBW TV
• Washburn School of Business

Second… we wanted to say THANK YOU to all of our AMAZING volunteers!  As I told you that night… you guys are the ones who make the difference!  We were so honored to have you be a part of the BIG Dream Gathering family! And we so appreciated how you blessed everyone’s socks off!

Lastly… we wanted to say THANK YOU to all who came to dream BIG and connect!  I have to tell you that it was one of my favorite groups that we’ve ever had… simply because you came to think about your own big dreams but also to help others with theirs! So thanks for coming to draw a line in the sand for your own big dreams… as well as stand by others as they do the same!

And just to show how much fun we had… and to see some of the big dreaming that was happening… here are some photos from the gathering itself…

Related articles

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• Jay hit a major milestone in his BIG dream journey last night! You can help him keep moving forward! (bigdreamgathering.com)
• BIG Dream Gathering podcast with YouTube Sensation Alix Lapri! (bigdreamgathering.com)

Hey Gang…

Alix Lapri

As you know… we love to feature podcast interviews with people who are walking out their big dreams.  We’ve had authors, politicians, speakers, teachers, business people and musicians.  We’ve been wildly blessed to talk with people from all walks of life… and people at different stages of their big dreams.

The goal is to help get their story out… AND to inspire YOU to go after some of your own BIG dreams.

Well… today’s podcast packs a bit of a surprise.  Why?  Well, this BIG dreamer started on this journey at FIVE YEARS OLD!  That’s right!  FIVE!

And now… she’s only 15 years old!

But in those 10 short years… Alix Lapri has…

• Become a YOUTUBE sensation with over 2 MILLION views!
• Gotten noticed by newspapers and Nickelodeon!
• Signed with Crown World Entertainment
• And… received the Presidential Academic Award for having a GPA of + 3.5!

This Topeka, Kansas native is now living in Atlanta.  Over the past few years, she has experienced ups and downs… but she keeps moving forward.  She has had to make sacrifices but she says they have been worth it.  And she continues to WOW her fans around the world whether it’s in live shows (for 2 or 2,000) or online!

And if you were to boil it all down… she’d say that her big dream is:

“To be seen by the world and make them happy with my voice.”

Just to give you a sample of Alix…

And another…

Okay… so here is the interview I had with Alix.

Click here to listen to the BIG Dream Gathering Podcast with Alix Lapri

If you’d like to find out more about Alix and her career… you can visit:

AlixLapri.com

Alix’s YouTube Channel

Alix on Twitter

Also… if you’d like to leave some encouragement, some ideas or some connections for Alix… just click on comments and join in the discussion.  We’d love to hear from you!

Keep dreaming BIG and helping others to do the same,

Mitch Matthews

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Melissa Brunner from WIBW in Topeka produced an incredible prime time special featuring the BIG Dream Gathering story.

Click here to see the special.

The special features many of the inspiring stories of real people who have had the courage to come to a BIG Dream Gathering… post their dreams… and then begin to walk them out.

These are stories of people… just like you.

We invite you to check out the special… by clicking here.

But more importantly… we invite you to come to the NEXT BIG Dream Gathering in Topeka on Tuesday, September 6th.

Click here for more information!

Think about it.  What might happen if you gave yourself (and your friends) the opportunity to come to a fun… safe… and encouraging environment to think about your big dreams?  What if you wrote a few down?  What if you drew a line in the sand and started to take a few small but simple steps towards those big dreams?  What if you got a little boost from some of the other attendees of the BIG Dream Gathering?

What might happen?

Let’s find out on Tuesday, September 6th!

Keep dreaming BIG and helping others to do the same,

Mitch Matthews

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Image by jurvetson via Flickr

A producer from Morgan Spurlock‘s Production Company… Warrior Poets connected with me this week.

You already know this… but Morgan Spurlock is the Academy-award-nominated film-maker behind documentaries like “Super Size Me” and “The Greatest Movie Ever Sold!”

Well, Morgan and his production company are starting a project and it’s all about relaying the real world stories of real people who are going after their big goals and dreams.

But here’s the kicker…

They want to connect with the BIG Dream Gathering family!

Can you believe it?

They’ve heard your stories.  They’ve watched your videos.  So much so that the producer I spoke with said,  “These are the kind of people we want to connect with!”

Now that’s what I am talking about!

I will say that there is a bit of a limit to this.  At this point, they are shooting this project in New York. As a result, the people they can feature need to be from New York (or the Tri-state area).

But… before they do their big media push to get people to submit their stories… they wanted to reach out to the BIGdreamgathering community to see if we could help them connect with some BIG dreamers in the NYC area!

I, of course, said, “Dang right. Let’s do this!”

So… here’s the scoop:

If you are in New York… or you know someone who is… and you/they have a big dream… then we need to connect you/them with Morgan’s production team.

They want to know about your/their story!

Now, you/they don’t have to even be started with the big dream journey yet.

In fact, it might be better if you’re not. Why? Well, they want to tell the stories of real people as they start to get clear on their big dreams and then begin to walk them out.

That’s right.  They want to follow the journey. The ups and downs. The triumphs and the bumps.

Plus, this isn’t something like “Survivor” or “The Apprentice.” They aren’t asking anyone to give up their normal life for a period of time to participate in the project. In fact, it’s quite the different. They want you to continue to live your life… but they just want to follow along as you start to take those small but significant steps towards those big dreams and goals.

Make sense?

Click here to find out more information!

Are you interested or do you know someone who might be?

Cool.

Here’s what you need to do:

You need to visit Morgan’s special website set up for the casting of this show. (CLICK HERE TO CHECK IT OUT.) It will give you the full scoop on how to submit your story.

But here’s the deal… you’ll need to do this FAST because they are going to be doing a big media push soon. So, the faster you get your info in… the more you’ll have Morgan’s team’s undivided attention!

So get to it!

And please help us spread the word!

If you know of someone with a BIG dream and they are living in the New York area… let ‘em know about this! This might be the thing that could give them the boost that they need to go after it. This could be the very thing that helps them launch one of their big dreams!

I’ve got to tell you that we are LOVING this idea.  And… we can’t wait to see it play out!

This is going to be a catalyst for the big dreams of the people who get to participate…  but we also believe that it will spark a whole lot of big dreams across the country!

So yeah… we can’t flippin’ wait!

Until we hit a million dreams launched,

Mitch Matthews

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