Over Thanksgiving I sat down with a guy looking to create a blog to build his consulting business. On the flight back from Colorado I put together some suggestions on how his team could get a blog started and generating results over the next two months.
In putting this together, I thought there might be some value for other business folks looking to dip their feet in the blogging waters. First, it should be said that my blog is not one to follow for inspiration - it is what Seth Godin calls a "cat blog" - a place first and foremost to get thoughts out, not generate business. I break a lot of my own rules here, but that's okay - as long as you know what you're building your blog to do you'll make out fine.
I believe that it's possible to get a successful blog going within two months in about 5 hours a week, tops. These suggestions aren't comprehensive - you might find things you agree with, things you disagree with, things I left out. Feel free to add or change anything you like - hopefully you find it valuable in some way.
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Had a great time at NextNY again yesterday, this time visiting the offices of Google. It seemed like it was primarily a recruiting effort on behalf of Google (albeit a smart one - getting 100 of the smartest tech folks....and me....in one room.) But I did learn a bit about Google that I didn't know before.
The thing that struck me the most was their commitment to the company's mission. The stated goal of Google is "to organize the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful." Never have I seen a company so committed to their vision. Every employee talked about this mission, almost ad nauseum. Whatever the project is that they're working on, their top priority is making sure that it remains true to this goal.
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Went to the NextNY roundtable conversation tonight, and had a blast. About 50 people gathered to hear the CEO of Weblogs, Inc, the President of Del.icio.us, and some of the more prominent angel and VC investors in New York. the food and drinks were great, the energy was great, the insight was great.
It's only been a few months since this group got started, but it's already gained a ton of momentum. They have another meeting in a few weeks at Google's New York office, which should be a blast as well. I've met a number of really amazing people in the few meetings I've been able to attend, and I've learned a lot.
If you're new and in New York, or if you're looking to get more involved in the NY tech community...you're probably not reading this, because you've never heard of me. But if you're new in NY or looking to get more invovled and the monkey who you employ to type for you randomly led to you this page, then today is your lucky day. Check out NextNY - I'll see you there.
There's a lot to love about the nature of the web community these days. People working on cool projects, loving what they do, excited to get up each day, truly believing that they have the creativity and passion to change the world in some small way. It's the complete antithesis of so many corporate environments.
But perhaps the most remarkable thing about it is the sense of cooperation. I have never seen anything like it. If you have something you want to do, if you have an inkling of an idea that may have legs, there are dozens of super-intelligent people out there more than willing to help you out. Whether it's offering advice, sharing wisdom from their own journeys or making introductions, it is astonishing how generous these people are.
I'm preparing to move to Chicago, and there's been something I've been thinking about doing for quite a while (inspired by one of the smartest guys I've ever met here in the city.) Yesterday I threw out some feelers to the web community, not really knowing what to expect. The response was swift and overwhelming - people who have enormous responsibilities who have no business wasting their time talking to some idiot whose skill set consists of booger jokes and burning businesses to the ground immediately were offering advice and suggestions, putting me in touch with folks who might be able to help. 24 hours later, I have a much better understanding of what I'd need to do and what I need to think about. And there's absolutely nothing in it for them - they don't know me, they've never heard of me, and anything I could offer they already have (except they're probably better.)
It's at once inspiring and humbling. Imagine if the world operated like this. Imagine what it would be like if everyone were as generous, thoughtful and selfless as these folks are.
What if that were the real lasting impact of this whole Web 2.0 thing?
Simplicity is a difficult thing to come by. We live fragmented, disjointed lives, always running from something, to something. We're trying to get more and more done with less and less time. It's an impossible race that leaves us tired, empty, drained.
We as a society love to prize the man or woman who can do it all. We force thousands of college students out the doors of our universities each year with a diploma and an unwritten mandate to work 80 hours a week to 'make a splash.' We drill it into them that success is exceedingly important, ensuring they do whatever it takes to add a few extra cents to our price per share.
Of course, if they're good we do reward them. But being good all too often means neglecting other aspects of their lives. They marry without understanding the commitment that covenant involves. They have kids thinking that they can realistically maintain their responsibilities both at work and at home. Over time, they're left in a mode of being consistently stretched to their limit. When they're working they're beating themselves up for not being at Jason's soccer game. When they're making brownies they're silently stressed about all the work they're not getting done.
And that's just the work-home dynamic. All the while, they're not exercising enough, not reading enough, not volunteering enough, not talking to their friends or extended family enough.
We long for a simpler life, a life with less stress, more fulfillment. We wish we weren't tired all the time. We wish we didn't feel like we were constantly neglecting some important aspect of our lives. But we haven't the faintest idea how to actually accomplish this.
We tell ourselves that we're just casualties of our society. The world of today places these demands on us, just as it does to everyone else. There's nothing we can do - except do our best to cope.
But what if there was a simpler life to be grasped - what if there was a way to find a more serene, peaceful, balanaced way of life?
What if you could say 'no' to people? What if you could decide beforehand how many commitments and of what variety you would undertake, resolving not to take on anything further? What if you could make a commitment to work on at most five projects or take on five clients, and be able to confidently turn down anything more, even if they were to be spectacularly profitable for your career or business?
What if you could stop desiring to be 'well-known?' What if you were to reject the notion that being more blogged about or technorati'd or whatever represented some measurement of success. What if you didn't care about your online identity nearly as much as you do?
What if you resolved to use plain speech? What if you stopped trying to manipulate people with your words, stopped trying to get people to understand you or see your way? What if you stopped flattering people when you didn't really mean it, racking up a series of small favors in hope of being repaid someday? What if you could only use 1000 words a day, and had to give up the ability to explain yourself? What would your words be? What if you could do this without worry? What if everything that came out of your mouth was full of honesty, sincerity, grace?
What if you could stop desiring more? What if you made a resolution to identify a standard of living you could be comfortable with, a standard you wouldn't rise above even if your means expanded considerably? What if you made the decision that as long as your needs were met, the rest of that money could be given away to people or causes that could benefit dramatically from it?
What if, every month, you went around your house and looked for something that you deemed valuable...and gave it to someone you knew who's life would be blessed by it? What if, instead of cursing aloud to anyone who would listen when that 10 year old stole my iPod in the subway last year, I just gave it to him before he could take it?
What if we approached our financial life as a system of pipes instead of a system of buckets? What if money was an instrument to be freely shared instead of a status symbol to be hoarded?
What if we got rid of our televisions and read more books, visited more museums, took more walks, made more friends? What if we played outside more - when was the last time we actually played?
What if we realized that our kids laugh 20 times more often than we do? What if we tried to be less serious, more joyful?
What if we got closer to the earth? What if we studied the trees and the flowers and the birds and realized that their existence was singular, their purpose clearly defined? What if we realized that maybe our lives are supposed to be similarly ordered?
What if our lives were meant to be focused on one thing, on one Person? What if that person were able to give us everything we needed to have happy, healthy, productive lives? What if that balance we could never seem to find were given to us - if we realized that everything, including ourselves, has a season, a proper time and place? What if we were to submit to those cycles of life, and to determine the proper place for everything by asking this Person who loves us and desires our happiness?
What if simplicity of life weren't something to dream about but something to be grasped? What if less really was more?
Overheard a conversation at the coffee shop this morning. A girl fell in love over the weekend.
The guy really did sound amazing, but the thing that struck me the most was that he wasn't doing anything that remarkable. Rare, but not remarkable.
- The guy's an actor (in New York of all places.) - The thing about actors is that they may not make a ton of money at first, but they are passionate about what they do in a way few people are. Are you willing to do whatever it takes pursuing something you love? Can you make a girl feel like you'd do that for her as well?
- He works with a non-profit in his other life - He's demonstrating that he believes the world is more than a giant bar, that making a difference is very much time well spent.
- He's well connected (she met him at a bar while he was hanging out with Matthew Perry) - he's likable, he's driven and he probably knows a lot of the right people.
- He surprised her with fondue at the top of some restaurant. - He's romantic, creative, and he can plan something to make her feel special.
Finding someone who's passionate, romantic, confident, fun to be around and believes they're here for a reason. It's a shame that people like this are so rare, that they do look so remarkable. It's a shame companies like this are just as hard to find, and perhaps even more remarkable.
Why don't you take this test yourself - for your company, for your personal life. How passionate, confident, purpose-driven, fun and yes, even romantic are you? What about your business? What would a company have to look like, act like to sweep a customer off their feet? What kind of person would you have to become to make someone swoon the way this girl did in the coffee shop this morning?
Both would probably feel pretty awesome if you could pull them off. Neither would be easy. But very few things that are worthwhile are.
When I was in college, I skipped a lot of class.
I used to rationalize it by saying to myself I was busy with other things. I was running a couple student groups, I was coaching football, I was working a job, I was spending a lot of time at the local bookstore reading marketing books. Besides, I was a good test taker so generally my grades ended up fine. And at the end of four years I got to stand on stage and accept an award for student leadership.
But the truth was I was being irresponsible for four years. My education was expensive, and I was cheating myself (and my folks) by not sitting there every single day, learning about waiting lines or beta or cumulous clouds or whatever.
To this day, I periodically have this nightmare about college. It's always the same - I'm in the final semester of my senior year, and I'm all set to graduate. A week before finals I realize that I have this biology class (it's always biology) that I've never been to. I'm going to flunk the class, and there's nothing I can do about it. It sounds stupid, but the fear is absolutely petrifying.
When I got out of school, I started a company with a few guys. And as many of you know, I proceeded to burn it into the ground. I could chalk it up to any number of things, but the truth is I wasn't willing to do the things I needed to do to make it successful. I didn't manage my money that well. I didn't ask for help or advice nearly enough. And the biggie - I did anything I could to avoid going out and selling myself.
Once again, I was being irresponsible. I was acting like a child.
In a few months, I'm getting married. I've been thinking a lot about where I've come from, where I'm going, all the ways my life will change as a result. Making the decision to get married is a very adult decision to be making. And last weekend, I was overcome with fear. It was the same feeling I felt when I had those nightmares. It was the same feeling I felt when my company burned down. It was the fear of knowing that you no longer have the option of acting like a child.
I've realized recently that the guys growing up in America today have the luxury of avoiding manhood for a long time. It didn't used to be that way - you were expected to provide for the family at a young age. You were expected to work the farm, or become an apprentice in some trade, or commute to the local factory. Your parents lived with you when they aged, and you were accountable to take care of them - you couldn't simply shuttle them off to a retirement community and avoid having to deal with them.
These days, the world is different. Relative to the rest of the world, we grow up in safe, affluent neighborhoods. Only some of us have parents who expect us to work when we turn 16. Many of us are given cars, our tuition is paid for, and when we get into trouble we have folks ready and willing to bail us out. Our culture tells us that we should wait to get married, wait to have kids, and avoid "settling down." We're told to not worry about picking a major in college, because we'll end up changing careers anyway. The billboards and television advertisements around us tell us to spend everything we make. We're think that the best uses of our time after work consist of either getting plastered at the bar, gambling online, playing with our new XBox or posting pictures of ourselves taking bong hits on MySpace.
We're fat, happy, rich, people living in a fat, happy, rich country. And our culture has created a bunch of 20 and 30 and 40 year old boys. Men are in desperately short supply.
The problem is that we don't see anything wrong with this. Our women have forced themselves to live with their boyfriend and his Madden football and his pizza boxes piled up in the corner and his affinity for Jaeger bombs. Because they've grown up in the same culture that tells them this is acceptable behavior for guys our age.
No wonder women don't see a problem with dating a guy 20 years their senior. They figure they won't find a guy who acts like an adult unless he's at least 40.
Our women don't need more boys. They need, long for men. There is something programmed in them that tells them they need a guy who is strong, courageous, responsible. They need men who put the game system away, who decide to forget the bar because they have to do their taxes. They need men who have insurance and careers that are going somewhere - not so we can pay their credit card bill but so we can be counted on. They need men who are mature, hard working, willing to act like an adult.
They realize that one day, they might be married to us. One day, they might have children with us - and a boy doesn't raise another boy very well. They realize that a husband who lets the mortgage payment go unpaid because they lost three grand in online blackjack isn't really a desirable trait. Nor is a guy who refueses to put the hesitation aside and make the phone calls, pound on the doors, do the things they need to do to build a successful company or career.
The thing is, I think guys know this deep down. I think that in the recesses of our hearts we know that we're meant to be more. There is a reason we grew up admiring He-Man, a reason we look up to certain guys who have their acts together. We know that within us lies a tremendous amount of energy and power. But we're afraid of what might happen if we tap into that power. It represents a risk - a risk because people will start counting on us, start respecting us, start admiring us.
And if we fail, if we're not good enough, then our worst fears about ourselves will be confirmed. Easier to not step out of the door and always wonder whether you're good enough than step out, get run over and confirm you're not up to the task.
Last weekend, I had one of those moments. I wanted to crawl back into a shell, to play it safe. My fiance saw all of it - saw the fear, saw the nightmare playing through in my mind. And what she said really shook me up - she said that as her husband, it doesn't matter whether I hit a bunch of home runs or fall on my face over and over again. What matters is that I have the courage to face who I am, to face the power I have within me and own up to it.
It's the difference between being a man and a boy, and at the end of the day it's the only thing that matters.
With the wedding and my upcoming move to Chicago, I’ve been worried a lot about money lately. This week I resolved to not spend any money eating out.
This afternoon, as I was sitting in a Starbucks, I realized that I hadn’t eaten anything all day. A few minutes after I realized I was pretty hungry, I was pleasantly surprised by a barista, who randomly decided to bring me a cup of coffee and a sandwich. I asked what I did to deserve this gracious and well-timed gift.
She said, ‘nothing.’
I used to think that pride was the most troublesome vice to overcome, but I think there might be a worse one. As I walk through the streets of New York and listen to conversations, as I pass the enormous billboards painted onto buildings, as I look at my bank statements and calculate where my money has gone, as I see how I react to the homeless guy outside the deli, as I purchase the overpriced burger from the overpriced restaurant that I went to because it’s trendy, I’m faced with an enormous truth.
The desire for more is terribly destructive.
We live in a world that prizes accumulation of goods above almost all else. Our status in life is determined much more by the size of our pocketbooks than the content of our characters. We want to associate with people who have money, we long to be in a position where others want to associate with us for the same reason. We look at US Weekly or watch Cribs and not-so-secretly long for the lifestyle that these people possess.
We can’t avoid it. Even those of us who would consider ourselves free from the lusts of pop culture are constantly worrying about how much we have, how much we have coming in, how much we’ll have when we stop working. We worry about where the market is going, how our IRAs are performing, how much equity we’ve built up in our homes. We read books and attend seminars to learn how to improve our net worth, to discover the seven secrets to wealth and happiness. We argue and fight over our finances with our loved ones, and those fights lead (more than any other factor) to the destruction of our closest relationships.
We spend more than we make. We look forward to the weekend so we can hit the sales. We clip coupons. We stockpile. We hoard. We obsess.
We are outraged when the cost of gas goes above $2.50 a gallon, but don’t bat an eye at the fact that half the world lives on less than $2.50 a day. We’re so busy talking about the exclusive club that we managed to get into that we walk right by the guy on the corner holding out their paper cup – the guy who may or may not actually be homeless but whose circumstances are such that they’re forced to degrade themselves by standing on the corner with matted hair and clothes that haven’t been washed in weeks, holding out their paper cup in hopes that we wake up from the absolutely pointless conversation we’re having to toss them a quarter or two.
We enter into bitter court battles to “win” what we “rightfully deserve.” We go to war to “preserve democracy.”
We work an insane number of hours so we can get the promotion that will cause us to work more hours so we can get the next promotion that will cause us to work more hours to buy the expensive suits we need to look as good as the other people on our rung of the corporate ladder and finance the houses we never live in and the cars we never drive and the exotic vacations we never seem to take because we have to work some more.
This is the world I live in, the world you live in, the world our parents and friends and loved ones and co-workers and acquaintances and fellow subway passengers live in. We are the wealthiest people in history, living in the wealthiest country in history, living lives of absolute decadence.
And we’re rotting inside. We’re worried constantly. We’re tired and overworked. We’re envious and covetous. We’re gluttonous and unhealthy. We’re bitter and heartbroken. We’re dying, and we can’t take it with us. Worst of all, we’re so blind we call this worry and jealousy and green and anger and hardness “the American dream.”
I worry all the time about money. I worry whether or not I’ll have enough to pay my credit card bill. I worry whether or not I’ll be able to cover rent. I worry whether or not the market will crash. I worry about what my standard of living will be like when I’m old.
The funny thing is, there has never been a day in my life when I went hungry. There has never been a time when I didn’t have anything to wear, a day when I was forced to sleep outside.
Growing up we didn’t have much, and I always looked at the other kids with their cooler toys and cooler clothes and wished our roles were reversed. But looking back, my childhood was amazing. I had loving parents, a great companion in my younger brother, amazing friends, all the food I could ever hope to eat, a bunch of clothes in my closet I refused to wear after a year, a television in my room with a video game system. My life was pretty amazing.
When my first business failed and I was forced to take a job in Seattle waiting tables, I thought my life was over. I had such little money it was crazy. But looking back, that was a pretty amazing time as well. I lived in a beautiful part of the country, rooming with two friends who absolutely went out of their way for me, knowing I couldn’t carry my fair share, never once condemning me or calling me out on it, exhibiting a kind of generosity and patience I’ve never seen before or since. I met amazing people serving up plates of fish. I gained a newfound appreciation for my skills and my passions. I met a girl on a random evening in a different city under the most unlikely circumstances, and spent the next three months getting to know her over a ridiculous number of long-distance conversations.
Literally every single time I’ve been the slightest bit tight, circumstances (or something else) intervened. It has truly seemed like any time I needed something I was taken care of.
It happened in my childhood. It happened in college. It happened in Washington. It happened today in the coffee shop.
My posture about money and wealth and status must change. I must learn to not care what you think about me. I must learn to stop worrying about where I will live in a year. I must learn to stop fretting over the global economy. I must learn to give that $20 in my wallet to the guy who needs it, and do so joyfully. I must learn to let go.
I must learn to consider the birds of the air, and the lilies of the field.
A lot of programmers I've talked to lately are worried about Ruby on Rails. They are worried that this framework is going to put a tremendous amount of power in the hands of anyone with a computer and a free weekend. They're concerned that, just like Frontpage and Dreamweaver did to web design, Rails and frameworks like it are going to let anyone become a programmer.
I think that's all true. And I think they have absolutely nothing to be worried about.
Today about half of my day was spent sifting through over 400 resumes from people all over the country. They have various backgrounds, various work histories, various talents and skills. They all have one thing in common - they call themselves 'web designers.'
Out of 400 resumes my colleagues and I managed to whittle the list down to about a dozen. This isn't a dozen strong candidates, mind you - this is a dozen people who passed the initial screening. I'm sure these people are very bright, energetic, creative, and hard working. I'm sure they have a ton to offer some company out there. Just not for the service they are advertising.
This is the fourth time we've done a search like this since I took over the creative department. And the search has yielded 3 people.
Perhaps this is because I'm extremely picky, but I'm becoming more and more convinced that there are web designers, and there are Web Designers.
Web Designers understand that theirs is not a service or a hobby or a skill. It is a craft, as much of a craft as painting or writing poetry or making shoes. They understand that a great Web Designer is not twice as good as everyone else - they're 10-20 times as good.
Web Designers are obsessed with their code - they abhor tools like Dreamweaver. Their chisel is the text editor, and their code is painstakingly written by hand.
Web Designers are students of design - golden ratios, kerning, letting, color theory and the like. They know that unless they understand design the way a painter or sculptor understands design, their work will suffer.
Web Designers are focused first and last on what the user's needs are. They don't use tricks or effects for their own sake, but ground their work in methods that make their user's lives easier.
Web Designers are constantly looking for ways to improve what they do. They were the first to move from tables to divs, the first to validate, the first to design for multiple browsers and media. They were the first to take advantage of AJAX and unobtrusive Javascript to make their sites more intuitive. They were the first to begin stripping everything out of their pages that wasn't necessary or beneficial. They're the ones who are constantly learning, stretching, growing.
There will always be plenty of web designers out there, but Web Designers are few and far between.
It's been nearly three years since I started writing. It's amazing what a person learns...
I learned for the first time what mourning meant when I lost someone very close to my heart - my childhood beagle, Lucy. I learned that though they may not have complex brains...or skills marketable in the professional workplace...or refined table manners...or enough self awareness to recognize that because of their vocal cords being snipped and resulting scar tissue they have to exert a significant amount of effort to bark which leads to the unfortunate side effect of noise exiting both ends of their body...in spite of these deficiencies dogs have been given the gift to create happiness and joy in way few people can match.
I learned that people's natural tendency is to seek safety instead of freedom. I learned that when you attempt to pursue the proverbial path less travelled, you will awaken a sea of thoughts and ideas that, as far as you were aware, previously did not exist in the minds of your friends and loved ones. While some will be genuinely supportive, a great many will do anything they can to pull you back into the box labeled 'comfort.' They'll tell you that you don't know enough, that you need to experience the world before attempting to be its master, that you need to thing about your future and not chase a pipe dream. They'll tell you your young, naive, foolish, fickle and stubborn.
I learned that if the person they are making these remarks to grew up in a white house with blue trim on Savannah Way and has red hair, they're probably right.
I learned what it means to put four years of your life into a relationship, ignoring a monumental rift that both parties know exists, being forced to acquire progressively larger rugs with which to sweep said rift under. I learned that, in spite of my wish that it weren't the case, love truly is not enough.
I learned that unless I had been given the opportunity to experience the pain of resignation and go through the act of giving up on something I had convinced myself for so long could work out differently - if I had instead told myself that life is short and spent my 'wilder' years moving from party to party and girl to girl - I would have likely looked back at the years that have passed between then and now and know dramatically less about myself, dramatically less about the world, and dramatically less about what my views are on the world and my place in it. I learned to move beyond anger, frustration, sadness and to embrace those years (and particularly the last few, terrible months) as the catalyst for waking up my heart and spirit.
I learned that I am loved by someone - not in the conditional, 'as long as you fulfill my expectations of what love are like' kind of way, not in a way that results in the kind of letdown that is inevitable when being loved by someone with weaknesses and feelings and problems and atoms made of carbon, but in a way that never fades, never ceases, and never lets my enormous iniquity get to them. I learned that even though I am very often stubborn, prideful, greedy, lustful, inconsiderate and foolish, I'm still loved with an intensity that demands my attention.
I learned that maintaining that attention is simultanously the most frustrating and rewarding endeavor one could possibly hope to pursue.
I learned that if you start a business, it's helpful to have at least one of the following: a solid business model, a commitement to sales, control over your personal and professional finances, a team of sure-footed, exceptionally talented co-conspiritors, resolve when things get tough, at least a small amount of working capital, common sense, something resembling a plan of action.
I learned that if you lack all of these things, and you grew up in a white house with blue trim on Savannah Way and have red hair, you will sooner run away from the problem rather than face it head on. And I learned that, strangely enough, running away from the problem in this case was most likely the best possible thing you could have done.
I learned that Seattle is an amazing city, full of energetic, interesting people who are at once both driven and laid back. I learned that these people are friendly, thoughtful and full of life. I learned this as I served them seafood and brought them refills of soda.
I learned that, though one feels like a failure, feels like their classmates and friends are experiencing fantastic success while one tries to scrape enough money together to pay their car payment and keep their dwindling business alive, that failure truly is just a step on the road to success. After six months as a failed entrepreneur and waiter, I learned that though I had grown up in a house with a single mother who worked tirelessly to make sure my brother and I were clothed and fed, I still had far too little humility and gratitude for the gifts I've been given. I learned that my life is amazing, that I have friends who are far to generous and patient and loving, that I have a long life ahead of me.
I learned that if you go to Vegas with my group of friends and one of you meets a girl there, you will end up marrying her. She will probably be from Chicago.
Two years after attempting to corner the market on irony and publish a book on getting a job whilst never pursuing a job oneselft, I learned that the ideas I brainstormed with my old marketing friends were indeed accurate. I learned that if you have a strong image backed up by stellar work and a network of people who rave about you, you can confidently fly accross the country for one job interview.
I learned that the working world is no different than entrepreneurship, which is really no different than college, which isn't different than high school. There are traits that every employee, business owner or student possesses that determine in large part whether or not they will be successful. I learned that people who always try to do amazing work, who actively work at cultivating relationships, who truly want to see their venture succeed, who are hard-working and honest and flexible will have significantly greater odds at realizing their goal.
I realized that some goals are infinitely more valuable pursuits than others.
I learned that even in a metropolitan area of 22 million people, I can still accomplish the things I set out to accomplish, realize the dreams I have for myself and become the man I wish to become. But I learned that I do have limits, and that spending a prolonged amount of time going well beyond those limits leads to a very unbalanced life.
I learned that there are people out there who possess every strength that I have with none of the weaknesses. I learned that people like this will enchant me with every move they make and every thought that comes from their mouth. I learned that people like this have economics degrees and national dance championship trophies and twin sisters.
Three years...a lot has happened. My stepdad once told me that you can divide life into three year increments, and in those three year increments you can accomplish a great deal. Even with the various pitfalls, I realize that I've been able to accomplish quite a bit. I learned a ton about business, design, entrepreneurship, creativity, managing people and myself, getting things done. I lived all over the country and visited nearly every state in the union. I fell in love, got engaged, and look forward to a life full of excitement and joy as a result.
But far too much of my life has been devoted to work. My life lacks a sense of balance, perspective. My days are given to craft and little else, and that's something that must change. I'm about to become a husband, someday I'll probably become a father. And very little in the past three years has prepared me for either. I have a long way to go in becoming the kind of person I want to become, for my fiance, my friends, my parents, my brother, my colleagues.
A three year cycle is coming to an end, and in it I was able to develop myself into a great worker. This cycle, I'm hoping I can come a little closer to becoming a great man.
Had a great dinner last night with some good friends at work, and the discussion turned to my love for entrepreneurship. Why do I think that it's such a noble and worthwhile endeavor? Why do I believe in it so much? When you see all the ills that are brought upon the world by a capitalist society, by massive corporations that used to be slightly smaller organizations that at one point in time were started by an enterprising man or woman in the shower or in a bar scribbled on a napkin - if the end result of that creative spark is so negative, why do I believe in it?
The simple answer is that I believe in what those people represent. I believe that we're put on this world for a reason. I believe we're given enormous talents and skills for a reason. And I believe there are two reasons we're given those talents - first, to bring glory to the source of our gifts, and secondly to use those gifts to imrpove the lives of others.
I believe entrepreneurship is the perfect vehicle to accomplish both of these goals. The entrepreneur must have a vision that goes beyond themselves. They must believe so strongly in something that they're willing to sacrifice their personal well-being - their financial, emotional and sometimes physical health - in the pursuit of their idea.
The entrepreneur has the chance to look into the world and identify opportunity. They have the chance to create a product or service or experience that will make the lives of their customers a little bit better. They have a chance to create a company that makes the lives of their employees a little bit better. And they have the chance to make the lives of their shareholders a little bit more comfortable as well.
This isn't to say that the entrepreneur always takes advantage of this opportunity. Quite the contrary - far too many entrepreneurs choose to create something solely to line their pockets. They speak not in terms of building a company and a culture that fulfills some big important goal, but rather in terms of how much they want to sell for, or the time frame in which they hope to go public. They care little for their employees, little for their customers. They think of ways to convince the customer their product is amazing rather than making the product amazing in the first place.
It's true - these people exist, in large numbers. But their behavior doesn't change my opinion about entrepreneurship, just as the frequency of serial killers doesn't change my opinions on capital punishment. There will always be the best of us and the worst of us in humanity. I just happen to believe that the impact felt by the perfect entrepreneur would far surpass the impact felt by the perfect artist or sculptor or basketball player or lawyer.
And that's what I push towards - the hope that someday I will either be associated with that perfect entrepreneur, wrapped up in something grand and meaningful and life-giving - or I'll come as close as I'm able to being that perfect entrepreneur myself. A lot of pressure to put on oneself or on another person - but I believe it's infinitely more worthwhile than the pressure to beat earnings estimates or to cash out for X million.
For all my character flaws, I feel as though I'm generally a pretty good natured guy. But these past few weeks I've been extremely angry.
The majority of clients we work with are fantastic - good natured, easy going, and excited to be collectively striving to acheive a shared goal. But once in a while you get a bad apple.
For some reason, we have a disproportionate share of bad apples in the form of faith-based schools. Again, most have been great to work with. But we've had a few recently that seem to absolutely contradict their beliefs via their behavior.
The irony in some of the emails I get is so heavy I feel like my desk is going to break under the weight. The following represents an exaggeration, but by the tiniest of degrees:
Dear Sean,
I woke up this morning hoping it'd be a good day, but I see you've decided to destroy such a wish. I'm sure I've worked with more idiotic companies in the past, I just can't seem to think of one off-hand. If you'd consult the copy we submitted to your incapable hands on February 12th, you'll clearly see that the second paragraph on page two is supposed to say "...our culture is the product of our students and their relationship with Christ. With God as their counsel and guide, they conduct themselves with dignity, patience and grace." You misspelled the fifth word, idiot. Call me when you've fixed this, and when you've gotten a clue.
This client has called our salespeople shady, our designers incompetent, our editorial staff lazy and our client services team liars. For a company that is used to having productive client relationships, regular recommendations to other departments in the university, and clients who volunteer to stand up in front of their peers to testify to the effectiveness of our programs, these couple of clients have represented enormous drains on resources and employee morale.
In a way, though, dealing with these couple clients has been an enormous blessing. I used to wonder why so many people criticize Christians when they slip up, or when they exhibit patterns of behavior that seem contrary to their theology. But now I get it.
Engaging with these few bad apples has seriously upset me. I've never felt as ashamed to be associated with Christianity as I am when my colleagues read the emails that are blasted their way from these folks in Christian higher ed. It is absolutely appalling that they don't recognize the sharpness in their words, don't understand that every single word that comes out of their mouths or is typed into a correspondence has an impact on what people think of their faith. They, of all people, should know that their obligations as representatives of their university pale in comparison to their obligations as witnesses of the faith they claim to profess. I pray their institutions don't produce graduates of simliar character.
I get it now - Christians are held to a standard, whether we realize it or not. People are often dispositioned against the beliefs already, and any character flaws, vices, or careless words serve as fuel on an already smoldering fire. I don't claim to be a great (or even average) carrier of the proverbial torch, but when I see an email from one of these clients taking something that my team has put a ton of energy into and just rip it to shreds, it breaks my heart. Not because we have more work to do, but because of the bad taste it leaves in the mouths of everyone they come in contact with.
You claim to walk with God - I fear you took an enormous fork in the road somewhere. Open up that Bible you claim to love to much and read try reading it again - you skipped a few testaments.
Seth Godin certainly caused a ruckus with his post on stamps.
The premise of electronic stamps is to begin charging people for the privledge of sending email, theory being that spammers would be significantly deterred if they were charged for sending unsolicited mail.
This is a complicated issue. At first glance it seems like a no-brainer - your inbox is cleaner, spam goes down, ISPs make boatloads of cash in the deal as the de facto conduits between parties.
But a number of questions come to my mind. NOTE: When considering the merits of the following questions, keep in mind I'm an idiot.:
- I've yet to use an email tool that knows when an email is coming from a company and when it's coming from a person. There are numerous implications there - sending personal emails (I can think of dozens of old friends and new friendships that were cultivated are rediscovered via email) to schools sending messages to their students at their email address of preference (hint: not the school's email account) to notifications from free services like Friendster. These would either become paid transactions (introducing the same friction that keeps me from sending letters to people,) or be relegated to a folder that is collated with all my other junk (forcing me to wade through all the spam anyway.)
- Spammers have an enormous bag of tricks they can employ to send email - spammers who use an unknowing man or woman's account to send out messages could potentially be making someone financially responsible for the activity. The need for email fraud litigation or some form of recourse on the part of the victim is now necessary - costs ISPs will now have to take into account.
- Making a move to RSS would make segmentation and targeting difficult. One of the big tenets of Permission Marketing is for messages be as targeted, personalized and relevant as possible. With email and a simple sign-up form, I have the ability to market to as granular a population as I wish - something the subscriber appreciates and leads to greater revenue opportunities for me. RSS has a ways to go before it can provide the marketer with this power.
- Are there price controls? AOL, Yahoo! and the like may publish well-known, publicly available information regarding price. But outside of the major mail services, how do I found out what ISP is behind some corporate email address and what their prices are? Wouldn't I have to essentially 'opt-in' to each service? Competitors will certainly be hot on GoodMail's footsteps, likely with different pricing models, etc. How does regulation of this work?
- Most importantly - will there be commemerative Elvis birthday e-stamps I can use?
In spite of these drawbacks, I wonder if there's a happy medium here. The practice of e-postage would undoubtedly decrease spam, but it should be a hoop restricted to businesses. Perhaps tracking IP addresses or domains by volume would help - if a particular domain or IP address/range sends mail that exceeds a certain quota, the ISP begins to charge for it. Just a thought.
A complicated problem, and a viable attempt at solving it. But not without problems of its own.
I love online banking. Between online bill pay, statements that are constantly updated, the lack of junk mail and live chatting whenever I need it, it's very close to the perfect service provider solution.
Unless I want to open a new account.
I needed to open a new checking account and decided to do so online. I live in New York but still use Colorado for my permanent address. When I set up the account I specified Colorado as the state I'd like to bank in. After completing the application you're told to wait five days, which I did. You're then told to print out a bunch of paperwork, sign it and mail it away. You're then told to wait some more.
You're then told that the bank mysteriously set up your account in Florida, via a middleman in North Carolina. You're told that they don't really know why this happened, but as a result, they'll need to change your application to Colorado. Then they tell you to wait for approval.
Then they tell you to print out the same forms again, sign them and mail them to a new office in the state in which you're banking. Then you're told to wait.
You then discover you've been approved - not by receiving an approval, but by receiving two emails. One tells you how to order checks (you just have to call with your account number that you don't know,) and the other tells you how convenient your online banking will be (you just need your account number that you don't know and you pin that you haven't selected.)
You then try online chat, but in order to have a conversation you need to know your account number and, you guessed it, your online pin - a second pin number that you also haven't selected.
Online banking is a beautiful thing, but online account creation leaves a lot to be desired.
I just blew up Basecamp.
Our company had been searching for a project management solution for a long time before I first joined the team. They had evaluated the pros and cons of Microsoft Project and other tools, and had deemed them all too user-unfriendly for their purposes.
In I trotted with the diea that we use Basecamp, then a fairly new tool on the market. It's brand promise is that project management will be painless - the interface is elegant, it doesn't take any time to train new users, and it allowed us to keep in contact with our clients on a regular basis. The company embraced the idea, and I looked like a genius.
Fast forward to today - we've been using Basecamp for almost a year now, and every project we've started (roughly 250 of them) are in the system. As much as possible, we've moved away from email communication to posting messages and attachments on Basecamp. It was a little hairy (think 150 late milestones greeting you every morning, 150 to-do's that someone in the company has to update every day,) but it got the job done.
Until yesterday.
I've long had a reputation for doing something first, then asking for permission. Usually it makes me look like the proverbial 'go-getter.' But sometimes it blows up in my face.
We had a server that wasn't being utilized much. It seemed like the perfect repository for all the files we'd be storing in Basecamp (nearly 8 gigs as of last week.) So of course I set this up without asking for permission, without really notifying anyone. Why deal with IT and all the headaches that comes with? I had the access info to set everything up myself - let them deal with the 30 other things they have going on.
Yesterday, they shut down the underutilized server. And every file that's ever been stored on Basecamp - every design mockup, every revision of copy, every data set - was wiped off the face of the earth.
We were able to back it up after discovering the problem, and we have the 8 gigs of files in safe hands. But clients can't get to them. And since we used Basecamp, and agreeing to what amounts to a 'use at your risk' policy in doing so, we can't make any modifications to the file paths to represent the new location of said files.
I've learned three lessons in the past 24 hours.
- There is a definite downside to a limited customer service model.
- As much as it pains you, it probably makes sense to talk with IT before making minor decisions...like where to store every piece of client communication your company has.
- I'm going to be fired within a week.
A little over a year ago, I burned a business into the ground.
People tend to look at me funny when I talk about failing in business. They seem to still believe what we're all taught in school - that failing in work or in a relationship or in a business means that the person failing is a failure themselves. However, I was fortunate enough to grow up with family and loved ones that didn't believe this. They taught me that failure is simply a step on the way to success.
It was with that in mind that I decided to dig through the ash of my business and condense the lessons into the presentation I gave last week. Being surrounded by people who were all much smarter than me, I was worried it'd be a waste of everyone's time. But much to my surprise, it actually went over fairly well - even got voted third best presentation of the conference. A couple folks suggested I talk about my lessons here as well, for the benefit of all (and by all they meant my two readers.)
This is the first in a series of posts about my hard-earned lessons in entrepreneurship. It's about the thrills and pitfalls of starting a new venture. It's not about the 'business plan + venture capital = success' formula that you often learn in school, but rather the 'group of guys get together, pool their savings, and proceed to live off of Kraft Mac & Cheese for the next 6 months trying to build something worthwhile' formula. It's the formula that most people end up needing to pursue, and frankly, the only formula I know anything about.
I hope you find this at least marginally useful, and I'd love to hear about your own adventures.
More...
There's a whole other world out there, and I caught a glimpse of it this past weekend.
There are people who have started successful consulting firms and have worked for two major media companies...and just reached an age where they can legally buy alcohol.
There are people who have had their lives shattered in the wake of natural disaster, and within 14 days have become part owners in what will certainly become marvelously successful ventures.
There are people who run websites where they post videos of guys getting hit in the head with shovels...and as a result never have to worry about money again.
There are people who have plans to go on trips that last 7 months and take them to 7 continents on no more than $7,000.
There are people who have started and sold multiple companies before they were 25, and who get to just kinda hang out as they deliberately plan their next enterprise that is certain to be just as successful as those that proceeded it.
There are people all over the world like this - unassuming, often very shy, usually extremely humble people - and you'd walk by them never knowing that they live in a world that is completely unlike your own. While you grind your brain into the ground at your job, they're doing things that they love and often living very well as a result.
Once you have a glimpse of this world, you tell yourself that you'll never let the door close on it - that you'll burn the memory of these people and what they represent into your brain. And you look forward to the day when you will live in their world - so joy-filled, so full of life, so open to whatever new opportunity or challenge comes their way.
Above all, you're immensely grateful that you had the chance to meet them.
Ryan Carson talked sales over at the SvN blog. Lots of good stuff, particularly about networking.
I dedicated a whole chapter to this in A Bright Red Package - networking represents the number one way to get a job, generate sales, find a vendor or look for employees. The business world is entirely about people, and those who know how to network have a decided advantage against those who don't.
When I left Colorado for Seattle two years ago, I did so without a job, without any interviews, without anything. But I did have my mentor from college - a former chair of the American Advertising Federation - and his confidence in me. I managed to sit down with the head of every major advertising agency in the city within a month, and it had nothing to do with me - his name and his recommendation did all the heavy lifting for me.
I'm convinced the only reason he was so willing to go to bat for me was because I broke the rules of traditional networking. I didn't approach it looking for anything. My mentor from the year before (hint - build yourself a whole slew of mentors!) had mentioned him, and I just asked if I could meet him. One phone call later and we set up lunch. I learned a lot from him - he had been a professor, a managing director at a top 5 New York agency and an entrepreneur - but I didn't ask for anything. Just thanked him, sent him a card, and stayed in touch. The relationship blossomed over time on his terms, not mine. The end result was an internship, and eventually a tap into any advertising agency I wanted.
Networking is not about reaping at all - it's about sowing. It's about looking for as many opportunities to help people as possible. It's about saying thank you whenever someone does anything for you, regardless how small it is. It's about keeping in touch with them, letting them know you still care about them. It's about doing all these things, whether you think the potential exists for a profitable business relationship or not.
You'll find that it comes back to you - in terms of business, but also in terms of a healthy, happy life. You'll get referrals from the most unlikely of places. You'll discover that the best doctor in town is just a phone call away when you most need it. You'll discover that people love to help those who are generous with their time and energy. Call it karma, call it a psychological need on the part of humanity to practice reciprocity. Whatever it is, it will work in your favor to improve your business and your life.
Some quick tips for those looking to get started:
- Join LinkedIn, create a profile, and begin tracking down long lost contacts. Coworkers, classmates, whatever. If they're not using LinkedIn yet, invite them. You'll quickly discover who knows who and what these people are looking for. (If you're reading this, feel free to connect with me - would be happy to help you. Email is sean dot johnson at gmail dot com.)
- Start helping people! Is someone looking for a job in banking? Introduce them to your buddy who works for Chase! Someone hoping to get involved in an NGO in Africa, and you remember having a friend who served a stint in Ghana? Hook them up.
- Join a professional organization in your community, and get involved. They're always looking for talented, hard-working people (I managed to get a temporary position with the Seattle Ad club in my first 10 days in the city.)
- Have an enormous stack of thank you notes. Mail out at least one a day.
- Before boarding you plane, pick up a few magazines. Rip out interesting articles, put them in envelopes and mail them to someone you haven't talked to in a while who might be interested. Include a note telling them that you miss them and hope to see them soon.
- Remember birthdays.
- Most important, never keep score. That's not the point.
Who can you reconnect with right now?
Seth Godin had a very introspective moment yesterday as questioned what exactly blogs are. He has historically prided himself on using his blog to inform and excite its readership - not to contstantly push his books, businesses and other endeavors at us. Interestingly, he views his books as the beginning of a conversation - he's writing about topics and ideas that he admits he hasn't fully thought out yet, and the point is to start a dialogue where we hopefully all learn from each other.
If these books represent the starting point, the beginning of conversations which he hopes to continue (with his blog serving as a big tool for such dialogue to take place,) then would it be prudent of him to make sure as many new folks are reading his books as possible? Otherwise, the risk is that they join a conversation taking place midsentence - lacking the context that the books are meant to provide.
I wonder how often that's truly the case though. I think one of the things that makes Godin's work unique is his effectiveness at getting the mind to work. It's difficult to read his books or his blog and not immediately be compelled to find out more. I imagine that most people who stumble upon his blog are infected by the Godin ideavirus and promptly begin seeking out more info. It seems the Seth Godins and Tom Peters of the world are effective and compelling on the web because they focus on being remarkable, not on selling their products. As a result, people read what they have to say, become interested, and end up investing significantly more time and energy digesting the ideas they present. Their message is one of authenticity, and I think people appreciate that.
So, while one could make the argument that there are more people who would conceivably be compelled to buy books or go to seminars if one were to use their blog as a marketing medium, I think it comes back to the old ideas about what works in marketing, many of which were made mainstream by Seth himself.
- Never lose focus on making something worth talking about.
- Make your idea easy to spread (via blog posts and handy books one can take on the train or give as a gift.
- Obsessively cultivate influencers or 'sneezers' to spread the word for you in a way no marketing plug could.
- Spend time to milk your current success, but focus much more time on the next remarkable innovation so you avoid getting stuck.
- Remember that current customers are 8 times more likely to buy from you than newbies.
- Most importantly, be true to yourself and what you value. If it's important to you that you be an idea person who makes people think, don't worry about the fact that you're losing out on a few sales.
I'm a marketer by background, but I realized a while ago that I buy from people who aren't busy trying to market at me. How about you?
My freshman year in college, I started a painting business. I was spectacularly successful at making sales, racking up $50,000 in paint jobs before the summer began. I was also spectacular successful at planning, purchasing my paint sprayer, my power washer, and other equipment in anticipation of the windfall of referral business I was sure to receive.
Unfortunately, there's a yang to every yin, and what I possessed in salesmanship I lacked in management chops. As a result, I had a sloppy, slow crew and a less-than-stellar track record of execution. The referral business dried up and some of my contracts backed out on me. I learned Business Rule #1 - it's difficult to lead when no one's following you.
All in all, it was a great experience, and I learned a ton about my weaknesses in the world of business that I've worked hard to improve upon since. However, it also burned an enormous hole in my wallet, and I spent the rest of my college career in debt.
The first few years out of school weren't any kinder - as someone who stubbornly insisted on starting my own enterprise, I was consistently walking a very tight line - I didn't really get deeper in the hole, but I wasn't making much progress digging out either. In fact, because I was so insistent on having fun with my friends, I didn't keep nearly enough money in the business - when things got tough, I didn't have a reserve. I learned Business Rule #2 - cash truly is king.
Now older and wiser, I've become much better at managing (well, at least motivating) people. I've also become much better at controlling my spending - in fact, as you know, last July marked the first time in years that I had been out of debt. But this morning, I discovered that paying off your balance doesn't give you license to ignore your statements. Apparently, they put a 50-cent charge on my card for paying it off. That amount went unpaid for three months, and they decided (without notifying me) to close my account about a month ago. With about 10 days remaining before Christmas, not the best time for such a discovery.
I've learned Business Rule #3 - mind your business! Pay attention to what's going on around you. If I'm to be successful the next time I decide to start a venture, I'm going to need to be much better about staying on top of things.
I guess it's good to get these important lessons out of the way early, while the mistakes only cost me a few thousand dollars instead of much much more. But that cruise I was going to send everyone on will apparently have to wait until next year. Sorry guys...
The transition to my new role has been fairly smooth so far. Our list of projects looks as daunting as ever, but I've got a good team of guys working on them with me. They're hard working, talented and eager to learn.
In the next month or so, I think we're going to get this process down to a pretty good science. I've been largely been playing 'pitch-in guy,' helping out wherever I'm needed. Since I know a good amount about both web standards and Flash, I've been able to close bugs and take care of issues for most of my team - which has freed them up to do what they do best. In the past 10 days we've managed to launch 11 sites, which is pretty remarkable given how little time we've spent as a team.
The biggest challenge so far has been finding outside talent. I'm looking for a bunch of solid freelancers that I can add to my team, and while I've been bombarded by resumes and portfolios, the number of exceptional people is pretty slim. I've looked through close to 350 of these by now, and have earmarked about 30 for follow-up. A few really impressed me, and I'm they'll be able to work within my budgets - they'd be fantastic to have around.
So all in all, it's been fun so far. I'm overwhelmed and I'm working every day from the time I get up until the time I go to bed, but it's definitely a new challenge. I will say that Christmas break couldn't come at a better time - eggnog and a fireplace sounds a lot like heaven right now.
Barcamp
December 14, 2005
Barcamp is coming to New York in about a month, and it should be a lot of fun. Amit Gupta is putting it together, and if his track record is any indication (I first heard of the guy when he was working on the phenomenal ChangeThis with Seth Godin,) I'm sure it will be fantastic.
Everyone in attendance is supposed to demo, present or help in some way. I wonder if stand-up counts....
Got promoted last week - I'm no longer the ambiguous 'Director of User Experience' but a full-fledged Creative Director. It's a pretty cool feeling - since college, I knew that if I were going to bite the bullet and work for someone else, this would be the kind of position I'd want.
Whatever creative faculties I possess will have to wait to be flexed temporarily, however - the downside of being a growing company with an ever increasing client base is that someone has to produce all that work - and I'm now the lucky gent managing the guys who make that happen. The fact that they're able to create over 200 sites a year is pretty amazing stuff - my job is to make that process even more efficient, and to push the proverbial envelope of what we do even further. A pretty daunting task - but I've never been one to back down from a challenge. We'll see what happens.
As an aside - if you're an amazing designer looking to add some unversity clients to your portfolio, feel free to email me at sean DOT johnson AT gmail DOT com. As the great Tom Peters says, it's always the right time to look for great talent.
November 27, 2005
Google just keeps it coming. In the coming weeks you might start seeing little telephones next to sponsored ads on Google pages. It's called 'click-to'call' and it allows you to call the company directly from your computer - likely leveraging the technology they've implemented in Google Talk. Google apparently pays for the telephone charges, and the advertiser pays a fee for every call they receive.
I wonder how that will pan out given the pseudo-anonymous nature of the web. While it's compelling to think that a user is a click away from calling you, what are the odds they're going to do so based on your ad? Getting me to click on to your website or landing page is one thing - getting me to have a conversation with you over the phone is another entirely.
November 26, 2005
The extremely talented Andy Rutledge weighed in on the home page design for auction mega-giant eBay earlier today. His analysis was pretty thorough, and he managed to take a page that was extremely cluttered and hone in on what he felt were the most important pieces.
Andy does a great job of focusing on creating a "usable" site - reducing the number of competing elements, being consistent with links, etc. But while he does quite a bit to create a page that adheres to the guidelines put forth by the many usability experts in the marketplace, the focus on structural usability leads to a site that ignores some other factors that can lead to a good experience.
More...
November 22, 2005
I'm famous.
If you haven't read this book yet, you should - it's hard not to read the pieces without feeling compelled to do something immediately to change your organization and/or your life. Pick up a few copies for your friends as well - it's a worthy cause. In fact, I know what a few people are getting for Christmas...
Thanks Seth...
November 17, 2005
Love this email newsletter design - very well put together. Animated GIFs are making a comeback, mark my words....
November 14, 2005
Good stuff. Back in my premarketing days this was the kind of stuff I'd stress contstantly - it really doesn't take much to leave a strong positive impression on your customers. In fact, I would submit that the little touches like these are often the most important thing that should be on your company's agenda for the day.
One of the greatest business minds we've seen died today, leaving behind a legacy of thought work that could be unmatched. The Peter Blocks, Michael Hammers, Michael Porters and Tom Peters of the world were all heavily influenced by this man's writing and thinking on all things management. The ideas he penned in the 60's were as relevant then as they are today, and countless business students on campuses all over the country are learning his ideas whether they realize it or not. I don't agree with everything I've read of his, but I admired him nonetheless - he was a man who carely deeply about what he did, which puts him in far too rare company.
Peter F. Drucker, Dead at 95.
I have a few buddies in the world of programming who are getting pretty scared of Google. I'm starting to see why.
Google is now offering it's analytics service for free, allowing you to track your web stats, keyword campaigns and the relationship between traffic and conversion. If tracking your website ROI wasn't easy enough already, Google is sure to make it dead simple.
It seems as though the market for solid, useful web applicaitons is going to continue to get more difficult to be successful in as the geniuses at Google continue to develop new, interesting, free ways to get things done online.
Coupled with the fact that idiots like myself can learn programming frameworks like Ruby on Rails or Laszlo and begin building rich applications, and programmers might have reason to be worried. Who knows - the key to being successful on the Internet may soon be a result of... a solid business model executed well.
November 13, 2005
It looks like Sony has gotten caught with its hand in an enormous cookie jar. If you're a nerd, you'll find this stuff fascinating (how smart are these guys for figuring out what Sony's up to! And how likely would I be to see them at a party?) If you're not a nerd, you should still be interested as the implications on intellectual property, privacy and the rights of companies to modify your system hardware begin to bubble to the surface.
Via a different Sean who's much smarter than I am.
October 26, 2005
How cool is this? I've never wanted to switch banks because of a promotion before, but this is pretty clever.
I've casually read about microloans for some time now. The concept is fantastic - having individuals and businesses make minature loans to enterprising people in third-world countries. Often, contributions as little as $100 are enough to give a fledgling company the capital (and confidence) it needs to be successful.
Now it looks like we can all get in the microloan business. A little outfit called Kiva allows you to personally help a business in a developing nation as they grow and eventually thrive. I dearly hope this business succeeds. It represents the kind of 'social entrepreneurship' that I've been talking about so much lately. It's the kind of company I would love to own someday.
It's not Christmas yet, but the season for giving lasts all year. Head over to Kiva now help improve someone's life and livelihood.
I've casually read about microloans for some time now. The concept is fantastic - having individuals and businesses make minature loans to enterprising people in third-world countries. Often, contributions as little as $100 are enough to give a fledgling company the capital (and confidence) it needs to be successful.
Now it looks like we can all get in the microloan business. A little outfit called Kiva allows you to personally help a business in a developing nation as they grow and eventually thrive. I dearly hope this business succeeds. It represents the kind of 'social entrepreneurship' that I've been talking about so much lately. It's the kind of company I would love to own someday.
It's not Christmas yet, but the season for giving lasts all year. Head over to Kiva now help improve someone's life and livelihood.
October 18, 2005
The economic boom in China is astounding. According to an article in this morning's NYT, Shanghai will construct more office and work space this year than can be found in all of New York City.
I've been interested in China for a while. The opportunities available seem limitless. But one has to wonder about the risks. This rapid development has put a serious strain on their water and energy resources. As it stands, China is the largest consumer of coal and steel, and it boasts 7 of the 10 most polluted cities in the world. Corporate fraud has been occuring at a steady pace due to a lack of systems and controls to keep pace with such explosive growth. Perhaps most importantly, China's aging population is larger than our own, a demographic shift that is sure to further stretch the system.
I'm not intelligent enough to predict what's going to happen here - there's way to much happening way too quickly for someone as dense as myself to wrap one's head around everything. But as hack student of market manias, it's safe to say the Chinese frenzy is well on its way to making the dot.com era look very mild.
Of course, I'm probably just a naysayer. Forget it - anyone want to go in on a condo in Beijing? We can have our own 25-acre palm-shaped artificial lake with a dock for our private yacht...
October 07, 2005
Like many other people, I've been anxious to see what Seth Godin's new company, Squidoo was going to be about. This morning, I learned the answer.
If Google and Wikipedia and the like provide you with the full, unabridged version of any topic, then Squidoo is the executive summary. It's aim is to provide you with the exact information you need to learn about a topic. It starts from the assumption that the first step on the web isn't to find what you're looking for, but rather to learn about what you need to be looking for.
The best part is that Seth and his team are designing a business that is a reflection of themselves and what they value, the ultimate goal of the company being to raise as much money as possible for charity. Some folks might find that trite, but as I've said before, it beats the hell out of 'maximizing shareholder value' or 'making gobs of money.' It's the kind of mission, the kind of idea, and the kind of champion a company needs to be startlingly successful.
I wish you the best Seth. You've always been an inspiration. You can learn more about Squidoo and the ideas behind it by downloading his latest e-book, Everyone is an Expert.
September 28, 2005
What in the world is this? My German is rusty, but the last frame says something like "The safest cars in the world come from France."
I'm not a car person, but I'd be curious if this makes car people want a Renault...
September 27, 2005
A brilliant woman brought this to my attention this morning...
The recent issue of Forbes had a feature on the richest men and women in the world. Not too many surprises, but get a load of this: the majority of individuals on the list didn't have a college degree.
I don't think this says that the education system turns out mediocre businesspeople. I do, however, think that this speaks to the fact that an entrepreneur has a radically different mindset than the general population.
From an early age, we're spoonfed that we're to 'go to work, get good grades so we can get a nice job.' Seems like sound logic, and yet the people who tend to 'make it' in this world often ignore this advice. They choose the school of real life, full of fear and failure and dissapointment...and eventually, success.
Makes you wonder - what assumptions do you make about the way the world works, about what it takes to be successful? What if your assumptions are wrong?
September 25, 2005
Finishing up reading Buzzmarketing by Mark Hughes. It's a fantastic, quick read, full of examples from companies large and small who've successfully built word-of-mouth in a systematic way. The great thing about it is that it moves beyond theory (we all know that WOM is the perfect mechanism for growing a business,) and gets into practical application. You may not be able to get on Letterman a month after reading it, but it will surely get your mind working.
Take a look the next time you're at the bookstore.
September 16, 2005
Had a meeting at TCU yesterday. The school's mission is to prepare students to be leaders in the global community, and they mean it. They encourage their students to experience anything and everything life has to offer, and as a result the vast majority of their students participate in fantastic internships, join numerous student groups, study abroad, master a foreign language. Their students are articulate, cultured, intelligent, and are truly ready to take over the world.
Not enough companies and organizations have a strong enough mission. Mission is something that gets thrown around in business school almost ad naseum. But for most companies - most people - the mission is lifeless. They realize that the true mission of the company is to make the owners or shareholders as much money as possible. It rarely gets beyond that.
More...
August 22, 2005
In business school, there’s a principle. A rule. An unarguable precept that serves as the background for just about every business that’s been started in the past 100 years.
That rule says that the purpose of the busines
