Nathan Bashaw

"The crucible is for silver and the furnace for gold, and man is tested by the praise accorded him"

Fri, 27 Jan 2012 09:42:15 -0800

“The crucible is for silver and the furnace for gold, and man is tested by the praise accorded him”

- Proverbs 27:21, and one of my favorite quotes ever.

The 3 Classes of Hacker-Designers

Thu, 19 Jan 2012 09:47:32 -0800

You hear an awful lot of praise for designers who code these days. But you don’t hear much about why it’s good for a designer to be able to code. In my mind, there are a few separate levels of hacker-designers. Each has it’s own unique benefits. So I thought it would be a good idea to separate out what I think are the three classes of hacker-designers:

1. Designers that can code HTML, CSS, and presentation-layer Javascript

These people can build better webpages than designers who only work in PSDs, because they understand the building blocks of the web. They understand interactions. Also, it’s not very hard to learn HTML and CSS and a little jQuery-flavored Javascript, so it’s a sign that they’re willing to dip their toes into code-land.

2. Designers that can prototype an app

If you can code a bit of ruby, use a simple framework like sinatra, understand the basics of SQL or at least an ORM like ActiveRecord, then you’ve just leveled up in your value. Now you can build functioning prototypes of apps that look and feel a lot like the real thing. They may not be scalable or secure, or fit well into any sort of existing codebase, but they are real working apps. You can put test users in front of it and see how they interact with it and really hone the experience before you invest engineering resources in scaling up the project.

3. Designers who can code production features

At Olark, a lot of times it’s incredibly valuable for Roland or I to be able to just jump into the codebase and fix a feature or build a new simple feature on our own. If you’re not comfortable with understanding how a large application works based on reading source code, then you’re not going to be able to do this. You also have to have a pretty good understanding of the frameworks and tools your startup is working with. But it’s definitely a huge plus.

…

My goal this year is to focus on #2. I want to be able to prototype mobile applications, and more advanced web-applications. That way, I can create this really nice feedback loop where I can think of an idea, talk to users, design an interface, talk to users, code a prototype, talk to users, and then scale it up if, after all this testing, it still seems valuable.

I believe this. brycedotvc: In the book I’m reading,The Talent...

Thu, 19 Jan 2012 08:24:14 -0800

I believe this.

brycedotvc:

In the book I’m reading,The Talent Code, the author showcases a 1997 study which asked why some kids make massive performance progress when taking piano lessons and some do not.

After looking at a wide range of variables- IQ, aural sensitivity, math skills, rhythm, sensorimotor skills, income level- the researchers stumbled on an answer in a question they’d asked the children before they ever slid their stool to the keyboard.

The question? How long do you think you’ll play your new instrument?

As you can see in the graph above, the correlation between long-term commitment and pace of improvement were eye opening. From the book:

I couldn’t believe my eyes. Progress was not determined by any measurable aptitude or trait, but by a tiny powerful idea the child had before even starting lessons. The differences were staggering. With the same amount of practice the long-term-commitment group outperformed the short-term-commitment group by 400%. The long-term-commitment group with, with a mere 20 minutes of weekly practice, progressed faster than the short-termers who practiced for an hour and a half. When long-term-commitment combined with high levels of practice, skills skyrocketed.

As in piano, entrepreneurship sees its fair share of tourists. Toe dippers, looking for a thrill, occasionally take the plunge yet continue keeping an eye on that safe and inviting shoreline. Inevitably, they all swim back via quick flips, acqihires or giving up once they figure out that being a founder isn’t nearly as cool as they thought it would be.

And I don’t blame them. This startups stuff is hard on every level.

But there are a group of founders with a long-term commitment to practicing the skill of turning small companies into impactful businesses. And they made the decision, before they ever started or joined a company, that the path of entrepreneurship was for them.

This doesn’t mean they’ll never give up on their current idea. Nor, does it mean they won’t work within a large company. It means that the decisions they make and the experiences they accumulate will be feeding that long-term commitment to honing their craft as entrepreneurs.

PS- you can read the whole chapter this graph comes from here.

nevver: Mug Shot

Mon, 16 Jan 2012 01:12:30 -0800

nevver:

Mug Shot

"It’s what comes next that is so much more interesting - the point between taking that idea for a new..."

Mon, 09 Jan 2012 02:52:30 -0800

“It’s what comes next that is so much more interesting - the point between taking that idea for a new application or service and actually expressing it in a real form. Building it. Prototyping it. That’s when your ideas are subject to limits (technical, execution, market, financial) and those limits actually test your theses and tenets. Prototyping shows you where your assumptions were wrong, maybe, and how your idea may be even better than you thought. Most importantly, it subjects your idea to numerous unanticipated constraints.”

- Andy Weissman

Between Thought and Expression Lies A Lifetime

(via fred-wilson)

An Analogy To Explain Why Ideas Are Worthless

Sat, 07 Jan 2012 01:01:03 -0800

Ideas for web/mobile apps are like ideas for paintings.

I could pitch the idea of painting a woman with a half smile and no one would care. At best they’d be interested to see how it turned out. But no one would decide whether or not the painting was good or bad before it was actually done.

The hard part about building a good app lies in the brush work, the emotion, the proportions, the composition - the execution. Not the idea.

Hackers & Hustlers: 1 Year Later

Tue, 03 Jan 2012 22:38:00 -0800

About a year and a half ago I got invited to an event in Ann Arbor called the “A2 New Tech Meetup”, and I was really nervous. I drove from MSU to Ann Arbor by myself, walked into a room full of smart, unfamiliar faces, and sat down in the front row next to a guy who introduced himself as Jeff Epstein. He was there to pitch his startup, Zferral. The lights dimmed and a guy with a braided ponytail came out, explaining that we were going to watch 5 startups pitch and it was our job to ask really good questions.

By the end of the night I’d met some great people, heard some great ideas, and knew that I loved the authentic startup culture in that room. I drove back to East Lansing obsessed with the idea of starting a similar meetup at MSU, so we could grow our own startup culture. I wanted to call it Hackers & Hustlers.

I started talking to people about the idea and heard that Betsy Weber and Blake Nyquist from TechSmith and Nick Kwiatkowski from MSU were also interested in starting a similar meetup. So we joined forces and put on a few events that spring.

Before the first one, I was so nervous I almost puked. All my friends were going to be there, and I had managed to convince some really cool people to come talk about their startups. One of them was Zach Steindler, a cofounder at Olark. We ended up talking afterward and, well, one thing led to another :)

(He hired me)

I decided it might be useful to start a Facebook group for the meetup, so we could announce new events and post interesting links. I invited a couple people, and right away there was just an energy there. People started posting and things picked up steam rather quickly.

And then we just kept talking. New people started finding out about the group and joining the conversation. It’s grown from 0 to nearly 500 people in just over a year. But the quantity of people isn’t what matters - it’s the quality. I am incredibly thankful that the best hackers and hustlers in Michigan come to talk in an open forum every day. I love hearing what they have to say. We’re creating a ruckus, making things happen, and moving things forward.

One of the reasons Hackers & Hustlers has exceeded all of our expectations is that no one owns it. That’s what a community is all about. We’re just here to help each other, to encourage each other even if we’re nervous and unsure of ourselves. If it weren’t for the people that helped me, like the folks at the A2 New Tech meetup, Hackers & Hustlers would have never existed.

I think Henry summed it up best:

William Shockley: The Steve Jobs Counter-Example

Tue, 27 Dec 2011 16:20:03 -0800

We all subconsciously emulate our heroes, even if we can’t draw any logical connection between their behaviors and their outcomes. After reading Steve Jobs’s biography, I think a lot of us are wondering whether his maniacal management style had anything to do with his success. Some might even experiment with developing our own reality distortion fields.

I think in these situations what is most useful is a good counter-example. William Shockley fits the bill perfectly. He was a scientific genius, and a masterful recruiter. He won the Nobel prize for inventing the transistor, then came to Palo Alto to start a startup to commercialize the transistor. He was sitting on top of a goldmine, the very birth of the nacent computer industry. But it wasn’t his company that ended up taking advantage of the opportunity. Not for lack of ideas - no he employed the very people that would go on to start Intel. Why did Shockley Semiconductor fail while Intel succeeded?

Because Shockley was a horrible manager, and all his employees quit and decided to start their own companies. Watch this 15 minute documentary to learn the details:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yLNh4UY5ohw

So there you have it, folks. Your counter example to the Steve Jobs school of management.

The Evolution of the U.S. Automobile Industry and Detroit as its Capital

Wed, 21 Dec 2011 17:11:24 -0800

The Evolution of the U.S. Automobile Industry and Detroit as its Capital :

Anyone who’s interested in how industries emerge and evolve (cough, tech startups, cough) should give this a read.

In its first fifteen years the U.S. automobile industry was characterized by a great deal of entry and the number of firms exceeded 200. Despite robust growth in the market for automobiles, the industry subsequently sustained a prolonged shakeout in the number of producers and evolved to be an oligopoly dominated by three firms

Louis CK's Shameful Dirty Comedy

Mon, 19 Dec 2011 21:08:29 -0800

viafrank:

I’ve been thinking about Louis CK lately. I’m a fan of his show on FX, and I’m so happy his recent adventure in distributing his newest comedy special himself has been a rousing success. But my thoughts are going elsewhere to wonder why he has blown up in popularity in the past couple years, and why his comedy seems to resonate with these times. It always feels like there’s a comedian willing to address contemporary concerns with insight and honesty for each moment in time. All the greats had their focus: Richard Pryor and Chris Rock had race, George Carlin had absurdity, and I think Louis has hit on some sort of subterranean undercurrent of emotion that I didn’t realize might be swelling until I listened more closely: shame.

Read More

"What may be primarily response to fashion is seen and interpreted in other ways- chiefly as doing..."

Fri, 16 Dec 2011 10:41:00 -0800

“What may be primarily response to fashion is seen and interpreted in other ways- chiefly as doing what is believed to be superior practice. The prevalence of such unwitting deception can be considerable. The basic mechanism of fashion which comes to such a clear, almost pure, form in women’s dress is clouded or concealed in other fields but is none the less operative.”

- Herbert Blumer, on Fashion

Photo

Wed, 14 Dec 2011 23:57:27 -0800

How Brick-and-Mortars Compete

Sat, 10 Dec 2011 12:23:13 -0800

Any brick-and-mortar that’s trying to compete with Amazon’s prices is clueless. No need to get all fired up with righteous indignation about Amazon’s latest play. If you have people in your store, and they’re leaving without buying a product thats in their hands because they can order it on Amazon for $4 cheaper and get it in a week, then you’re seriously doing it wrong.

People buy things from local stores because they like the experience of going out and shopping at a cool place, they like being greeted by the owner, they like the small curated set of merchandise, they like the knowledgeable suggestions the staff can make, they even like the fact that in a high-end art store they see high-end art people and in a grungy skate shop they get rung up by some dude with a million piercings and tattoos.

Long story short, brick-and-mortars compete on character, not price. Amazon’s latest move will hasten the demise of people doing it wrong, but will have basically zero effect on anyone who knows what they’re doing. I believe that’s a good thing, and should be celebrated. I love the fact that old ideas can get killed off by newer better ones in our free economy. If it worked any other way, we’d never have any progress.

http://musicsnob.me/

Sat, 10 Dec 2011 11:41:28 -0800

http://musicsnob.me/:

I love this so much

Einstein

Wed, 07 Dec 2011 23:43:27 -0800

Einstein

Nietzsche

Wed, 07 Dec 2011 22:48:11 -0800

Nietzsche

Stanley Kubrick

Wed, 07 Dec 2011 21:57:32 -0800

Stanley Kubrick

"The mind of man at one and the same time is both the glory and the shame of the universe."

Sun, 04 Dec 2011 10:46:18 -0800

“The mind of man at one and the same time is both the glory and the shame of the universe.”

- Pascal

Learning To Drum

Wed, 30 Nov 2011 19:41:39 -0800

Last fall I read a book called Talent is Overrated and got really excited about the idea of deliberate practice. I dreamed of becoming a world-class product creator, and pictured myself staying up night after night, slowly inching my way towards 10,000 hours. I’d dutifully work on the fundamentals, each design better than the last.

A year later, I’m realizing that I never really grasped deliberate practice. I fell in love with the idea of it, but I never actually experienced it - until recently.

There’s an old electric drum set in the attic of our house. One day this fall, I decided to start messing around on it. I didn’t take it seriously, and I certainly wasn’t trying to become a real drummer. I just liked the stress relief. Nothing feels better than playing along with The Blue Album and drinking a beer after a long day of work.

But after a week of messing around, I got tired of being a sloppy drummer. It feels best when you’re pushing the edge of your abilities but playing well. It sounds corny, but you get totally absorbed in the song, and in a way become one with it. And it feels amazing.

Obviously, there’s a catch. You can’t get in the zone on command. It takes deliberate practice. From time to time, you have to double-down and focus on one limb at a time. I’ll practice a kick drum pattern for half an hour, and try to focus 100% of my attention on every nuance of the sound, and the feeling of my right foot pressing the pedal. When you really focus, you start to get better because you hear more and feel more. The key to creating a beautiful sound is eliminating all the awkward imperfections that we naturally start with until nothing is left that doesn’t belong.

This state of total absorption, of gradually focusing more and more, of creating new neural connections - this is deliberate practice. It’s why the best designers obsess over the details. They’re pouring their entire consciousness, their entire being into the smallest detail, smoothing away all imperfections. It’s why the best writers spend weeks searching for the perfect verb to give their sentence life.

And I must say, it feels amazing. Attaining a pure focus is it’s own reward.

So now, when I sit down to work, I take a minute to eliminate distractions and prepare my mind. I clear the space so I can get into the deep focus. I intentionally stretch myself in my weak zones. And now my practice is much more deliberate than before.

All because of that old drum set in our attic.

STARTUP IS MAKE FIST OF CODE, PUT IT THROUGH THE WORLD.VISION IS...

Tue, 29 Nov 2011 07:43:27 -0800

STARTUP IS MAKE FIST OF CODE, PUT IT THROUGH THE WORLD.
VISION IS PUT FIST IN RIGHT PLACE, BREAK WORLD IN HALF.