Over the last year, I have occasionally talked about creating a new path for yourself, following dreams and doing something that gives you a sense of satisfaction and success. Along those lines, today I am sharing a video that I put together from a talk that Norman Bodek recently gave at George Fox University.

Bodek is the founder of Productivity, Inc. and Productivity Press. Around 1980, he started the two companies to bring the best of Japanese management to America. Through them, he brought what we call Lean Manufacturing to this country. I have been working with Norman for the last couple years, helping manage his newsletter and website and doing some writing/editing for him. In the video below, Norman discusses the Harada Method, a personal/professional development system that he is now bringing to America for the first time.

The method is named after Takashi Harada, who developed the system. Harada is a former teacher/coach in Japan who teaches companies and individuals how to be successful. By starting with a goal in mind, the Harada Method helps you become self-reliant and create a clear path toward reaching your goals. The video gives you a better idea of how the method works.

(If the video doesn't show up in your browser, click here.)

This coming October, we are holding a workshop at the Marriott on the Waterfront and I wanted to share the video with you, in case you might like to attend, or in case you just happen to be interested in reaching your fullest potential in life. Whether you work for a Fortune 500 company or are thinking about starting your own corner coffee shop, the method can help you be successful. If you have any questions about it, you can send an email to bodek@pcspress.com or hutchens@pcspress.com and we will send you some more information.

I went to Powell’s Books Thursday night to hear Chris Guillebeau speak. For those of you who don’t know, Chris writes a blog called the Art of Non-Conformity (AONC) and recently published a book by the same name. One of his goals in life is to create a movement (yes, a movement) that questions the status quo and encourages people to lead unconventional, remarkable and meaningful lives. Chris lives in Portland (though you might ask, in Portland, where being weird is normal, is it really non-conforming to not conform?), so when I heard that he was coming to speak at Powell’s, the last stop on a 50-state book tour, I figured it would be interesting to hear what he had to say.

I stumbled across the AONC a couple months after starting this blog (the non-conformist title is completely coincidental) and found that he had some ideas about life that I could relate to. One of the things that really attracted me to his writings were his ideas about traveling. Chris has a goal in life to travel to all 192 countries in the world by 2013 and he’s already made it to 149. He seems to understand the joys and new perspectives that traveling brings, something I could really relate to. In addition to the book, he wrote a useful guide about traveling unconventionally that I am still working to put into practice.

Chris Guillebeau