“We’re all stuck here together on this small planet.”
—MATT HARDING, TRAVELER AND INTERNET CELEBRITY
Matt Harding had what some might call a “lack of clear direction.” Other than playing video games, he wasn’t sure what he wanted to do with his 70 or so years on the planet. His dad, frustrated by his son’s lack of ambition, finally severed his college funds, forcing Matt to go out and join the labor force. That’s what responsible adults do, right? Sell their soul to “the man.”
But Matt wasn’t content to follow the responsible adult rules. He refused to settle for the customary 9–5. He wanted to travel, to see the world, to visit as many countries as he possibly could.
The voice that pushes us toward the soul-numbing amassment of legal tender laughed in his face.
“You can’t do that without a big bank account, without a high-paying job with lots of vacation. Fahgetaboutit!”
But Matt didn’t listen. He worked as long as it took to save up some money. Then he quit his job and hit the road once again. He traveled until “lack of moola” forced him back into a cubicle, ever expanding his vision of new countries to add to his “life list.” One day, while hanging out in Hanoi, a fortuitous event caused his creative capital to flower. Matt’s buddy, armed with a video camera, prodded him: “Hey, go do that weird dance you do. I’ll tape it.”
The weird dance, in case you haven’t been lucky enough to see Matt’s now-infamous YouTube video, is a kooky arm-flapping, knee-marching step that adolescent boys fancy at junior high dances. His buddy videotaped him performing it on the streets of Hanoi. And then in Tonga. And then the Philippines, Mali, and beside the Panama Canal. His sister, who was trying to keep up with her wayfaring brother, begged him to start a website with videos of him doing the crazy dance. Like a virus, “Where the Hell is Matt?”—the aptly named video of a grinning Matt bouncing in 69 countries—spread from computer to computer.
Before he knew it, his video had more than 12 million hits and Matt had become an overnight celebrity. He was interviewed by The Washington Post, Jimmy Kimmel, and National Geographic. Visa hired him to do a TV commercial. NASA put his dancing video on their Astronomy Picture of the Day website. And as for building creative capital, Stride Gum approached him about making a video for their website. They wanted Matt to dance and get others all over the world to dance with him. And, of course, they agreed to pick up the tab.
