If I tell you, "I'm going to the baseball game," it seems as though you're likely to understand what I mean. Of course, you won't. When George Will goes to a baseball game, it's a religious experience. Me, I don't even like baseball. Or maybe it's my nephew's ball game (the playoffs), or maybe going to the game causes me to miss an important event, and on and on. We label the experience with just two words, and two words can't possibly capture the emotions and circumstance surrounding an event. The same thing is true with brands. If I tell you that a new business was funded by USV, that might…
Selected by johnflurry
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Most Topular Stories
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Inaccurate labels and why we need them (and need to improve them)
Seth's Blog9 Feb 2012 | 2:46 am -
Today’s Top Stories: Google’s Cloud Storage, iPad Rumors
Mashable!9 Feb 2012 | 5:36 amWelcome to this morning’s edition of “First To Know,” a series in which we keep you in the know on what’s happening in the digital world. Today, we’re looking at three particularly interesting stories. Google to Launch Cloud Storage Service [REPORT] Google plans to launch a cloud storage service similar to Dropbox, according to a report by WSJ. Google’s service will be called Drive, and it will let users store and share photos, videos and other documents in Google’s cloud, say sources familiar with the matter. iPad 3 Might Come With Different Screen and Thicker Case A… -
Raising Money: What Not to Say and What Not to Believe #OfficeandGuyK
How to Change the World20 Jan 2012 | 10:46 amOver the past two weeks via my partnership with Microsoft and Office Web Apps, I’ve provided templates of models for you to create enchanting PowerPoint pitches, Word business plans, and Excel financial models. They are all available for you to download from my SkyDrive account. I hope these documents and blog posts help you save a boatload of time and increase the quality of your efforts.I leave you with two sets of top ten lies: one of entrepreneurs and one of investors so that you know what not to say and what not to believe. Top Ten Lies of Entrepreneurs “Our projections are… -
Throw Away the Maps
chrisbrogan.com6 Feb 2012 | 1:30 amPeople judge us by the path they’ve seen us walk before. They can’t anticipate our future steps. We, ourselves, look to how things have been, what seems to be the lay of the land, without realizing that the maps are not the territory. Want to succeed at work? Then don’t try to do your job. Instead, work towards something larger, more meaningful, and something that blends your convictions internally with your best ability to help others externally. Want to create something new? Then throw away the old, or maybe join two disparate old things together into something new. The… -
Ngmoco Hit With Layoffs
Touch Arcade9 Feb 2012 | 4:38 amWe've been covering the existence of ngmoco since the very beginning in mid-2008, back before they dropped the extra colon from their logo even. A month later, we were on top of their initial round of funding, and with the launch of nglabs and other amazing future promises, quite a few people (myself included) thought ngmoco was going to become the unquestionable king of iOS game development. It's been a long four years since then, and while we once knew ngmoco for releasing absolutely classic must-have games like Rolando [99¢], Rolando 2 [99¢], and Star Defense [99¢], they switched gears…
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Seth's Blog
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Inaccurate labels and why we need them (and need to improve them)
9 Feb 2012 | 2:46 amIf I tell you, "I'm going to the baseball game," it seems as though you're likely to understand what I mean. Of course, you won't. When George Will goes to a baseball game, it's a religious experience. Me, I don't even like baseball. Or maybe it's my nephew's ball game (the playoffs), or maybe going to the game causes me to miss an important event, and on and on. We label the experience with just two words, and two words can't possibly capture the emotions and circumstance surrounding an event. The same thing is true with brands. If I tell you that a new business was funded by USV, that might… -
How do they know you're not a flake?
8 Feb 2012 | 2:43 amBefore your link gets clicked or your proposal gets read, a busy person is going to triage it to find out if it's even worth glancing at. Since everyone is now connected, the new permeability has created a deluge of noise, and just about everyone worth contacting is taking defensive measures. Do I know this person? Did someone I trust send them over? Where does she work? (Ideo? the FDA? The New York Times?) Has she won an award? Is she famous? Are there typos and is the design sloppy? Are they pestering me? Do I already follow this person online? Does music play when I visit the website? Will… -
Horizontal marketing isn't a new idea
7 Feb 2012 | 2:09 amBut it is the new reality for just about every organization. Vertical marketing means the marketer (the one with money) is in charge. Vertical marketing starts at the top and involves running ads, sending out direct mail and pushing hype through the media. Your money, your plans, your control. It might not work, but generally the worst outcome is that you will be ignored and need to spend more money. Horizonal marketing, on the other hand, means creating a remarkable product and story and setting it up to spread from person to person. It's out of your control, because all the interactions are… -
Who is your customer?
6 Feb 2012 | 2:26 amRule one: You can build a business on the foundation of great customer service. Rule two: The only way to do great customer service is to treat different customers differently. The question: Who is your customer? It's not obvious. Zappos is a classic customer service company, and their customer is the person who buys the shoes. Nike, on the other hand, doesn't care very much at all about the people who buy the shoes, or even the retailers. They care about the athletes (often famous) that wear the shoes, sometimes for money. They name buildings after these athletes, court them, erect… -
In search of a timid trapeze artist
5 Feb 2012 | 2:01 amGood luck with that, there aren't any. If you hesitate when leaping from rope to another, you're not going to last very long. And this is at the heart of what makes innovation work in organizations, why industries die, and how painful it is to try to maintain the status quo while also participating in a revolution. Gather up as much speed as you can, find a path and let go. You can't get to the next rope if you're still holding on to this one.
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Mashable!
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Today’s Top Stories: Google’s Cloud Storage, iPad Rumors
9 Feb 2012 | 5:36 amWelcome to this morning’s edition of “First To Know,” a series in which we keep you in the know on what’s happening in the digital world. Today, we’re looking at three particularly interesting stories. Google to Launch Cloud Storage Service [REPORT] Google plans to launch a cloud storage service similar to Dropbox, according to a report by WSJ. Google’s service will be called Drive, and it will let users store and share photos, videos and other documents in Google’s cloud, say sources familiar with the matter. iPad 3 Might Come With Different Screen and Thicker Case A… -
Nest Calls Honeywell Lawsuit a ‘Patent-Attack Strategy’
9 Feb 2012 | 5:32 amAn unusual technology entered the patent lawsuit theater on Monday when Honeywell International announced it was suing Nest Labs: Thermostat tech. Now Nest says it plans to fight back. Honeywell, a diversified technology and manufacturing company, is suing the startup over alleged infringement of seven of its thermostat tech patents. In a statement to Mashable on Wednesday, Nest called the lawsuit a “patent-attack strategy to stifle competition” and said it will vigorously defend itself. “We have the resources, support and conviction to do so,” the statement reads. -
Google Chrome Update Brings Faster Browsing
9 Feb 2012 | 1:12 amThe new stable release of Google’s web browser Chrome brings several improvements, most importantly faster browsing and more protection from malicious downloads. From now on, when you start typing in Chrome’s address box (or omnibox, as Google calls it), as soon as Chrome autocompletes the URL you’re likely to visit, it will prerender the page, making your overall browsing experience faster. As far as security goes, Chrome now does checks on executable files you’ve downloaded from the net. It matches the executables against a whitelist – a list of programs known… -
‘Bachelor’ Contestant Courtney Gets Auto-Tuned [VIDEO]
8 Feb 2012 | 9:19 pmFans of The Bachelor are all too familiar with this season’s over-the-top contestant Courtney, who makes snide comments at the camera and likes to take off her bikini top. Now, a video has popped up on YouTube that has turned some of her signature phrases — from “Winning!” to “I do modeling” — into a catchy Auto-Tune clip. The contestants are vying for a rose from winemaker Ben, and Courtney has rubbed many of them the wrong way, and this video shows why. This is not the first time YouTube users have turned pop culture moments into Auto-Tuned videos. -
Facebook Talks About Social Games and Mobile Apps for 2012
8 Feb 2012 | 9:09 pmFacebook revealed its roadmap for social games and mobile apps for the rest of the year at the Inside Social Apps 2012 conference on Wednesday in San Francisco — and it’s good news for app developers. Want to create an app for Facebook’s Open Graph? The mobile space presents a huge opportunity to create cross-platform social games, said Carl Sjogreen, director of product management at Facebook, who spoke to a packed conference center filled with IT insiders about Facebook’s projections for the mobile social gaming and app space for this year. “You sort of had to…
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How to Change the World
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Raising Money: What Not to Say and What Not to Believe #OfficeandGuyK
20 Jan 2012 | 10:46 amOver the past two weeks via my partnership with Microsoft and Office Web Apps, I’ve provided templates of models for you to create enchanting PowerPoint pitches, Word business plans, and Excel financial models. They are all available for you to download from my SkyDrive account. I hope these documents and blog posts help you save a boatload of time and increase the quality of your efforts.I leave you with two sets of top ten lies: one of entrepreneurs and one of investors so that you know what not to say and what not to believe. Top Ten Lies of Entrepreneurs “Our projections are… -
Design a Sam Adams beer
20 Jan 2012 | 8:24 amNow this is a fun project. I’m helping Sam Adams “tap” the knowledge of beer drinkers and crowd source its next brew. Join the party by getting the app and designing your beer: The final brew will be released in Austin in the first week of March. #sponsored -
How to Create an Enchanting Financial Forecast #OfficeandGuyK
17 Jan 2012 | 1:52 pmThis is the third post in my Microsoft partnership, and it’s all about numbers. The topic is crafting your financial forecast to include in your pitch. Bill Reichert, my partner at Garage Technology Ventures, created an Excel model and wrote this blog post. There’s a lesson in this too: Get the best person for the job. His grasp of financial models and how to present them exceeds mine by two orders of magnitude. The Purpose of Financial Projections When it comes to financial projections, there are two types of entrepreneurs: first, the “visionary entrepreneur” who… -
How to Create an Enchanting Business Plan #OfficeandGuyK
12 Jan 2012 | 8:16 amHere is the second post in my series about planning, pitching, and launching a new business venture. In partnership with Microsoft and Office Web Apps, I’ve created a Word document that outlines a good business plan. It’s saved to my SkyDrive folder here. Feel free to download it and use it as inspiration. And if you’re working with a partner, you can use the free Word Web App to stay in sync. I provided the PowerPoint document before the Word document because a good business plan is an elaboration of a good pitch as opposed to a good pitch being a distillation of good business plan. -
How to Create an Enchanting Pitch #OfficeandGuyK
9 Jan 2012 | 8:01 amWelcome to the first in a series of blog posts I’ll be doing as part of a partnership with Microsoft and Office Web Apps. Over the next two weeks, I’ll cover everything a budding entrepreneur needs to turn an idea into an enchanting investment opportunity—from the perfect pitch to a killer business plan to financial forecasts. I’m going to start with a little dissertation on creating effective PowerPoint pitches for your company. I embedded the sample deck for you to click through by using the PowerPoint Web App. When you’re ready to get started, you can download the…
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chrisbrogan.com
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Throw Away the Maps
6 Feb 2012 | 1:30 amPeople judge us by the path they’ve seen us walk before. They can’t anticipate our future steps. We, ourselves, look to how things have been, what seems to be the lay of the land, without realizing that the maps are not the territory. Want to succeed at work? Then don’t try to do your job. Instead, work towards something larger, more meaningful, and something that blends your convictions internally with your best ability to help others externally. Want to create something new? Then throw away the old, or maybe join two disparate old things together into something new. The… -
The Next Social Networks
5 Feb 2012 | 1:30 amThe rage in social networks right now is Pinterest, partly because it’s probably the first social network that has a much higher adoption rate by females than males, and partly because it’s an interesting concept: somewhere between visual social bookmarking and scrapbooking. What also might not be immediately obvious is that it’s just “easier” to interact there. In that way, Pinterest has something in common with Instagram, which is community around photos. What I’m interested in, though, is Gentlemint, which I keep calling “Pinterest for… -
Learn From Adele – Build Your Platform
3 Feb 2012 | 1:30 amJacq and I just watched Adele Live At The Royal Albert Hall (amazon affiliate link), and though every song was just wonderfully done, I found myself fascinated by what Adele was doing in between each song. Because even though most people would be interested in hearing her belt out her amazing repertoire of hits, what I took away from the performance was Adele’s real magical ability: the ability to resonate with her audience. What Adele Could Teach You About Impact I’m writing something about this right now for my upcoming book with Julien Smith, but I had to share some of the… -
Rob Gokee is a Musical Wizard
2 Feb 2012 | 8:05 amI had such a great experience working with award winning musical composer Rob Gokee. We did some musical work together, and the process was so amazing. Rob helped me create my theme song for Shhh! The Secret Show. So anyhow, he and I sat down to do an interview, and it’s a bit long, but it’s totally worth it. We talk about what collaboration feels like at a distance, what it takes to get music like this made for your own show, and a lot more. Rob’s a hero to me, and has been part of the community for a while. I was so fortunate to have worked with him. Can’t see the… -
Build Your Platform – Start
30 Jan 2012 | 1:30 amThe following is part ONE of a series called Build Your Platform. If you find it interesting, please consider subscribing for free to get the rest of the series. This post is long. You might want to bookmark it for later. The age of social media oversaturation is upon us. People are declaring Twitter bankruptcy to go along with their email bankruptcy. They cite not wanting to start on yet another social network as their reason for not getting more involved with Google+. And just as soon as you start getting into Pinterest, you hear about Path, but wait: there’s Gentlemint, which is…
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Touch Arcade
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Ngmoco Hit With Layoffs
9 Feb 2012 | 4:38 amWe've been covering the existence of ngmoco since the very beginning in mid-2008, back before they dropped the extra colon from their logo even. A month later, we were on top of their initial round of funding, and with the launch of nglabs and other amazing future promises, quite a few people (myself included) thought ngmoco was going to become the unquestionable king of iOS game development. It's been a long four years since then, and while we once knew ngmoco for releasing absolutely classic must-have games like Rolando [99¢], Rolando 2 [99¢], and Star Defense [99¢], they switched gears… -
'Raid Leader' Review - Like a Nicotine Patch for WoW Addicts
8 Feb 2012 | 8:00 pmThere's a reason MMORPG players use the term "trash" to describe the stuff that leads up to raid bosses: it's missing all the great rewards, and it's almost always lame. It's junk, in other words, junk that pads the time between the good parts. Red Zebra Games clearly knows the score, because Raid Leader [99¢] skips right past the trash to bring us nothing but the good stuff—intense, white-knuckled battles. As we pointed out in our preview, the big picture will look familiar to Battleheart [$2.99] fans. But it's the little details that get this recovering World of Warcraft addict's heart… -
'Rebuild' Universal Update To Roll In iPhone Support Tomorrow
8 Feb 2012 | 2:21 pmRebuild [$2.99] for iPhone and iPod Touch is actually happening -- and soon. Tomorrow will see the debut of the post-apocalyptic strategy title on smaller devices, courtesy a big-time Universal update for the iPad versions of the game. Developer Northway tells that the update will also roll in retina support, too. This is easily one of our favorite strategy games on the App Store this side of Civ Rev [$6.99 / HD], and we're stoked that a "maybe" porting scenario as of a couple of months ago has become a reality. If you haven't read anything about Rebuild check out our review. Or just pick it… -
Epic Issues Indie Game Dev Challenge to Remake 'Fighting Fantasy' Books in the Unreal Engine
8 Feb 2012 | 11:10 amWe've just got word that Epic has teamed up with online college and game jam host Train2Game for the upcoming Make Something Unreal Live event which puts four startup studios against each other to create a game using the Unreal Engine. These sort of competitions seem to happen with reasonable regularity, but what makes this one more interesting to us than most is two things: First off, all of the games will be specifically developed for the iOS platform. Secondly, Epic has licensed the Fighting Fantasy IP. Fighting Fantasy is a series of game books which are also available on the App Store. -
Coming Tonight: 'Corpse Party', 'DoDonPachi Blissful Death', 'Pinball Arcade', 'Ragdoll Blaster 3', 'Raid Leader', 'Star Wars Pit Bots', and More
8 Feb 2012 | 10:06 amHey it's Wednesday, which for our purposes means exactly one thing: Tons of iOS game releases. There should be something for everyone in this list of games, whether you're a pinball fan, like simple physics games, Star Wars, or even really creepy Japanese RPGs. This works like all other weeks in that these games should all be available in the USA at 11:00 PM Eastern, or potentially much, much earlier if you're East of North America. In which case, these games should all be available now, or very soon. 100 Trials, $1.99 - Forum Thread - This is a "re-imagining" of 100 Rogues, a roguelike that…
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Xinjiang: Far West China
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More Xinjiang Uyghur Recipes – Part 2
6 Feb 2012 | 6:00 amTo my pleasant surprise, part one of the Xinjiang Uyghur Recipes ended up being one of the most popular articles of 2011. Apparently I’m not the only person who has an unhealthy craving for Uyghur food, even when I’m not in Xinjiang! For this reason, I’m excited to introduce links to even more Uyghur food recipes that you can try at home. Following the same format as last time, each of the following foods will have a brief description as well as two links: an internal link so you can see more pictures and descriptions of the food and an external link to the recipe. Print… -
Xinjiang Winter in Beautiful Pictures
2 Feb 2012 | 6:00 amNothing quite compares to winter in Xinjiang. Because of the province’s sheer size, describing this season of the year with one blanket statement is nearly impossible. Pictures are the only thing that do Xinjiang’s winter justice. People often ask me if it’s possible to travel to Xinjiang during the winter months and I’m happy to say that more and more this is becoming true. Over the past 5 years many places which were once off-limits due to dangerous road conditions are now accessible in the winter. I still caution you, however, to think about traveling here during… -
Are Uyghur Buildings Indestructible?
30 Jan 2012 | 6:00 amAt the heart of the debate over the destruction and rebuilding of Kashgar’s Old City is one primary assumption: Uyghur buildings are more reliable than the concrete, Chinese counterparts. They have stood the test of centuries of time. But what if Uyghur buildings aren’t as indestructible as we think? The Mud-Brick Emin Minaret – Turpan Let’s take a look at Turpan’s Emin Minaret, a Muslim mosque built in the late 1700′s. It’s one of the city’s most iconic buildings with a prayer minaret that has been closed to visitors for the past few decades… -
Kashgar’s Old City – The Old Becomes New
19 Jan 2012 | 6:00 amIt’s no secret that the local government in Xinjiang has been systematically getting rid of Kashgar’s Old City over the past few years. Many parts are being completely demolished while others will be receiving a “face lift”. What’s not very well known is how they plan to rebuild Kashgar’s iconic city centre. While flying from Xinjiang to Beijing a little while back, I ran across an article in the China Southern in-flight magazine that addressed this very topic. The author obviously put a positive spin on all the changes, but what caught my attention the… -
The Underground “Great Wall” – Uyghur Karez
16 Jan 2012 | 6:00 amIt is considered one of the greatest Uyghur engineering feats and has been nicknamed “The Underground Great Wall”. It is the reason that cities like Turpan exist and is still a primary source of water for many Taklamakan Desert towns. Uyghur Karez (坎儿井) are a modern marvel, but because they are located meters below the ground they often don’t receive the credit they deserve. It’s a shame, really, because I would dare to say that the karez are more impressive than it’s above-ground brother – The Great Wall of China. How to Get Water in the Desert…
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Tall Skinny Kiwi
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In Search of Masculine Christianity
7 Feb 2012 | 6:48 pmRachel Held Evans issued a challenge to male bloggers last week in response to John Piper's suggestion at the Desiring God conference that "God has given Christianity a masculine feel", which she thought was "a strange way to talk about the Bride of Christ." I didn't have time to write anything but I noticed that 150 men have responded and there is some great conversation going on all over the blogosphere. Driscoll, Piper and others are saying we are in a crisis as there are very few young men in our churches. They say their teaching is an attempt to win them back. Yet at the same… -
What Dorothy Day might teach bloggers
2 Feb 2012 | 2:36 pmDorothy Day once described herself as "a journalist and a diarist pure and simple" as opposed to a writer of books. As a young girl, she kept a diary and later became a journalist to pay the bills. I would like to think, based on her approach to writing, that she would be a blogger if still alive today. And what's more, she would have some good advice for bloggers who have tragically reduced themselves to reviewers of books, or worse, evangelists for their own books. I have always seen writing, and by extension blogging, as a means to provide a voice for the voiceless and turn the eyes of the… -
Covenant Making is not always evil
29 Jan 2012 | 1:29 pmYesterday I was at All Saints [Hataitai] Church to witness and participate in a covenant signing ceremony. But before you get all excited about that word "covenant", I should tell you that: 1. Yes, I know all about last week's contract/covenant controversy at Mars Hill Seattle and agree that covenants can be abused to control people and I am glad people are sharing exactly what their covenants and commitments entailed. Nothing wrong with a second opinion and the wider-church crowd wisdom. 2 Yes, I am aware of the personality-driven "Covenant" of Destiny Church in which some church members… -
Tall skinny elves at The Hobbit casting call
27 Jan 2012 | 10:10 pmI took my tallest kids over to Lower Hutt today for The Hobbit casting call. Filming starts next month for The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey and they were looking for extras: the short, the tall, the skinny, men with big biceps [not me} and those with 'character faces'. Unfortunately, 3000 people turned up and they could only handle 800. The rest of us were turned away but told we could apply online. The Herald said they were "overwhelmed" but it should have been a surprise. We all want to be in the movie! Bummer! My kids and I would have made great elves. I am 1.96cm (6'5'') and my son,… -
Sweet Voice Amber Hunter
27 Jan 2012 | 11:18 amAmber Hunter has been giving songs away online for years but now is creating her first CD. She led worship at our roundtable gathering at Cornerstone Festival last year and we really loved having her there. She has a story to tell. Watch the video and if you want to help out, visit her project at Kickstarter.
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| Rhett Smith:. Transitioning Life's Journey - Reflections on Writing, Therapy, and Faith
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Can Depression Offer Us a Gift?
6 Feb 2012 | 7:00 amIn Thomas Moore’s book, Care of the Soul, he writes eloquently about the gift that depression may offer people. It’s an opportunity to embrace emotions that we often don’t deal with, leading us to a better understanding of ourselves and how we want to direct our life. Though he acknowledges that depression can become debilitating to many people, he still posits the idea that there is a side to it (even in the most extremes cases of debilitation) that can be a gift to us, and that as friends and family of someone who is depressed, we play a crucial role. Moore writes:… -
Pressed to the Ground: A Theological Re-Frame of Depression
27 Jan 2012 | 1:00 amIn my continuation on the topic of depression, especially male depression (here and here), I wanted to share something with you by Parker Palmer. In his wonderful book Let Your Life Speak: Listening for the Voice of Vocation (a must read), Parker has one of the most insightful, haunting, painful, and beautiful glimpses of someone who suffers from depression that I have ever read. Parker begins the chapter with an excerpt from a book that we all read in high school, but that perhaps we might re-read differently all these years later — The Inferno of Dante: “Midway on our… -
Communication: What ‘To Say’ And ‘Not To’ Say To A Depressed Man
24 Jan 2012 | 1:00 am“What is the most important thing you can do for a depressed husband, father, or son? Without a doubt it is to communicate love and acceptance to them with all the power you can muster, and to avoid blaming them or being judgmental about their depression. Your loved one has not chosen to be depressed. If he could, he would gladly give it up. Disappointing as this truth may be, try to accept his depression in your life with grace.” (Unmasking Male Depression by Archibald Hart, pp. 227) After my last post on male depression I have been receiving a steady stream of questions from… -
The Angry…I Mean, Depressed Male: Do You Know Him?
19 Jan 2012 | 1:00 amOver the last several months when I have gathered for lunch with a few of my friends, we joke about the idea of me writing a follow up book to The Anxious Christian called The Angry Christian. Don’t worry, that is not on my to do list, but our conversation hints at an issue that can be seen in our Christian culture. If you haven’t noticed, there seems to be a lot of angry Christians out there. And more often than not, they are men. But what I’m really wondering is if there isn’t just a bunch of depressed Christian men out there…and really, men in general. In… -
The Anxious Christian is Coming Soon….Sneak Peek
21 Dec 2011 | 1:00 amThis has been an exciting month for me as I have been wrapping up some details on the soon to be publication of The Anxious Christian: Can God Use Your Anxiety for Good?. The book will be released by Moody Publishers on March 1. I’m very thankful for the amazing group of people who have endorsed the book, and a special thanks to the New York Times best selling author of Quitter, Jon Acuff for writing the foreword to the book. If you are someone who has wrestled with anxiety, then I believe this book is for you. Here is a sneak peek: Anxious Christian from ETS Productions on Vimeo.
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The Blog of Author Tim Ferriss
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Housecleaning: Be Featured in The 4-Hour Chef, Random Links, and Contest Updates
29 Jan 2012 | 1:42 pmHanoi toddler and b-boy, from a trip Ma.tt and I took in 2009. (Photo: Matt Mullenweg) The next post will be an interview on writing process with the inimitable Paulo Coelho, author of The Alchemist and Aleph, among many others. His work been translated into 71 languages. In the meantime, I’d like make a few offers and provide a few updates, as well as a few reading links: 1) Would you like to be in The 4-Hour Chef? I’d love for you to be. Amazingly, it hit both #1 and #2 (for Kindle version) in cookbooks on Amazon when it was announced, and I think it could be bigger than the… -
How to Become an Effective CEO: Chief Emotions Officer
19 Jan 2012 | 4:39 amChip Conley, founder of Joie de Vivre Hotels Chip Conley is the founder of Joie de Vivre Hospitality, which he began at age 26 and built to more than 30 properties in California alone. In 2010, Joie de Vivre was awarded the #1 customer service award in the U.S. by Market Metrix (Upper Upscale hotel category). Conley has also been named the “Most Innovative CEO” in the Bay Area by the San Francisco Business Times, and I’m proud to call him a friend. We’ve shared many glasses of wine together. He doesn’t know what I’m about to tell you, but it’s true (Hi,… -
Tim Ferriss Getting His Ass Kicked + How to Survive a Physical Attack (Video Series)
8 Jan 2012 | 4:11 pmThis post might seem odd, as it starts with a random sequence from a random skill. There are three reasons for this: 1) I like to expose readers to things they’ve never explored. 2) The best long-term policy for keeping a blog fun to read (and write) is to cover things that subsets of your readers love, not things that everyone merely likes. 3) I think all of you should know how to respond to a real physical attack. Keeping these in mind, I hope you enjoy a lil’ taste of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, often nicknamed “human chess.” If it’s not your thing, I still suggest… -
No Brown M&M’s! David Lee Roth and the Power of Checklists
1 Jan 2012 | 9:17 pmArticle 126: No brown M&M’s! (Photo: Mr. T in DC) Happy New Year, all! I’ll be putting up a “Lessons learned in 2011″ post soon. In the meantime, here is a taste of things to come. I can come across as anal retentive, even severely Monk-ish. One reason for the madness: with rare exceptions, I’ve come to believe that how we do anything is how we do everything. I’m not alone. The following is a short excerpt from The Checklist Manifesto by Atul Gawande, also reprinted by Tehelka magazine in India. In it, we learn the logic of David Lee Roth’s… -
Christmas Deals from Start-ups
21 Dec 2011 | 10:24 pm(Photo: Kevin Dooley) Just for fun, I asked my start-ups (and a few friends) if they’d like to offer y’all a little something special from the holidays. Here’s an incomplete list. Many are working on top-secret stuff and couldn’t jump in, but a few were game on last-minute notice, so here you go! They are listed in alphabetical order by company/name: Stop being a Wantrepreneur; start taking action. Free vids! Get here: http://appsumo.com/wantrepreneurs-videos/ via @AppSumo Everything you need to transform. Free trainers, complete nutrition plans, & top-selling…
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Michael Hyatt’s Blog
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What Could Becoming a Better Speaker Make Possible for You?
9 Feb 2012 | 2:00 amI spent the summer before my sophomore year in college as a summer missionary in Galveston, Texas. Each week my team visited a different church in the area and led vacation Bible school. It was fun, rewarding work. If you can’t see this video in your RSS reader or email, then click here. In addition, I was assigned to a local church where I lived with the pastor, his wife, and their two children. They were both in their fifties and made me feel right at home. After I had been there for about a month, the pastor casually said to me, “Mike, Rhonda and I are going out of town next… -
What’s at Stake If You Don’t Succeed?
8 Feb 2012 | 2:00 amIn 1986 I started my own publishing company with Robert Wolgemuth. We had worked together at Word, Inc. and then at Thomas Nelson. Like a lot of young entrepreneurs, we had a big dream, a business plan, but few resources. We raised enough money from investors to launch the company, but we were still strapped for cash. Regardless, we soldiered on, believing that God would bless our creativity, hard work, and commitment to excellence. Our first big break came in 1988 when the Los Angeles Dodgers won the World Series. After the final game, Robert and I miraculously got an appointment with Orel… -
Personal Coaching for Those in Ministry
7 Feb 2012 | 2:00 amI have written previously about how to go further, faster. One of the best ways is to hire a personal coach. I have used coaches for more than a decade. I credit much of my success to this strategy. The problem is coaches can be expensive—especially for those in ministry. That’s why I am especially excited about Ministry Coaching International (MCI). It was started by my good friends at Building Champions, the coaching company I use and recommend. MCI has the same philosophy as Building Champions, but it is specifically focused on—and priced for—ministry professionals. Recently, I… -
Five Publishing Hurdles (And How to Clear Them)
6 Feb 2012 | 2:00 amIf you’re an aspiring author, have ever wondered what happens to your book proposal after it arrives at the publishing house? Sometimes, I’m afraid, the acquisition process appears to be a sort of “black box.” Proposals are inserted into the black box and then disappear—for weeks. At some point they pop out. Most are sent back to the author with a rejection letter. A precious few actually become a book. Photo courtesy of ©iStockphoto.com/technotr But what happens while the proposal is inside the box? In this post I want to describe the internal proposal… -
Leading from a Distance
3 Feb 2012 | 2:00 amThis is a guest post by Michael Sliwinski. He is the founder of the time and project-management application Nozbe (the task manager I use) and editor-in-chief of Productive! Magazine. If you want to guest post on this blog, check out the guidelines here. I love my complicated situation. I lead an Internet company based in Poland (Central Europe). Most of our team is located there, with one person in Germany, collaborators in the USA and Japan—and me in Spain. And our customers are all over the world. Leading a company like this is complex but rewarding. Photo courtesy of…
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CJR
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Audit Notes: Off the Hamster Wheel, The Dumb Money, iPad Newspapers
8 Feb 2012 | 10:53 pmI like this Nieman Journalism Lab piece on how Salon hopped off the hamster wheel and saw site traffic increase dramatically. Salon's traffic jumped 40 percent even though it posted a third less than it had a year earlier. Adrienne LaFrance talks to Salon editor Kerry Lauerman: “I remember we had aggregated a Charlie Sheen story, and I... -
Remembering the Golden Age of Book Publishing
8 Feb 2012 | 12:14 pmThe Tender Hour of Twilight | By Richard Seaver | Farrar, Straus, and Giroux | 480 pages, $35.00 An engaging memoir about the history of the publishing industry sounds about as plausible as a successful magazine about plumbing; people normally just want to read the books that get published, not the vulgar details of how these books made their way... -
Some Mistakes at MoneyWatch
8 Feb 2012 | 11:37 amA recent CBS MoneyWatch piece titled “Social Insecurity” was one of those breezy, glib stories that seemed to telegraph important stuff, especially to the younger set, but actually typified the kind of shallow, incomplete coverage of Social Security we’ve seen in the last two years. That kind of reportage does a disservice to audiences and leaves them with... -
Park Slope Pundits Get the Story Wrong
8 Feb 2012 | 9:47 amI grew up in Park Slope, Brooklyn, so a headline on The New Yorker's homepage Monday, declaring "Park Slope is Dead," piqued my interest. Alas, the story contained no new information, only inaccurate riffing on something I already knew about: that Southpaw—a live-music club around the corner from my parents' house, where it replaced a 99 cent store in 2002—had... -
What Drives Public Opinion About Climate Change?
8 Feb 2012 | 9:00 amThe media influence public opinion about climate change, but not as much as national politicians and the state of the economy do, according to a new analysis of eight years of polling data. Over time, activists have pointed their fingers in many directions while trying to explain society’s failure to address the threat of climate change. Scientists, policymakers, captains of...
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Copyblogger
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How to Recover From a Social Media Hangover
9 Feb 2012 | 3:00 am“Hello. My name is Cori and I’m a social media addict. “Today is day 1 of my commitment to give myself a regular break from technology and the foggy, uncreative haze it can unwittingly lead to.” I was reading a post the other day by blogger Michael Brenner at B2B Marketing Insider, talking about getting your social media game on. Of course, being the skimmer that I am, the first thing that caught my attention and made me go back and read the whole thing was his mention of having a Social Media Hangover. His hangover was induced by sometimes (as we all do) forgetting to… -
The “New” SEO Secret Weapon
8 Feb 2012 | 3:00 amIf you have a web site, you may have noticed one of two things about the traffic you get from search engines. Your search traffic may have dried up overnight, with once-healthy streams turning into a sad little trickle. Or you may have noticed a nice, steady improvement as you’ve climbed higher in the SERPs (search engine results pages), while other sites that used to outrank you suddenly evaporated. There’s a super-secret new ingredient in SEO. It was always a factor, but it’s become even more important recently, as the Google team relentlessly declares war on what they see… -
8 Quick Tips for Writing Bullet Points People Actually Want to Read
7 Feb 2012 | 3:00 amIt’s a Twitterized world, we’re just living in it. Blog posts, Tweets, quick videos, Google+, the Facebook Timeline, and tens of thousands of images pinned to digital boards are flying past us faster than we can read them. Faster than we can even scan them, depending on the time of day. What does this mean for writers trying to cut through it all? At least two things that I can think of: You’d better know how to write a compelling headline You’d better know how to write bullet points that grab (and keep) your reader We’re not telling you to keep your copy short. -
7 Crucial Tactics for Writing a Wildly Successful Guest Post
6 Feb 2012 | 3:00 amWe all know that guest posts grow blogs. But not many people realize that tactical guest posting grows careers. Most bloggers I see pump out these articles while reciting the mantra “quantity over quality”; there’s no real strategy and there are no real long-term benefits. In this post I am going to show you the seven crucial tactics for writing a radically successful guest post. Done right, these strategies will get you more email subscribers, coveted Google ranking positions, and a big head-start on your content marketing goals. Who am I to teach you about guest blogging? -
7 Smashing Social Media Marketing Links
4 Feb 2012 | 3:00 amThis week on The Lede … What really works on Twitter One thing social media copywriters should never do 9 productive social media hacks A reminder of the power of the original social media If you just can’t wait for The Lede every Saturday, and you want even more practical, useable links than the seven we highlight here every week, follow @copyblogger on Twitter. It’s painless. Really. // 9 Social Media Hacks You Need to Embrace Now Mr. Baer makes a good case that though social media is inexpensive in monetary terms, it can get good and costly when it comes to spending your…
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Backpacking Light Magazine
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(M) Crazy for Quilts â How Quilts Became My Sleep System of Choice, PLUS A Review of My Favorite, the Stateless Society Custom Quilt
6 Feb 2012 | 11:00 pmTake a walk through the backpacking addicted mind of Ray as he explains his journey to custom quilts, and read a review of his favorite model, a 14-ounce beauty made by fellow BPL-er Javan Dempsey. by Ray Estrella | 2012-02-07Let me take a moment to explain the reasons and route I took to get to quilts for backpacking. I am a toss-and-turn side-sleeper. It is almost impossible for me to sleep on my back, as it is very uncomfortable and causes me to snore (which then wakes me up). Way back (early 80s), my favorite three-season bag was a Sierra Designs semi-rectangular bag that I used above 40… -
(M) Backpacking and Hiking with an Umbrella
6 Feb 2012 | 11:00 pmFrancis is an umbrella advocate, eschewing typical rainwear. Find out why he's backpacked over 12,500 miles with an umbrella... and decide if you should follow his lead. by Francis Tapon | 2012-02-07When I'm backpacking, hikers often ask, "Why are you carrying an umbrella?" An umbrella seems out-of-place in the wilderness. It's for city folk, not for macho backpackers. However, hiking with an umbrella is not as foolish as it looks. I've used umbrellas on the Appalachian Trail, Pacific Crest Trail, and Continental Divide Trail. Umbrellas have also protected me during my treks across Costa… -
(M) Storm Resistance of Ultralight Shelters: Part 1, Introduction
30 Jan 2012 | 11:10 pmEvaluating the wind and snow loading of shelters for ultralight backpacking in inclement conditions. by Ryan Jordan | 2012-01-31This article introduces a new long term initiative at Backpacking Light: to analyze existing standards of design, manufacturing, and materials of ultralight shelters and relate these standards to observed performance in response to adverse environmental conditions. Shelters of interest to the ultralight backpacking community may be characterized by one or more of the following attributes: The use of lightweight fabrics to save weight; The use of construction… -
(M) Deep Freeze: A Cold, Hard Look at Winter Stoves
30 Jan 2012 | 11:00 pmInvestigating the lightest-weight options on the market and assessing ease-of-use, reliability, fuel efficiency, and time to boil. by Brad Groves | 2012-01-31Little problems during a winter trip can be a lot more serious than the same problems in summer. There's not as much room for error in winter, and it's not the time for marginal gear. If your body isn't producing (or your insulation isn't trapping) enough heat, you need a source of external heat. You also need that heat for melting snow or ice for water, cooking up some meals, as a general source of cheer... A winter stove needs to work… -
(M) Mountain Laurel Designs TrailStar Shelter Review
23 Jan 2012 | 11:10 pmSimplicity and strength in an all-season shelter. by Ryan Jordan | 2012-01-24The 17-ounce (482-g) Mountain Laurel Designs TrailStar claims to be the "first shaped tarp with five low-angle sides and no doors that combines the performance of a traditional pyramid shelter with the open and multi-function pitching of a tarp" (manufacturer website on December 20, 2011). The primary purpose of this review is to push the TrailStar to its performance limits and find out under what scenarios this and other manufacturer claims start to break down. My first experience with the TrailStar came in the…
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The Orvis Fly Fishing Guide Podcast
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Trout- Hatchery vs Wild, Pressured vs Remote Waters
7 Feb 2012 | 1:22 pmIn the fly box this week, we talk about where fly tying materials come from, getting wet flies to swing deeper, fishing logs, and fishing small flies under water. In the main topic, we discuss different kinds of trout and how to fish for them--hatchery vs. wild, and pressured trout streams vs. remote trout streams. We've had some great suggestions for podcast topics lately so keep them coming -
How to Take Great Fishing Photos with Catch Magazine Editor Brian O'Keefe
25 Jan 2012 | 7:56 amThis week I have a special guest, Brian O'Keefe, who owns the fantastic electronic magazine called Catch Magazine, along with his business partner Todd Moen. Brian has been in the fly fishing business as long as I have, and he's one of the best fly-fishing photographers out there. He's traveled all over the world to photograph some of the most exotic fly fishing locations, as well as plenty of cool places closer to home. We ramble a bit about the old days, but the podcast is mainly about tips for the novice fly-fishing photographer. This podcast is longer than usual so… -
Ten tips for Fishing Caddisflies
20 Jan 2012 | 1:27 pmThe main part of the podcast this week is 10 Tips on Fishing Caddis hatches, some tips I’ve learned over the years for successfully (sometimes!) fishing caddis hatches. Caddisflies are one of the most abundant aquatic insects in trout streams, and the fishing can range from incredibly easy to downright frustrating. But trout almost always love to eat them so we need to pay attention. Also in this podcast we talk about bedraggled flies, tailwater insects, and one of my favorite subjects, using roadkills for fly tying. -
15 tips For Setting up the Ultimate Fly Tying Bench
10 Jan 2012 | 1:07 pmThis week I discuss a frequently requested podcast this time of year--how to set up your fly-tying area. I talk about what you need to get started and what tools and threads you should begin with. I also discuss storage and lighting and magnification and about how to stay organized. In the Fly Box section we have another tip for essential safety items in a fishing vest or pack, and the difference between Blue-Winged Olives and PMDs and Pale Evening Duns. -
Tom's Ten Tips for Stocking your Nymphing Box
3 Jan 2012 | 11:23 amWe posted an episode a few weeks ago on how to best stock your dry-fly box. We had a number of requests for one on nymphing. Let us know what you think of this list!
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Upstream in Oregon
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Photos by Paul
17 Jan 2012 | 8:29 pmMy toddler is a decent photographer. He’d be better if he kept his finger off the lens. -
Photos from Cleveland Museum of Natural History
8 Jan 2012 | 6:50 pmSpent a little time at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History for the first time since I was a tiny kid. I was shocked at how in-depth the Ohio-specific exhibits are, and maybe more shocked by how interesting Ohio’s natural history is (was). Awesome trip, I’m sure we’ll become regulars. Oh yeah.. we’re moving. To Ohio. Some time around next summer. So… I’ll probably rename the blog. Same URL. Anyway. Yeah, we liked the museum. -
Mastadon rules
7 Jan 2012 | 1:50 pm -
London Calling
6 Jan 2012 | 12:39 pmWas just going through Flickr today looking for something else and realized I never posted pics from me and DW‘s London trip last spring. -
Wild Olympics
19 Dec 2011 | 8:27 am
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MacRumors: Mac News and Rumors - Front Page
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Photo of the Back of an iPad 3 Rear Shell, Smart Cover Magnets
8 Feb 2012 | 9:44 pmApparently, iPad 3 enclosures are easy to come by these days. Earlier today, Repair Labs posted a photo of the interior the iPad 3 rear shell. They concluded that there were some minor changes that suggested a larger battery and redesigned logic board. Tonight, Apple.pro posts an image of the back of the same shell, showing it to look quite simliar to the current iPad 2 backing, though the camera appears closer to the edge. There's no markings on the enclosure, however. No "iPad" or serial number markings. The site also claims to have a photo of the Smart Cover magnets, suggesting the iPad 3… -
Foxconn's Servers Hacked, Exposing Vendor Usernames and Passwords
8 Feb 2012 | 8:11 pmOne of Foxconn's servers was reportedly hacked, exposing usernames and passwords for clients and employees. The group that took credit for the hack is called SwaggSec who claims they weren't doing it in response to working conditions or even for information on the iPhone 5, but simply for the enjoyment of it. We encourage media, security experts, and other interested individuals to explore our leaks. Foxconn did have an appropriate firewall, but fortunately to our intent, we were able to bypass it almost flawlessly. Of course with funding ourselves we did have our limitations. But with… -
Apple Determines iTunes Match Royalties By Counting How Many Times A Song is Accessed
8 Feb 2012 | 1:56 pmTuneCore president Jeff Price today wrote a blog post praising Apple's iTunes Match service for creating money "out of thin air" for copyright holders. iTunes Match launched with all the major record labels on board, but some small labels refused to participate over concerns the service was legitimizing music pirates. Price disagrees: A person has a song on her computer hard drive. She clicks on the song and plays it. No one is getting paid. The same person pays iTunes $25 for iMatch. She now clicks on the same song and plays it through her iMatch service. Copyright holders get paid. -
Photo of iPad 3 Rear Shell Suggests Minor Physical Changes, Larger Battery
8 Feb 2012 | 12:52 pm(Click here for larger version) RepairLabs reports that it has received a photo of what is claimed to the inside of the rear shell of the iPad 3, comparing the part to the corresponding version found on the iPad 2. The iPad 3 version demonstrates a few minor changes compared to the iPad 2, with one of the most notable being an apparently narrower logic board that could make room for an expanded battery.A. You can see here that the mounts for the logic board are very different, which means the logic board shape will be different allowing for . . . . B. More battery. The width of where the… -
Siri Support for Mandarin Chinese, Japanese, and Russian Languages Coming Next Month?
8 Feb 2012 | 10:42 amTech in Asia reports on an article [Google translation] from Chinese information technology website DoNews claiming that Apple is preparing to bring support for the Chinese language to Siri on the iPhone 4S next month. According to the report, Apple is also preparing to launch support for Japanese and Russian, but the initial Chinese support will only include Mandarin, with Cantonese and other dialects being left out for the time being.The Chinese tech site DoNews claims to have heard from an Apple engineer who’s working on the Chinese-language version of Siri, the clever voice assistant on…
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Bob Sutton
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Places and People that Use The No Asshole Rule
8 Feb 2012 | 12:31 pmA reporter asked me a couple years back, “The No Asshole Rule is fun to talk about, but does anyone ever actually use it?” It turns out that there is also a lot good news out here, lots of great leaders and many civilized places that people can work. I wrote an initial list back then, and I update it every now and then. This is the latest, which I offer in celebration of Work Matters passing 2,000,000 pageviews and the impending publication of Good Boss, Bad Boss in paperback. This list is far from exhaustive, but check out the breadth of places and the different ways that… -
A Little Updating in Celebration of 2 Million Page Views at Work Matters
7 Feb 2012 | 9:32 amAbout a month ago, Work Matters passed 2 million page views (2062928 at the moment). I did my first post in mid-2006 and am now up to 1108 total posts, which have generated 5217 comments. And since I started this blog, it has averaged 995.14 pageviews per day. I have threatened to stop blogging at times, and there are periods where I post nothing for weeks at a time. But I still enjoy writing it and especially love when people write smart comments -- I was rather amazed, for example, by the number of great responses to my call for a useful and simple… -
My Main Focus for 2012: Still Scaling-Up Excellence
6 Feb 2012 | 4:20 pmI thought I would provide an update about what I am working on these days, and use it to get some ideas and advice from folks who read this blog. 2011 was a year of learning and thinking for me, which was necessary because 2010 was simply wild. I had open heart surgery in April, Good Boss, Bad Boss was published in September, as was the paperback version of The No Asshole Rule -- both of which became New York Times bestsellers. I spent 2011 doing a lot of talking, reading, and thinking about two future projects -- they are moving along, but it is always a slow process. I… -
Chip Conley's Emotional Equations: A Leadership Self-help Book You Will Love (Even If You Hate Self-help Books)
6 Feb 2012 | 8:19 amChip Conley is an astoundingly talented human-being, and for me, the very model of a CEO who built an organization that strikes a balance between performance and humanity, or as IDEO's David Kelley puts it, between love and money. Shortly after graduating from the Stanford Business School, at the age of 26, he started a 25 year quest to build what has become one of America's most successful boutique hotel chains, Joie de Vivre. It is now some 40 hotels strong -- and each property has its own personality from very first in the chain, the rock and roll themed… -
More Evidence that Exposure to Economic Theory Breeds Greed
4 Feb 2012 | 2:28 pmI have written here and elsewhere -- including in academic journals with Fabrizio Ferraro and Jeff Pfeffer -- about research and theory suggesting that, when people are exposed to economic theory and assumptions, they tend to become more selfish. This research, as with much evidence in the behavioral science, shows that exposure to ideas or even little "primes" (such as one study that simply exposed students to backpack versus a briefcase) can have surprisingly big effects on whether people are selfish or generous. In this vein, an article in the December 2011 edition…
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Chase Jarvis Blog
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Dope Music Video – Niki & the Dove [via Wintr]
8 Feb 2012 | 1:15 pmHumpday special. Superdope track from band Niki & the Dove, all wrapped up nicely in a superfresh animated video, cooked up by my pals over at Wintr Get it here on iTunes. Featured on The Fader also. —— -
Famous Photographers Pose with Their Most Iconic Images
7 Feb 2012 | 11:52 amSteve McCurry When we gaze upon an iconic (or even just a really good) photograph, it’s difficult to think about the work or the passion behind it – we are seeing a documented scene or a crafted image and–unless you are a photographer–most people don’t wonder about the individual who was behind the camera. Sure, the majority of the populace will automatically recognize the photo of the Afghan Girl that was on the cover of National Geographic, but if you said the name “Steve McCurry” would the everyday person have any idea who you were talking about? Photographer Tim… -
Dead Mobsters Remind Us: Success in Your Work is in Your Quirk.
6 Feb 2012 | 10:37 amAll images courtesy of ICP Photos of dead mobsters lying prone, surrounded by articles of clothing and police chalk markings. The crime scene, the murder as art. Equal parts photographer and old-school sleuth Arthur “Weegee” Fellig had a otherworldly guidance that lead him straight to fresh crime scenes, like the plastic thing on a Ouija board. Working the streets of New York City in the 1930s and 40s, he consorted with both the good guys and the bad guys, as he documented crime and street life in his neighborhood. Ultimately, Weegee was an amateur photographer with a killer eye… -
Talent Imitates, Genius Steals: chasejarvisLIVE REMIX episode with MIKE RELM [coming Tues Feb 7]
3 Feb 2012 | 10:18 amMike Relm will move you. Photo: SF Weekly. UPDATE: if you’re reading this post now…The no “Talent Imitates, Genius Steals – REMIX” edition of #cjLIVE with one of the world’s leading multimedia (audio + video) DJ’s Mike Relm is TODAY 11:00 Seattle Time, 2pm NYC, 19:00 London! Tune in here to the live page to unlock your creative mojo and realize that inspiration is all around you. ——— There’s a saying that you should understand. It’s “TALENT IMITATES. GENIUS STEALS.” Now before your undies get in a wad,… -
The Freshman Yearbook of Power Nerds, Washington DC Style
2 Feb 2012 | 9:46 amAll images by Christopher Leaman Funny segue from yesterday’s political post… Got to thinking about politics and photography…. Though it seems otherwise at time, politicians aren’t actually celebs. Sure, they get their picture taken at press conferences, but–especially early on in their career–they’re not really used to having a photographer take a portrait of them like a rock star. They’re most often power nerds and people who do a job that’s -either wonderfully or catastrophically- public. All this is hyper-evident in this series of photos by…
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Dad-O-Matic
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Who Is Woogie? (Hint: An iPhone Creature For Your Kids)
6 Feb 2012 | 4:00 amAt the 2012 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) there were literally acres of costly Las Vegas Convention Center booth space dedicated to a seemingly endless array of iPhone, iPad and iPod accessories. From cases to keyboards to biometric monitors, dozens of manufacturers were baring their wares and showing off both ingenious and incredulous ways to accessorize your iOS device. What A Doll! On the ingenious side of the fence were some slick products that leveraged an app to turn an iPhone or iPod into a real toy. Some let the iPhone become the controller for an otherwise inanimate object,… -
You Blink, and They’re Gone
2 Feb 2012 | 6:10 amThe other night I had the occasion to be in the emergency room in the middle of the night, which is another post for another day. What I want to talk about in this post is what I saw that night. The emergency room was empty with the exception of one other family. They were waiting on their elderly father who had been brought in earlier and they were casually chatting about various things that had happened that day in their lives. From the looks of it, they were not overly concerned about what was happening to their father. Then the doctor came out. It took about 30 seconds for the entire… -
Meet The Parents (Cast of Dads & Sass Edition)
21 Jan 2012 | 5:31 amFrom the lost film archives… Meet The Parents (my parents…): Once we become parents ourselves, our perspective on our own parents changes. Suddenly many of the things that annoyed us about our folks when we were young begin to make perfect sense. We see ourselves interacting with our kids in ways similar to how our parents interacted with us. We see ourselves in our parents in bigger, deeper ways than perhaps we ever have, when we look at the world through the eyes of a parent ourselves. Talking with our parents about parenthood can be both frightful and insightful as we… -
The Ultrabook Has Arrived! (The #UltrabookDads Videos)
9 Jan 2012 | 1:04 pmI think you’ll agree that computers are now a part of just about every family’s lifestyle (not to mention our business lives…). It has been fascinating to watch the rapid evolution of computers over the years. Remember the first computer you bought for your home? Chances are it was a huge desktop PC with a large CPU, and awkwardly heavy CRT display. Today that early PC is a digital dinosaur, and, arguably, the idea of a big CPU for a “desktop” PC is perhaps on its way to extinction as well. Lap It Up… When laptop PC’s first hit the market we were enamored by… -
Love is Action Not Just Words
7 Jan 2012 | 6:12 pmEveryone gives love lip service but it’s action not just words. We men especially need to learn that it’s important for us to show our love with actions and not just our mouth. It’s what we do that counts the most. It isn’t the flowers or mushy greeting card or expensive gifts, but the every day little things we do for our wife and kids. (Oh, that doesn’t mean you can stop getting those things by the way! Do that at your own peril). Here’s a great example from *He’s Just Not That Into You* where the Jennifer Anniston character visits her…
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Signal vs. Noise
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Behind the scenes: Reinventing our Default Profile Pictures
8 Feb 2012 | 9:34 amMister Default Here he is: our default profile picture. You may know him as “Generic Avatar”. He’s the picture you get when you create a new account and profile on Basecamp, Highrise, Backpack, and Campfire. Mr. Default is a standard guy. He’s found everywhere on the web (in variations): message boards, comments, activity streams. He forces everyone to look like him regardless of gender, race, and physicality. He’s also very boring. Time for a change People don’t usually have a picture on hand to change the default avatar. What happens is none of the… -
What's your answer?
8 Feb 2012 | 9:00 am“If a customer asked you why, how would you answer?” This is a question I’ve been asking a lot lately. Why could be “why does it work this way?” or “why can’t I do that?” or some variation on that theme. I think your answer to those questions is a great way to measure your product. Are you happy with your answers? Are they fair answers? Are they clear answers? Would you be happy with the answer if you were the one asking the question? The goal isn’t to get to “Yes” on every answer. The goal is to listen to your answer and ask… -
No framework needed
8 Feb 2012 | 7:42 amIt goes without saying that we use Rails a lot here at 37signals. Often times, when we look at a problem, we turn to Rails or something similar, because when you have a high-performance precision screwdriver, everything starts to look like a finely engineered screw. Sometimes, what you really need is a big hammer, because what you’re looking at is a nail. Our public sites – sites like 37signals.com and basecamphq.com – are a perfect example of this. Let me tell you about our journey with these sites over the years, and how we’ve landed on a simple solution that boosted… -
SaaS: Change starts easy and then gets really hard
7 Feb 2012 | 12:58 pmBasecamp just turned 8 years old. Here’s the launch announcement right here on this blog back on February 5, 2004. That’s a long time ago. We’ve learned a ton since then. One of the most interesting lessons has been the increasing degree to which time influences change. When we first launched Basecamp, we could iterate rapidly. We were incredibly prolific those first few months. We launched a bunch of new stuff and made rapid improvement every few weeks. Eventually it plateaued and slowed down. Why is that? Part of it is because many of the improvements we wanted to make… -
Lessons from Moneyball: don't get left behind
6 Feb 2012 | 7:32 amI recently read and watched “Moneyball”, and enjoyed both greatly. It’s a great story in and of itself, but I also found it to be an interesting parallel to the state of the “web software” industry today. Moneyball starts in the week before the 2002 baseball draft, with a set of meetings that pit Oakland A’s general manager Billy Beane against his team of scouts. The scouts’ primary mechanism of evaluating players was visual – did the guy look, walk, and talk like a major league baseball player? On the other hand, Billy, with his assistant Paul…
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blog maverick
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Would Shareholders Give a Higher P/E to Keep Jobs in the USA ?
29 Jan 2012 | 3:21 pmIt used to be that if you owned shares of a public company, you actually felt like you owned shares of that company. The concept of actual ownership by individuals is long gone. Shareholders as owners are nothing but a concept , and echo from days gone by. That shouldn’t be a surprise. It’s just as rare for individuals with less than 10 figures in their networth to even consider actually buying shares as a path to ownership. But what if this were not the case any longer ? For those of you that own shares of stocks in companies,either directly or indirectly, would you be… -
The TV Business Keeps Getting Stronger !
14 Jan 2012 | 4:53 pmBack in my broadcast.com days we had a saying that “bits are bits”. That once content becomes digital, it is naturally going to become available on any and all digital devices. Based on this, we always made the point to be platform and device agnostic. We didn’t care where or how people saw our content, as long as they saw it and we had the chance to monetize it. We also knew that our core value proposition to consumers was that on broadcast.com they were able to get content that they couldn’t get on TV. We had Yoga channels, we had cricket live and on demand, we had… -
Why Startups Shouldn’t Hire PR Firms
13 Jan 2012 | 3:31 pmA quote from my book, How to Win at the Sport of Business got picked up in multiple stories. In the book I stated effectively that “Startups should never hire a PR firm”. As you would expect, the PR Industry was not over-joyed at the comment. Articles were written about how incredibly valuable a good PR person can be to a startup. Actually, I have no doubt that a smart PR person can add value to a startup. The problem is that all things considered, it’s not enough value. The first problem with hiring a PR firm is cost. Cash is always in short supply in startups. -
You Don’t Live in the World You Were Born Into
31 Dec 2011 | 9:54 amI thought this was appropriate to start the new year. We all have the tendency to believe that we are living in a very advanced technological period. We get all excited about the new tech we got at Xmas and what we read about that will soon be available to us. In reality, everything we are excited about today is going to be incredibly old and boring much faster than we ever expect. No matter what year you were born, by the time you finish(ed) high school, its (was) a completely different world. Today’s high school seniors were born prior to the World Wide Web, wireless internet,… -
The Fan Experience at Sporting Events – We dont need no stinking smartphones !
24 Dec 2011 | 9:17 amWith the season starting tomorrow, I wanted to update a blog post I did in 2010. In just the past 18 months the number of proposals for in-game entertainment have skyrocketed. It seems like every day I get a new proposal to invest in a company that is going to revolutionize the experience of going to a sporting event. Without fail the proposal starts out with some form of “with the explosion in sales of smartphones…” Then I get the meat of the pitch which is some derivative of stats, pictures, fantasy games, social sharing via FB/Twitter or some new network to replace…
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Matt Mullenweg
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LIFE.com
1 Feb 2012 | 5:48 amLIFE magazine has relaunched, powered by WordPress.com VIP. I’m a huge fan of the magazine’s history and the work of photographers like John Dominis. -
On the Evolution of Investing
24 Jan 2012 | 11:59 amToday Y Combinator announced they are adding two new partners, Garry Tan and Aaron Iba. This announcement is unique because it does not list their academic credentials, their previous investments, the boards of companies or non-profits they have sat on, how many years of experience they have, or any of the usual badges of honor investors parade in their biographies and Crunchbase profiles. Instead we get accolades of “rare individuals who can both design and program” and “best hackers among the YC alumni.” Take note of this moment. I was part of a dinner conversation… -
MPAA Threatens Politicians
22 Jan 2012 | 12:43 pmMPAA Directly & Publicly Threatens Politicians Who Arent Corrupt Enough To Stay Bought on Techdirt. -
Hollywood and the Justice System
21 Jan 2012 | 6:44 amTwo excellent essays on how Hollywood has completely put our legal system out of whack through years of twisting our legislative process to their ends, or as Shirky put it “imagine the possibility of a longer jail term for streaming a Michael Jackson video than Jackson’s own doctor got for killing actual Michael Jackson?” Andrew Bridges on PandoDaily: Forget SOPA, Hollywood Already Had a Field Day with the Justice System. Clay Shirky on his blog: Pick up the pitchforks: David Pogue underestimates Hollywood. -
#Reinventing: Chamber of Commerce
18 Jan 2012 | 9:23 amReally great article from my friend Hunter Walk on #Reinventing the Chamber of Commerce, which is especially relevant given how the US Chamber of Commerce has been tending to side with the MPAA and RIAA rather than actual small businesses, startups, and tech communities.
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Altimeter Group
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Latest Research: Make An App For That, Mobile Strategies For Retail
7 Feb 2012 | 10:04 am2011 was the year of the mobile shopper, so why aren’t retailers doing more to serve them? Today Altimeter Research has published its latest report, Make An App For That: Mobile Strategies For Retail. The report, published today, reveals how major brands are capitalizing on the massive growth in shoppers’ use of mobile technology. It also [...] -
Five Trends: How Brands Integrated Social, Mobile, and Web into 2012 Super Bowl Advertisements
6 Feb 2012 | 9:02 amBy Altimeter’s Jeremiah Owyang, with Brian Solis, and Zak Kirchner Findings: Five Trends Indicate Cross Channel Integration a Mainstay. Super Bowl ads, while only representing the nation’s largest consumer facing ads represent a bellwether for advertising trends for the remainder of the year, so marketers know to pay attention. To best understand these trends, Altimeter [...] -
What’s Facebook Going to Do with All That Money?
6 Feb 2012 | 8:48 amMany of us grew up with Marcia, Marcia, Marcia. For the past few years the refrain has been Google, Google, Google. But this past week, it’s been all Facebook, all the time. As we wait for the biggest IPO in tech history to shake out, the question I’m being asked most by clients and particularly [...] -
Facebook S-1 Paints A Murky Picture For Mobile
2 Feb 2012 | 5:42 amAmidst the scramble for numbers in EDGAR lookups in the wake of Facebook’s S-1 filing, I think we’re learning something fundamental about Facebook’s strategy from its submitted documentation; mobile is a potential Achilles heel. Reviewing the S-1, while chock-full of interesting facts and figures, it was this statement that raised questions for me: “Growth in [...] -
Facebook Files S-1 for $5 Billion IPO
1 Feb 2012 | 4:51 pmby Brian Solis, principal analyst Just a few moments ago, Facebook officially filed an S-1 for an initial public offering seeking to raise $5 billion. Here are a few key findings… - 845 million monthly active users, year over year growth of 39% - 483 million daily active users as of December, year over year [...]
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Bob Sutton
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Places and People that Use The No Asshole Rule
8 Feb 2012 | 12:31 pmA reporter asked me a couple years back, “The No Asshole Rule is fun to talk about, but does anyone ever actually use it?” It turns out that there is also a lot good news out here, lots of great leaders and many civilized places that people can work. I wrote an initial list back then, and I update it every now and then. This is the latest, which I offer in celebration of Work Matters passing 2,000,000 pageviews and the impending publication of Good Boss, Bad Boss in paperback. This list is far from exhaustive, but check out the breadth of places and the different ways that… -
A Little Updating in Celebration of 2 Million Page Views at Work Matters
7 Feb 2012 | 9:32 amAbout a month ago, Work Matters passed 2 million page views (2062928 at the moment). I did my first post in mid-2006 and am now up to 1108 total posts, which have generated 5217 comments. And since I started this blog, it has averaged 995.14 pageviews per day. I have threatened to stop blogging at times, and there are periods where I post nothing for weeks at a time. But I still enjoy writing it and especially love when people write smart comments -- I was rather amazed, for example, by the number of great responses to my call for a useful and simple… -
My Main Focus for 2012: Still Scaling-Up Excellence
6 Feb 2012 | 4:20 pmI thought I would provide an update about what I am working on these days, and use it to get some ideas and advice from folks who read this blog. 2011 was a year of learning and thinking for me, which was necessary because 2010 was simply wild. I had open heart surgery in April, Good Boss, Bad Boss was published in September, as was the paperback version of The No Asshole Rule -- both of which became New York Times bestsellers. I spent 2011 doing a lot of talking, reading, and thinking about two future projects -- they are moving along, but it is always a slow process. I… -
Chip Conley's Emotional Equations: A Leadership Self-help Book You Will Love (Even If You Hate Self-help Books)
6 Feb 2012 | 8:19 amChip Conley is an astoundingly talented human-being, and for me, the very model of a CEO who built an organization that strikes a balance between performance and humanity, or as IDEO's David Kelley puts it, between love and money. Shortly after graduating from the Stanford Business School, at the age of 26, he started a 25 year quest to build what has become one of America's most successful boutique hotel chains, Joie de Vivre. It is now some 40 hotels strong -- and each property has its own personality from very first in the chain, the rock and roll themed… -
More Evidence that Exposure to Economic Theory Breeds Greed
4 Feb 2012 | 2:28 pmI have written here and elsewhere -- including in academic journals with Fabrizio Ferraro and Jeff Pfeffer -- about research and theory suggesting that, when people are exposed to economic theory and assumptions, they tend to become more selfish. This research, as with much evidence in the behavioral science, shows that exposure to ideas or even little "primes" (such as one study that simply exposed students to backpack versus a briefcase) can have surprisingly big effects on whether people are selfish or generous. In this vein, an article in the December 2011 edition…
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FriendFeed - kanter
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Hank Green presents at our C&T workshop
9 Feb 2012 | 2:39 amBeth Kanter Hank Green presents at our C&T workshop - http://www.flickr.com/photos... 3 hours ago from Flickr favorites - Comment - Like -
Decisions
8 Feb 2012 | 4:07 pmBeth Kanter Decisions - http://www.flickr.com/photos... 14 hours ago from Flickr favorites - Comment - Like -
What can $100.5 million do? Ask @Microsoft employees who contributed to over 18,000 nonprofits http://t.co/euEgiA1G #msftgiving #charity
8 Feb 2012 | 8:51 amBeth Kanter What can $100.5 million do? Ask @Microsoft employees who contributed to over 18,000 nonprofits http://3blmedia.com/theCSRf... #msftgiving #charity 21 hours ago from Twitter - Comment - Like -
What does monitoring your brand on social media channels really mean?
8 Feb 2012 | 8:49 amBeth Kanter What does monitoring your brand on social media channels really mean? - http://www.bethkanter.org/listeni... 21 hours ago from Beth’s Blog - Comment - Like -
Join me @MDGislason @JeanneBellCP @sobyronic @jdeancoffey and more! CompassPoint #WebinarWeek 2/13-17 http://t.co/M6l5zV0u #nonprofit
8 Feb 2012 | 12:00 amBeth Kanter Join me @MDGislason @JeanneBellCP @sobyronic @jdeancoffey and more! CompassPoint #WebinarWeek 2/13-17 http://www.compasspoint.org/webinar... #nonprofit yesterday from Twitter - Comment - Like
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Twitter / sacca
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sacca: RT @michaelpollan: Imagine a world without Big Food: Raj Patel's modest proposal. http://t.co/13pCbPwU
8 Feb 2012 | 10:55 pmsacca: RT @michaelpollan: Imagine a world without Big Food: Raj Patel's modest proposal. http://t.co/13pCbPwU -
sacca: @pkedrosky We wrote a few more verses for that at the School of Foreign Service. I need to find those.
8 Feb 2012 | 10:48 pmsacca: @pkedrosky We wrote a few more verses for that at the School of Foreign Service. I need to find those. -
sacca: Oh no. Good Morning America is trying to kill honey-boo-boo-child's go-go juice buzz: http://t.co/3Yiqcgqe (Let's go USA!)
8 Feb 2012 | 10:40 pmsacca: Oh no. Good Morning America is trying to kill honey-boo-boo-child's go-go juice buzz: http://t.co/3Yiqcgqe (Let's go USA!) -
sacca: @MelodyMcC You know the "real businesses, beautifully built, by fearless talent" standard is why I invested in @styleseat. Twice.
8 Feb 2012 | 4:52 pmsacca: @MelodyMcC You know the "real businesses, beautifully built, by fearless talent" standard is why I invested in @styleseat. Twice. -
sacca: You want to know what I get excited about? Real businesses, built beautifully, by fearless talent: http://t.co/n4e7HvY0
8 Feb 2012 | 4:38 pmsacca: You want to know what I get excited about? Real businesses, built beautifully, by fearless talent: http://t.co/n4e7HvY0
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Twitter Blog
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Post-Bowl Twitter analysis
6 Feb 2012 | 1:06 pmThe results are in: People love to share the experience of watching the Super Bowl with millions of other viewers from around the world. Whether it’s cheering for your team, commenting on the halftime show or discussing the ads, it seems you have a lot to say about this annual tradition—and you’re using Twitter to say it.Here’s a fun fact: in 2008, Twitter’s largest spike in Tweets per second (TPS) during the Super Bowl was just 27. Three years later, fans sent 4,064 TPS, which was the highest TPS for any sporting event at that time.This year, the TPS peak was 12,233 Tweets. The… -
Roar of the crowd: Super Bowl on Twitter
2 Feb 2012 | 11:34 amFrom @TimTebow leading the Denver Broncos to a shocking overtime win (and a new record for sports-related Tweets per second: 9,420) to San Diego Chargers receiver @ericweddle1’s sideline Tweets from the Pro Bowl—we watched all of the NFL post-season’s most memorable moments come alive on Twitter.And while the @Giants and @Patriots’ rematch and halftime show play out on TV, the national conversation is happening well beyond your den: it also happens on Twitter. Follow your favorite NFL players, coaches and commentators during the game, or just search for #SuperBowl to see how everyone… -
Tweets still must flow
26 Jan 2012 | 11:25 amSee below for an update.One year ago, we posted "The Tweets Must Flow," in which we said,“The open exchange of information can have a positive global impact … almost every country in the world agrees that freedom of expression is a human right. Many countries also agree that freedom of expression carries with it responsibilities and has limits.”As we continue to grow internationally, we will enter countries that have different ideas about the contours of freedom of expression. Some differ so much from our ideas that we will not be able to exist there. Others are similar but, for… -
Hack Week @ Twitter
25 Jan 2012 | 12:20 pmHack Week is one of the ways we actively promote innovation through experimentation around the company. This week, a wide range of folks here are taking time away from their day-to-day work to collaborate and develop ideas that they are passionate about. Get comfortable with uncertainty; it leaves room for inspiration. #hackweek— benji shine (@bshine) January 24, 2012Employees across the company have formed nearly 100 teams to work on a variety of projects. Some are developing ways that could make Twitter even easier to use; others are testing out a new feature or tool that people might… -
Twitter Translation Center adds Right-to-Left Languages
25 Jan 2012 | 7:00 amBeginning today, right-to-left languages are now available for volunteers to translate in the Twitter Translation Center, starting with Arabic, Farsi, Hebrew and Urdu. The Twitter Translation Center takes a crowd-sourced approach to translating and localizing Twitter for people around the world. More than 425,000 volunteers contribute to the Translation Center, and to date have helped make Twitter available in 22 languages. With their help, these will be the next four.As we prepare to add Arabic, Farsi, Hebrew and Urdu to Twitter, we’ve developed new ways to ensure that Tweets and hashtags…
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Inside Scoop
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CES Postscript from the Future
8 Feb 2012 | 2:33 pmAs attributed to Freud, sometimes a cigar is just a cigar. When it comes to the future of data as explored by Intel Futurist Brian David Johnson, and Intel General Manager Compute Continuum Peter Biddle, sometimes a fire hydrant signifies more than a fire hydrant. CES 2012 is over, the major news stories filed (see Ultrabook(TM) inspired by Intel), but there in the margins are still a few un- or underreported items. And with the item in question being futurism, well, the “past due” date is a bit longer. The Intel Futurist-led chats with thought leaders on the Intel stage at CES… -
Video Chatting to Bridge the Distance
6 Feb 2012 | 3:17 pmThis weekend, I hung out with 4 of my best friends from high school. We updated eachother on life after college. We met my friend’s dog, Lionel, and I introduced them all to my brand-new, 12 week-old puppy. We all got a chance to see what the others see when they look out their apartment windows every day. Did I mention that we all live in different US states? We had a five-person, five-state, virtual hangout. It was so special to not only hear my friends’ voices, but also to see their faces and body language. We turned our webcams toward our windows to see the places we each call… -
will.i.am and the Ultrabook™ Project: Where in the world is will.i.am?
5 Feb 2012 | 7:37 amwill.i.am is armed with an super thin, sleek, easy to travel with Ultrabook™ and he’s getting around the world. He started off in Tokyo, went on to Las Vegas for CES and last week was in Mexico City as part of the Ultrabook™ project tour. A tour that has him taking in the sounds and sights of each city and then creating a custom song for each city. Using his technology enables him to be a successful innovator, creator and artist. And to my fun surprise I found out he made a stop in Scottsdale, Arizona for the Waste Management Phoenix Open Golf Tournament to DJ! Lucky me, I was able to… -
Ultrabook the Star in PopTent Films
1 Feb 2012 | 2:51 pmIntel partnered with PopTent Media to bring three Los Angeles-based film-makers to CES this year with one challenge in mind: capture and film a unique story about the benefits of Ultrabook devices. They were armed only with background on Ultrabook devices and an ASUS UX31 Ultrabook. Then they were given 5 days to independently develop their own videos, and they all delivered in bringing new ideas, thinking and perspectives to the table. Anthony Bui – a writer and director that specializes in commercials, music videos, narrative — took an approach to bring the viewer into his… -
Tell Intel How Shopping Should Be Smarter
27 Jan 2012 | 5:50 pmI’m sure we’ve all heard the expression: “a have 2 ears and 1 mouth because we should listen twice as much as we speak.” While that sounds good in concept, it is sometimes hard to do, especially when writing a blog, but that is what I would like to try to do today. The topic du Jour is: Smart Shopping. Specifically, using things like interactive kiosks, cameras, touch screens, and even gesture recognition to improve your shopping experience. And like any good toolbox, the more of the aforementioned tools we use, the more impressive the final solution could be. Let me…
