“Supposedly, some research group somewhere put eight monkeys in some sort of enclosed area. There was an escape route available, which a monkey could access by going up a staircase or ladder or something to get to an escape window; however, if a monkey got up to the window, he got an electric shock or something which kept him in and caused him to retreat. Eventually, all the monkeys got the message, and also apparently reached a point where if one of their number started to climb up toward the exit the others would grab him and pull him back to keep him from getting shocked - none of the monkeys even got the chance to get shocked any longer.

“Then, the researchers replaced one of the original eight monkeys with a new monkey. The newcomer at some point would try to head up toward the escape hatch, and the original guys would grab him and pull him back down. He eventually learned to do the same with any of the others who started up the ladder.

“Over time, the researchers one-by-one replaced the original monkeys with a new monkey. Things continued as above, with the newcomer being deterred from climbing the ladder by the others until he learned to do the same thing himself. Eventually, all of the original monkeys, who had actually experienced the shocks, had been replaced by newcomers, who had never experienced the shocks. But they all still would pull back anyone who tried to climb toward the escape hatch, even though by now none of them really knew why.”

The point is this: The monkeys in the cage were afraid, yet they had never been shocked.  They had been told by their peers to fear something, but did not know what exactly it was they were fearing.

What have you encountered in your life where someone has said “dont do that!”.  Stop for a moment and think about things you wont do or are against.

Have you been shocked? Or are you a monkey trapped in a cage afraid of a ladder?

Some people seem to thrive on distraction.  Distract, distract, distract.  Am I busy? good.  Must be productive then.

The key to becoming remarkable is to focus on throwing.

I recently read a great analogy in the book The Big Moo, published by Seth Godin.  The analogy talk about learning to juggle.  Most students of juggling focus on catching the juggling balls rather than throwing them.  This is not the best technique.  The best technique in learning to juggle is focusing on throwing well yet most people in business concentrate 99% on catching.

The key to becoming remarkable is to throw well, throw great passes.  Focus on that.

What is your next move? What is your next product? Who are you calling next? How well prepared are you?

If things fall they fall, let your co-workers run around like headless chickens.  Make sure your pass is accurate. But dont spend all your time trying to catch.

Thinking about business and your job can be one of the biggest time wasters.  People can spend >60 hours a week on a business and get nothing done.  But to them, it feels like they are working really hard.

This is much like social media for business.  Social media can be really great for building a brand if used correctly.  But if done incorrectly it is more a waste of time.  Look at the number of people on twitter “building a brand” where in reality they are wasting their life.

New Zealanders typically have a problem with effectiveness.  We tend to work long hours and are generally less productive workers than other countries like France, who work far less hours and are more productive (see OECD statistics for evidence).  We see the larger the hours, the more the dedication= more effective?  This is not true.

Its not the amount of hours you work but how effective you are.  For example:

Sales peron 1 makes one call and one sale. They are extremely effective.  Sales person 2 makes 60 calls and 1 sale .  They are not effective.  My bet is the manager of these sales people would favor sales person 2 as the harder worker.  Why? Because they appear like to be.  Running around like a headless chicken, using a cellphone like a crutch, stress and business are not the solution.

We need to put more focus on how effective we are.  Not the amount of time people tally up doing nothing.

Interesting prototype by Segway and GM, a personal transportation vehicle.  I must admit, I was blown away by the wireless avoidance system and the sheer size of this vehicle.  Click the video to watch.

• Let them speak and do not interrupt them
• Thank them for their opinion/feedback/advice
• Incorporate their advice into your product.

How do you know if their advice is the right advice?  Simple.  Does the advice fit and of your personas for your software?  Dont have a persona? Perhaps you need to read About Face by Cooper Interactive, one of the most respected and well known interactive design agencies.

The 40hr week at work is a manufacturing age concept where being present at your job really was a necessity. If you were not present, as in standing by the machine press, your job was not done. We carry this with us today and this is one of the reasons for our current economic crisis. The cutting of “fat” from companies really only means one thing. Those employees were present with out the result. Continuously. On an ongoing basis.

Why not only focus on results?

We have to get over the whole notion that you have to work 40hrs a week to succeed and that you have to be at work to do it.

It may seem hard at first, but like a developing muscle this will get easier as you progress.

In order to succeed you need to create the belief on the inside that you can do it before you will see results on the outside. This is the fundamental of success.

Do this now.

fascinating talk, just watch. I get Epiphanies from running and medidation.

How do your thought patterns and habits shape your destiny.  Read this success classic.  Its public domain and only 50 pages. One of the most powerful books I have ever read. You are missing out if you don’t read this one, download it here free.

As an entrepreneur, one must make a trade off and decide what is noise and what is not noise. Noise can be defined as distraction. Distraction is tasks that you dont need to do, things that appear important but are not. I am not a fan of noise and have tried to eliminate most noise from my life.

For me noise includes: long drawn out meetings, TV, long phone conversations, too much internet surfing, emails and email alerts.

If you look at things as defined in the classic “7 Habits for Highly Effective People” by Stephen Covey you can look at task importance by the categories in the picture above.

It is best to work in the Urgent & Important category first, then the important and not urgent categories.

Where is your noise?

Elizabeth Gilbert knows.  In a recent TED talks she explains that genius comes from somewhere, other than you.  Its a concept that existed for thousands of years before we as individuals got so personal and ego-centric to believe that everything comes from ourselves.

I have believed my creativity does not come from me for a while and have seen many examples of it.  I tend to get all my ideas when exercising.  I exercise, relax and let my mind open up.  The change in state lets thoughts and solutions flow through me.  I catch them and act on them.  That is how I do it.  What about you?

I never thought it would happen, but I caught myself micro-managing recently.

However, I had some insight as to why micro-management happens from the other side.

People are micro-managed because:

• There is not enough confidence in your ability to be pro-active
• There is not enough confidence in your ability to project manage
• You are not providing updates in a timely manner
• You are perceived to lack enthusiasm and motivation
• You use ambiguous words such as “working on it”, “good”, “getting there”

Basically, you are not encouraging confidence in a decision maker.

Of course there are some people who just micromanage because they are like this.  But one has to wonder what happened to make them like this.

I am for empowering people to be proactive, creative and passionate.

To me, micro-management = fail

We just launched TribeHQ, a micro-blogging social network for occupational groups.  TribeHQ is unique as it allows users to join occupational groups (Tribes) and talk to each other in a micro-blogging sense about what you are passionate about.

TribeHQ is also unique as it provides direct conversation between job seekers and employers looking to hire.  It does this by advertising jobs and enabling direct interaction, in a microblogging way between candidate and employer.  TribeHQ is the worlds first interactive job board, we call it micro-jobbing.  

Static job boards are like noticeboards, they offer no interaction.  Applying for a job is a big commitment and you have to be very certain to apply.  TribeHQ bridges this gap.  It provides interaction before application targeting a larger percentage of job seekers and passive job seekers.

Head on over to TribeHQ.com to have a look for yourself.

Excellent post written by a guest blogger on Tim Ferriss site that describes the life of an entrepreneur.  This is just a cut and paste, its very true.

* Stage 1: The first stage of the concept is called “Uninformed Optimism”. At this stage on a rollercoaster, just getting to the top of the rollercoaster, you experience feelings of an adrenalin rush, characterized by excitement and nervous energy.

* Stage 2: The second stage is called “Informed Pessimism”. As you ride over the top of the curve you now have a bit more information. Feelings of fear, nervousness, and frustration begin to set in. Perhaps you even want to get off of it.

* Stage 3 – The third stage is called “Crisis of Meaning”. You’re past scared. You feel despair. It’s as if you’re standing on the edge of a cliff ready to jump, and you begin to think “Today the rollercoaster’s going off the bottom of the track for the very first time.” You feel helpless and you’re both terrified and frozen.

* At this point, you face a critical juncture. You can come off the bottom of the curve and crash and burn, which is when your business goes bankrupt, you lose your marriage, you start drinking, or you end up in a doctor’s office because of stress. Or you can come around the corner because you’re getting support at “Crisis of Meaning” and you can enter an upward swing call “Informed Optimism”.

* Stage 4 – Informed Optimism. You’re calm. You’re informed. You might even say you are cautiously optimistic.

Capitalizing on All Emotional Phases — Activity Pairing

Here is the critical point – at each stage of the curve, you can do things to leverage the feelings and energy — positive or negative — that you have at that moment. Fighting against these phases is like working against a natural force.

Stage 1 - Uninformed Optimism

As an example – at Stage 1 – Uninformed Optimism – it’s both a great place and a dangerous place to be for your business, depending on what you are working on or in at that time.

When you’re starting your business, you have seed financing, some friend and family money, or you’ve just started the business with $50 in your pocket. You can start a business without a lot of money directly because you’re benefiting from uninformed optimism. You can take risks when you’re feeling like this. Because you’re so full of excitement you don’t really know what’s coming yet. So you’re uninformed and your fully optimistic – or you wouldn’t have started.

When you’re at Uniformed Optimism you should be doing things like:

* Talking to the media. Imagine if a newspaper calls you when you’re at that stage of uninformed optimism. How’s your media interview going to go? It’s going to go amazing because you have unbridled excitement and big thinking.

* Talking to potential investors. That’s why everyone was investing through the 90s with the dotcom bubble. The entrepreneurs were so full of uninformed optimism and enthusiasm.

* Doing speeches in public – the audience will love you.
* Recruiting new employees – they’ll all want to work for you.
* Networking for new clients – who wouldn’t want to buy from you?

When you’re at Uniformed Optimism there are also some things you should avoid doing:

* Spending money is a bad thing to be doing at this point. Because when you are really excited and full of optimism you think nothing will go wrong. The last thing you want to be doing is spending all this money because the reality is – at some point, you’ll cross the curve and discover harsher realities.

* You don’t want to be doing business planning
* You don’t want to be working on your budget
* You don’t want to be making buying decisions
* You don’t want to be making hiring decisions
* You don’t want to be doing your accounting, or your bookkeeping.
* Anything that requires you to be making financial decisions or planning logical shouldn’t be done when you’re at the manic energy or uninformed optimism stage.

Remember that when you’re at that uninformed optimism stage, anything that’s outward facing — talking about your company, selling the story, raising money — is well-matched. Simultaneously, at that stage, you don’t want to make buying decisions, or hiring decisions, or planning decisions, or budgeting decisions.

###

Stage 2 - Informed Pessimism

At Stage 2 – Informed Pessimism – you have more information now. You’re not as excited as you once were. Coffee is helpful to get you started. You are worrying at times. You aren’t depressed or scared – but you’re somewhere in between scared and excited. You’re just a little bit pessimistic now. The great aspect of this stage is that it prevents you from making careless mistakes due to overly optimistic thinking.

When you’re at Informed Pessimism you should be doing things like:

* Planning the next phase of your growth
* Intermediate-term strategic planning
* Budgeting, as you’ll be more realistic
* Purchasing things like advertising – you’ll be careful with where you spend your money and will not over-purchase advertising based on exuberant pie-in-the-sky sales forecasts.

When you’re at Informed Pessimism, there are also a few things you should absolutely avoid doing.

Do not:

* make hiring decisions.
* talk to the media or do speaking events.
* work in roles where being excited would help you get a better result – wait until things turn around emotionally for you.

Stage 3 – Crisis of Meaning

This is a scary stage and can feel like you’re standing on the edge of a building needing to jump. It will feel like all the odds are stacked against you and that everything is going wrong. It will be hard to get out of bed in the morning. Sleeping at night will be close to impossible due to worries and fear. You’ll feel like you’re paralyzed and can do little more than clean your filing cabinet drawers successfully.

When you’re at Crisis of Meaning you should be doing things like:

* Cleaning your filing cabinet drawers – seriously. Doing a few little things can often perk people up.

* Reaching out to your support groups like friends, family, your church, groups like the Entrepreneurs Organization etc. to ask them for help, advice or to just lend an ear.

* Trying to set your TOP 5 daily and only work on the most important items each day.
* Taking breaks and going for walks, getting exercise, getting outdoors.
* Writing lists – lists about what you are strong at, lists about what you love – make lists that, when you read them, will help rebuild your confidence.

* Realizing that many others have been in this exact same place and usually turn the corner, just like you will.
* Remembering “The Little Engine That Could” – I think I can, I think I can – it can take time, but things will rebound.

When you’re at Crisis of Meaning there are also some things you should absolutely avoid doing:

* Don’t talk to others who are depressed.
* Don’t talk to others who are “half empty” types

* Don’t take any “all-in” Vegas poker type risks where you put everything on the line hoping for a big win.

* Don’t try to “rally the troops.” Your employees, the media ,etc. will all smell fear. And your fear will lead to making things worse

* Don’t turn to the bottle. Vices during stages of depression will lead to you spiraling out of control.

* Don’t think that you can “handle it” all on your own. You can’t. And when people “need” others, your true friends really will be there to support you.

* Don’t try to learn more. Reading books and magazines about how to be successful or how to grow your company will only make you feel worse about your current situation. They’ll just make you feel even more bogged down. Reading stuff like this is great when you round the corner though.

Stage 4 – Crash & Burn

I don’t really waste any time explaining this stage or what to do here – because if you slide off the curve, here it really is over – the company is done and/or so are you in the role leading it. Usually this is bankruptcy or forced sale, etc..

Stage 5 – Informed Optimism (or Hopeful Realization)

This last stage is much like when the little engine that could turned the corner – and realized “he did”. You’ll start feeling excited and energized again. You’ll start rebuilding your confidence. And you’ll start to feel momentum working in your favor again. You’ll also have a lot more insights and experiential learning to draw from. You’ll realize you have more competence and confidence than before and everything will start to go your way again.

When you’re at Informed Optimism you should be doing things like:

· Hiring
· Strategic Planning
· Reorganization of your team – putting the right people in the right seats
· Cutting the wrong people
· Generally getting everything in order to really start growing again.

When you’re at Informed Optimism there are also things you should avoid doing:

· Don’t lose focus.
· Don’t let your confidence slip.
· Don’t get cocky or you’ll fall backwards off the curve.

Conclusion

This cycle repeats itself. Enjoy the ride instead of fighting it.

They are addressing the problem that New Zealand companies often encounter.  The problem is that New Zealand is geographically far away from the rest of the world.  By being so far away, companies are limited to the audience and exposure from attendance of traditional conferences.  To get the best exposure in the past, companies would have to budget for expensive and time consuming travel to conferences that have a large present onsite audience.  We have been limited by our geographical location. Virtual Expos changes this business model by hosting virtual conferences using web-based software that anyone  on the internet can interact with.

Check out their website here and keep a look out for more details.

 The process went smooth until I decided to get online.  In order to get online you have to use a netguard “thing”  (see picture).

For personal banking I used a netguard card (like a typical bank card) and it works well.  It works well because I can carry it around in my wallet, the netguard for business is about 1/2 the size of a cellphone.  

WHY WOULD I WANT TO CARRY THIS AROUND???

So in order to login to BNZ business online I have to remember:

1. An Access Number
2. A User Name
3. A Password
4. A Netguard Pin
5. A Netguard Generated Number

This is absolutely ridiculous and if it wasnt for the fact that BNZ is the only service that works with our merchant gateway, I would not be using them.