How to write my book
Just before making it to New York, I decided to start writing a book about my 17,000-km trip from Chile to NYC on an oldtimer Moto Guzzi during which I highlighted 37 social businesses.
Realising that writing a book is something that I have never done before, this is my game plan for the coming months.
This is how I’m going to write my book.
Writing
After just having spent 10,000 miles on the road, sitting at a desk in Brooklyn unleashed the dragon: words started flowing straight away. Like a whirlwind, one after the other.
The perfect way to order the mind.
So far I penned down a little over 50,000 words, without paying attention to dots, typos, commas, and editing in general. Depending on the font size, that is around 200 pages. So far, so good.
Framing
The book will consist of 2 types of stories: signature stories, and road stories.
Signature stories
During the trip I visited 37 companies. For-profit companies from different industries, each with their own model to make the world a better place.
To share the lessons from their remarkable stories, the book will be framed around signature stories:
Argentina: Volatility triggers innovation and creativity
Argentina is a country of extreme highs and extreme lows. Extreme inflation rates, extreme political decisions, extreme trade barriers, extreme passion.
Hernán and I met in 2006. Back then, he was the marketing manager of a local shopping mall. Now he directs and operates Sabores del Mundo: a weekly trade fair, that attracts over 50,000 people.
The story of our friendship and the personal experiences that I gathered in the past 10 years, describe a nation that is continuously innovating, to deal with the on-going volatility and the ever-changing status quo of daily life.
Peru: Social inclusion
In most Latin American countries, the gap between the rich and the poor is substantial. A trend that can be observed in my own country the Netherlands as well.
To break this trend, Peruvian for-profit companies Laboratoria, Puriy, and Fairmail collaborate with people that have a vulnerable position in society.
By including these people into the labor market, they tap into a huge talent pool that most traditional companies leave untouched.
Ecuador and US: Cooperative collaboration
Most companies tend to focus solely on maximising profits in the short run, by incentivising their staff to sell as much as possible.
The cooperative mingas of La Nuestra Casa and Loma Wasi in Ecuador provide an alternative for this short-term moneymaking. Just like to largest cooperative of coffee buyers in North America: Coop Coffees.
These coops believe in creating value for all stakeholders in the long run, within a system of cooperative collaboration.
Colombia: Invest in local
Current peace negotiations in Colombia could put an end to decades of armed conflict that have caused many deaths and over 5.3 million internal refugees — the second-largest number worldwide (after Syria).
Crepes&Waffles and WOK show a new Colombia, through investments in local agricultural projects in war-torn areas.
These investments result in profitable small-scale farming and agriculture, and renewed interest in these activities by local farmers that are being paid a fair price for their produce.
Road stories
Next to these signature business stories, I will describe what it is like to ride an oldtimer motorcycle across the Americas without any knowledge of mechanics.
Day by day, mile by mile.
I will describe the emotions I went through, what to do in case of mechanical trouble, what the impact of nature can be, and what a glorious feeling it is to make it to Manhattan.
I will also introduce all the people I was fortunate enough to meet. People who offered their house to stay, and people at the rest of the 37 companies: Maria Panela, Guayakí, Richland Rum, Acorn Sign Graphics, Mafia Bags, Hotel Galvarino, La25 Export and all those other companies that use the powerful message of their business as a force for good.
Editing
After the writing and framing, the editing of the complete manuscript by a professional editor with a big fat red marker, is the (close to) final step. The editor will get rid of loose sentences and words, shuffle pages and paragraphs, and correct typos, capitals, and grammar.
With the complete manuscript edited, the final steps are translating the Dutch manuscript into English and Spanish, designing the lay-out, and finally, printing the book.
Self-publication
Almost everybody warns me that writing a book is a huge undertaking. Whether they are right, I will know in a couple of months. So far it is still a lot of fun.
To be able to self-publish my book without the help of a publisher, I started a campaign to sell 1,000 preorders of the book before 1 July.
The book shows how to:
- apply profitable social business models,
- boost a spirited and meaningful life,
- go from risk to result.
The first 1,000 supporters that preorder the book, will receive a handwritten dedication.
Every 100th supporter will be invited to a 1-on-1 inspiration lunch.
If you want to get yourself a copy of the book and support the self-publication, please click here.
