Evil Plans, Having Fun on the Road to World Domination is the second book by Hugh MacLeod author of Ignore Everybody and the blog gapingvoid.com. (Check out my review of Ignore Everybody here)

After tearing through Ignore Everybody about a week ago, I was eager to read the followup and see what new insights Hugh had to offer. Evil Plans doesn’t disappoint. While Ignore Everybody is more geared towards unleashing your creative mojo, Evil Plans is a bit more concerned with how you take the next step—i.e. what is your crazy idea, business model or evil plan that you are ready to unleash on the world?

Here are few excerpts that really stuck with me:

1. Everybody needs an evil plan. Everybody needs that crazy, out-there idea that allows them to actually start doing something they love, doing something that matters. Everybody needs an Evil Plan that gets them the hell out of the rat race, away from lousy bosses, away from boring, dead-end jobs that they hate. Life is short.

OK, so maybe your not chained to a desk next to Charlton Heston with a manager behind you carrying a whip, snarling and yelling out “RAMMING SPEED!” as you do your daily duty, but I bet that a great many of you out there aren’t doing that you love, or doing something that you feel truly matters. Why is that? Are you just collecting a paycheck and working for the weekends? Nothing wrong with that if it makes you happy. But if it doesn’t, if you have a continuing nagging feeling that you’re not reaching your full potential, then read on.

2. The Market for Something to Believe In Is Infinite. We are here to find meaning. We are here to help other people do the same. Everything else is secondary.

In an age where the internet has broken down geographical barriers, we can buy almost by anything from anybody. This access to all kinds of products and services makes creating a connection with customers even more important, because customers are facing ever increasing amounts of choice. People really do want to believe in the products they buy(Well, certain products anyway. I’m really not looking to connect with my toilet paper brand). But beyond just the marketing aspect, I think people respond to passion. If your passionate about what you do, your customers and clients will see that, and respond to it.

3. Cheap, Easy, Global Media: The Revolution Is Already Here, and It’s Permanent . . . Get used to living with it. Get used to working with it. Avoid it at your peril.

I’m not yet an evangelist for the all encompassing power of social media, but I do believe it is changing our everyday lives in how we consume information and interact socially. The rules are being written as we go along and media is changing so fast, its hard to keep up. But to put your head in the sand and ignore it all is a huge mistake. Early in my career, I met quite a few older art directors that got left behind because they didn’t make the transition to the macintosh computer. Smart, talented guys. Phased out of the industry because the tools of the trade changed and they didn’t adapt their skills to match.

4. This Is It. It’s easy to tell somebody to get into “The Zone” – that place where work and love are unified. Much harder to live it. But fight like hell to get there, regardless, every friggin’ day, or else you’ll never make it.

So, what are you waiting for? Life is too short not to put your heart and soul into something. What’s your Evil Plan?

I liked this book quite a bit. While the format is the same, the content has a different tone than Ignore Everybody. I found Ignore Everybody to be more inspirational and Evil Plans more instructional. Both, however, work for me. Hopefully, they do for you too.

Interested in the book? Pick up a copy of Evil Plans here >>>