Mike Stopforth

I’ve been quiet, I know. I’ve had angry life-threatening mails from my fans (read: family members) telling me to drub up some inspiration and right something. But I’ve been a bit busy. Herewith an update as to what’s on my radar:

Afrigator

Yep, Afrigator has pretty much dominated this blog for some time - but no more! Now Afrigator, Africa’s first Social Media Aggregator and Index, has it’s own blog over here. Or you can simply subscribe to the feed for news updates.

Afrigator is growing nicely and has been received positively by you guys. We have a long way to go yet but are having heaps of fun in the process. If you are an African blogger and have not yet set up your free account, get over there and make a plan!

Amplitude

Dave and I have learned a stack since we initiated Amplitude, our supposed-to-be-about-new-marketing podcast. Despite our recent bad form and inconsistent production (which has a lot to do with really dodgy bandwidth issues), our listenership is growing (bizarre, I know). Do not underestimate how much time a podcast takes to record AND edit. Believe me.

Cerebra

Our little company continues to grow, internally and externally, besides the fact that I have arguably the worst business administration skills in the galaxy. Cerebra has some fantastic clients on board and is doing some awesome work, and I foresee big things in the future PROVIDED they take all the responsible stuff away from me Cerebra is not so much a traditional company as an assembly of highly talented individuals. They all deserve ownership in the company because no-one is a 9-5er, and anyone who is patient enough to bear my inequities through these initial stages will benefit accordingly in the long run.

That provided they don’t throw themselves in front of an innercity bus before then.

27 Dinners

The 27 Dinner movement continues to grow in popularity, and our upcoming 27 Dinner in Cape Town falls on Freedom Day, a public holiday here in South Africa that commemorates the first democratic election in South Africa (13 years ago) and the institution of our marvelous constitution (8 years ago). Unfortunately I hadn’t foreseen being away on this weekend, so can’t attend, but will definitely be at the next one in Jozi, 27 May, when we are provisionally planning a GEEK PICNIC (cos it falls on a Sunday).

“If you go down to the woods today, you’re in for a biiiiig surprise…
If you go down to the woods today, you’d better go in disguise!”

Lectures and Speaking

I’ve been a busy bee at VEGA School of Branding where I’ve been helping out on their VEGA Moon programme. On the speaking front, I have the following gigs lined up in the next while:

Ernst & Young Relationship Building Module, Jozi, 24 April
Executive Knowledge Management Forum, Jozi, 3 May
Reshaping Media Conference, Jozi, 8 May (Public - sign up now!)
IQPC New Media and Mobile Conference 23 - 25 May (watch this space for more deets)

Life

Ja I still have a life. I’ve just replaced all the heads on my Tama drumkit with Evans G2’s for a better sound, and periodically try and clean it up whenever I get the chance (it gather some serious dust at the church). Hoping my bro will be ready to gig soon so I can give it a workout. I still play indoor cricket whenever I get the chance, but need more exercise. I’m playing golf, but vary rarely - Christof destroyed my confidence after our last game together :). Let’s not forget my incredible little family, who don’t get a big mention here, but are the rudder for this speedboat on choppy waters.

Miscellaneous Others

There’s a bunch of other projects I work on, that sometimes evolve into meaningful things and sometimes disappear into insignificance. I get to meet new people every day who inspire new ideas and collaborations, so very difficult to ignore new opportunities.

Writing

Still writing the odd article and stuff, but not paying nearly enough attention to writing (look to guys like Gino and Tyler for great examples of how well-researched, quality writing can launch a public profile). Have not buried ambitions to write a book, but when? when!?

Thanks for listening, this was more for me than for you