It has been a really interesting time here at The Tiny Life.  With so many new people to our Tiny Community I find myself wanting to do more and more for you all.   I want to bring in other viewpoints, because a little variety would be welcomed, up until now I have done this with guest posts.   But today I am stepping up, I am putting my money where my mouth is, I am accepting applications.  I am looking to hire one writer to do a post once a week.

Contributor Wanted

First and foremost, I want someone who is excited about a chance to share their passion, who cares about the Tiny House Community, all of which shows in their writing.  Not only will you have a platform to share your thoughts with thousands, but you can get a modest pay for it!

This is a paid position that requires the individual to deliver original content on a weekly basis, one article a week on Monday.  This position can be done from any location, so long as you are available via phone and have a high speed internet connection.   Each article will be 500+ words, will be original content and must include photos (yours or source via internet).  Payment will be on a monthly basis.

• Must have a passion for Tiny Houses
• Solid grammar, spelling and writing skills
• A reliable computer w/ internet
• Available for a post a week
• Must be timely with deadlines

Deadline: 5pm on 7 / 26 / 2010

How To Apply

We want to be WOWED with your unique voice and awesome commentary! Please submit posts written specifically for The Tiny Life.   Please be familiar with The Tiny Life and our general style and format of posts for submission.

Send me

• Resume
• Short Bio (include head shot – see note below)
• Two 500  word articles in Word format
• Photos for each post (do not place in Word)

Email me the indicated files at:      ryan112ryan [at] yahoo [dot] com

Potential Subjects

These are some suggested topics, I am very open to just about anything that is relevant to what we do here.  I want you to help our community grow through great writing and your unique perspective.

• Tiny Houses
• Environmental Topics
• Gardening
• Sustainable Design/Building
• Floor plans/House design
• DIY Projects
• Wow us with your own idea!

General Note: I will be reviewing all applications, applying does not necessarily mean you will be hired.  My final selection will be only one person for the time being, the person will be expected to post once a week, on Monday.

A note about photo: A few folks inquiring why I request this.  The reason I ask for it is that my goal is to develop a relationship with readers, having a face to connect to the voice brings in a personal element.   Ultimately it is their writing, personality and voice that will be used to choose who will get the position.  The photo will be used in the “about us” section, in an introductory post, and in some cases inline like you see sometimes with columnist.

That said, if someone really doesn’t want a photo of them posted, then I certainly would understand and wouldn’t force it.

So continuing with this weeks 1 year anniversary celebration, here is some of the most controversial posts that I have done.  With lots of comments, tons of hits, these got people talking.

Tiny Houses Suck!

Go Green By Voluntary Extinction?

Covert Gardening

Here is a quick list of some of my favorite posts I wrote on this site.  This is part I of the happy birthday celebration for year one of this website!

Be Weird!

When the status quo has gone astray, we find there are other solutions might be the new”American Dream”

A Dialogue of Hope

Maybe there is hope?  A interesting conversation, leads me to realize that this generation might really care about important things.

The Difference Between a Tiny House & a Mobile Home

One question I get all the time when I say my house will be on a trailer is, “isn’t that just a mobile home” here is my take on it.

One year ago I stood in a Tiny House talking with other people as passionate about Tiny Houses as I am.  The conversations sparked the creation of TheTinyLife.com a blog about Tiny House and Tiny Living.

Well today this website is one year old, with thousands of readers a month, I have achieved much more than I had ever dreamed!  I had never written a blog, used wordpress, etcetera, but here I am.  I couldn’t have done it without all you, so thank you.

Some of the best things that have come out of this website is that I now talk with folks who have a fiery passion of Tiny Houses and Tiny Living.  It is inspirational to get emails from people who are jazzed up over living in 150 square feet!  I can’t tell you how much fun it is to email or talk on the phone with people who have taken up the cause or are inspired to make their way to a Tinier Life.

We are a great group of folks and every person we share the Tiny House Movement with begins to think.  Thinking about how we live, what size we live, can lead to action.  It is undoubtedly growing, our cause has been on NPR, MSNBC, Oprah, CNN, New York Times, tons of Local News and a massive online following.

This week will be a bit different, I am going to do recaps of some older works that many may have not been around for.  It will serve to catch you up and spark inspiration and drive discussion.

As always, feel free to email me at ryan112ryan [at] yahoo   {com}

-Ryan

Hey all, I wanted to reach out and get some support from you all.  I work for a non-profit and I am working to start 10 new community gardens by submitting my idea to Pepsi’s “Refresh Everything” campaign.  Basically I have my idea, you all vote for it once a day, every day and if I have enough votes to be in the top ten projects, I will get the funding.

Go here to vote once a day, every day!

http://www.refresheverything.com/handsoncharlotte

Hey all we will not be having a show tonight, the internet is down at my house.  Check us out tomorrow for a new post.

-Ryan

As of late I have seen many new faces on at The Tiny Life, 8 months ago I started this blog and could never could have imagined that there would be so many folks interested in Tiny Houses!  I am excited to see that I was wrong, so today, I wanted to introduce myself to everyone and once you are done reading, please introduce yourself in the comments section.

Introduction

My name is Ryan Mitchell, I am 26 and run The Tiny Life.  It has been an interesting journey to where we are today.

It all started by getting fired, yup, that’s right, fired.  About a year ago I found myself facing layoffs at my job; I was a recruiter.  That is when the economy took a turn for the worst.

I found myself with no job, no car, had to move home, newly single, was uninsured and didn’t qualify for unemployment.  It happened so fast that I could barley believe it; That is when I found Tiny Houses.

After spending a few hours looking for jobs that day, I was surfing around the web and came upon a photo of a Tiny House.  I thought they were kind of neat, I had always had this affinity for alternative housing, but there was something different about Tiny Houses.  To be honest I didn’t think too much of it until later I found myself on Jay Schaffer’s site.  That’s when I had my a-ha! moment.

Here I was realizing that the system I was taught to go by, had essentially failed me, I had done everything “right”.  I went to High School, was awarded Boy Scout’s highest rank of Eagle, I had a impressive list of extracurricular activities, which got me into college.  Four years later, I graduated with my bachelors and was awarded the Research Scholar’s award.  I was quickly accepted into a Masters program, which I did well in.  I landed contract after contract, making way more than I should have right out the gate.  But what did it really amount to?

I was looking at Tiny Houses not just as a downsized living space, but as a lifestyle which circumvented the pitfalls of the typical framework.  I began to realize that it was not about material things.  It was what mattered: Relationships, Time, Freedom, & Self Sufficiency.  You must love the life you live.  You must love those you live it with.  You must have time to be in the moment.  Finally, in the end, it’s up to you to look out for you and those you hold dear.  I realized my initial approach was flawed, it did not support what truly mattered.

So that’s how it started.

I researched Tiny Houses, drew literally 100′s of floor plans, talked with builders, bloggers, dreamers and skeptics.  I took a trip to Canada with a friend, timed it so I could meet Jay Schaffer and toured his Tiny House. While there I met Jay and many other Tiny House folks.  We stood in this Tiny House for 3 hours talking about our passions and ideas.  It was nothing short of inspiring.  It was there that folks urged me to start a blog, a blog that talked not just about Tiny Houses, but Tiny Living.

Tiny Living Encompasses:

• Tiny Houses
• Life Simplification
• Environmental Consciousness
• Self Sufficiency
• Sound Fiscal Plans
• Social Consciousness

So today I speak to you, employed in a job I love, in a life I love, with a future that I love.  I work for a local non-profit that tackles Charlotte’s biggest social and poverty issues head on.  I have come a long way, but have still have a bit to go, but now it is with purpose.  So I invite you to join me in this journey and share in it.

How This Blog Works

So typically I post Monday through Friday.  Here is the rough schedule I will start following very soon, once the spring is here.  The big thing I will point out is the “Tiny House Live!”  This is a pretty new feature to our blog where I do a live show on Thursday, typically at 8pm, times will vary and I will let you know the day of, the exact time.  What is neat is that not only do I get to talk to you, but you can talk to me too!  We will have a topic, but feel free to chime in with any questions about Tiny Houses, Tiny Living etc.

Help Me Out

I try my best to post every day, what really helps me is if you all have interesting stories that you want to share.  You might find a neat video or article, you might have a Tiny House of your own.  I would love to hear from you.  This along with comments make for a great blog.  If you think of something that you would like to see on here, no matter how crazy, let me know.  Regardless, I love hearing from my readers, because I want this to be a community.

If you haven’t already, join in the conversation at these places:

Well that’s about it.  Enjoy the blog and I thank you for checking it out.

Introduce Yourself In the Comments!

I just recently was featured in the Small Living Journal, here is a short excerpt for it, click the link at the bottom to read it all!

Click here to read the full article by me:  Small Living Journal

Hey all!

It has been a great start to this blog, while only being in existence for about 6 months we have seen a great response and can’t begin to tell you about how excited I am. Currently I am working on a few ideas to make this website even better, but until then, here are some things you might not already know about.

First off, we have a Facebook Fan Page, where I will have all the post from the blog, but other content as well.  This also allows you to connect with other Tiny House folks.  We are a close knit community and it is fun to meet others in it.

Next if you are a twitter person, follow me on twitter, again all the post, some extra content and various interesting things are shared through here.

Finally tell your friends about the blog and let me know about things you find (Tiny Houses, Products, Eco-Friendly things, etc.), I’ll post it and share with the community.

Click the following icons to join in and support TheTinyLife.com!

Hope you all have a very merry Christmas, If you have photos of your Tiny House decorated send them to me and I can post them.  Ryan112Ryan@yahoo.com