By day, Neil Pasricha works an office job. But he's also the creator of 1000awesomethings.com, a blog devoted to discovering the little pleasures in life ("#528: When your pet notices you're in a bad mood and comes to see you"; "#575: When the guy with a full cart of groceries lets you go ahead because you're only buying one thing").
Neil is a wonderful guy, and his book is getting excellent reviews. (Awesome!) Below are excerpts from our recent conversation.
CC: So did you wake up one morning, conceive the idea for "1000 Awesome Things," and just think, "Okay, I'm going to make this into a website"?
NP: Yeah, pretty much. I went online and spent ten minutes creating it on Wordpress.com.
I started it on a whim in June, 2008, because everything was just doom and gloom. Polar ice caps were melting, hurricanes were swirling in the sea, wars were raging around the world, and the stock market was teetering on the brink of collapse. 1000 Awesome Things and The Book of Awesome are just breaks from the bad news around us every day.
When I first launched the site I got excited when my mom forwarded it to my dad, and the site traffic doubled. Then I got excited when friends sent it to their friends, and strangers started commenting and emailing me. I've never done any real marketing for the website, and still get excited when someone writes to me and says, "I found you on my friend's Facebook wall," or "I forwarded your website to my entire family."
CC: When did you realize that your blog was officially a massive hit?
NP: I thought "1000 Awesome Things" had hit its peak when it started getting 100 hits a day. Then I thought it was definitely at the top when it was getting 1000 hits a day, then 10,000, then 20,000, then 40,000. I never expected it to get over 10 million hits, win the Webby Award for Best Blog, be named to PC Magazine's Top 100 Websites of 2009 list, or get approached by 10 literary agents about a book deal. It's been an absolutely wild ride.
CC: What are some of the most gratifying responses you've had so far?
NP: I've had teachers email to tell me they read "1000 Awesome Things" to their classroom and have designed homework exercises around writing about awesome things. I heard from a student who wrote her Princeton application in the style of "1000 Awesome Things." I've had cancer patients say that the site makes them smile and reminds them of the good things on dark days. I've consistently been overwhelmed at the effect it has had on people. But it's certainly had the same effect on me. I know I would probably be wallowing in a swirl of doom and gloom right now if I didn't have things like "finding money in your coat pocket" to find pleasure in each day.
CC: Why do you think we find such great pleasure in the mundane? Such as popping bubble wrap; wearing a new pair of socks; wearing underwear just out of the dryer; hanging your hand out the car window; sleeping with one leg under the covers and one leg out; and finding the TV remote after looking forever—all of which are "awesome things" cited in your book.
NP: I think it's because 99.9% of our life is "every day," you know? Sure, we've got graduation memories and wedding days, but between those events are little things—like perfectly Zip-Loc-ing your sandwich shut, having just enough milk for your cereal bowl, or getting the thank-you wave from somebody merging in front of you in traffic.
CC: How do you define whether something is awesome? What makes it so?
NP: The two biggest reasons are that they're usually free and universal. We joke on the book jacket for The Book of Awesome that your grandma was right: the best things in life really are free. Things like snow days, fixing electronics by smacking them, or the cold side of your pillow. On top of that, it's great if these things are funny or touching or nostalgic—and, of course, they've gotta help us forget the heaviness of the high unemployment rates and natural disasters around the world.
CC: What is the most awesome thing that happened to you today?
NP: Waking up and realizing that it's Saturday.
CC: Can you give me a Top 10 list of your favorite awesome things from The Book of Awesome?
NP: 10. When you're awkardly standing by yourself with a full cafeteria tray of food and then suddenly spot your friend waving at you
9. Having a whole row by yourself on a plane
8. Finding a mix tape given to you by an old boyfriend or girlfriend
7. That moment at a concert after the lights go out and before the band comes onstage
6. Finding out your birthday is on a Friday or Saturday next year
5. Tripping and realizing nobody saw you
4. Sleeping in new bedsheets
3. The sound of scissors cutting construction paper
2. Waiters and waitresses who bring free refills without asking
1. When you're really tired and about to fall asleep and somebody throws a blanket on you
CC: Thanks, Neil. You are awesome.
Sent from James' iPhone
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