I’m a Guinness-Certified Record Holder!

Ever since I was a kid, I wanted this to happen … here’s how it went down.  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ Issue #43 | June 20th, 2023 On June 10th, 2023, over a thousand people entered the ballroom, and each was given a pack of Pokémon cards on the way in. After the last person entered, Michael, our adjudicator from Guinness World Records, initiated the countdown: “3…2…1…go!” The room was filled with the loud noise of foil packs being opened, then suddenly it went silent as everyone was instructed to raise their pack of cards in the air above their heads for 30 whole seconds. It was the longest 30 seconds ever. After the timer was over, and during a tension-filled calculation on stage, the verdict was in: “You have officially set a new world record!” The crowd burst into cheers, and I, on stage in front of everyone, started to tear up with a huge smile on my face. We did it. In this email, I’m going to tell you about this world record and why it was about more than just checking a box off my bucket list. [Framed photo of Guinness World Records certificate with foil seal] ​ QUOTE OF THE WEEK "Individually, we are one drop. Together, we are an ocean." – Ryunosuke Satoro THE STORY Ever since I got my hands on a Guinness Book of World Records when I was a kid, I said to myself, “Wow, maybe one day I’ll be in this book.” I tried everything: from jumping the highest, to running the longest, and even cooking the world’s largest pizza. But every time I tried, I never even come close. (I was only 8 years old, so I could only do so much.) This past weekend, however, I had the chance to enter the record books — but it was something I couldn’t do alone. You see, my live event Card Party (which you potentially read about in last week's issue), brought together over 2,000 Pokémon card-collecting nerds. This community has never had an opportunity to come together in person like this before. I knew that if we could do something extraordinary — like set a world record together — it would not only set my event apart, it would make the community feel like they were part of something special. Like they were involved in a once-in-a-lifetime moment. It was definitely unique. The logistical nightmare it takes to set a world record — any world record — is incredible. There’s so much paperwork, you need witnesses that aren’t participating to act as “stewards,” not to mention the cost involved to do something like this. How much, exactly? $21,000 total. And that doesn’t even count the cost of the cards that were opened. Even beyond the price, there were several reasons why my event team initially pushed back on this idea: - It was complicated. We needed dozens of stewards and witnesses, people who weren't participating, to watch over the crowd and make sure everyone was following the rules. - Crowd control. Could we wrangle over 1,000 people in the same room and organize a simultaneous pack opening, especially when nearly half the people at the event were kids? - What if it fails? Yes, that’s actually a possibility and has happened before, even with something as simple as opening packs of Pokémon cards. If more than 10 percent of the room doesn't get it done in time or does it wrong, we’d have to admit defeat in front of the entire audience. And no, you don’t get your money back. Was it worth the risk? To me, absolutely. You see, in 2013, I heard about an event called World Domination Summit, hosted by my friend Chris Guillebeau. Every year at this event, he and the attendees break a world record together — it’s the thing everyone remembers most about the event, because it’s such a unique experience. In 2013, he gathered everyone and created the world's longest floating chain down a river in Portland. The year prior to that, he gathered enough people to have the world’s largest yoga session, and in another year it was the largest number of people eating breakfast in bed. These all sound a bit silly on the surface, and really have nothing to do with the content presented at his event, but they have everything to do with community. Great communities achieve things together. Sure, there may be a leader or someone directing the operation, but those experiences that come with working toward a goal — and then celebrating the win — create lifelong memories and become experiences people talk about for years to come. That’s exactly what happened this past weekend, and the event was definitely a success. Almost every single attendee, sponsor, vendor, and creator wants to come back next year, and the reviews from people who recorded videos are already coming in on YouTube. I’ve watched almost all of them so far, and you know what — all of them talk about how special it was to be a part of the World Record. It was a special moment for the community, to do something incredible together and get recognized for our efforts, too. In the end it was totally worth it! It’ll be a memory every attendee can take home with them, something special that they had a part in — that’s what it’s all about. CALL TO ACTION This is all straight out of the Superfans playbook: creating a safe space for your audience to do something together — something unique that they can say they were a part of. And no, you don’t need to actually set a world record or spend this kind of money in order to do this. Really, all you need to do is create something that makes your audience feel involved and special. That’s all it comes down to. So think about it: what can you do in the near future (or even today) to make your audience feel special, like they’re a part of something important for the community? In reflecting back on the success of last week, honestly, the record feels so much better knowing that it was done with the help of others. I would not be as satisfied if it was just something I did on my own. Truly. Go out there, and create something special, together. 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