When Steve not only sent me a review copy of his book, but also allowed me to interview him (please refer to the previous podcast) I knew I had to do something special to say thanks. So I came up with a:

My-goodness-isn’t-that-the-most-original-thing-since-cubic-zirconia-idea

I called it:

The Two Days of Steve

Yeah, I know, my creativity took time off to make room for the blatantly obvious .

Yesterday was all about getting to know the man. Today is all about the man’s book.

I got Coach Caroline on the phone with me and we had a freewheeling discussion about the impact the book had on both of us.

The discussion was very loosely scripted and we had a discussion more like a radio show than a podcast, which is what I was after.

Lest You Forget:

The book is Personal Development for Smart People: The Conscious Pursuit of Personal Growth. You can find out more about the book using the link below:

I hope this is of value and service to you.

The Podcast

Things Discussed

1) What we both loved about the book?

2) The practical nature of the book

3) Things I would have improved about the book

4) The things that surprised us about the books.

5) The ideas that deeply resonated with both of us

6) We had a feel good session (I think she made me blush as much as my complexion would allow )

7) We had a lot of debate

8 ) A lot lot more

Any feedback, tips, hints and you are free to leave a comment below and/or hit the “Contact” button at the very top of the page and get in touch with me.

One Quick Final Thing

For those who want to support the release of my first ever information product, or just want heaps of videos and interviews with experts that teach them all they need to know about podcasting, please check out the site: www.MyPodcastingTutor.com.

Have one of those days that is so awesome you rename it “Perfection-Crammed-into-One-Day”,

Mwangi

Update on 28th October 2008: Steve Pavlina linked to this review of his book, among many many others. Check it out on this article entitled: More Book Reviews (there were that many)

How This All Got Started?

I have been a reader of Steve Pavlina’s blog for quite a while now and subscribe to it via my Google RSS reader.

A while back, Steve wrote a post entitled, How Bloggers Can Get My Book for Free

(By the way, the offer might still be on the table for all of you bloggers who are interested, so head on over to his site and check it out).

The Idea Behind the Post

Steve wanted to use the power of the blogosphere to launch his new book: Personal Development for Smart People: The Conscious Pursuit of Personal Growth

So, if you’re blog had a significant audience and had been around for a while, you were free to ask for a free review copy of the book AND even a podcast interview.

I Wasn’t Sure I Wanted to Make the Request At First

After all, this is an African personal development blog. I seek out people of African descent doing great things, with full knowledge, that there are volumes upon volumes upon volumes of Western personal development blogs, podcasts, autobiographies etc etc

But Then I Thought About It

This is the Steve Pavlina who inspired me to become vegeterian.
This is the Steve Pavlina who I have linked to repeatedly throughout this blog’s life.
This is the Steve Pavlina who has 2 million readers every single month.
This is the Steve Pavlina who has written the best personal development articles I have ever read online.
This is the Steve Pavlina who inspired me to go on trials, such as My 4 hour work week journey, and record the results for others’ benefit.

All those things, plus many others, culminated in my thinking:

I would have to be blinking mad not to leverage the little success theDisplacedAfrican.com has had to try and get a useful interview with Steve Pavlina out there.

I Asked for Both

And he agreed to be interviewed and sent me a review copy of his book .

Tomorrow, I release my review of Steve’s book, which I worked on, together with Coach Caroline. However, today, why not focus on the main man himself.

Ennnnjjjjooooyyyyy!

PS: If you love this podcast, don’t forget to share it with your friends on Facebook.

The Podcast

What was Discussed

1) Brief intro: Just who is Steve Pavlina ?

2) Some of the defining moments in Steve’s life.

3) How did Steve get the idea to write his brand new book?

4) What was the process he used to write his book?

5) How did Steve get to a place where he experiences flow on a regular basis? (What is flow?)

6) Tips for people who want to become published authors

7) Steve talks about how he got more than 2 million people visiting his site every month.

8 ) How did he arrive at a place where he broke down all personal development into 3 primary principles (truth, love and power) and 4 secondary ones (oneness, authority, courage and intelligence)

9) The link between Anthony Robbin’s work and Steve’s book.

10) How on Earth did Steve finish 4 years of University in 3 semesters? Some tips if you want to do the same.

11) Tips for transitioning to a raw vegan diet – How to overcome some of the common obstacles.

12) The idea from Steve’s book that had the most impact on me: definitely not what you’d expect.

13) Me thinks that it is noble ideal to live a life where one eats solely for nourishment and not for the pleasure. Steve’s thoughts on that idea.

14) What should you put on your not to do list if you want to intelligently pursue conscious, personal development?

15) Much much more

PS: Make sure you pick his book on Amazon.com and return here and tell me what you thought of it:

Websites and Resources

1) StevePavlina.com

2) StevePavlina.com Blog

3) Steve Pavlina’s new book – Personal Development for Smart People: The Conscious Pursuit of Personal Growth

4) What is Flow? The definitive resource on flow – Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience (P.S.)

5) Hay House Publishers

6) Steve’s Article on Graduating College in 3 Semesters

7) Steve talks about the Raw Vegan Diet
10 Tips for College Students

Update on 24th October 2008: Steve Pavlina linked to this article from his Twitter and the Steve Pavlina blog.