Thursday, September 29, 2005
Web2MemeMap
Result of a "What is Web 2.0?" brainstorming session at FOO Camp 2005. Meme maps adapted from business model maps developed by Beam Inc.
Flickred by Tim O'Reilly on 18 Sep '05, 12.45pm EDT.
Flickred by Tim O'Reilly on 18 Sep '05, 12.45pm EDT.
Wednesday, September 28, 2005
back to skule
I'll be attending startup school on October 15th, 2005 in Cambridge. If you're in the area and would like to connect for coffee/tea/BEvERages over the weekend, please get in touch.
Before she retired, my mother was a successful real estate broker/agent in Toronto. I learned a few things growing up in the high performance sales atmosphere:
I'm looking forward to attending class. I'm going to be listening hard. If I learn just one thing that helps me achieve my dream, it's worth the 428 miles I'll travel.
I'm especially looking forward to meeting my classmates. If I meet just one person with a wild idea and an infectious, motivated attitude it'll be worth the trip. And I'll try to be infectious and motivating (although I suspect my ideas aren't that wild).
The fine print: YMMV. Times have changed, maybe successful salespeople attend more events these days, maybe fewer. That's not the point. Oscar Wilde said it before I did, and he was right.
Before she retired, my mother was a successful real estate broker/agent in Toronto. I learned a few things growing up in the high performance sales atmosphere:
- Successful salespeople attend an average of twelve professional development events a year. Unsuccessful salespeople are too busy to take a day off selling to 'sharpen the saw.'
- Successful salespeople walk out of a day long sales training seminar talking about the one thing they learned that will help them make more money. Unsuccessful salespeople walk out of a day long sales training seminar talking about all of the things they already knew and the three or four things they think were wrong.
I'm looking forward to attending class. I'm going to be listening hard. If I learn just one thing that helps me achieve my dream, it's worth the 428 miles I'll travel.
I'm especially looking forward to meeting my classmates. If I meet just one person with a wild idea and an infectious, motivated attitude it'll be worth the trip. And I'll try to be infectious and motivating (although I suspect my ideas aren't that wild).
The fine print: YMMV. Times have changed, maybe successful salespeople attend more events these days, maybe fewer. That's not the point. Oscar Wilde said it before I did, and he was right.
Tuesday, September 20, 2005
Spot the Bug and Interviews Gone Wrong
Spot the (Java) Bug:
private final static long THIRTY_DAYS_IN_MILLISECONDS = 30 * 24 * 60 * 60 * 1000;
...
final Date today = new Date();
final Date thirtyDaysHence = new Date(today.getTime() + THIRTY_DAYS_IN_MILLISECONDS);
Sheesh.
I promise that if I ever ask someone to spot this bug in an interview, they can gather their resume, code samples, and references up and walk out without another word.
More about interviews gone wrong: Nah'mean? and Other Interview Stories
Where does one begin with those stories? Obviously, interviewing and recruiting is a two-way process. If the interviewers are superficial, you can bet the company will be superficial. Is that what you want?
On the other hand, some people have an idea of propriety that does not strongly correlate with their fitness as employers. In other words, they might expect you to dress conservatively and be polite for an interview, but that doesn't mean they won't be great people to work with/for.
The whole dress code and manners thing boils down to something quite simple: when meeting new people in a business context, your dress and mannerisms should not call attention to themselves. This works both ways: I own custom tailored suits and a full set of 'tails', but few of my software development colleagues have ever seen them :-)
I'm not advocating some sort of herd mentality. I'm suggesting that you want your accomplishments and potential to stand out. I'm all for making a huge personal impression, but let it be about your talent, not your gear.
Think of your clothes and manners as a windowpane. Sure, you can present some interesting stained glass. But won't that obscure all the interesting things about you?
p.s. Reg blows an interview
private final static long THIRTY_DAYS_IN_MILLISECONDS = 30 * 24 * 60 * 60 * 1000;
...
final Date today = new Date();
final Date thirtyDaysHence = new Date(today.getTime() + THIRTY_DAYS_IN_MILLISECONDS);
Sheesh.
I promise that if I ever ask someone to spot this bug in an interview, they can gather their resume, code samples, and references up and walk out without another word.
More about interviews gone wrong: Nah'mean? and Other Interview Stories
Where does one begin with those stories? Obviously, interviewing and recruiting is a two-way process. If the interviewers are superficial, you can bet the company will be superficial. Is that what you want?
On the other hand, some people have an idea of propriety that does not strongly correlate with their fitness as employers. In other words, they might expect you to dress conservatively and be polite for an interview, but that doesn't mean they won't be great people to work with/for.
The whole dress code and manners thing boils down to something quite simple: when meeting new people in a business context, your dress and mannerisms should not call attention to themselves. This works both ways: I own custom tailored suits and a full set of 'tails', but few of my software development colleagues have ever seen them :-)
I'm not advocating some sort of herd mentality. I'm suggesting that you want your accomplishments and potential to stand out. I'm all for making a huge personal impression, but let it be about your talent, not your gear.
Think of your clothes and manners as a windowpane. Sure, you can present some interesting stained glass. But won't that obscure all the interesting things about you?
p.s. Reg blows an interview
Labels: jobs
