Last Chance to Save or Shave Carl (And Party!)

Remember Save or Shave Carl? Well, it’s almost time for the final decision to be made!

Tomorrow, Friday, April 23rd, the mustache will either stay or go, and it all depends on the donations. Using my “MOspace” page on Movember.com, people can donate and leave a message. At the party, if the people who say “Shave Carl!” have raised more money than those who say “Save Carl!” then Carl will go — AT the party.

Where does the money go? Donations and votes are cast directly to the Movember Foundation. From there, the Movember Foundation splits the money between its two beneficiaries: Livestrong & the Prostate Cancer Foundation. More details on where the money is going.

So how about that party? I’ll be providing some pizza and drinks, and there will be a live taping of Evil Genius Radio. It’ll be great fun, whether or not Carl meets his end! If you want to make sure I get enough food and drinks, RSVP on Facebook so I know how many mouths I need to feed!

Friday, April 23, 2010 7:00pm
Gangplank
325 E Elliot Rd
Chandler, AZ

I dropped by Leo Laporte’s cottage to show him Carl and he ended up donating to help Save Carl. Here’s the video:

Some News Spreads Faster Than Others

Sure, we all know juicy gossip spreads faster than praise. News of a scandal spreads faster than news of an accomplishment.

But what about the exciting news of a sold-out event getting a larger venue and re-opening ticket sales? Well, as I’ve observed in various situations, it can be hard to get the word out that space is once again available after the word to the contrary has spread.

This leaves event planners in a precarious situation. You don’t want people to miss out. You want everyone who wants to attend to be able to attend. But changing to a bigger venue and re-opening ticket sales can be risky. If the word doesn’t get out fast enough, you could end up with empty seats. When it comes to making an event pack a punch, you want the event to feel like it’s bursting at the seems. You don’t want empty seats. Filling 500 out of 1,000 seats will feel like a failure, while getting in trouble with the fire marshal for exceeding a 240-person limit will feel like a raging success.

Back to the news spreading. If you want to go to an event, but tickets are sold out, there’s an emotional reaction. It’s a tragedy. What you want is there and you cannot have it. Tragedy is news. People talk about their personal tragedies. If you then find out you can attend, the feeling is relief. Relief isn’t news. People don’t talk about things that feel “nice.”

Today, I heard Pecha Kucha Night Phoenix had re-opened ticket sales with the announcement of a new venue, after all the tickets for the previous venue were snapped up in a gold rush. It’s risky, but hopefully the word will spread to the people who missed out that they have a second chance!