In our Introduction to Go-Givers Sell More, Bob Burg and I tried an experiment: we pre-announced a web site that didn’t yet exist. Here’s what we wrote:

“It’s easy to get distracted by daily headlines and nightly newscasts that focus on the exploits of the well-heeled corrupt in high places. But far from the TV camera’s glare, the great majority of genuinely successful people quietly carry on with their lives in ways that bear a surprising resemblance to Pindar, Ernesto, Nicole, and Sam.

“But don’t take our word for it. Our fondest hope is that as you read Go-Givers Sell More, you’ll put its ideas to the test and find out for yourself. And as you do, we invite you to share your experiences with our growing Go-Giver community in the Scrapbook section of the Go-Giver blog: www.thegogiver.com/scrapbook.”

At the time we wrote those words, there was no Go-Giver Scrapbook. We hoped that if we invited people to share their stories, they would.

They did.

Of the 18 stories that have been posted so far, here are brief excerpts from the most recent half-dozen. (You can see all 18 at The Go-Giver Scrapbook.)

Heather Battaglia (4-5)

We wrote about Heather in Go-Givers Sell More. A director and vice-president at CitiMortgage, Heather was an accomplished, successful executive who suddenly found herself downsized and looking for work.

She and a few colleagues founded ExecLink, a networking group for out-of-work executives based squarely upon Go-Giver principles: the group adopted a mission statement and vetting process that included the question: “Are you committed to helping other executives first?”

Now, a year later, all seven founders have landed new jobs — and their monthly ExecNet meetings are SRO with 500 members.

Alex Hines (5-5)

When 12-year-old Alex Hines got into trouble with his mom, she made him read The Go-Giver. (Whether this was couched as punishment or rehabilitation, Alex doesn’t specify.)

He didn’t just read it: he wrote a report on it, which he shared with us. It contains insights that blew us away. A 7th-grader, Alex pointed out things about how we constructed our Pindar character that not a single adult has ever noticed (or at least, ever mentioned to us).

Tara Gignac (5-12)

In Go-Givers Sell More, we talk about the MacGuffin — the thing you think you’re selling, the thing you think the story is about. For Tara Gignac, the MacGuffin is especially personal: natural health care.

A naturopathic doctor based in a town on the outskirts of Toronto, Tara wrote to us and said that the book has helped her immensely in reframing the business side of what she does.

“Every time I would think about sales — developing my ‘pitch,’ contacting prospects, dealing with objections, closing the sale — it would make me cringe. Now I know why: it takes the focus away from the other person, which goes against the very grain of my training as a naturopathic doctor.

“Your book has given me permission to stay in my core genius as a naturopath when thinking about growing my business: focus on the other person, listen and add value. I will definitely be recommending it to my colleagues who are struggling with this part of their careers.”

Julie Sando (5-13)

Julie Sando’s grand plans to become a graphic designer took an unexpected detour more than a decade ago, when she began working with Trent, a 4-year-old boy with autism. Today she runs a business called Autistically Yours.

“I have read The Go-Giver three times. One of those times I read one law a night, along with my two best friends. Each day we put that law into practice.”

Julie’s exercise of the Law of Compensation (#2) led to an outpouring of support for her work on Facebook — and her reporting of this on the Scrapbook led to a heartwarming series of comments here as well, including one from a volunteer worker in Nigeria.

Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce (5-23)

We get notes from people in all sorts of businesses and organizations, but this is the first time (that we know of) that an entire Chamber of Commerce has adopted The Go-Giver as a guiding philosophy. Writes Carlsbad, California Chamber CEO Ted Owen:

“Each member is taught the Five Laws, and then asked to put them into practice. At the beginning, the committee members spend as much time (if not more) finding business for their fellow committee members as they do for themselves.”

Here’s what Colleen Gibbs, the Chamber’s Director of Communications, told us:

“In a down economy when other chambers in California are losing members like water from a sieve, we have managed to be in growth mode every month. I think we all agree that this is because we are go-givers.”

David T. Applegate, M.D. (5-30)

Now this one we really did not see coming: as of May of this year, every county coroner in the state of Ohio has a copy of The Go-Giver — given to them personally by the President of the Ohio State Coroners Association (OSCA), Dr. David T. Applegate.

“It has been a perfect message to my peers. Not just to investigate death as the law instructs us, but using this knowledge and compassion to help the living. Giving — the ultimate business deal with the public. And I believe we will receive respect and appreciation in return — something not many government figures earn these days.

“I know you wrote it with a business purpose, but it is truly is a little gem for general principles in life. I have also used your message on occasion in the office (I am a family doc in my other job). The message of not keeping score is powerful to those with marital or relationship problems.”