Delivering Happiness to Downtown Boulder

As a follow up to my May 25 post, Zappos & Downtown Boulder in the same sentence?, I am writing a review of Tony Hsieh’s Delivering Happiness on the official day of his book launch. I jumped at the chance to receive a free advance copy of the book because the same entrepreneurial spirit that runs through Hsieh can be found throughout Downtown Boulder.

Delivering Happiness provides the makings of a road map to personal success - simply by finding your own happiness. Sounds easy enough right? For Hsieh, finding happiness came as a result of gigantic leaps of faith, risk taking, a lot of hard work, reflecting inward and just a little bit of luck (well, not to mention surrounding himself with people of similar interests, passions and goals).

No matter what stage you are in your professional or personal life, Hsieh provides some great insight in finding your way. His writing style is laid back and friendly. He takes readers on a journey through his experience over the past decade or so. He’s open and honest about his thoughts and emotions. Hsieh puts the secrets to Zappo’s success right out there for everyone to see.

In the final section of the book, Hsieh engages readers to start the internal process of figuring out for ourselves what our goal is in life and illustrates that in the end of our personal search, the goal for all of us is the same: we all just want to be happy. He might not have the exact answers on how each of us can get to this happy place, but he provides a good starting point and plenty of inspiration through his own journey. No matter who you are or what industry you are in Delivering Happiness is a pretty darn good summer read.

Bringing this topic back around to Downtown Boulder, I feel like I’m surrounded by people who have found their own happiness. From the retailers who work seven days a week and the passionate restaurateurs who have made our downtown a foodie’s paradise, to the talented, creative and energetic second story businesses, Downtown Boulder is full of people with a similar passions and goals. We are happy and it shows! Enjoy Hsieh’s book. Enjoy Downtown Boulder. Enjoy the book while enjoying Downtown Boulder!

Want to win a free copy of Delivering Happiness? The first person to send an email to Terri@dbi.org will receive a copy (courtesy of our friends at deliveringhappinessbook.com). FOLLOW UP: CONGRATS TO LAUREN C. WHO WON THE COPY!

~ Terri

Zappos & Downtown Boulder in the same sentence?

I'm reading a book...an actual book printed on actual paper. I'm turning pages and folding down corners. I might even pull out a highlighter to remember key phrases/quotes! It's kind of fun. No Kindal, iPad or Nook in sight.

So what's the book? It's an advance copy of Tony Hsieh's (pronounced 'Shay') Delivering Happiness - A Path to Profits, Passion, and Purpose. If you have never heard of Tony, you are sure to have heard of his company, Zappos.com. One day while surfing Mashable.com (a great resource for everything social media), I found an opportunity to receive a free advanced copy of the book. In return, all I had to do was promise to write an honest review the day of its release (June 7).

The reason I jumped at this chance is because from what I've read about Hsieh he's an extremely clever businessman and a very passionate person. He has embraced social media (specifically Twitter with 1,686,677 followers to date, just hair more then we have...) as an active participant - as the voice of Zappos... the human voice of Zappos. If he has some lessons on how to be successful in business and happy in life, I'm all ears! Over the next several days, I'll give you a sneak peek into the book and share some of his thoughts/wisdom.

So how does this all relate to Downtown Boulder? Because much like Hsieh, there is a never- ending-list of successful business people right here in our 49 block district with the same level of drive and passion. Just like Hsieh, they are doing what they love and they are really good at it. Just like Hsieh, they must be doing something right! Need some examples? Here's just a few of the many that come to mind:

Richard Foy / Communication Arts
Bobby Stuckey & Lachlan Mackinnon-Patterson / Frasca Food and Wine
Dave Query / Big Red F
Richard Polk / Pedestrian Shops
David Bolduc /Boulder Book Store
Kimbal Musk / TechStars, The Kitchen
Andrew Hyde / TechStars, Ignite Boulder, Startup Weekend
Steven Tebo / Tebo Development Company
Andy James / James TravelPoints
Janice Manville / Peppercorn
Doug Emerson /University Bikes

Actually, Hsieh should consider moving here...he'd fit right in!

Thought for the day (one of Tony's 'Tweets to Live By'): "If the person you are talking to isn't listening, be patient. Maybe he has a small piece of fluff in his ear." - Winnie-the-Pooh

~ Terri