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NOTE: VOTING HAS ENDED – THANKS!

It’s been one hell of a hectic Christmas week as the video applications I asked you for have come rolling in. I’ve been honestly overwhelmed, impressed, and moved by your submissions and reactions to the Digital Nomad Academy scholarship opportunity! I really didn’t expect such a resounding response.

It was clear to me that there were people who wanted to be a part of this, who could benefit from being part of the ambitious community we’re building, but who aren’t necessarily in the same socio-economic situation as others or who have hit tough financial times in this economy, that might not otherwise have a chance to be involved.

But WOW you guys have truly blown me away and proven to me how many incredible, ambitious individuals there are out there with lofty goals, big dreams, and visions for building an improved, more connected, whole, healed, better society through entrepreneurship.

To those of you who applied, thank you all SO much for your creative and heartfelt videos and presentations.

In the end, we received 24 amazing videos, pouring in from Germany, Canada, the Czech Republic, Costa Rica, Argentina, Japan, Bolivia, Brazil, Mexico, and many more… Narrowing the selections down to even ten or five of our favorites was exceptionally difficult, and picking just two winners is near impossible (this made me want to hand out like 15 scholarships!), so I wanted to include you—existing DNA students, faculty, and dedicated readers here at Thrilling Heroics—to help me make the final decision about which two should be awarded the full-ride scholarship.

We tried our hardest to select the finalists based on a balance of who had the most compelling story or vision, who seemed to bring the most specific value to the table for the other students and the Academy, and who seemed to have the most genuine need for this. Again, it was incredibly hard to choose, and I can’t say with certainty that we were absolutely right (which is why I need your help), but please find below our six favorite applicants for the 2 scholarship spots at Digital Nomad Academy.
So here’s what help I need from you and a few important notes on how this will work:

1) There are six contenders, listed in no particular order. Please watch the videos and vote on your single favorite at the bottom of this post. Please use your real name & email in the form sections of the comment box. If you want to write a very short explanation for why you think they deserve to win, great, but not necessary. I do especially want to hear from you students already inside DNA though as to you think would add the most to the group.

2) If you are in the running below, feel free to ask your friends and family to come watch your video and add a comment to vote for you.

3) But so that nobody games the system, you may only vote once, and only for one person. DNA students may vote for their top 2 (but believe me guys, I know who my students are so anybody else who writes down 2 names, only the first will count). If you appear below then please DO leave me a comment and be sure to use a valid email address (it won’t appear publicly) so I can contact you at in case you are chosen as a scholarship recipient, and please consider voting for one of the other good folks in the running.

4) Voting ends Monday, January 2, at 11pm EST.

5) Once tallied, your votes will decide the 2 final scholarship winners.

Because there were so many outstanding videos, I’m working to see if I can put something special together for runners-up as well (you each deserve major thanks). No promises yet, but I may pick a “wild card” third scholarship at the very least. That’s right—another $1,500 spot in the program.

I will be in touch with all the winning applicants to discuss the specifics of how you can measurably give something of value back to our existing students and our community…

To those of you who applied, thank you all SO much for your creative and heartfelt videos and presentations. Many more are worth watching and can be found here. I watched them all, there are some amazing people with some amazing projects and passions in there and I can only hope you will get a little extra visibility by stepping out of your comfort zone and putting yourself out there.

I hope you love watching these as much as I did… They make me so thankful that you come here, read what I have to say, and participate in the communities we’re creating. You’ve made my 2011.

I am truly excited to have some of you join us very soon, so best of luck to all, and stay tuned as we announce the scholarship winners.

Happy New Year everyone. Here’s to creating a new reality for 2012 and beyond!

NOTE: VOTING HAS ENDED – THANKS!

Big thanks to ALL of you who applied and to everyone who helped contribute to our decision for the final scholarship recipients. We’ll announce the winners soon.

Jeff Kimes – Germany

Tim Juliussen – California

Eileen Campos – Philippines

Peter Griffin – Oregon

Janet Brent – Philippines

Rodrigo Flamenco – El Salvador

Photo credit: JD Hancock