Dan Rollman: Honor Thy 4th Commandment
When Dan Rollman is in the news — as seems to happen lately — he is often pictured sitting pensively, reflectively, an oasis of serenity and stillness in a hectic world. (If you don’t believe me…ahem.) Here, he does not look like the instigator for a do-it-yourself-World-Record factory, spawning the kind of highly ridiculous goofball antics that pack paying audiences into exclusive New York venues and earn repeat invitations to be a guest on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon whilst wearing a canary-yellow blazer.
And yet, Rollman is that ringleader, co-founder of the Universal Record Database (or, URDB for sort-of-pronounceable short), built on the aspirational notion that anyone can be the best at something. URDB’s website is built to accept video record submissions from around the globe. They can be anything, as long as they are the following two things: Quantifiable, and breakable. You got those, and you’re in play. In this case, “play” can mean anything from Most Consecutive Push-Ups In A Hot Tub, Most Binder Clips Attached To Face, Longest Time To Play Electric Fiddle While Balancing Golf Club, Golf Tee And Golf Ball On Chin and Most Bananas Fit Inside A Pair Of Pants While Wearing Them (Rollman’s record – 60 – until it was shattered by radio DJ Shaun McManus in Perth, Australia with an impressive 106).
He can shove 60 bananas down his pants, but that’s not all! He can also launch a national movement geared toward reflection and serenity, and honoring the spirit of our centuries-old keeping of the Sabbath! Wait, wha? Yes. It’s true. When he’s not acting as a catalyst for men to Rhyme Most Strangers’ Names In About 30 Sec. While Dressed As Wonder Woman, he’s encouraging the nation to unplug and reconnect with the basic tenets behind the Day of Rest with The Sabbath Manifesto, which seeks to uphold simple tenets like “connect with loved ones” “avoid technology” “avoid commerce” and, a favorite, “drink wine.” It spawned a National Day of Unplugging in March, a movement that may have set a record for Most People Across A Country Simultaneously Shutting Off Their iPhones. We asked Rollman for some clarity — and, upon reflection, he gave it to us.
How would you describe what it is that you do? Performance-art entrepreneur? Extreme-fringe-sports enabler? Sabbath enforcer? And – what’s different about it than what you used to do?
I’m president and co-founder of URDB (Universal Record Database). It’s an open platform for world records, built on a belief that everyone on earth can be the world’s best at something. As a friend described it the other day, we’re in the business of “making people legends.”
Before starting URDB, I was an advertising copywriter. Highlights of that professional chapter included writing/producing two Super Bowl commercials (Pepsi and Emerald Nuts) and winning an Emmy for an Oakland A’s commercial. Though I enjoyed my time in advertising and made some lifelong friends, I knew deep down it wasn’t what I was meant to do with my life.
The biggest difference between my advertising years and my current position: I used to do something I was good at; now I do something I love to do.
What was the inspiration for URDB? How did the team form?
Since I was a little kid, I’ve pretty much been fascinated and awed by every single human I’ve met, heard of, or read about. I received my first copy of the Guinness Book of Records when I was 7, and it instantly became my favorite book. I was awed by the tremendous breadth in which people around the world were pushing the limits of mankind. It became a dream of mine to someday hold my own world record.
I started documenting records in 2004, when some friends and I created a world record “theme camp” and took it to Burning Man, an annual arts festival held in the Nevada desert. I met my co-founder Corey Henderson through his then-girlfriend/now-wife Emily Wilson in 2006, and pitched him a loose idea for a website that allowed people to invent and upload their own world records. Wikipedia and YouTube were major inspirations. We bootstrapped development for 18 months and launched the site in November 2008. I immediately became a multiple world record holder, setting such feats as Most Times Whistling ‘Happy Birthday’ In One Minute and Fastest Time To Shave Off A Mustache.
What do you love about your work?
I work with a tremendous team building a project we all have great love for. Though we’ve had numerous TV appearances, done a good amount of traveling and closed some solid business deals, nothing brings me greater satisfaction than to come in the office each morning and see the submissions that have rolled in overnight. Knowing that we’ve inspired thousands of complete strangers to push their limits of creative achievement brings me an overwhelming amount of joy.
Trick question: If you love your work so much, then why are you so insistent about not doing any on the Sabbath?
I’m currently putting an insane amount of hours into my professional life. This is the hardest I’ve ever worked by far. If I tried to keep this pace up seven days a week, I wouldn’t be a happy person. Observing a weekly Sabbath gives me a chance to step away from my work, recharge my batteries and keep a healthy perspective on what’s important in life.
Tell me about the reception to the Sabbath Manifesto/Day of Unplugging. How did it go over with bosses? Parents? Uber-wired workaholics?
The Sabbath Manifesto/Day of Unplugging definitely created a stir in people when we launched it. Some thought it was an antiquated and folky. Others thought we were bastardizing religious principles. Most people who responded, however, thanked us for launching some guidelines they felt they needed in their lives. It became evident that a great portion of society feels overwhelmed by technology these days.
Let’s talk about collaboration – the Sabbath Manifesto came out of a brainstorm session at a weekend retreat. How did it develop from there?
The mission of the site was simple: build a space to announce the 10 Principles we’d created and create a forum for dialogue. I collaborated primarily with a project manager (Amelia Klein) and a site designer (Lucie Kim of MyORB), with assorted advisors jumping in along the way.
What kind of workplace stories/Sabbath anecdotes did you come across during this process that you found inspiring?
We heard from a guy in Toronto who’d hosted a Kill Your Facebook account party. The price of admission was to delete your Facebook account. Over 200 people attended.
How flexible are you on the Manifesto principles – for example, if URDB got a call to do the weekend Today Show live on a Saturday morning, would you struggle with that decision?
I’ve never claimed to observe the Principles in an orthodox manner. I use them as a guide, not a steadfast rule. I rarely work on Saturdays and try hard to unplug as much as I can, but I’m by no means perfect. Someday in the future I’ll live my growing dream to unplug for a year and see what happens. Until then, I’m open to doing a Today Show appearance on a Saturday.
What’s the most surprising satisfaction to come out of your work life in this past year?
Employees can blossom if you nurture them.
Blackberries: Imprisoning or freeing?
51% imprisoning, 49% freeing.
Do you think the Lord would have rested on the 7th day if there had been iPads around? They’re pretty tempting.
I don’t own an iPad. If you send me a free one, however, I’d be willing to test it out and answer this question.
Further Reading:
And on the Sabbath, the iPhones Shall Rest [NYT]
Tech Gets A Time Out [SanFranMag]
Dan Rollman’s Handwritten T-Shirts [Snerko.com] (Yes, he does that, too)
How To Set A World Record
URDB World Record Show (#7)
URDB on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon
Photo from the New York Times by Ben Sklar (no relation)
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