Cool! I make Jeremy's A-List. Here's mine.
Jeremy Wright typifies a group of people I have come to call friend even though we've spent little or no “atomic time” together. We chat frequently, e-mail each other constantly, and provide support for each other when the going occasionally gets rough. He's a good friend and we're definitely going to be doing more things together in the future (both of us are contributing essays to the More Space project currently).
In a post he just put up, he redefines the notion of what constitutes an “A List” - a term bandied about all too frequently on blogs to connote people who have achieved “talking head status”.
Jeremy writes:
There’s been a lot of hoopla recently about how the top dogs in the blogosphere are white and male. Lots of people pissed off.
To me, it doesn’t make any sense. Doesn’t every blogger have a personal list of people they look up to? Isn’t that their “A List"?
Hell, here are my top 10 people I respect in the blogosphere right now. This is my A List. And note that while at least half are white and male, a fair number aren’t. Not that it matters, but to those to whom it does matter, this is how I view the issue.
He then lists a pretty diverse group of folks and I'm pleased, really pleased, to find my name among those who have earned his respect. It's a good meme - positive and real. I'm up for joining in this conversation. Here's my A List (in no particular order):
Jeremy Wright - for showing me (and the rest of the blog-reading world) that it is possible to weather adversity with good humor and grace and keep on keeping on.
Robert Scoble & Shel Israel - for selecting me to be the editor on the book they're writing and for tons of encouragement, great conversation and comeraderie.
Chris Kunicki - for inspiring me to blog and providing me (and a bunch of other passionate folks) with my first platform to do that.
Buzz Bruggeman - just for being who he is. A charming, engaging and caring man with an endless supply of great stories and one of the most highly developed “people meters“ I've ever encountered. Buzz can sense a good person from across the room.
Mike Rohde - my Moleskine buddy and designer extraordinaire! Mike and I have great e-mail chats that always leave me filled with enthusiasm to pursue new ideas.
James Kendrick - my Tablet PC buddy and mobile computing guru. James gets the credit (or blame) for dragging me into podcasting and showing me a whole new way to have fun talking about cool gear.
Cameron Reilly - my podcasting visionary mate from Oz. Cameron and his partner Mick Stanic are building The Podcast Network and are daily examples to me of how to follow your dreams.
Steve Rubel - for bitch-slapping the PR industry when it needed it the most and remaining genuine despite a very fast rise on that other “A List” I mentioned above. And for crediting me with inspiring him to blog in the first place.
Eric Mack - A true “geek's geek“. Eric is one of the most interesting and complex humans I've encountered since I began blogging. He's a great dad, an enthusiastic supporter of innovation in education, and has an endless, insatiable curiosity about everything.
Jeff P. Van Dyke - my boss. Not a blogger (yet anyway) but an inspiration to me on a daily basis. I have been a part of many companies in my career but have never worked in such a positive, supportive, and creative environment as the one Jeff has created at Vandyke Software. He encourages and supports my blogging and other projects - something all too rare in this day and age.