david hieatt

It takes time to build great.

It has taken us 7 years just to get to the start line.

Two weeks ago, there was a list of the 21 best brands in Wales. The Do Lectures found itself on that list along with Gareth Bale and W.R.U.

http://www.walesonline.co.uk/business/business-news/21-very-coolest-brands-wales-9456825

This week Seth Godin put up a list of Templates for Organic and Viral Growth. Along with Airbnb lists, Farmers Markets, Alcoholics Anonymous, The Do Lectures was on it too.

http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2015/07/templates-for-organic-and-viral-growth.html

It has taken 7 years for the Do Lectures to get to the point that it has started to get some recognition. It has taken 7 years to get to the start line.

Some context:

The Burning Man has been going for 28 years. In their 6^th year, they had 600 people attend. Today, they have capped it at 50,000 people. South By South West started in 1994. This is its 21^st year. In year 6th it had 3,755 registered attendees. Today, it has over 155,000 people who attend at least one event. Ted is 30 years old. Its first event lost so much money, that it would have to wait another 6 years before the next one.

The Do Lectures is one of the best experience events in the world. (Or so people come up and tell me.) Yes, it can do a better job at diversity of speakers. Yes, it needs to amp up the levels of irreverence. Yes, it needs more art. More comedy. Yes, more tech. More surprises. More silence. More WTF.

But that is the attitude that has got us to here; no one is prepared to sit back. There is no one here that is resting on any laurel. The blessing is it can’t get any bigger. The only thing we can scale here is amazingness.

After 7 years, it is about to stop being a Tuesday company. A company that meets once a week and tries to get as much done on that day. But The Do lectures is about to get all those lovely other days of a week.

Imagine what it could do if it had the same number of days as anyone else. Sometimes, you have to serve your apprenticeship. Like a band, it has sit in the bedroom and learn how to play. Like a footballer, you just have to take the ball down the park and learn how to kick it.

So here we are, at the start line. And it feels good.

How to Build a great brand with very little money. Sept 11th. London.

My Book: Do Purpose.