Brazen Careerist

Congratulations Madison, WI! ... Prepare for an All-Out Bash

Ryan Paugh — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 16:49:23 +0000

Congratulations to my fellow Brazen'ites here in Madison, WI. You won the Brazen Groups contest and we're throwing an end-of-the-summer celebration in honor of the largest location-based group on Brazen (so far!), the Madtown Crew.

To all of our other groups, thank you for spreading the word and doing your best to build up our location-based communities on Brazen. There's still a lot to be done, but we were blow away by the masses of support.

Even though Team Brazen isn't going to be traveling very far for this party, I want to encourage all of you to start hosting your own meet ups. Washington, DC just posted an event for this week.

I'm happy to help if anyone needs some support getting started. If you're looking for sponsorships for your event, let me know. We can work together to make that happen!

Thanks again to everyone who participated! And congratulations to the Madtown Crew!

Get Rid of What You Don’t Need

Amanda Linehan — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 12:36:21 +0000

photo credit: striatic

“Art is the elimination of the unnecessary” – Pablo Picasso

Just as there is a time to create more of what you want in your life, there is also a time to destroy what you don’t want. When you think about improving your life you often focus on the things you would like to have but don’t. You then focus on bringing those things into your life.

But you don’t often think about the things you already have in your life that you need to get rid of. Many times you carry a lot of stuff with you that has outlived it’s useful life. When that happens you need to destroy parts of your life before you can create more.

Be like a forest fire

I’m sure there are many things you would like to create in your life, but what would you like to destroy? Are there skills you use regularly that you don’t enjoy much? Are there people in your life who you just don’t connect with anymore? Is your home filled with a bunch of stuff that you no longer use?

When you destroy parts of your life you are making room for new parts. You are making room for creation. Just like when a forest fire burns up the dead parts and makes room for new growth, you are destroying what is already dead so that new growth can occur.

Getting rid of physical stuff

My current “destruction” project is to de-clutter my apartment. I’m surprised that even in a relatively small space, so much stuff can sit around and not be used (or even remembered!).

Already, I’ve recycled/donated/thrown away magazines from 1995, papers from college, clothes I forgot I even had, out of date electronics, and books I had read once and hadn’t looked at in 10 years. It’s amazing the physical stuff that can pile up in your life.

Getting rid of non-physical stuff

Most of us are carrying around with us an amazing amount of useless physical stuff, but what about less tangible things?

For instance, the way that we see ourselves is subject to creation and destruction. Hopefully the image that we carry of ourselves matches who we really are. But what if it doesn’t?

A couple of years ago I quit a job that I hated. But along with the job, I was also quitting a vision that I had of myself, one that involved being what I thought “everyone” wanted me to be but that really didn’t match my best self very well.

When I destroyed that vision of myself I opened my life up for new opportunities that much better suited me. I was carrying around a vision of who I was, that frankly, was not who I was. I burned it up in the fire, and something new grew in it’s place.

Identify what you don’t need

So how do you know which things you need to get rid of? Here are a few ways to tell that something needs to go from your life.

You’ve forgotten it even existed – This is mostly for the physical stuff that we have, but when you don’t even remember that you own something, it’s time to get rid of it. Someone else can probably make better use of it.

You’re bored with it – This can be in regards to both physical and non-physical stuff. If you have something in your life that you once enjoyed but now find boring, it’s time for that thing to go. Maybe you have run 3 miles everyday for the last 10 years. You enjoyed it at first and liked the challenge, but lately you just do it out of habit and are getting pretty bored with it. Maybe it’s time to take up biking or swimming. Even though you want to continue your workouts, it’s time for a new activity.

It feels like a chore – When parts of your life stop being enjoyable and start feeling like an item on your to-do list, it’s probably time for that thing to go. Maybe you have a friend who you just don’t feel as connected to anymore and hanging out with them is starting to feel like an obligation. Cutting down the amount of time you spend with them is probably a good idea because it makes room for a new, more fulfilling relationship.

It holds you back – Just like my example above of getting rid of a certain vision of myself, sometimes we hold onto a way of thinking that doesn’t do us any good. What beliefs do you hold about yourself that limit your fulfillment? Do you have patterns in your life that seem to sabotage what you want? Take a look at the things that hold you back and then get rid of them!

Are there things that you could get rid of in your own life? What tips do you have for getting rid of things you don’t need? Share your thoughts in the comments!

http://amandalinehan.com/2009/07/03/get-rid-of-what-you-dont-need/

The Power of Now and the Strategy of Soon

Eric Friedman — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 12:17:50 +0000

Everyone is concentrating on now. Real time streaming, real time attention, and things being discussed in real time. Entire services are based on collecting and parsing things in real time. Even 24 hours can be a lifetime when it comes to statistics and analytics and making decisions based on old data.

To take a contrarian view I want to point out the importance of thinking things through. One tip I used when doing strategy sessions is to think about the sustainability of a decision moving forward. Creating real time value is great, but the long term sustainability of that decision can come back to haunt you.

I believe it make sense to slow things down at the planning stage and map out exactly how and why something will work once it is out in the real world. There is a powerful metaphor for developing something that is available to everyone right this second, but there is a strategy that must go along with it.

You cannot simply launch something and hope for the best, but rather have a strategy around it and way to support it. Too many times I have seen the mistake made with certain types of social media. My goto example is Facebook pages – everyone things they need one, but nobody stops to ask why.

Facebook now has 200+ million members and you have a global reach. But when it comes to targeting your audience and getting people to participate, you may be better off on a smaller niche network that has members that understand your brand or needs.

Having a strategy of soon enables you to create a roadmap of ideas that compete with the need for realtime information – but makes sure you do not pursue things that are unsustainable in the long run.

http://www.marketing.fm/2009/07/03/the-power-of-now-and-the-strategy-of-soon/

Save Newspapers? Um, No Thanks

David Stehle — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 12:14:09 +0000

Save the rainforest. Save a child. Save a puppy. Save a dollar. Save a seat. Save a life. Save a relationship. Save the last dance. I’ve even been told to save the receipt. Enough already! Not a single day goes by that we aren’t asked, or rather begged, to save something, someone, or some place. I for one am sick of hearing it! I’m not cold, inconsiderate, or selfish. I don’t have a black hole for a heart, but I do have a well functioning brain. And while in theory it’s nice to lend a helping hand in saving just about anything and everything in need on the planet, a logical mind will tell you this can’t possibly be done. Still, it’s a warm fuzzy thought and I applaud those that make an effort to make our world a better place. But when I read about a recent campaign to "Save Newspapers", I started to laugh. Basically they want to ban linking on the Internet with some far fetched hope that it will magically rejuvenate the dying publishing industry, thus save newspapers? That makes about as much sense as banning the wheel in order to save the horse industry. So we should screw up the entire Internet to save newspapers? Rrright.

I can understand newspaper’s fear. Afterall, nothing scares the publishing industry more than a platform that basically makes it irrelevant. So it’s no surprise that a new campaign is being launched to "Save Newspapers". The majority of newspapers are going, or already are, digital these days. Many have stopped printing their newspapers from Mon-Fri and are just printing the weekend editions. Why? Two reasons. One, it saves money. And two, because so many people prefer to get their news online these days - online publication. Most people spend a great deal of time at work infront of a computer, so it's just easier and makes more sense to get their news over the web as opposed to opening up a big inky newspaper. And with the whole "going green" theory, everyone is making an effort to use less paper on a daily basis. So not only is there no messy ink fingers, but you just allowed a tree to live! :hugs:

While reading the newspaper isn’t free, reading the news online is! So a lot of people aren't going to pay for something they can easily get free elsewhere. It’s just common sense. And while it’s true you shouldn’t believe everything you read online, there are reputable news and newspaper websites. The New York Times and The Washington Post are two sources you can trust that will deliver news based on fact and not online hearsay. Usually you'll find the exact same articles online that you would in their newspaper. Plus, often there is MORE content online (archives, etc.) on sites like The New York Times than you would find picking up their paper for today.

Now for the most obvious and critical point of all...

Traditional newspapers may be printed on a daily basis, but by the time the daily edition hits the presses and is either delivered to your doorstep or ready for pickup at the local newsstand, it’s essentially old news already. Whereas if you receive your daily news over the Internet, it’s always up date, often to the very minute! While traditional newspapers are only feeding you the news once a day, Internet news is constantly being streamed to you all day long! It is available 24/7 and you control the delivery. You also control the frequency of updates, depending on how often you revisit the website. Can’t say you can do that, can you newspaper? Simply put, Internet news offers instant gratification. It’s sort of like Internet porn, but without the sticky fingers.

To me, newspapers are only useful for two things - potty training a puppy and soaking up a muddy puddle on the street corner. So really, how could anyone argue in favor of the endangered ink laden newspaper? Along with dinosaurs and Saturday morning cartoons, newspapers are well on their way to the point of extinction. If it wasn't for the traditional, non-conforming, old farts who subscribe to newspapers because they are resistant to change and quite possibly techno-phobs, newspapers would have been dead already. And while I sit back and watch them die a slow but sure inevitable death, I smile. Yes, I smile because I don't give a shit. I will not be campaigning to "Save Newspapers" because we already have a more cost efficient and eco-friendly comprehensive alternative that will eventually replace newspapers all together.

Unlike some, I love change! I love seeing the world evolve and this is just another area in which our future is going. So stop being a hater. Get with it and roll with the times. The new era is digital. You can either choose to embrace it, or be left in its electronic dust. (Yeah Dad, I'm talking to you. It's right up there with your AM talk radio obsession.)

http://diamondkt.blogspot.com/2009/07/save-newspapers-um-no-thanks.html

If You Can’t Be With the One You Love…

careerrocketeer — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 12:09:32 +0000

How to Make your Current Job More Satisfying

As the famous Stephen Stills song goes: “If you can’t be with the one you love, love the one you’re with.” Although the song was written about personal relationships, it’s also great advice about how to look at a job you’re not quite ready to leave. So, how can you make your current job as satisfying as possible?

Well, that depends…on your Personality “Temperament.” Because people are different, the very same activity that might make one person deliriously happy might lead another into a deep depression. Fortunately, there’s an easy way to understand how you can derive more pleasure from your work – by going to www.personalitytype.com to take a quick and accurate personality type assessment.

(Note: The assessment will tell you your complete 4-letter Personality Type. To determine your “Temperament” – which is the core of each type – simply look for the letters: SJ, SP, NT and NF. Your type will include these letters).

Traditionalists (Sensor Judgers) need to have clear expectations.

To enjoy your job more, find a project that needs doing and volunteer to lead the effort, seek advice and opinions of colleagues who are different from you, suggest ways your office/company could be run more efficiently, ask your boss and co-workers to be explicit with requests and/or instructions, and/or set up short term goals that you can meet.

Experiencers (Sensor Perceivers) need to enjoy what they’re doing.

To enjoy your work more, look around for projects to volunteer for that would be fun, try to find at least some time to get outside, delegate to others as many routine tasks as you can, volunteer to help run and or participate in recreational or social activities, seek opportunities to use your negotiating skills, consider taking a time-management course, try to build more variety into your daily routine, and/or set short-term, achievable goals.

Conceptualizers (iNntuitive Thinkers) need to be challenged.

To enjoy your job more, seek out professional development opportunities, take courses or attend seminars to expand your expertise and add credentials, find other creative people to brainstorm ideas with, hire competent “detail” people, find a mentor you admire and respect or, mentor another person, and/or develop a “critical friends” group to critique each others’ ideas.

Idealists (iNtuitive Feelers) need to believe in what they’re doing and have meaningful relationships.

To enjoy your job more, create a support group to help people with personal and/or work-related issues, volunteer to do PR for your company or department, try (harder!) to leave your work at the office, consider becoming a trainer or coach in your field of expertise, volunteer to draft your organization’s mission statement, seek out other creative people to bounce things off of, and/or attend conferences or get involved in professional organizations.

In addition to enjoying your work more, implementing some of these suggestions can provide the additional benefit of making you even more valuable to your employer – which can come in very handy should you decide you want or need to stay in this job longer than you planned.

Guest Expert:

Through his ground-breaking book Do What You Are, Paul Tieger changed how career counseling is conducted around the world. The author of five books on Personality type and the preeminent expert in this field, Paul has helped over one million people find career satisfaction and success. On any given day, Do What You Are is the most or second most popular career book on Amazon.com.

Paul is also the creator of PersonalityType.com and the PersonalityType.com Assessment, a quick and accurate instrument which has been validated by over fifty thousand on-line users.

http://www.careerrocketeer.com/2009/07/if-you-cant-be-with-one-you-love.html

Friends With (Business) Benefits

jakegreene1 — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 12:00:15 +0000

In business as in love, the “Friends with Benefits” arrangement sounds ideal. You just set up a little somethin’ somethin’ on the side without setting any expectations. It’s added excitement without additional overhead. No commitment. In theory, it sounds perfect.

In reality, the FwB thing rarely works out. Sure, it starts out great – you get together once a week, mess around a little bit, talk about how clever you both are, etc. Unfortunately, as time goes on things go wrong. Someone gets hooked, gets jealous, feels neglected, and then things get awkward.

It doesn’t have to be that way, at least not in business. The following are five things to keep in mind when setting up a Friends With Business Benefits relationship:

1. Begin with the end in mind
Always go into an FwB relationship with an exit strategy. Better yet, establish clear guidelines for dissolution (or advancement) of the relationship before you get started. That way, you both can have fun without anyone feeling trapped.

2. Conduct a thorough background check
Before you jump in bed with someone, even if it’s just a side thing, you need to find out a little bit about his/her partnership history. Is this someone who can handle casual business? Do they flip out easily? Do they get too attached? Do they claim to keep all activities on the down-low then immediately tell friends (or worse, Facebook friends)?

3. Ask yourself if you’re willing to lose the relationship
Once you add benefits to a friendship, the relationship will never be the same. Maybe it will be better, maybe it will be worse, but it will never be the way it was. Thus, you need to be ok with the idea of losing your current friendship.

4. Don’t Cheat
Are you contractually obligated to be faithful to your job? Does your FwB relationship threaten the foundation of your career? If the answer is “yes”, you need to be aware that your initiation/participation in said relationship qualifies you as a shady person.

5. Be Patient
This is far and away my biggest opportunity for improvement (see: problem) when it comes to Friends with Business Benefits. I like to act on ideas quickly and I have a tendency to swarm my partners. I am also really anal about deadlines. If someone tells me that they're going to get something done by Tuesday and I haven’t heard anything Wednesday morning, I get frustrated. In a primary relationship my impatience would be justified, but in a casual FwB scenario, increased patience and perspective are both required.

Friends With Business Benefits can be a lot of fun. You can experiment in a casual environment and sharpen your skills. Sometimes FwB situations can even evolve into real startups and/or committed careers. Most of the time, however, FwB relationships crash and burn.

Before you hop in bed, make sure you take a second to think about both the possibilities and consequences of settin’ up a lil’ somethin’ somethin’ on the side.

http://jakeonjobs.typepad.com/jakeonjobs/2009/07/friends-with-business-benefits....

Funding Your First Business

Adam McFarland — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 12:00:14 +0000

Hypothetically, let’s go back in time and say I’m about to graduate from college. I know that in my heart I want to be an entrepreneur, but I’m concerned about how to fund a new company and have enough money to live. What do I do?

It’s a common position for potential business owners to be in. I think a lot of very talented people that would start successful businesses get scared away by the financial uncertainty of starting their own business.

My advice – eliminate all of the uncertainty by using a job to fund yourself. Here’s what I would do if I was graduating today and starting out again from scratch tomorrow:

Get a non-career job where you can work 30 – 40 hours/week and make enough money to live off of. It might not impress your parents, but that job bartending or waiting tables or being a barista or bank teller is going to afford you the opportunity to do what you truly want.
Pick a potential business idea…then start a related service for under $100. Let’s say you’re like me and want to run lots of successful web apps. Starting a web app from scratch and building it to a point where it brings in solid revenue is very difficult and many times doesn’t work out. Instead, start a web design business first. $100 gets you some business cards, a simple website, and a Skype phone number. Throw and ad on Craigslist, work Twitter and Facebook, go to a few local networking events, and whatever else it takes to get your first clients for free. For more ideas, check out my post How To Do Client Work Right that I wrote just after we got rid of the service side of our business.
Use the remaining time to work on your “ideal” business. If you still want to build that web app, take advantage of all of the free time that you have to slowly-but-surely build it without the stress of needing it. Build something that has true value to people, even if it takes a year or two to do it. The more stress, the more you need a web app to succeed, the more likely you are to press and make drastic changes instead of being patient. Great websites take years and years to build.
Pump profits from your service into growing your “ideal” business. Since you are living off of your job, you can “reward” yourself by spending some or all of your service profit on growing the web app.

Here’s how your average week likely breaks down: 30 – 40 hours working, 15 – 25 hours on your service, and 5 – 10 hours on your ideal business. ~60 hours is no joke, but it’s also not a bad deal for how much benefit you’re getting.

This is a very low risk, high reward path that gives you TONS of future options:

If things don’t take off, you can try again or get a career job.
If the service grows, you can quit your part time job or stop working on the web app.
If the web app grows, you can stop providing service or quit the part time job.
If they both grow and you can cover your living expenses, you can definitely quit the part time job!

There are several advantages of taking this approach:

There’s no time limit. Totally flop after trying for 6 months? Start over without any real penalty. You still have your job so you can take a few weeks off from entrepreneurship and then get back into it when you’re ready.
You’re financially stable. You don’t need to worry about owing creditors thousands of dollars because you’re advancing yourself cash to live while the business struggles. By keeping your business money separate from your personal money, you really do eliminate any real financial risk.
By bootstrapping, you learn the importance of every dollar. I love the fact that we’ve never taken outside financing. We’re pretty minimal in our spending. We value every single sale we make. Would we be nearly as stingy if we had $1M from a VC to play with? Probably not. We also probably wouldn’t be nearly as efficient or nearly as successful.
You keep your motivation. Nothing keeps you more motivated than doing a job that you don’t want to do every day! That annoying customer who badgers you all night and never leaves a tip? He’s the reason you work so hard after work.
You’re learning constantly. No matter the business you work for, you can learn things. What do they do that works? What doesn’t? How would you do it differently? You’re getting paid to learn. Those clients you work with are the same. To do good work for them, you’ll have to work pretty hard to learn the intricacies of their businesses.
You avoid living in a bubble. Running a business solo can be lonely. I know. Working a job gets you out of the house, gets you some social interaction, and builds some relationships. Same goes for doing service work.

My business partners and I sort of did these things, mostly by accident. I got a job with the intention of funding SportsLizard, but it was a career job and became too conflicting. Mike and George worked part-time jobs to bridge the gap as they got their start. Greg was still going for his MBA while he was starting out. I did SEO service work to keep myself afloat while I tried to grow my websites, which eventually led me to my current partners. George and Greg did physical detailing to fund Detailed Image. All along the way, the knowledge we learned from all of those experiences has cumulatively helped us in every aspect of our business.

http://www.adam-mcfarland.net/2009/07/04/funding-your-first-business/

Dealing With Clients

genystartup — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 12:00:14 +0000

Have you ever heard that phrase that: If you just got a client, you just got married? Whether you like it or not that’s the case plain and simple. Regardless of what industry your services fall into or what your business is, the situation is always about the same. The client needs something of you and even though their approach to getting it might differ, they are persistent and won’t stop till they get it. That’s what they pay you for afterall.

There are 3 different types of clients in my book and I will briefly list them for you later. Different clients require different things and so you must treat them differently. I am not saying be nice to one and be terribly obnoxious to the other, no, you will lose more clients than the Miami heat lost games in the 07/08 season. All I am saying is that the way you approach a lazy client is not the same as you will handle one who doesn’t mind staying up 48 straight hours just to see his business succeed.

Now, there are some obvious general rules that apply to every client regardless of their background or expertise. Make sure these rules are never compromised because it will do your business more harm than it will favor.

Not every client is right for you and this is the most important thing to remember before you start working with anyone. You know yourself and how you operate, so you know what/who works well with you, don’t be afraid to say no, i’m sorry but I can work with you. It’s better not to start something you can’t finish than start it and have it bring you gloom and sorrow.
Treat every client with respect: Every client is a potential business stream whether directly or indirectly. And everyone likes someone who shows them respect, so be nice.
Do not start a project you do not fully understand or build and offer a product/software that people don’t want. It will only bite you in the rear end.
It pays more than anything in the world to listen. Just as much as your significant other expects you to listen, this client – the one you are now ‘married’ to – expects your full attention. Give it to them!
Be honest and fair in your dealings. If you are not, they will find out sooner or later and when they do, in the words of Donald Trump…you are fired!
If it does not do you or your business any good in the long run to take a clients word all the time, then stick to your guns and do what you feel works best for both parties. You are the one with the product/service.

There are obviously a lot more but these are the ones I consider vital at this point. Whatever the case is, try to abide by these rules. I know that some of these do not apply to every startup, for example a social networking start-up doesn’t need to interview everyone that signs up to use their website, that’s just terrible for business but generally these rules have their way of factoring into any business regardless of the industry/sector.

The three broad categories of clients I want to talk about now are:

Those who never listen: I have had my fair share of these and I am sure many others have. They are the most difficult to work with and from experience I have learned to put a finger on that trait they all share so that in the first 5 minutes of talking to them, I can tell that I am not keen of doing anything with them. I can’t put into words what that trait is and say oh here you go, here are people you shouldn’t work with, but the more you work with them, you will surely notice a pattern. Personally, I have so many other things to worry about than whether this person will do what I asked them to do or not, so I just tell them right off the bat that I can’t do much to help them. I am working on my new start-up and that takes several hours of my day, so I just spare myself the pain of dealing with these guys.
Those who listen and do what they should do: These are obviously everyone’s favorite except you like unnecessary challenge. I am not perfect and I never impose on people what they are supposed to do. But if you have a problem and I feel I can help and offer you my consulting services, I expect that you atleast try my methods out and not crucify them. I like to listen to what people feel are great methods and then I share mine, before I arrive at a plan for you. These people should be treated with great respect and I personally go the extra mile to show my appreciation for them.
Those who simply want to argue and have it their way: I am not the biggest fan of these people but I love to learn, so I will listen to all you have to say. Remember to deal with these clients peacefully and respectfully. They are the ones who feel they know quite a bit about the subject and won’t settle. You must let them have their say, maybe they do have a point, maybe not. Either way, it pays to be the one that keeps quiet and listens.

http://genystartup.com/2009/07/03/dealing-with-clients/

MySpace, Facebook, and the Politics of Class Online

Nisha Chittal — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 11:51:24 +0000

It’s being called “digital white flight.” And according to danah boyd, it should scare us all.

Last week at Personal Democracy Forum 2009, Dr. danah boyd’s talk on the hidden — or not-so-hidden — politics of class online was one of the hits of the conference. boyd’s talk explored the differences between usage of MySpace and Facebook and what it means for society.

How many times have we heard, said, or read that MySpace is dead? Hmm, well, I can think a of a few good examples. And really, who uses MySpace? boyd asked that question of the audience and no one raised their hands. She asked if we used Facebook and naturally, we all raised our hands. Do you use MySpace? Probably not. Probably because it’s ugly and garish, with flashy colorful layouts and too many which-victoria’s-secret-angel-are-you quizzes; the poor aesthetics and lack of features make Facebook the more popular choice for most of us.

But, MySpace still gets 70 million unique hits a month, according to boyd’s data. But if all of us, and everyone we know, is lamenting how ugly and useless MySpace is, and none of us actually use it (save for the occasional search for cool new indie bands), then who are these 70 million visitors a month? If MySpace is still getting 70 million visitors, it is clearly NOT dead. 70 million is significant; it’s not something to brush off. And yet most of us don’t use MySpace or know many people who do.

So who are they?

boyd interviewed hundreds of American teenagers to find out. Her results might be surprising–although they probably shouldn’t be.

Kat (14, Mass.): I’m not really into racism, but I think that MySpace now is more like ghetto or whatever, and Facebook is all… not all the people that have Facebook are mature, but its supposed to be like oh we’re more mature. … MySpace is just old.

Craig (17, California): The higher castes of high school moved to Facebook. It was more cultured, and less cheesy. The lower class usually were content to stick to MySpace. Any high school student who has a Facebook will tell you that MySpace users are more likely to be barely educated and obnoxious. Like Peet’s is more cultured than Starbucks, and Jazz is more cultured than bubblegum pop, and like Macs are more cultured than PC’s, Facebook is of a cooler caliber than MySpace.

Anastasia (17, New York): My school is divided into the ‘honors kids,’ (I think that is self-explanatory), the ‘good not-so-honors kids,’ ‘wangstas,’ (they pretend to be tough and black but when you live in a suburb in Westchester you can’t claim much hood), the ‘latinos/hispanics,’ (they tend to band together even though they could fit into any other groups) and the ‘emo kids’ (whose lives are allllllways filled with woe). We were all in MySpace with our own little social networks but when Facebook opened its doors to high schoolers, guess who moved and guess who stayed behind… The first two groups were the first to go and then the ‘wangstas’ split with half of them on Facebook and the rest on MySpace… I shifted with the rest of my school to Facebook and it became the place where the ‘honors kids’ got together and discussed how they were procrastinating over their next AP English essay.

Another thing boyd also pointed out was that these sites, although we new media types like to call them social networking sites, aren’t really used for networking other than by a small minority. Most people go on Facebook and MySpace and Twitter not to meet new people but to reinforce their existing relationships; and thus, a wall of separation that already exists is further reinforced. Different types of people are on MySpace and Facebook; and by limiting ourselves only to using one site, where all our friends are, we are maintaining that division since we will never interact with users on the other site.

During the talk, people at the conference were tweeting up a storm (myself included) but many of them seemed to react as if this was revolutionary to them. I don’t think the fact that there is a class division between MySpace and Facebook users should be revolutionary news, unless one is seriously out of touch with young people.

But I do think what boyd has done, in collecting actual data, evidence, and interviews from young people which supports an idea that we all knew was true all along but never had any actual proof of, is revolutionary. Did we all know this in the back of our minds? Yes, probably (I hope). But would anyone ever admit such a thing out loud or talk about it or acknowledge that it’s true? No. So naturally, there’s been plenty of critics arguing that it’s not true and that boyd’s argument is overblown.

One of the biggest criticisms I have heard of boyd’s argument so far is “It’s not that we like Facebook better because we’re racist or elitist; we just like the better design and better features. It’s not about race or class. We’re not racist!” (defensive much?)

But I think boyd already refuted that when she said: “All of this would be fine and dandy if friendships and aesthetics and values weren’t inherently intertwined with issues of race, socio-economic status, education, and other factors that usually make up our understanding of “class.” But they are.”

I have to agree with her. Your socioeconomic standing inevitably causes you to gravitate towards Facebook or MySpace more. Because all your friends are on one or the other. And because perhaps, if you’re used to nicer things in life, you’re going to want nicer things in your social networking site of choice.

danah boyd’s full talk is posted here. What are your thoughts? Do you use MySpace? Do you believe there’s a class division in social networking sites? And if so: how did we get there? And what do we do about it?

http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ConfessionsOfANewsJunkie/~3/baEeea-hoFo/

Forget Balance, Lead a Sustainable Existence

Silvana Avinami — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 05:00:06 +0000

If you’ve been paying attention, you’ll know that the word balance gets thrown around like confetti by employers, career coaches and self-improvement gurus.

Even so, is balance really what we’re looking for in our work-lives and beyond? If you answered ‘yes’, then perhaps you’ll be able to help me define balance. I’m at a loss for words mostly because there are as many ways to define balance as there are people. And, truthfully, what does it mean and feel like to be in balance? Furthermore, has anyone achieved balance? (If you know someone who has, I’d LOVE to meet them…)

Not being able to come up with satisfactory answers, I decided to question if balance is really what we’re looking for. In other words, are we blindly looking for balance simply because we have not taken time to stop to find out what it is that we’re really looking for? As I set out to understand what all the hoohah is about I discovered some empowering truths that I’m about to share with you.

Taking from how selling 101 defines features and benefits, it’s clear that balance is a feature – albeit a very desirable one. Even so, it’s not a benefit. Then, what is the benefit of achieving balance? To answer that, lets start by looking at what happens when we miss the mark – and lead an unbalanced existence. In other words, what’s the outcome of an unbalanced existence?

To begin with, whatever we’re engaged in, does not last long. And more often than not, the end result is riddled with negativity. If you’ve ever burnt-out from over-training a sport or over-practicing a musical instrument, you’ll know exactly what I mean. By the same token, too little of something also has negative outcomes. Think all-nighters while working towards deadlines…

Simply put, when we’re extreme about something, burn-out is a likely outcome. Aside from undesirable because it can be physically and emotionally painful, burn-out is counterproductive.

Following that same logic, the outcome of being balanced is sustainability. And that’s the benefit.

That means that the conversation needs to evolve. To really speak about what we’re trying to achieve, it no longer is enough to talk about balance. We must begin to look for sustainability in every aspect of our lives. That is what we’re really looking for. N’est-ce pas?

http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/SilvanaAvinami/~3/x381T2aiuSg/

Dealing with Sexual Harassment in the Workplace

students — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 05:00:05 +0000

Dark room. Older man. Insistent behaviour. Human resource managers. These are a few of the things we must deal with when we encounter sexual harassment in the workplace – at least, that’s what I dealt with.

Sexual harassment is an issue which has been plaguing the workplace for years, but it wasn’t until it happened in my own life that I become more aware of the affects on an individual’s personal and professional life.

What happened to me

During the summer before I took off to university, a friend got me a job doing “housekeeping” work for a construction company. All the workers were men, but this did not bother me since I would be working side by side with my friend – a man.

We worked with a man about 20 years older than us – let’s call him Dave. Dave would purposely send my friend to work on the other side of the job site so he could talk to me. Our chats started off pretty harmless and then it got personal – such as, “Do you have a boyfriend?” To which, of course, I answered yes, although it was a lie.

Dave managed to get a hold of my phone number and would leave message after message on my machine. When I would ignore him he would confront me at work. He started to really creep me out so my friend’s dad, the site project manager, talked to Dave and told him students are off limits.

Escalation

Things were fine and we worked apart until my friend and his dad took off to Italy for two weeks in which I worked with Dave alone. The peak of the harassment happened one day when Dave told me we had to do work in one of the upstairs rooms which happened to have no windows or constructive lighting.

He started touching me and grabbing me, trying to get me to kiss him. I pushed him away and he continued to ask why I wasn’t going on dates with him. This situation made it extremely difficult to continue going to work. I approached managers but nothing was done. The phone calls continued and so did the harassment.

When my friend and his dad returned from their trip I knew I had to do something – report it. I felt extremely intimidated by the situation, so this act of confidence did not happen until the end of the summer. I then had to speak with human resource people and file a report which eventually led to Dave’s dismissal.

You have rights

Sexual harassment is a human rights issue and can include anything from sexual remarks to sexual advances. The Ontario Human Rights Code prohibits all acts of sexual harassment in the workplace as well as other institutions such as housing, hotels and in unions. (All other provinces should have similar laws.) Dealing with sexual harassment is not an easy task and one should not stay quiet about it.

If I could go back in time, I would have never stuck it out the entire summer – it made for some tough, uncomfortable work days. I had mornings waking up absolutely dreading the day and just wanting to quit on the spot. One should never feel discouraged from doing what they want to do. Sexual harassment should not have to affect an individual to the point they feel scared or embarrassed.

Whether the individual making the advances is your fellow employee or CEO of the company, this kind of behaviour is not acceptable and can be reported to the Ontario Human Rights Commission. No person, male or female, deserves to go through their workday feeling uncomfortable and violated– I know I didn’t.

http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TalentEggIncubator/~3/8QWJMMTfMCo/

A Brazen Careerist: Looking Back Through 2 Years of Entrepreneurship

Vanessa Van Petten — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 14:54:36 +0000

For my Brazen Careerist readers as well as for my:

1) Teen interns: I want our teen readers and interns to be reminded of how important goals are and that every career has its ups and downs.

And

2) Entrepreneur Readers: I have a few fellow 20 something entrepreneurs and other bloggers who read us for tidbits and advice on how to make it as an entrepreneur and professional blogger.

I officially started my company 2 years ago on my graduation day from Emory University, May 9, 2007. Here is what I have learned:

1) Just because you can do it, doesn’t mean you should do it.

I am very grateful for the advice I get in my informational interviews with experts and other entrepreneurs, but I often hear, “why don’t you…” And I have, a lot. But, what I realized is, just because you can do something, does not mean you should do something. You must love doing it, if you just ‘can’ and you don’t ‘love’ it will probably not be successful, you will dread it, you will worry about it and it will take you away from things you do love.

Example: Everyone keeps telling me I should do a podcast/radioshow. They have been telling me for two years. “It will be such a great accompaniment to your blog!” “You are so good at talking, you should do it” I prefer to listen than to read, I wish you had some kind of an audio recording.” Finally a few months ago, I tried. Well, I barely tried. I started, looked into getting a channel on iTunes, got a professional mic and made a little intro on Garage Band. I recorded one. In all honesty, it sucked. It sucked (I knew it and a very honest friend told me so) and I hated it. I realized then and there, just because I can, does not mean I should.

2) Just because it makes money, doesn’t mean you should do it.

I found a pretty successful model to make money this year that involved training tutors to work with private families. This is successful and my families benefit, my tutors benefit and I benefit. But, it is not what I love. I love to write. This unfortunately bends the rule on above that if you do not like something it probably won’t do well. I almost wish this part of my business was less successful because over the past year, I followed the money, not my dreams. On my first week-long vacation in a long time over my birthday, I realized that I had my first good night’s sleep in months. I also realized it was the first time I had time to write in 8 months because I was not seeing clients. I love my clients, but because of our very long waitlist, I had given up my time for what I was truly passionate about, and my sleep. I realized it was not worth it. So I…

3) Just Started

Just start. I would say one of the biggest lessons I learned this year is you can (and should) start a major project if you only have 20 minutes. Someone asked me last week:

“Vanessa, you start so many projects that have been on my idea list for years, how do you have time and energy?”

When I first started I used to try to book two or three days or at least a four or five hour block for big projects like adding a new page to my website, looking into starting a Speakers Bureau etc. As those chunks of time dwindled and were actually intimidating when I felt uninspired or tired, I experimented with the sample policy of ONLY starting projects when I had 20 minutes (let me tell you, you always have 20 minutes). The weird thing is, it worked. All of my major projects in year 23 (see below) were started right before an appointment, conference call or waiting for company.

I realized once you ‘just start’ you have to continue, and you do more in 20 minute segments. I never thought I would be able to figure out a way to fund my Parenting Around the World Project, especially because it means taking less client hours (the money maker), but I realized that I would never get a good nights sleep, nor be truly happy if I didn’t just start. So, in 20 minutes I sent out 30 emails to my corporate contacts asking for help with funding. From those first 30 emails we were able to fund the first 6 countries.

4) I am fricking scared out of my mind, so I might as well be doing what I love

Ever since I booked my first trip, I constantly think: “Oh my god, oh my god, I cannot travel around the world, turn down good paying clients and work on a book I don’t even have a publisher for.” I have nightmares that I won’t be able to pay my rent, I will have to move home and sell my car to fund my business. But wait a minute…I had those dreams even when I wasn’t planning to travel the world, even when I had paying clients…so, if I had those nightmares anyway, why not do what I love. I am still scared out of my mind, but the worrying is getting less, because what I love is filling me up.

5) There is not a suffering for happiness quota

Many people (maybe you) are thinking,

“Fughfff, she just wants to get funding to travel the world.”

I spent a long time fighting this, trying to convince myself that “no, it was going to be miserable traveling in hostels, very hard, and I am only doing it because it is needed.” But, hey, that IS part of the reason, and I do not want it to be hard work. I want to be able to do something really fun and awesome, make a living at it and put together a fascinating set of stories and ideas for my readers. I do not want to feel guilty for this, and I do, sometimes, but this year I have really solidified the fact that

You do not need to suffer to be happy.

There is no quota of misery in order to get success.

Hard work yes, misery no, challenging yes, suffering no.

6) It never makes sense looking back

I always wondered how I would use my Chinese major, my Latin American Studies major and my East Asian Studies major. I always wondered why I took Spanish and French in High School. I always wondered if my undergraduate thesis on Chinese Underground Hip Hop and Urban Youth would come in handy. I always wondered how my fascination with parenting would help me travel the world. Now I know.

7) Give more than you ask, but still ask

I have been posting and linking to thousands of websites, people, campaigns and products over the past 2 years of blogging. Usually I did not request (almost never demand) anything in response. And I was happy to do this. I realized that the less I kept tally, the better I felt. Yet, I still wondered, if I ask in return will it come back? I have learned that if you have been generous and you ask for help, you will often receive. I have reached out to most of my network asking them for ideas, contacts and funding for the trip and the book. I am so grateful that many people I never would have expected have offered. I am so thankful for that and learned that you always have to give more than you ask, but don’t be afraid to ask.

So, here we go, I am asking for help with our goals:

Goal 1: Write my book: Parenting Is Flat: How Globalization Has Changed Familynomics

Goal 2: Get funding or make enough passive income to be able to travel to 30 countries to get my case studies on the 30 families.

We need:

a) A sponsor for 3 Flip video camera’s to send to Families to film one average day

-This project is a great opportunity for companies or brands to reach over 500,000 of our parent and teen readers across the globe and be associated with a fun, inspiring and insightful project.

b) International families in where both parents and children were born in that country and at least 1 child under the age of 18 (see countries we already have below)

(Especially:
Buenos Aires, Argentina
Santiago, Chile
Montevideo, Uruguay)

c) Help with Passive Income: If you want to help fund our trip, please

-Buy one of our books

-Click on an ad on the site
-Sign-up for a webinar
-Get our teleclass
-Subscribe to our newsletter

All of these things help us fund!

Status:

Found and Interviewed:
X Singapore (Thank you Daphne!)
X Canada (Thank you to the Daly’s)

X Nicaragua (Thank you Gema!)
X Israeli (Thank you Becca!)
X US (Thank you Gail!)
X Sweden (Thank you Malin!)

Found Funding for and Booked:
1 Flip Video Camera to Record Interviews for Webisodes
X Canada (June 2009)
X Israel (August 2009)
X Argentina (December 2009)—need family

X Uruguay (January 2010)—need family
X Chile (January 2010)—need family

I will keep you updated and I hope this time next year, I will be able to tell you we have funding for all 30 countries. If you have an idea for a sponsor, or families, please email vvanpetten@rrules.com.

I am grateful for your help, thank you in advance,

Vanessa

My Entrepreneurial Timeline:

I wrote this mostly for me, to help see where I have been and was not going to post it, but then thought it might be helpful for you. So, here it is…

Age 16-18:

-Began writing my book, interviewing other teens and parents about why they were so angry. Finished writing it and offered it for free to benefit fighting families. I loved working on it, but buckled down in school over pursuing publication to have strong applications.

-Took Spanish and French at the same time in High School because I was told “it will make up for your disabilities in math and science for college applications and jobs.”

Age 18-20:

-Started Emory University and became a Chinese major to add a fourth language.

-Triple majored (I had, like, no friends) in Chinese, International Politics (with an emphasis on Latin America) and East Asian Studies.

-Adults in my life told me to get a JD/MBA (Law and Business degree), I had a passion for language, travel and studying globalization, but did not like my international law classes, politics or international investment.

What I learned:

I love to interview people about their relationships and life patterns.

I was unhappy in College.

Age 21:

-Began writing my thesis: “Underground Hip Hop and Chinese Urban Youth” and moved to Shanghai to interview Chinese teenagers about globalization through hip hop.

-When I learned that most Chinese teens were just as disgruntled with their parents as American teens, and how much I loved interviewing them, I realized I had to pick my book back up and look into publishing.

What I learned:

I was not going to be happy in a ‘traditional career.’

I wanted to work with youth and families, and find a way to tie it to internationalism.

Age 22:

-During my senior year of College, took my allowance and self-published my book, You’re Grounded! and filed to be incorporated.

-Hired employees in India to build my blog. (now RadicalParenting.com)

-Began to speak and work privately with families to supplement blogging income.

What I learned:

Everything about starting a business (through trial and error, informational meetings with other entrepreneurs and Business books for Dummies): tax law, finding funding, how to be a blogger, how to start viral campaigns, how Talent Agencies work, how much PR firms cost….

Age 23:

-Built an associate program to train and send-out mentors to help take private clients. Ended up training and hiring 6 associates, one office manager and 60 interns.

-Outgrew my website, and relaunched the blog with other features:

Teen Speakers Bureau, Parent and Teen Webinars, Teen Internships, Private Social Networks for Other Professional and Casual Teen and Parent Bloggers.

-Worked on other major projects:

Wrote my first e-book, Signed with talent agency William-Morris Endeavor, Got managers, Began work on a TV Show, Set-up funding campaign for webisodes.

What I learned:

-How to make money as a professional blogger

-Give, give, give, give, give. There is enough to go around, collaboration is key, never keep tally of favors, if you can give, give.

http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TeensTodayWithVanessaVanPetten/~3/GTQ4g1qD2jM/

Marriageability is Extinct, So Let’s Drop the Idea of “Wife” Material

Raven Moore — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 12:33:43 +0000

Photo Credit: Forbescreative @Flickr

I once was told I wasn’t wife material.

Which is kind of odd since the jerk who said it asked me to marry him 3 months earlier.

Unfortunately, his words made me question the aspect of what it meant to be “marriage material.” Quite simply, I thought anyone interested in commitment and love was marriageable. Apparently, I was wrong. Marriage is for all sorts of things and the last (and least) bits demand commitment and love.

It’s an infinite list of to-do’s, must-do’s, have’s and have not’s. I found I was somewhat lacking, as probably most of us are in some way.

Why is this?

Because we are not perfect marvels of the universe…and never will be.

So, maybe instead, marriage should only be for people who are good at it. And, since only 50% of us can be good at it – the odds are pretty high we’ll screw it up. Therefore, no marriage for anyone and everybody can be a mix of blended and extended families, adopted uncles, 2 moms and civil unions.

Marriage is not for the perpetuation of the species – it’s for the perpetuation of life insurance benefits, (un)stable domesticity, shared utility bills, baby weight, health care, pre-prepared meals and someone beating you to the punch on letting you know about your forehead wrinkles.

Sex is the only guarantee that life will go on. And, even that is becoming outdated.

The idea love and marriage has changed, but only for the perverse. They are not a package. Your soulmate won’t necessarily be your wife and your husband can just be a domesticated roommate. They are parallel, separate and you are lucky if you find both. It’s the last gallop into adulthood before you become a full-blown grump after having children. Besides purchasing a home (NOT!) and having a kids (PLEASE SEE BRITNEY SPEARS) – marriage is the easiest thing you can do to establish your grown-upness. You’ve suitably demonstrated that instead of picking someone, you can pick “the one.”

I’m not saying marriage is easy. It’s just easy to do. Fly to Las Vegas on Tuesday morning and be considered an old married couple by Wednesday at noon.

Marriage is a big joke somewhere. Especially in Las Vegas. We take it so seriously, we’re willing to call the whole thing off in a matter of months (or hours). And, for something that’s supposed to last forever, the expiration date is starting to look a little iffy.

It used to be that divorce was the head-shaking bad news your grandma would whisper about at Jell-O and Tupperware parties. Now, you can celebrate your newly predicated singleness with fondant cakes, pinot grigio and dance halls.

Divorce: it’s the happiest taboo.

Everybody talks about the opportunities a break up (read: divorce) opens. Life will unquestionably change. Visions of the future are now crafted like never before. You are free from the albatross of a spouse around your neck.

On the other hand, marriage seems to add responsibilities while shutting others down. Life is now evenly calibrated with someone else’s steps (and missteps). A life partner is your partner…FOR LIFE. People dive headlong into this pool again and again. All the trappings of domesticity, love and a partnered life ooze tempting, luxurious stability for girls (and guys) seeking to capture the golden cascade of “settling down” and growing up.

Marriage has morphed into nothing more than a possibly boring and domestic Valhalla for the long and wearied adults who decided to give up the holy ghost of singlehood. Yet, what was so great about being single? And the newly divorced would reply: What was so great about being married?

Yet, marriage remains all the rage.

Then, people wail, “Oh Lord – what about the children? Oh…the children!”

Let me tell you, as a child of divorce – the kids will be alright. As long as Mom and Dad aren’t beating each other with bats or forcing kids to do icky things (like choose sides or homes), divorce has become something children expect silly adults to do these days.

People marry for love (sometimes), but they really should be marrying for divorce. Or, at least that is what should be part of the equation. How comfortable are you with this person not being your husband (or wife)? Could you keep it together if this person decided to divorce you?

How well can you divorce this person?

I bet no one ever asks those questions. We’re too busy deciding between egg cream or satin white for invitation paper colors. Life is too short to figure out when we’ll not be in love with “the one.”

http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TheWriterbabeSeries/~3/XbEkiAN6dVo/

Brand Perception: Dumb Moves by Big Business This Year

martin.schneider — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 12:21:34 +0000

CNNmoney.com has a great article detailing some of the biggest corporate blunders we’ve seen so far this year, and quite a few of them are customer and branding related, such as GM, Tropicana, and my New York Yankees.

Now obviously it’s easy to sit back and play Monday morning quarterback when it’s all said and done, especially when it’s a multi-billion dollar company. But if there’s one common trend among many of these it’s the impact that blogging and consumer – controlled, Web 2.0 feedback has had on product announcements such as these.

Before the Internet, perception management was subjective at best, and branding was more an art than a science. That concept has gone right out the window with the advent of blogs, social networking sites, etc. But on the flip side, it’s also given product and marketing managers an opportunity to turn the table and leverage the Internet as a tool to draw feedback on consumer’s perception of your business…and in the process avoid launching something that looks like this:

This was GM’s idea at remaking itself as a purveyor of fuel-efficient vehicles?

http://www.crmoutsiders.com/2009/07/02/brand-perception-dumb-moves-by-big-busine...

Flying by the Seat of your Plans–A Case for Thinking things Through

andrew.stuhl — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 05:00:06 +0000

What is it about Yo-Pros that makes an impromptu one-way ticket purchase so appealing? Why does Gen Y want to ditch their hard-earned plans and live a life unscripted?

Short questions, long answers. One crack at it: Many up-and-comings have spent decades breathing in an air of schedules and strategies. Do well in high school to open up opportunities for college. Ace curricular and extra-curricular activities at university to polish that resume. Start the job search process early to expand the pie of career choices. And so on. If you’re nodding your head so far, it may logically follow for you that “dropping everything” would not only be idealistic, but ideal.

So that’s the “it’s nice to give your rest your brain every once in a while” answer. Fair enough. But I have a hunch people my age are putting even more value in the un-planned nature of things.

For instance, there’s a difference between breaking plans for the sake of relaxation and actively pursuing spontaneous urges. This is like deciding not to follow through with plans for dinner on Friday night and instead driving an hour to hug a big tree because you want to. See what I mean? In the first case, you put plans aside. In the second, you throw plans out the window.

There’s a danger in being so impulsive, dare I say, careless. The danger is that we lose out on future opportunities–not because they never existed, but because we didn’t see them coming. Even worse is that we slack on our A game–because some of life’s greatest contests require training. (Come on, you know I’m ’bout to bust out the 6 P’s, right?–Prior Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance. That one’s for you, Dad.)

I’ll admit up front that my views here are shaded by my love of planning. But I’m not making a case for planning every of life’s moments in minute detail. Oh no. We all need time off every once in a while. (I just work mine into my schedule–planned downtime. You line up your vacations, don’t you?)

The case I’m making is that planning now actually give you flexibility in the future. It’s a return on an investment. Consider the following:

Buying a house. It’s clear. If you want to buy a house, you need at least a few things: money for a down payment, knowledge of the area, an understanding of the process of buying a house, and good credit. Let’s say you’re not a saver and you don’t have enough coin to put down 20% percent. Now the bank requires that you pay mortgage insurance and your monthly payment goes up, meaning you’ve got to readjust what you can afford. Flexibility restricted.

Or, let’s say you didn’t take out a credit card at a young age, or only took out one credit card and didn’t let a balance acrue on it. Or, you didn’t read up on buying a house and thus have to rely on your realtor to choose the places you will eventually select your home from. All of these decisions were like pulling branches off of a tree, until you limited your choices to one, uni-directional trunk. You move forward, but not in the direction you might have wanted to.

Buying a house is no different from wanting to travel to Costa Rica, wanting to switch careers, or wanting to start a family. If you haven’t thought it through, you are not putting yourself in the best position possible. Sure, you’ll still be able to buy a house without much planning. You’ll still be able to travel. You probably will have a great home and you’ll have a great time on your trip.

But the fates of decisions are not always subject to your outlook. There are many cases where life will pass you by because you did not plan. Life will say, “Wait a minute. You don’t have the necessary qualifications for this.” Remember pre-req’s in college? Life has them too.

The trick is to look out for them. Here’s what I do. I sit down every couple of months and think about where I want to be in 5 years. If I can muster up the inspiration, I dream about where you want to be in 5 years. Then, I design a course of action. It’s my little chess game and I’m thinking about my moves in advance. I want to be three steps ahead, not caught off guard by a check-mate I never expected.

I’m all for living it up and dreaming big–but I’d rather fly by the seat of my plans than by the seat of my pants.

What about you?

http://phdetails.wordpress.com/2009/07/02/flying-by-the-seat-of-your-plans-a-cas...