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It’s Time for a Change

I don’t know about you, but I am sick and tired of all the “Top 10″ list posts littering the internet. And, I’m not the only one. John Andrews recently revealed an hilarious list lampooning all the “listers” out there, providing several (10 to be exact) suggestions for your next “list” post.

After reading that post and thinking back on my own experience over the years, reading all of the Top 10 posts in the world of SEO and beyond, it dawned on me that it is time for a change.

The Death of the List Post?

Sacrilege. I know. So, before you get your knickers in a twist, let me put to rest the fear that I am calling for the death of the list post. I’m not. But it desperately needs a face-lift. How though? What could we do to bring utility back to the useless? In times like these, when I am faced with issues that plague mankind, I find myself turning to the sage advice of the wise men that have blazed trails before me.

“You see, most blokes, you know, will be playing at ten. You’re on ten here, all the way up, all the way up, all the way up, you’re on ten…Where can you go from there? Where? Nowhere. Exactly. What we do is, if we need that extra push over the cliff, you know what we do?”

“Eleven. Exactly. One [better].”

- Nigel Tufnel

So, what I’ve decided to do is create a little corner here at bryonsheffield.com called: This One Goes to 11. It will be the home of list posts that all go to…you guessed it…11. In the spirit of being social, I will open the floor to suggestions. Maybe even put up a poll or two with some ideas, similar to the one I put up when trying to determine my site plans. Once the verdict is in, I will write a This One Goes to 11 post about the selected topic and report on the results, similar to the stunning commentary I provided when the vote came in on my original poll.

The Future’s So Bright…

I promise that these lists will be as useful as all of the Top 10 posts you are currently reading. In fact, they will be that useful +1. I’m sure there will be some naysayers who insist that 10 is a good round number for a list post or that we should all just focus on making those ten list items stronger, more meaningful, more useful. Clearly, I couldn’t disagree with those people more. None of them have actually spoken up yet, or more importantly, spoken up here. But they will and when they do I shall club them down with the righteous wisdom of another of Nigel’s Nuggets:

These go to eleven.

- Nigel Tufnel

They sure as hell do, Nigel, they sure as hell do.

Let’s Get This Party Started

Obviously, if I am going to make such a groundbreaking suggestion, a suggestion likely to shake the interwebs to their very foundation, it only makes sense that I would offer the first shot across the bow. So, to kick things off, here is the first “This One Goes to 11″ list:

Top 11 Reasons Why 11 Is Way Cooler Than 10 (In no particular order)

1. Hilarious movie references are always cool. (If you haven’t caught the reference, our good friends at IMDb will be happy to clue you in.)
2. 11 is a prime number. A synonym for prime numbers is “natural numbers“. How can you get more natural than “natural”? And of course this means that no one can encourage you to, say, divide your list in half or in fifths.
3. 11 is instantly 1 cooler than David Letterman. And he’s pretty cool.
4. 10 is stale. 11 is fresh. And, anyone who tries going for 12 is just asking for trouble.
5. According to spiritual numerology the number 11, or the Master Number, is “the most intuitive of all numbers and it represents illumination and deep insight”. Bingo!
6. The winter solstice of the last day of the Mayan calendar is at 11:11 am on 21 December 2012.
7. 11 of Jesus’ apostles were generally regarded as good dudes. Remember what I said about going for 12?
8. In many parts of the world, 11 is a time when people take a morning break for a snack and tea. Mmmm, snacks.
9. The 11th house in astrology is the segment that rules one’s friendship, hopes, social relations and desires. And isn’t that what these lists are all about, bringing you closer to your hopes and desires?
10. The largest cat in the world is the Siberian tiger measuring 11 feet long. You don’t want to mess with a Siberian tiger. A Siberian tiger could totally rip your face off, which is pretty cool, unless it is actually your face or the face of someone you hold dear. Outside of those exceptions, that kinda power and ferocity kicks ass.
11. In soccer, the coolest sport on the planet, you field 11 players. You don’t choose to play with 10. That only happens if one of your 11 has been particularly naughty.

Special thanks to the crack squad of researchers over at Buzzle for filling in the holes in my knowledge of el numero once.

And There Was Much Rejoicing

See, a completely cooler internet and all of it possible without eating any minstrels. So, I will expect the four of you to comment below and provide your suggestions for the next Top 11 list post. I’ll also expect you to share this amongst your friend and encourage the kicking and screaming birth of a brand new (old) meme.

Thanks, Nigel. Once again your wisdom has pierced the darkness.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, April 20th, 2010 at 2:50 PM and is filed under This One Goes to 11. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.