Most of you don’t know this, but The 21 Convention sprang from a discussion forum. Really. There was no website at the beginning. Just a forum. (A website was eventually setup, but it was hardly functional).
Take a look at the “Under 21 Convention” forum setup in 2006 — and no that’s not a typo — link.
Here it is again about a year later (link).
Humble beginnings? Maybe. Those that remember that forum remember how epic it was though — they remember signing up for The 21 Convention 2007 by sending me an “RSVP” message on that forum — and doing nothing else but show up and pay cash in person.
Compare that to what we see today: a website and videos bringing in over 10,000 viewers a week, months and years on end, attendance pages for two international events, nearly 100 hours of video content, a documentary series, 79 DVDs to choose from, a press page, a newsletter, and of course, a Facebook page.
Things have changed. Things have grown. But I think it’s time to get back to basics. And that, above all else, means a return to the starting point — one kick ass online community.
Enter: The 21 Convention Lounge.
What is The 21 Convention Lounge?
An online lounge built from the ground up for viewers and fans of The 21 Convention and The Dream Lounge (my blog). Live events aside, and in regards to you reading this, it is the number one place in the world to find people who share similar values, ideas, and ambitions in and for life.
And by ‘find’, I mean interact, start projects independent of T21C, have weekly Skype meetings, and keep each other on course via a private journal section, that is off limits to the public, and is only readable by registered members of the lounge.
I’ve kept a personal journal for years on end. Once you create an account you can read it, titled The Dream, along with ~900 other members here.
Be forewarned, I hold nothing back. Readers view at their own risk of being offended.
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I am going to be spending a lot of time on The 21 Convention Lounge over the next few months, in spite of being extra busy with the twin events coming up fast. I am going to invest this time and effort because I value the haven that this lounge can provide to true fans of T21C and TDL — and myself.
In a sense, the lounge can and will be a digital version of hanging out with your closest friends, who all share that same sense of life, uniquely concentrated in something like The 21 Convention.
Almost like Facebook, minus all the gay shit you want to “dislike”, and can’t — because this lounge will repel the type of person who would bring an attitude like that to the table.
This lounge has done that for years on end, and with an all new back end software and forum structure, I think this will only be intensified as time goes on.
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Many speakers have maintained a presence on the lounge over the years (in its previous format). Primarily Dodger and Zebra. With the official relaunch into the lounge, I am going to be contacting every single speaker to join in on the new forum. Needless to say, personal feedback from the speakers of The 21 Convention is extraordinarily valuable and is not going to last forever.
Join us on the lounge, start a private journal to hold yourself responsible for your actions, successes, and failures in life, and take advantage of the interaction with other attendees, fans, and many past and new speakers of The 21 Convention.
And, if you are an old timer, have a toast to the proper return of “the forum”.
Cheers guys.
– Anthony Dream Johnson
Edit: a mandatory introduction section has been added. If you are a new user, you have to make an intro once your account is created, or you will be banned by an admin.
