Terry “Starbucker” St. Marie has been one of my favorite online socialites for the better part of 4 years now. The guy is a master motivator, perpetual optimist, a willing sounding board for anybody trying to solve a problem — no matter what it is, and an unabashed Music-aholic, just like me.

No. This isn’t a BroMance in the making. It’s just that in my experience, guys or gals like Terry are in short supply these days.

A chance  first-time In Real Life (IRL) encounter at a Portland-area watering hole for a ThinkNDrink (#ThinkNDrink ) session last spring cemented my personal take on the Starbucker as a one-of -a-kind dude. Even better, he relocated recently from the Midwest to PDX and now lives about 100 yards from where I work @Attensa.

Serendipity rules!  Since we’re basically neighbors now, I took the chance to find out what Terry is doing these days so you can keep tabs on him like I do.

Like me, you are a music addict: What are you listening to right now?

Feels Like The First Time, by Foreigner.  (I’ve put together a killer 70′s playlist on Spotify)

 

For those who don’t know you, who or what is a Starbucker?

 

Starbucker is named after the coffee.  Not the Battlestar Galactica  character played by Gil Gerard.

The Terry “Starbucker” St. Marie bio on “A Glass Half Full”.

 

What are you working on?

I’m getting ready for SOBCon NW right now, our next live event in Portland, OR.

 

What is SOBCon?

 

It’s the Successful Online Business Conference - a biannual event (one in Chicago, and another in Portland) where we gather 100-150 of the brightest minds and biggest hearts in the online and business world to spend the weekend talking about strategies, models and tactics that will change their lives and businesses for the better – even before the conference is over.

 

Why PDX for SOBCon?

 

Because I live there and (more importantly), because of the open hearts and minds of nearly all the people I had met before we made the decision.

 

Any concern that you may be attracting a bunch of S.O.B.s or some other derivative of malcontent to the event?

 

We got past that one early on. Folks figured out quickly we’re not a very good place for malcontents. In fact, a horrible place.

 

Was this a white napkin thing with you and Liz (Strauss)? where? When?

 

It was more like a “comment box” type of thing – SOBCon was born in the comment box of Liz Strauss’ blog, in the latter part of 2006, when a couple of us suggested there that we gather all of Liz’s  “SOBs” in Chicago.  The rest, as they say, is history…….

 

What’s the coolest thing you witnessed at SOBCon that said ‘Man. We are onto something!’?

 

It was that first year.  Nobody wanted to leave. Everybody was smiling. Lives had been changed.  We just had to do it again!

Note: Check out the post below from Lorelle for some event testimonials. ^ME
The Most Powerful Life Changing Conference Event, SOBCon, Comes to the Pacific Northwest

 

Where did you miss the mark badly and then fix it with SOBCon?

 

We never should have made a SOBCon a one day thing, which we tried in Colorado last year.   So, when we decided to do a second event again this year, this time in Portland, it was going to be a 2 1/2 day even, just like Chicago.  You live and learn!

 

Best thing for you personally about doing SOBCon?

 

It changed my life, too.  In so many fantastic ways.

It exploded my network of friends so many times over I still can’t fathom it.

BONUS ROUND

3 things you will give the “Starbucker Guarantee” on for attendees.

1) You will smile at least once.  OK, maybe twice.

2) You will make a lot of new friends

3) If you give of yourself here, you will get so much more in return.

 

What’s the biggest success story for SOBCon so far?

 

Selling out Chicago for the last two years.  We’re so grateful.   And honored.

Any celebrity encounters at SOBCon?

It was great to have a real “Rock Star” at SOBCon - Jay Jay French of Twisted Sister attended in 2010, and he was fantastic.

@MarkAEvertz: That must’ve been awesome, bringing both your business passion and music passion together. I’ve been trying to do that for ever and am pretty sure I’m annoying people.
@Starbucker: It was so awesome. And…if it matters, I know you’re not annoying me.
@MarkAEvertz: Good catching up with you again, my friend…coffee’s on me.

REGISTER FOR SOBCon Now!

You can see what you’ll be missing if you don’t on the SOBCon YouTube Channel.