Category: blog (Page 4 of 5)

How to Use SEO to Drive More Sales

One of the pain points small to medium sized businesses have (& even Fortune 500s in some industries) is not understanding what SEO is, and feeling it’s too technical.

Search Engine Optimization is in essence, how to get your website to rank on google searches when your prospects are searching for your product or service.

BUT there are even more benefits to keyword research that will be revealed below.

Keyword Optimization in a Nutshell

Let’s first get clear on the specifics of what SEO is:

Search Engine Optimization discovers which specific terms potential customers search google with to find a service or product.

How money is made through search terms is by including these same search terms on your website. This gets your website ranking higher on Google search results.

But – you need to know the exact phrases as well as words, and that’s just the beginning.

Beyond SEO

Finding those keyword terms is absolutely necessary to get your website content to rank higher on search engine ranking pages (SERPs). Also, you’ll want to be on page 1 of Google for search term search results because people rarely look beyond page one.

Yet, there is a level deeper you’ll want to go for maximum benefits:

Customer intentions when googling. When you know why your prospects are searching for things as part of the customer experience you expand your opportunity for upsells & downsells as well as where and how to build out new products and services.

For more info on how to improve your business by understanding the customer experience read this metrics blog here.

Making keyword research a regular habit you do for your business helps understand how your audience views the world, which enables your messaging to be more on point with better customization and personalization. This generates better trust in your business too!

Have you ever made a content map? I linked a nice Hubspot article to the words ‘content map’ to peep, it’s great to map out your blog content & social media posts ahead of time.

Integrating SEO into how you map out your content calendar will boost your business presence online and up your game by a whole bunch, as more of your audience will read your blog and consume your content when it is already planned with SEO in mind.

Bullet Point Your Search Terms

Step One: Brainstorm Likely Terms Your Audience Searches For
Just start thinking up the type of terms your audience may search for when looking to hire your type of service or buy your type of products, when Google searching.

It can be helpful to role play what you would do if you were a customer, or what you already do personally, when googling for a product. Write down those search terms. If you have a team, get their thoughts too. Think of how your customers may phrase things.

Step 2: Validate Search Terms With Reality
Go on Quora, google your keyword term plus forum or blog or articles and you’ll find where online conversations are happening about your topic. This will get you the exact words your customers are using.

For example, if you run a podcast or marketing firm search “podcast+board” or “marketing+forum” or vice versa, and you’ll find forums and bulletin boards where folks go to find more info. It’s a great place to get your finger on the pulse of current trends.

Pro-tip: Look at Wikipedia, enter your search terms, and look at the table of contents on articles that pull up. This will get you some new search terms that be even more clutch.

Step 3: Google Autofill Hack
This is a nice little hack even millionaires I work with in eCommerce didn’t know about until I taught them! Go to Google.com and enter in the first word of a keyterm — don’t type in the full phrase though let Google autofill the rest.

This is the genius of it, Google will suggest the most popular search term combos that people search for. This will advance your search term list with real results you aren’t guessing on but have in specifics.

Bonus: Google Search Console
Stroll over to the Google Search Console to see the keywords your website already ranks for. Google will also give you the heads up if you have broken pages and/or links on your site, or anything that prevents them from properly indexing your webpage on search engines.

The Genius of Long-tail Search Terms

At this point, if you’re following the steps outlined in today’s blog, you’ll have quite a few search terms written down from:

√ Your brainstorming
√ Role playing as the customer
√ Your teams ideas on search terms
√ What you find on forums and boards in your industry and
√Google auto fill suggestions

To be effective you’ll want to have four to six baseline key phrases.

Ex: Marketing, marketing strategy, marketing plan and eight to twelve long-tail phrases.

Ex: Marketing plan template, Marketing help for small businesses, Marketing ideas during covid.

Baseline search term phrases are just that, your baseline. Start with these, put them on your landing pages, even in About pages if you can.

Use one phrase for your home page and the other phrases should have landing pages or whole sections of your website dedicated to these terms.

This empowers you to earn rankings on search results on Google. But make sure when choosing baseline key words to include relational search phrases in addition to the main one.

What I mean is this, remember when we talked about intention and the customer experience? The plain picture search term of say “marketing” will have higher competition than a less-than-obvious search term that denotes the experience your customer has on the customer journey.

An example of a key word phrase that reflects intent would be “get leads for my business” instead of just “marketing.” It’s a more specific intention which separates the people who may also be marketers from your customer base, that you actually want to reach.

As you may have noticed, the second phrase is a long-tail search term.

The long-tail search terms are fantastic on clarifying the customer’s intention, like the “getting leads for my business” above. You can even make certain weeks in the month themed for specific long-tail search terms you want to split test for SEO generated traffic on your site.

Sounds pretty dang useful right?

There are a few tools SEO experts recommend using I’ll mention as well.

SEO Tools Experts Use

√ Google Keyword Planner

Try and use your twelve to fifteen search terms in the planner’s keyword suggestion tool, and peep the ad groups Google suggests to piece out and label what you see.

You can find terms related to the ad groups, and view the estimated search volume for each term and the suggested bid — keep in mind it’s an AdWords tool made mainly to sell more ads.

Keep your perspective balanced here, as search volume is just one metric. Search terms with a lot of traffic don’t always help, but when you marry this to the bid price, you’ll notice high bid price means higher conversion values.

It isn’t a hard fast rule, but you’ll begin to see that bid price fluctuations are a vital sign when diving in to the research. Ideally, you want to mark and edit your search phrase with a combo of search volume and bid price. Try to find the mid point.

If you’re feeling overwhelmed right now – it’s understandable. You can stick with all the advice given before the Tools section here and still come out on top, better than before.

Here are a couple of other tools SEO experts recommend:

Yoast Suggest
Google Trends

TLDR Cliff Notes Version: Yoast is a free WordPress plugin (with advanced options on the paid plan), it alphabetically lists related search terms from Google, and Google Trends is gold for seeing a timeline of the popularity of a search term.

Google Trends is key if you plan on running Amazon or Shopify eCommerce businesses, as you can see spikes, dips and plateaus for search terms ( = buying habits) of a product you’re evaluating for adding to your shop.

What are your favorite key takeaways from today’s blog on SEO? Comment below, thanks.

. . .

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Dakota Access Pipeline Court Ordered Halt

Credit: Vlad Tchompalov

Sometimes a business losing out is a good thing for the global impact. Not every business is well adapted to current times and sometimes the market needs certain business models to die out to make way for something better.

As retail businesses learn to adapt so they don't close, the oil industry which is responsible for millions of deaths, wars, and occupation, is struggling as well.

You may have forgotten with the huge headlines coming and going in rapid succession, from Black Lives Matter protests to covid craziness, that the Dakota Pipeline threatened the livelihood of thousands native to the planned development site.

Dakota Access Pipeline TLDR History

Informational hearings for landowners took place between August 2014 and January 2015. Dakota Access, LLC, controlled by Energy Transfer Partners, started constructing the pipeline in June 2016 and cost $3.78 billion dollars.

Protests of the Dakota Access Pipeline occurred at several places because of concerns about the pipeline's impact on the environment and to sites sacred to American Indians. Indigenous nations around the country opposed the pipeline, along with the Sioux tribal nations.

The Obama Administration spoke out for the need to analyze environmental impacts more, then later President Trump did his best to fast track the pipeline into operation. Trump signed a presidential memorandum to advance approval of pipeline construction.

Then the Cheyenne River Sioux sued this decision, citing an 1851 treaty and interference with the religious practices of the tribe.

The pipeline goes underneath Lake Oahe, a water supply source for the Sioux Native Americans. The pipeline became active May 2017, despite almost 15,000 people from around the world protesting, staging sit-ins for months near the Standing Rock Indian Reservation.

The pipeline commercial operations started without oil spill response plan for the Missouri River crossing and without emergency response cleanup equipment stored nearby.

Jesse Jackson called the move to put the pipeline closer to the reservation, "environmental racism," as ABC News reported. But the plot thickens like a cup of day old coffee - why would Trump be so eager to support the pipeline?

Trump's 2016 federal disclosure forms show he owned between $15,000 & $50,000 in stock in Energy Transfer Partners - the company in charge of constructing the pipeline - per Al Jazeera.

Surprised? There's more. Energy Transfer Partners CEO Kelcy Warren gave $103,000 to the Trump campaign, as Reuters reports. Despite how crazy this sounds already it gets even crazier with Russian hackers.

Russian government's Internet Research Agency Troll farm spread misinformation on social media sites like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram by creating a fake Facebook Page to enrage people with posts about the pipeline, same sex marriages, and racial issues.

As far as a business model, the oil industry is definitely anachronistic, as surveying your customers for what they like and giving it to them is one of the fundamental ways to grow your brand.

This isn't exactly a strategy being used here. But, there seems to be a positive turn of events. Well, not positive for the oil industry, but positive for the people it affects.

Dakota Access Pipeline Court Ordered Halt

Reuters states:

According to the ruling, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers violated the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) when it granted an easement to Energy Transfer LP (ET.N) to construct and operate a segment of the oil pipeline beneath Lake Oahe in South Dakota, because they failed to produce an adequate Environmental Impact Statement (EIS).

The court ordered Energy Transfer to shut and empty the 570,000 barrel-per-day (bpd) line within 30 days, closing off the biggest artery transporting crude oil out of North Dakota’s Bakken shale basin to Midwest and Gulf Coast regions.

My Take

It is a complicated issue, at least the shutting down part is. While most people not either getting bribes from the oil industry as Trump was blatantly benefiting from or working for the oil corps, would agree that it's not good to endanger the water supplies of local residents, closing down the operations faces additional complications.

First, many jobs will be lost for those working the pipeline, which will cause a loss of economic stimulus from those workers spending their money in the local economy as well as their own struggle to survive.

Second, there will be a question of retaliation from the oil industry. This could take the form of people they hire to sue, or get elected and pass laws hurting Native Americans or other black hat tactics.

Third, it's going to be complicated trying to get the oil in the pipeline now, out of it, and transported elsewhere. It's likely the unused oil will be transported via rail cars to the west and east coasts.

So hey if you own a rail car company - there is some money to be made with this shut down. Many environmental and locals to the area are super relieved and happy to hear this news.

But, there are other elements at play that while working against the oil industry, in a way, soften the blow to their business, in that, oil consumption nationally is already at an all time low.

This is because of covid, people are staying home more, going out less, and using their cars a whole lot less. In addition to individuals, large events people drive to are canceled.

Those high school and college graduations that were canceled also mean thousands if not tens of thousands of relatives of graduates, especially in college, who live out of town, aren't driving to their family's graduation ceremony.

There are many other examples of where and how both individual car use and public transit and cross country bus transit are down.

Now, in the aftermath of the Dakota Pipeline shutting down, there will be less oil consumption, yet, we already weren't using as much oil as pre February 2020 this year. So..does it matter that much anyways?

Ideally, society as a whole would have shifted before now to more renewable sources of energy due to countless studies on the global impact of fossil fuels. It's just hard to convince established industries, with deep pockets and large contributions to politicians who pass the laws regulating oil to switch to going green.

Perhaps this is the push we needed to ramp up infrastructure around sustainable energy? I don't know. But I do know thousands of Native Americans are happy their water supply and burial grounds aren't threatened anymore.

This just brings up the important point to think about: if your business model involves harm to other people and the environment, it is time to rethink how you're strategizing for the long term. Certain businesses should be allowed to die.

Operating a business that has longevity means your marketing plan and long term strategy is just as responsive as site optimized for mobile viewers and social media presence.

The values that your company publicly demonstrates is the most attractive value proposition or unique mechanism think tanks can come up with. After all, like attracts like.

. . .

Available for freelance writing and guest posting on your blog: [email protected]

In the Struggle to Survive There is Hope

Credit: Morning Brew

Before the Corona Virus hit and lock stock and barrel shot retailers in the face, brick-and-mortar businesses were already struggling. Several national chains closed down stores in rapid succession like Radioshack, Sears and Blockbuster.

While Tesla is booming in business, retail establishments still face challenges.

Now that stay-at-home orders are in place everywhere, and at best you may have 50% capacity allowed at restaurants, retail businesses need to recalibrate their strategy.

The wait-and-see if things get better approach isn't going to do anyone any favors at this point. We are 5 months into the new now. Graduations canceled, weddings forestalled, schools everywhere moving to remote learning.

McKinsey reports that consumers are more likely to keep many of the habits developed on lock down even after everything returns to normal. (Fingers crossed this actually happens).

In the Struggle to Survive There is Hope

While this does present new challenges, it also presents new opportunities. The masks, social distancing and occupation limits are pushing many businesses who resisted building a digital presence into either going out of business or putting their storefront online.

The bright side of this, is that it is a catalyst for many companies who would have otherwise slowly faded to the background and quietly closed their doors.

With Amazon competing as the largest general store, eBay, and more taking business away from store fronts across the world - now these same businesses are back in the game so to speak.

Being forced to sink or swim right now has helped many companies finally get up to date with creating an online store, meaning they have more opportunities to attract business than if they just stayed analog.

Brand loyalty isn't just an optional strategy - increasing the quality of the customer experience is now super vital to get customers to come back for repeat business.

Offering consumers options for ordering and picking up at the store, and ensuring their websites are mobile friendly are only a few of the adaptations businesses have to go through to survive.

As much doom and gloom as you read in the media, I take this as a good sign because it's pushing some businesses who would have gone out of business in the next couple of years to adapt in new ways that ensure their survival.

There's a taco shop I love who never posted on Facebook before COVID struck and now I can see their specials on their Page, as well as updates to their (rather outdated) website.

Customers can get more info ahead of time on what's on the menu, increasing the chance of this restaurant being where they have lunch today.

It's just one of many examples of how the threat of COVID closures have upped the ante for companies that would otherwise not have tried to go digital.

I see many businesses developing their social media presence now that straight up left their Pages dusty before.

The result is I'm seeing more B2C social interactions, peer support, more accurate reviews, and recommendations, lots of multimedia content, more personalization and an opportunity to build in gamification to the customer journey.

What positive changes have you seen in businesses that are new to right now? Comment below!

. . .

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Tesla’s Stock is Up – Elon Exceeds Expectations

Credit: Tesla CEO Elon Musk during the unveiling of the new Tesla Model Y in Hawthorne, California in March 2019. Photo: Frederick J. Brown/AFP, via Getty Images

The Tesla cars are like certain bands, either you love them or you hate them. Investors have been casting a dubious eye wondering how Elon Musk's car company will fair give COVID.

Tesla delivered a total of 90,650 vehicles during Q2 of 2020. This is an astounding 2,250 more than in the first quarter of the 2020. 82,272 Tesla cars were produced April to June this year, which is down from Q1 because of C19 holdbacks.

“While our main factory in Fremont was shut down for much of the quarter, we have successfully ramped production back to prior levels,” Tesla wrote during their Q2 announcement.

Credit: https://electrek.co/2020/07/02/tesla-announces-q2-deliveries-90650-electric-cars-beating-expectations/

Tesla Stock Rises

Audi just reported a more than 30% drop in deliveries in Q2, so Tesla is definitely ahead of the curve. Tesla’s market valuation is just over $224 billion (as of the date this blog is published).

Tesla has also passed the market caps of Dow components Coca-Cola (KO), Disney (DIS), Cisco (CSCO), Merck (MRK) and Exxon Mobil (XOM).

Tesla was predicted by CNBC analysts to deliver only around 70K and well over shot low expectations. As a result, Tesla's stock is rising. TSLA is up $100 (9%) trading at $1220 pre-market value (as of July 2nd, 2020).

Elon Musks's electric car company is showing great headline numbers for an auto industry struggling to make profits on new car sales due to the pandemic. Some of this is attributed to Tesla entering China as a manufacturer, when prior, Musk had only sold Teslas there.

The Secret to Tesla's Success

Tesla shares are on a bull run now even in spite of the economic downturn the world is facing, and this is largely possible because Musk understood how to dominate a niche market.

It wasn't just about going green, but targeting a market of buyers who wanted to go green without losing the class and style this level of luxury vehicles offer.

Just like Tuesday's blog reported that there is something beyond the surface at play, with how the Facebook algorithm prioritizes content, Elon Musk didn't just sell an electric car. He sold a lifestyle.

There are many lessons other automobile manufacturers and startups can learn from analyzing the rise of Tesla's success. Clearly cheap gas prices right now don't offer an incentive to buy electric cars.

Many sustainable energy companies that provided wind and solar options never survived, and this was largely because their marketing strategy depending on everyone just realizing going green is the right thing to do.

Elon Musk focused on dominating a single niche of wealthy-ish suburbanites who wanted to support renewable energy but not sacrifice aesthetics in the process. And his strategy is succeeding.

How can you use this strategy in your business? What sub niches exist with your main target audience that have potential for new products to serve their interests?
. . .

Available for freelance writing and guest posting on your blog: [email protected]

Does Facebook Only Promote Sad Reacts? No – It Goes Deeper

The content that you see on social media, or Facebook at least, is not as random as you may think it is. The Facebook algorithm is how Facebook decides which posts users see, and in what order, every time they check their newsfeeds.

Credit: Hootsuite.com

In the early days, when the Facebook algorithm was born, in 2009, posts were sorted based on popularity.
But, after more time passed, Facebook decided to just do what ever they could to keep Facebook users on the platform. The reasoning is that the more time Facebook users are on Facebook, the more they can be advertised to.

Right now there is a lot of negativity on Facebook. There are positive posts too but many news articles state that negative talking points are organically being supported more than positive by the Facebook algorithm.

While Facebook is free to use, Mark Zuckerberg pays the bills through advertisers paying him ad money to run advertisements on the platform.

The more time people spent on Facebook, the more money goes to the shareholders of Facebook.

Facebook's Shareholders

Mark Zuckerberg, with a net worth of $54.7 Billion dollars according to Forbes, holds over 400 million shares of Facebook, comprising a market value of around $82.2 billion.

The Vanguard Group Inc., an investment management company, holds approximately 184.0 million shares of Facebook with a combined market value of about $37.7 billion.

BlackRock an asset and investment management firm, holds about 158.2 million shares of Facebook with a combined market value of $32.3 billion.

FMR LLC, a financial services company holds approximately 123.6 million shares of Facebook with a combined market value of $26.1 billion.

T. Rowe Price is an investment management company offering portfolio management, equities, fixed income, asset allocation, and holds about 107.8 million shares of Facebook totaling a combined market value of $22.1 billion. Source: Investopedia

Facebook Algorithm Changed to Prioritize Friends & Fam

Mark Zuckerberg announced in 2018 that going forward, one of the biggest changes with Facebook was that the algorithm would be modified to prioritize friends and family posts instead of just advertisers' posts.

However, that's not what happened. Instead of seeing more communities of friends and families created, studies revealed that over 50% of increased engagement was paired with increased divisiveness, outrage and angry reactions.

At the same time, the way the Facebook algorithm prioritized content ended up supporting fringe posts on fake news from scam artists and spammers who knew how to work the engagement algorithm.

If It Bleeds It Reads

Journalism, in the news media has always had a slant for things that are negative. Despite the fact that there are also more positive topics that are newsworthy -- these are often ignored to prioritize the shock and awe and graphic violence stories.

So much so, there is even a catch-phrase that journalists use: “If it bleeds it reads.”

In a sense, Facebook has just allowed itself to become prey to the same ideology with one big predator creating the most amount of unhappy feelings in millions of people’s lives as they scroll the newsfeed: Fox News.

“Angry” is the top reaction when it comes to political content, though not other types of content. Fox News hired social media managers who knew how to bleed the hearts of millions through divisive negative stories on Facebook:

Credit: newswhip.com

It's clear Faux News knows exactly what they are doing, and do it well. Creating content that is negative and hateful will get more reactions, with a consistent narrative, posting schedule and relentless factory of discontented posts.

That's not the entire story though. There are plenty of other stories and posts that have gotten a high number of reactions that are positive. Posts about babies, pets, and baking cookies also have gotten incredible amounts of reach.

Over 2 MILLION engagements were drawn to the So Yummy Facebook Page's post on 12 cookie decorating hacks:

Credit: newswhip.com

So while many decry Facebook as having the intention of hurting people's feelings and spreading discontent, this isn't reality. Reality isn't one single narrative. When you subscribe to only one way of thinking you miss out on what's happening in the periphery.

The reality is, Facebook is a tool, and if bad characters spend more time on learning how to use this tool and get more adept at distributing content with higher engagement - they will dominate the Facebook Newsfeed.

Credit: Anthony Quintano

What's curious is how many people seem to miss out on the fact that reactions such as the laugh react and love react, if prioritized in high numbers also drive just as much engagement on Facebook.

The narrative that keeps getting repeated is that Facebook is only supporting negative content, when studies by NewsWhip for instance, show this simply isn't true.

NYU professor Scott Galloway, who is known for his outspoken views on Facebook - and someone whose perspective I value - has also missed this essential fact as well in a recent interview with Fast Company:

"What these companies [eg Facebook] have done is created a business model where the most incendiary, upsetting, controversial, and oftentimes false and damaging things get more oxygen than they deserve because we are a tribal species and when people say things that are upsetting we tend to engage. Engagement equals enrichment. The more rage equals the more clicks equals the more Nissan ads. So these algorithms have figured out that if you promote the flawed junk science of anti-vaxxers, it increases shareholder value. There is a population of people out there that believe vaccinations are bad, and they should be heard. But they should not dominate health news so that you start getting these stories from your friends on Facebook. It starts adding legitimacy, and then there’s a trend around anti-vaccination, and more two- and three-year-old boys and girls have their limbs amputated because of an outbreak of measles which we thought we had conquered 30 or 40 years ago."

While there is definitely a lot of truth to what Galloway speaks of, as far as accountability, fact-checking, anti-trust laws not being enforced on big tech companies like Facebook & Google - he misses the point that there is more than one narrative here.

Positive stories get distribution and crazy amounts of reactions too - just share a photo or video of a puppy and see how many reactions and likes it gets. But - as stated before, when companies who want to use negativity to drive reactions put their posting in overdrive, it will definitely also create massive social media engagement.

One headline I've read recently said,

"Facebook Prioritizes What Makes You ‘Sad’ Or ‘Angry’ Over What You ‘Like’"

and yet this is false - as reactions aside from the likes, also include the wow, laugh, love and new Care react - not just sad or angry.

Later on in the article the author says:

"...all reactions are weighted the same, which means the News Feed prioritizes things you “love” equally to things that make you “angry” or “sad.”"

But the headline stated only the negative emotions.

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

This is an example of cherry-picking info to frame a story to support a bias. A pre-existing narrative being told instead of examining the data and seeing the full picture. How you use a tool determines the emotional outcome.

What's even more disturbing is how willing the public is to accept a pre-framed narrative without investigating it, reactions become almost robotic. (Read Great Leaders Don't Create Robots for more tips on leadership).

Ironically, a lot of the trite dialogue on social media, could have been written by a computer algorithm as it's one person trading talking points they didn't think up, or research themselves with another who is doing the same thing.

People don't study anything that doesn't already confirm their existing bias, and look for things on Facebook to support this rather than research their own beliefs.

It would be great to see folks get informed beyond the 3 primary outdated emotionally charged talking points on posts shared without even googling origins of the info and fact checking with multiple sources.

Forgive me, perhaps I am biased about people who are biased, as I worked at a college instructing students on how to cross reference primary and secondary sources. Authenticating data sources is important before becoming emotionally invested in what you think is the absolute truth. But back to Facebook.

It seems like there is a lot of opportunity right now to prey upon people's fears on social media, but there are just as many opportunities to encourage hope, trust and faith that things will get better.

I've seen posts celebrating the bravery of health care workers get amazing distribution, positive reactions and countless likes.

Don't fall victim to a one-story narrative, examine all sides, cross reference sources to make sure you aren't being fed a one dimensional version of a 5 dimensional reality.

I encourage individual Facebook users, as well as companies and entrepreneurs, to use the tools we have wisely. To do our best to create networks that support authenticity, mutual respect and a narrative that promotes sustainable social networks.

. . .

Available for freelance writing and guest posting on your blog: [email protected]

Great Leaders Don’t Create Robots

Credit: Rock'n Roll Monkey

Does every piece of news, blog and social media post have to reference COVID19 right now? While we are limping our way through a pandemic sometimes there needs to be a break from obsessing.

During a crisis we look for leadership to guide the ship we're sailing into safe harbor. At every company, you'll have tons of managers but not very many leaders. Let's talk about leadership.

At an email-marketing conferences I attended, the speaker made it a point to communicate that we won't succeed without a solid plan.

To attempt to keep doing the same thing without strategy is called "hope marketing" and makes a lot of folks live the reality of "broke marketing."

Hope without a strategy doesn't create leadership. Leadership is developed when your hope and positive thinking are matched with a concrete vision of the future and a way to get there.

Real Leaders Know It Ain't About Them

Word of mouth is one of the most powerful ways to grow a tribe, to create a group of people dedicated to a specific purpose or cause. You'll find this in any major sport - word of mouth is a powerful driver and builds communities.

One of the mistakes people make is defining leadership as the worship of a single person. Identity politics is one of the most divisive cancers right now plaguing America.

Leadership that lasts beyond tomorrow and creates a strong community grows when the leader gives people a platform for spreading ideas that work.

Who do you trust more: an ad you see on your Facebook Newsfeed, or a recommendation your friend made? The friend of course. The culture around a product or service grows when people recruit other people. That's how ideas spread too.

People won't do it for you - they do it for each other. Leadership is embracing that it really isn't all about you. It's about the movement you're creating. The shared values of those who follow you.

Change is Inevitable - Except from Vending Machines

Generally speaking, managers don't like people that stick out. By definition they want everyone to tow the line, and stick within established rules.

Many companies have PR statements that say they are about innovation but reward conformity more than anything else. It was definitely like this when I worked in tech at Facebook. You didn't want to stick out in any way.

Managers were overworked and had no bandwidth to recognize the talents of their employees. I quit my job at Facebook because of this and started a successful consulting firm and e-commerce ventures.

I was a deviant - I didn't fit in with the status quo. But neither did Elon Musk, Henry Ford or Tony Robbins. All of them are outliers that challenged conformity. While I wouldn't say my contributions to society can light a candle yet to these notable people, there's something important to worth mentioning:

Managers don't like deviants, they don't like nonconformists who may be eccentrics or mavericks with too much individual personality. Deviating from conformity is a failure for a manager working to deliver within the rigid lines of their role.

Managers crush nonconformists - that's what they do. Managers don't inspire people. Leaders do.

Leaders understand a different outlook: change is unavoidable and also one of the keys to success. Not human robots.

Credit: Craig Sybert

As it turns out, when you have a workforce that is dedicated to change and more fully engaged in making things happen-- not only are employees happier but they are also more productive.

This is a much better way to organize a business than making people walk on tip toes, using threats of losing job security and fear as a motivation to do a good job.

Leadership isn't just popularity, power and showmanship.
The Harvard Business Review states:

"A successful leader as one who can understand people’s motivations and enlist employee participation in a way that marries individual needs and interests to the group’s purpose."

Find Someone Succeeding & Encourage Them

When someone at the job place has created a workaround, or another way of doing routine work that works better, instead of punishing them for not conforming shine the spotlight.

While it won't always be the case, often innovation comes in small packages from employees just figuring out a better way to do a task that isn't officially sanctioned in the employee handbook.

Great leaders find someone deviating from the norm creating success - and encourage them.

Many things we know and love as part of every day life happened because someone did something different than the norm and challenged the group-think of conformity in the workplace, society or within a specific industry.

Air Bnb is one example of this, so are Lyft & Uber, as well as Google's Gmail as mentioned in the blog about managers needing to adopt flexible strategies from leadership to keep folks motivated post COVID (to not just do the minimal but to exceed expectations).

It's raining right now in Austin, Texas and Leonard Cohen is playing on the online radio station I listen to, Radio Paradise.

As I listen to the lyrics sang, I think of leaders who inspired me in my journey from 9-5er to entrepreneur. And the traits they have in common.

One of the shared attributes every one of them has, is the ability to put aside their own ego and become sincerely invested and curious in how other people think, feel and perceive life.

Who are some great leaders you've met in your life? Who inspires you?
. . .

Available for freelance writing and guest posting on your blog: [email protected]

5 Tips on Starting a New Business During Covid

Credit: Danielle MacInnes

Now is a great time to start a business. You're saying, "Hold up Trevor, we are all on lock down, are you kidding?" No joke - right now is a great time to start a business with a caveaut:

Design a company that is agile, not dependent on physical location, with a strong online presence.

Businesses succeed when they solve a problem. Right now, consumers have a whole set of new problems that your business can solve.

Whether you're launching a new clothing line for sweat pants and lounge gear or at-home fitness training, there are opportunities to grow and succeed in the new marketplace.

Create a Business Plan

Starting a new business is exciting, nerve wracking and you gotta think on your feet a lot. But, if you have a business plan mapped out ahead of time it gives you a great jump off point.

You may not even follow the plan. Or you may pick and choose parts to follow and adapt other parts as you go along - being agile is critical to your success. Pivoting as you see fit allows you to succeed.

Don't kill yourself writing it. Make it 5-7 pages max. Get your ideas out of your brain in a format for a business template.

Cover these Important Business Points

Write down your answers to these questions in one document:

How are you going to grow?
What are you trying to build?
How are you different from competitors?
How do you make customers wildly happy?
Ponder the chapters of your business

Think about the segments of growth for the chapters of your business. For instance, if you're starting a vegan delivery food truck that customers can order from via an app - 1st you'll have the food truck and app developed.

Then your vegan food delivery service can expand to a full restaurant. After that it'll become a catering business for a larger area. Perhaps this will then open up to franchising or being priced to sell.

The concept here is that when you're thinking on your feet, you can miss important details. When you're doing some deeper thinking on the bigger picture of your business ahead of time you can map out the smaller steps in between significant moves.

You won't have time to sit on your couch and just strategize once you've really got the ball rolling. You may not have all the answers but putting your thoughts down in a structured business plan gives you a resource to refer back to to connect the parts.

You'll have something to refer back to when you're on the move making things happen. It helps you gain perspective on how you connected ideas together that manifest as concrete action steps.

This is especially helpful when you've spent time ahead of time analyzing your competition so you know how you can stand out - or at least have a starting place.

Go Find Smart People to Criticize You

After creating your business plan, structured for stay-at-home, online-friendly covid reality, then find the three smartest people you know.

You know who these people are, they are the super smart folks around you in your friends circle or even co-workers from present or previous jobs.

It would be even better if they also run their own business. Either way, you want them to give you hard criticism on your ideas. Because this helps you increase your ability to make your business better.

Be prepared to hear some hard words. Go into it expecting they will tell you your ideas suck. Don't fish for compliments. Lean into their criticisms. Ask open ended follow up questions.

Remember - your goal is to get them to poke holes in your strategy and future visions so you know where you can improve.

It's highly likely if they see things you aren't seeing, and you want to get investors, those angel investors will see the same things or some of them as well.

Thinking up objections ahead of time and better yet solving them puts you ahead of the rest.

Get Yer Legals Set

Make sure you understand the basics on what you need to do for local taxes, which vary state to state. For example if you're starting an e-commerce store you need to buy at the least an LLC or sole proprietorship, and a sales tax license.

You'll want to get a business bank account to separate your taxable income from your business from your personal finances. It'll be set up with a business EIN number, which is like your social security number for businesses.

Invest in a good attorney and a good accountant. Prioritize the accountant first as you'll want to make sure you don't owe the IRS money. You can hire an attorney after you start making income. When you're ready to scale, you have to make sure your books are straight.

And of course, make sure you have a website for your business, and a business email that isn't just @gmail. Look up Gsuite and how to connect that to your domain for a business email.

Find People Like Me

Reach out to entrepreneurs like myself who already run their own business and ask them for two minutes of their time.

You'd be surprised but many people who are very successful love giving back and helping the newbs out with advice they wish they knew when starting out.

[Hint hint - the reason why I wrote this blog]

Having a solid convo with an established business leader, the higher up the better, will help you see the gaps that laterally moving won't catch.

It's also inspiring to talk to those who have tried what you're doing and succeeded.

What are your tips for those starting out with a new business? Or, what do you wish you had tips about for starting a business?
. . .

Available for freelance writing and guest posting on your blog: [email protected]

The Economy of Integrity

Credit: Bonnie Kittle

We live in uncertain times but one thing we can all count on is our own ability to frame the social interactions we have. This is both in our personal lives and in business connections when we interact with other business owners or potential partners for joint ventures and more.

It's one of those nuances of human behavior often ignored - are you being the best version of yourself?

This is where professional development meets personal development. Why is it so hard to take a step back outside the echo chamber of previously held beliefs?

Some of it is habit. Habit in how we think of ourselves, the world, other people and our potential. For many, their careers don't take off until they figure their shit out, as a person. Yet - you won't see this taught in MBA programs at major universities.

It's Not What You Do It's How

There are tons of awful people that donate to charities yet abuse their spouses, do unhealthy amounts of drugs and never take a long hard look at who they are actually becoming aside from profit margins met.

Have you ever tried to save a friend from themselves? Passionately advocating on how to dodge the bullet you see headed towards them from their current actions and life path?

What usually happens?

A shit ton of defensiveness and resentment.

Leonard Cohen once sang,

"And I lift my glass to the awful truth
Which you can't reveal to the ears of youth..."

Cohen sings of the eternal resistance of being told what we know is true - that perhaps we aren't trying hard enough. Perhaps we owe it to ourselves to be a bit more honest on if actions taken are doing justice to the version of ourselves we become when energy follows thoughts.

The act of becoming is talked about in many esoteric texts and yet very divorced from the business world, as far as an inherent quality we associate with success.

The art of becoming is the acknowledgement we aren't perfect but also aren't helpless about who we become during the process of living our lives.

I've been blessed to meet, rather recently, a number of influential multi millionaires at the top of their game for their industry. And in this circle something is different than others I've met in previous years who were also successful in business.

These people, many of whom know each other, have spent time understanding who they are and reflect honor and integrity into how they do business and affect the world.

Back to the friend you're trying to save analogy (happened several times for folks I know). It isn't what you're saying. The content is gold - your intentions are pure, you don't have anything to gain here. It is all for the sake of your friend who is fucking up that you want to save.

It isn't what you say, it's how you say it. If anyone feels lectured to, instant walls go up. Higher than the BS ones the prez wants to build between USA and Mexico. Just add water or err um..strongly worded advice.

People feel the energy coming from you behind your words. This has parallels in the start up world as well.

LTV Isn't Accidental

Of the highly successful 7 figure business leaders I've had the luck to meet, connect with, and in some cases become friends with - the feeling of 'this person genuinely cares for others' and reflects that in how they do business is a great predictor of not just success but longevity.

You may have heard of LTV, the life time value of a customer who makes multiple purchases with your business. A customer's LTV exponentially increases if they trust your business. This is the economy of integrity.

When customers feel a bond because of the tribe you've created based on integrity, the rituals specific to your business, and the values you stand for (and what you won't accept: read I'm Not For Everyone) this not only increases long term profits but you become an excuse for others to rise up and act better.

Do we need to wait for Christmas to be generous, forgiving and proactively giving?

Of course not. It's an attitude. An attitude of gratitude. Ok I did see that on the wall at a meeting I was at back in the day. But despite it's rather pithy phrasing, it speaks to deeper concepts.

It's the idea that every Sci Fi author understands - sometimes we are world-creating. We create a micro world of who buys our product or service and determine what kind of environment and culture we create.

Make use of the free will and choice we do have to lead a company based on values of integrity. It gives back so much more than it takes. Your influence continues to grow positively and affect the lives of others in a way that inspires them to do the right thing.

Don't Take My Word for It

Don't take my word for it - plenty of studies from multiple sources back up, empirically, the values delivered by being a decent person, and how that decency affects organizational structures beneficially.

From the National Academy of Sciences:

"Leadership by individuals of high personal integrity helps to foster an environment in which scientists can openly discuss responsible research practices in the face of conflicting pressures. All those involved in the research enterprise should acknowledge that integrity is a key dimension of the essence of being a scientist and not a set of externally imposed regulatory constraints.

To the Journal on Public Integrity and Ethical Leadership:

“ 'Moral values and norms' are often absent when scholars are involved in describing, explaining, and understanding the reality of governance and administration (the dominant focus is on goals and interests; biases and irrationality; institutions; and context and power). An “ethics and integrity turn” in the dominant fields of study is needed."

The Economist referenced a study ran by Tim Hird of Robert Half Management Resources who aptly said:

“Companies with strong, ethical management teams enhance their ability to attract investors, customers and talented professionals,” explains Hird, adding that ethical behavior starts at the top and allows companies to create a culture that values integrity."

Going back to the friend analogy - the reason I bring this up is that this fits your engagement with your customer base as well. If you really want to help your friend out and avoid a slow motion accident you see coming, listen first. Focus less on the righteousness of the point you're making. More on what his or her needs actually are.

Same goes for the impact your business has on the world through the interactions your clients have with each other, with your business and others they come into contact with after purchasing.

When the person you are is reflected in the values of your company, this ripple effect increases CTV by just making people feel more comfortable because they know, see and feel your integrity.

You may just inspire them to also live their lives with higher integrity - helping your business thrive through word of mouth, increase customer retention and long term profits but also help the world become a better place.

"The supreme quality for leadership is unquestionably integrity. Without it, no real success is possible, no matter whether it is on a section gang, a football field, in an army, or in an office."

-President Dwight D. Eisenhower

I'd like to hear your comments on your experiences as a customer and business with integrity.

. . .

Available for freelance writing and guest posting on your blog: [email protected]

What the Workplace Looks Like – Post COVID19

Image by cromaconceptovisual from Pixabay

Many businesses have come to a full stop due to the Corona Virus, or rather the response to C-19 from governments across the world putting entire countries on lockdown.

What does a post Covid workplace look like?

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor, 21.0 million are unemployed in America right now. The unemployment rate and the number of unemployed persons are up by 9.8 percentage points and 15.2 million, respectively, since February 2020.

Employers are taking a step back, scratching their heads and trying to figure out what hiring strategies look like, and how workplace organization will accommodate social distancing.

Remote Workflows Increase Employer Value

You may have noticed that businesses you work for or are a customer of have started partially staffing offices again. To the extent this will continue depends on the spread of the corona virus, death counts, and potential vaccines.

Many workplaces, especially in the tech sector, already offered remote work options. When I provided IT support for Facebook's servers, Facebook had us working partially remote.

This added many advantages being able to multitask household chores like doing laundry while still monitoring dips and spikes in the flux of Facebook's site stability.

Employers adapting to C-19 by offering remote work options will attract some of the best talent from literally anywhere in the world.

This increases job satisfaction as well if location is no longer the make or break factor in accepting a job. How many times have people moved away from friends and family just to land a 'good' job?
Countless.

What happens when your commute time is increased 5 times as much driving to and from work? Definitely doesn't make you appreciate working somewhere more.

I've known folks who commuted literally from other cities to work everyday. And not outlier suburbs but literal whole other cities hours away.

Working remote offers savings in gas money, babysitting money for parents, and expands the talent pool employers can select from.

Productivity Hacks & Employee Behavior Drives

If the new future post covid19 involves more remote work, employers will need to develop new productivity hacks. This includes the necessity of increasing engagement among employees.

When I worked remote for another IT company that offered tech support for colleges we had group chats where we could share comments together on more than just the job.

The social aspect helped relieve the monotony of working only by yourself at home without physical socialization.

Socializing is important. Research by Oxford University's Saïd Business School, in collaboration with British multinational telecoms firm BT, has found a conclusive link between happiness and productivity:

The happier employees are the more productive they are.

Autonomy and trust will need to be increased in order for even a partially remote workforce to be productive.This means, individually, employees have to find out their specific behavior drives.

This is likened to the aspiring college student - if you went to college one of the things you had to figure out, consciously or by habit, is how you learned the best.

Are you a visual learner? Audio learner? Did taking notes by computer lessen how much you retained versus shorthand notes that are hand written in a notebook?

One of my biggest challenges going to the University of Texas was discovering how I learned the best. It was a Rubik's cube.

Spanish grammar was a particular roadblock for me. Through trial and error I discovered that I learned best by immersing myself in Spanish Netflix shows, Spanish radio stations, and attending Spanish speaking meetup groups - in addition to the standard flipping of index cards for vocab and grammar memorization.

Employees will need to find new routines if working remote, that helps them stay focused and productive. Management can take the lead helping this process by increasing engagement and feedback activities.

The End of Chats by the Water Cooler Era?

Side chatter may be reduced if people aren’t physically at the job place. No more random stops by your friends desk on the way to your lunch or the bathroom.

No more chats by the water cooler

While to some this sounds like a good option it’s good only in the out dated IBM of the 60s work model of dress codes, strict workplace protocols that kill creativity and innovation.

This antiquated notion that the more alike and the same everyone was the easier it is to control them and increase their output has been proven wrong by numerous studies (read my blog on intrinsic motivation).

Some of the best ideas that created billions of dollars in revenue came from chats at the water cooler, as well as side projects that were left up to individual employees to develop to their own liking versus strict company standards.

Gmail itself was invented by an engineer during Google's famous 20% days.

"We encourage our employees, in addition to their regular projects, to spend 20% of their time working on what they think will most benefit Google,"

as Business Insider quoted Google saying.

Paul Buchheit, the creator of Gmail, created the first version of Gmail in one day, reusing the code from Google Groups. The project was known by the code name Caribou, a reference to a Dilbert comic strip about Project Caribou.

The point is, if remote work is going to become the norm, management will need to adopt more flexible strategies from leadership to keep folks motivated to not just do the minimal but to exceed expectations.

Companies will be at an advantage to be inclusive of free range creative brainstorming moments where staff can socialize, share experiences and create mini think tanks.

What other ways do you see the workplace changing due to COVID19? Comment your thoughts below!

. . .

Available for freelance writing and guest posting on your blog: [email protected]

The Power of Tribes

Credit: Joel Mott

We live in challenging times right now. Police brutality has led to business closures from storefronts near protest marches, COVID19 panic buying has led to food and toilet paper shortages and many college graduates, like myself, were stripped of the gift that walking across college stages in grad regalia gives our hearts and souls.

Would be memories never created due to the bizarre pausing of normal life, as we all wait, breathless, for the next thing to happen, hoping paradoxically for things to return to normal.

Business right now is also juxtaposed with innovation opportunities but strained to maintain existing product lines above margin.

Steve Jobs' iconic slogan for Apple, "Think Different," really applies to all verticals still attempting to run a company in these challenging times.

How to Challenge the Status Quo Correctly

Companies that defeat the status quo often succeed where many fail. Whenever the state of affairs is changing, it gives one a chance to be remarkable.

However, many grains of sand make up a beach. Microinfluencers are forgotten by heads of marketing as they push out more cold audience targeted ads.

When you challenge the status quo and can follow through with incredible products or services so unlike what's already out there you start to build a cult following & the story of your business changes.

This following is what makes the difference when you actually are

"Thinking Different."

Quality always beats out quantity. A highly engaged group of followers will recruit more people to join your tribe. They'll take the lead creating micro leaders to step up to the plate and push the envelope.

Nature Abhors A Vacuum

The problem is, there is such a large amount of people that have convinced themselves that it's best to do nothing. That's part of the reason why we see Black Lives Matter protests striking a chord globally. The sleeping masses have woken up and see doing nothing isn't enough now.

To build a business, you need to build a brand. To build a brand you need to build a following. To build a following you need to think differently than the other millions of brands out there saying,

"Buy my stuff, buy my stuff."

Nature abhors a vacuum. A vacuum exists when many who think alike, share pain points your product or service can solve but see no leadership to guide them forward.

Leaders find out how to enter these vacuums and generate momentum. They create the ripple effects the world feels later, after critical mass is reached.

This type of movement generates another type of momentum: the speed of shared trust, the pace of belonging, the transformation of individuals into a tribe.

Be Congruent Inside & Out

Distinguishing your customers from other brands and their clients takes some work. You need to develop your own rituals unique to your company's vision.

Don't be afraid to be a little eccentric. As long as it isn't forced. Jobs was probably very socially awkward but with a genius for aesthetic design.

The funkiness of having all MacBooks after a certain period, come with Garageband, a program to create music, really helped solidify Apple's tribe from competitors.

When you're feeling stuck, think about rituals you enjoy. Contemplate how to integrate these with your tribe. What are things you enjoy, hobbies-wise?

Take a moment to see if you can repurpose some of these activities into a ritual for your company. You may see there are areas you can still rise to challenge the status quo and become remarkable.

. . .

Available for freelance writing and guest posting on your blog: [email protected]

Where Reverse Engineering Fails & Stories Win

Credit: Math

Just like a good cup of coffee, feeling like you are beating the competition in your business's market is a feeling you want to savor. But what are you competing against?

The typical response is binary. Apple competes against Microsoft. General Motors competes against Toyota. Netflix competes against Hulu.

However, when customers are using your product or service to solve a pain point they are doing so to satisfy a complex set of emotions, moods and attitudes.

There are times when a customer may decide to purchase from you because they want to meet a goal. The steps towards reaching this goal have sub-steps that have to be achieved before reaching the purchase point.

The 3D Sphere Model of Competition

Credit: jgvdthree

Just the belief that things can get better is a foundation for moving forward. If consumers don't believe that anything can improve it will be a lot harder of a sell. How does what you sell help your clients make progress in their lives?

The way someone makes progress towards completing a goal is a path that offers many moments for you to solve their pain points. If you have an Ecommerce store selling coffee it would make sense to sell coffee mugs as well right?

Amazon's suggestions of similar products customer bought after buying what you're purchasing is responsible for millions of dollars in sales.

But the only way you will be able to even get to this point is if you understand what is competing with your products. Think beyond a linear timeline. Make it more like a 3 dimensional sphere that intersects with other spheres.

If You Were Selling Coffee...

If I was selling coffee, the competition you may think is other coffee brands, and tea. However, just like last Tuesday's blog mentions another source of competition is not buying anything at all.

Netflix CEO Reed Hastings, talking about the competition Netflix faces said:

“Really we compete with video games. We compete with drinking a bottle of wine. That’s a particularly tough one! We compete with other video networks. Playing board games.”

Thinking outside the box of typical market research on the competition, you'll want to ask, "What do people do instead of drinking coffee?"

Crazy as it seems there are folks who use cold showers to wake up in the morning, or buy really bright lights to turn on in the morning. Workers who work the night shift have their own unique sets of alternatives to coffee which can only last so long before a tolerance is built up.

Energy drinks, Yerba matte, lemon juice and even just water are other sources of competition to coffee. Cigarettes are a replacement for coffee to stimulate the user into being more awake as well as physical exercise.

Using the sphere model of where competition exists for your product, we can see it's more than tea but also yoga mats and stationary bicycles. What circumstances are people in when they seek coffee?

Students, office workers, teachers, entrepreneurs and many more use coffee to start their day. It's a popular drink. What aren't people saying about coffee?

Power of Micro Targeting

Answering these type of questions helps you niche down to a specific market you can micro target and develop a tribe of enthusiastic buyers that will take your company to the next level.

Going with our example of coffee as a sample product you would be selling, we can definitely sub niche down to different categories like:

Social coffee drinkers - they only drink coffee in a coffee shop with friends

Daily coffee drinkers - there are subcategories here as well, the instant coffee drinkers, the pre-ground coffee drinkers, and the whole bean grinders that consider themselves coffee aficionados.

Intermittent coffee drinkers - switching between chai teas, coffee and green teas this group is constantly experimenting with a variety of caffeinated beverages.

How you speak to each member of these groups (which can be subdivided further) will be different.

The marketing messages for an instant coffee drinkers won't be the same as a coffee aficionado who might only use an Aeropress and burr grinder (this is me - I love making some of the best coffee ever created).

The experiences that each group has inside of specific circumstances will decide how you present your product. Finding out that exercise is a competitor for drinking coffee may make you want to pivot into finding ways to combine both.

Reverse Engineering Vs Story Model

There are certain brands who will never have direct competition because of the immersive experience buying their product creates for customers. Trying to reverse engineer an existing business's model can only go so far.

Creating your own story that is filled with rich details solving multiple pain points in the customer's journey is how you stand out from the competition. The truth is most companies don't go to this level of detail.

Crafting unique rituals specific to your consumer's demographics, and circumstances surrounding their decision to buy is going to put you leagues ahead in your progress towards becoming the best version of what your business is capable of.

. . .

Available for freelance writing and guest posting on your blog: [email protected]

If You’re White & Don’t Know How to React to Floyd’s Death…

Credit: Rachel Fergus/RiverTown Multimedia

Disclaimer - while this is normally a business blog (eg last blog on Biz Metrics) in the wake of George Floyd's death I can't stay silent on how we got to this point.

Protests rock the nation as many discover the motivation to stand up and fight for civil liberties and equality for blacks after George Floyd was racially killed by officer Derek Chauvin.

Now white people are scared of being labeled racist and wonder what to do.

There were decades of police brutality against African-Americans before now, but with the advent of smart phones, suddenly the nation is captivated by the tragedy unfolding before them.

Speaking with a Crisis Intervention specialist on the phone, who is black, I learned that he is bombarded with calls from his white friends and clients asking how they should be reacting to Floyd's death.

Questions like this frustrate me. Growing up in an all black and Mexican neighborhood as a child, many social constructs of race and class were de-codified quickly when our common language was mutual poverty.

I saw how my dad was racist and how false his ideas about blacks and Mexicans were.

In middle school, due to federal race quotas at white west side schools my whole neighborhood was bussed out of our hood to a rich white school we weren't comfortable at.

I was the only white kid on the bus. With four people to a seat, being bussed from the east side, before gentrification brought white people to poor neighborhoods I quickly saw how I was perceived to represent oppression, lost job opportunities and systemic racism.

It was a trial by fire. I got into a lot of fights. The first week my glasses got thrown out the window. Crypts and Bloods gang signs were being thrown left and right by these middle schoolers.

I learned early on, real recognize real. I was the son of a construction worker, we were broke as well. After a lot of conflict, I slowly gained acceptance and with this acceptance I saw clearly how we have-nots were perceived by the rest of the world.

I had an advantage, being white, because it was assumed that I was headed places other than drug dealing. But the incredible amount of entire life times planned out in the single look of eyes by someone white in a position of authority shook me.

I saw why even young kids were cynical. If they were a POC, they were expected to fail more than to succeed, and this kind of thinking got into their heads. Sometimes it was a self-fulfilling prophesy.

Many times it was straight up wrong and prejudiced. This came from school administrators, employers, police, bank tellers, homeowner associations, middle to upper class suburbanites and more.

I had good friends who were white, some no longer friends now, who showed me their beliefs about blacks and other nonwhite races through subtle comments I picked up on. The nuances were clear to me now due to my non-trust-fund up bringing.

I couldn't believe this shit was so pervasive. I talked with my friends who were black like,

"Do you actually see this? You deal with this daily?"

"Yup."

And yet, black people continued to give whites revealing their prejudices, passed down from parental figures, free passes. Infinite amounts despite white people's ignorance at how they came off.

Yet...white people get to be defensive, as if they are the victim, if there needs to be a sincere discussion about race, class and social constructs? WTF.

The Myth of White Fragility

I hear many convos about "white fragility" and white people not knowing how to talk about racism. Dictionary.com defines white fragility as:

"The tendency among members of the dominant white cultural group to have a defensive, wounded, angry, or dismissive response to evidence of racism."

It's mind boggling to me to hear these types of conversations because the only people afraid to talk about racism are people who are racist to some extent.

When you are the only white person for more than a 15 mile radius in your neighborhood, growing up, you learn pretty quickly about white people who often unintentionally insult black people with assumed predictions of black people's lack of ambition, success and intelligence.

Systemic Racism Comes From Passed Down Beliefs

The over policing of black neighborhoods leading to more blacks in prison is a known issue for those growing up beneath the poverty line.

The threat of life or death being in every encounter between the police and black people versus the innate security white people have with the police is a large dissonance in basic comprehension of the issues at stake.

Then there is the over compensating actions of white people who, unable to have honest conversations with themselves about inner ingrained prejudices, want to festish-ize black people.

But I Have Black Friends...

How many conversations have you seen on Facebook where an "all lives matter" white person defensively claims, "But I have black friends!"?

It isn't about 'having' black friends buddy. It's understanding how you marginalize another race's struggle against the unequal treatment they receive in job opportunities, education, and systemic racism in local police, state legislation and even the office of the president (after 2016 especially).

The especially frustrating part of this is almost every person I've seen post about all lives matter or how they, as whites, feel marginalized and not allowed to talk about things is that these people are just whining about themselves.

There is no understanding of a greater issue here other than their personal butt-hurt feelings that perhaps others perceive their prejudices more than they do.

Instead of posting on Facebook, about how you as a white woman, or man, are the 'victim' of censorship, take a good long hard look in the mirror and ask,

"What are my assumptions about black people?"

That's a good place to start. And realize just like Aspergers syndrome you can unlearn bad habits and learn how to improve your self-awareness. Don't defensively try to overcompensate.

The Winners Write the Textbooks

This defensive overcompensating doesn't help anything at all. Making black people into some sort of boyscout badge you collect and pin to your lapels doesn't make you less of a racist. It does the opposite.

One of the reasons why blacks have struggled to gain equal footing in America is because America was the only country to make slavery inherited from mother to child. Even Greek slaves had rights.

That level of labeling blacks as less than human continues post reconstruction era with vagrancy laws that rounded up freed slaves and charged them debts they could only repay by going back to work on the plantation.

These same plantation owner confederate types who never thought black people deserved the same rights as whites taught their sons and daughters for generations their racism.

So in-spite of progress, technology, Emancipation Proclamation (made mainly to keep Europe out of the war) and even the internet we have generations of people growing up with money, entitlements and racism running for public office.

They become legislators with these passed down beliefs that defied basic common sense that ended up manifesting in white-washing history text books and gerrymandering to invalidate minority votes.

When I spoke at the Teacher's Union in Austin Texas about the debate legislators were having to take out all mentions of slavery from Texas textbooks I asked Texas legislators a simple question:

"How is less information about our history, and black history, going to empower students?"

The winners write the textbooks. It's from the top down that the discussion of race and equality has been suppressed as Noam Chomsky famously said:

“Control of thought is more important for governments that are free and popular than for despotic & military states.The logic is straightforward: a despotic state can control its domestic enemies by force, but as the state loses this weapon, other devices are required to prevent the ignorant masses from interfering with public affairs, which are none of their business…the public are to be observers, not participants, consumers of ideology as well as products.”

From School to Jail Pipeline

The pipeline from school to jail for blacks especially, is just another attempt to re-establish the free labor system of the plantation days as prisoners make products at jails that are sold for profits they don't get a share of.

Part of the pipe line from school to jail is established by teaching only how to pass standardized tests instead of social skills, critical thinking and conflict-resolution training.

More contributors to this are permission parenting, being too afraid to establish consistent boundaries at schools (as well as defunding schools in minority neighborhoods and funding rich white schools with even more money).

When I was a substitute teacher at Austin Independent School District, I saw real life examples of this.I was working on my Bachelor's at UT and substitute teaching on days I didn't have class and saw some horrible things at Fulmore Middle School.

At Fulmore there was a whole grade level of kids who had behavior issues and were previously kicked out of regular ed to the Alternative Learning Center(ALC) for students who couldn't socialize without disrupting class.

These kids were 99% minorities, with very few white kids among them. The ALC said, "We give up," and kicked this same group of kids, who cursed out teachers and started fights back to Fulmore Middle School.

Due to group testing, the teachers just passed them on from grade level to grade level without any real intervention done. Same social problems, same lack of consistent boundaries being enforced, it was clear that jail was in the future for many of these kids.

Stop Assuming the Worst in POC Students

I talked to one of these "problem students" who was causing trouble and avoiding doing his math assignments in class. He was a young black kid about 9 or 10 years old.

I didn't talk down to him or just assume he was deliberately slacking off to make the teacher mad or make it about myself at all like I've seen some teachers do. I simply asked him,

"Do you like math? What obstacles are you facing with it?

He really opened up to me and talked about troubles at home and stated that he was actually good at math but was self conscious of "appearing too smart" around his friends.

We had a conversation about the future and the kind of opportunities available for those gifted in math and science. I shared that having a skill in math can lead to higher paying careers and opportunities.

And not just that. But how to make it real to him, the kind of lifestyle you can benefit from when you aren't broke.

It got through to him and he became very diligent at getting even better at math than when he started the semester.

Just a change of tone, from expecting the worst from kids who faced other problems besides school, and giving a real world context made all the difference.

This student succeeded because he wasn't labeled as any different than his white classmates, or expected to fail because he was black.

Just having a real conversation and being acknowledged isn't an impossible thing to do yet we don't see it happening at the frequency needed to change the world for the better.

Ron Clark has demonstrated without hesitation that being real with students improves their academic performance and commitment to education. Veiled racist assumptions doesn't so let's change this.

Separate Has Never Been Equal

So when there are white people who now want to sooth their fears of being perceived as racist by segregating black people into a box to be checked off to include their social circles, or that having black friends is somehow part of 'a list of accomplishments'

-- that's wack af. And low key prejudiced.

This kind of thinking misses the entire point that it is by segregating black people as less than or needing a special category from whites, you just come off as racist.

White people worried about being labeled racist - do less talking, more listening. Start actually paying attention to the social structures you benefit from that not everyone has access to.

Stop worrying about your public image and have some honest reflection about what your real thoughts and opinions are about black people. Examine where these beliefs come from:

*Experiences?
*Assumptions?
*Things you read in a magazine or heard from a friend?
*Beliefs from comments your parents made?
*Religion or the desire to fit in to your white social groups?

Unless you take the time to f-ing be honest and learn how your perception was formed, you will probably continue to feel overly sensitive talking about race.

Race isn't something to be afraid of talking about unless you're hiding something from yourself.

Stop hiding.

Recognize you may have innate prejudices by just how you were brought up, identify these and see how they conflict with reality to move beyond them

. . .

Available for freelance writing and guest posting on your blog: [email protected]

How To Measure Better Company Metrics

startup blog, startup blog, startup blog

Credit:Luke Chesser

It is easy to get caught up in measuring metrics at a company as a way to gauge success but the data is often not organized in a manner that allows a business to consistently forecast which tactics will be successful.

When you start up a new business, it's exciting to have data that you can parse to see which split test is successful, whether this is in advertising creatives, ad copy or product designs.

But, it's often taken for granted just how complex and layered this process is because it isn't just about delivering a satisfying product but a complete experience that makes buying from your company stand out from the competition.

Distinguishing Your Company From Others

Even the limitations of your product or service can be used as part of the unique selling mechanism. Take for example Twitter's 280 characters limit for tweets & calling a post a "tweet." (See last week's blog on the war between Trump and Twitter)

There are so many levels of a pain point your product or service solves, that it takes a very nuanced approach to address the gap filled. This means that just basing definitions of success on quantitative data will miss the elephant in the room, the customer's:

Credit: Sarah Kilian

Why a person buys your product or service is not always something so granular that it can be put on a spread sheet. This why can change at different times of the day, year or with a set of personal experiences of infinite variety.

Facebook's Metrics Fail to Measure Actual Data

When I worked at Facebook in the ads department we had scores that rated us on how effective we were at our jobs. The number one score was Customer Sat, for Customer satisfaction. The C-Sat scores determined the stability of vendor contractors that staffed for Facebook as well.

However, there was a huge hole in universally rating everyone, for every type of customer, based on one, very black and white metric. The amount of money a person had to spend on ads often was a big trigger on whether or not they were satisfied with the support from the ads department.

If you were too broke to spend enough money to both A/B test and retarget (or even understood what retargeting is) then it didn't matter how many help center articles you read --you'd be unhappy. It wasn't an accurate measure of job performance.

We didn't have conversations with management on understanding why customers chose Facebook over other social media platforms to advertise on.Or how Facebook products or services helped make progress in people's lives & which circumstances they were trying to make progress in.

How to Discover Multileveled Pain Points

Many organizations completely miss defining what the real reason is that customers hire them, and easily fall into the common trap of a one-size-fits-all solution that never solves the problem.

Diving deeper than the surface level metrics opens up new possibilities for growth hacking and innovating company structure, both B2B and B2C.

Taking the time to investigate a customer's multileveled why for consuming your business's offering helps uncover the real reason they buy. Before Volvo messed up their brand image, people didn't buy Volvos to get from A to B or for a flashy look. They bought Volvos to feel safe.

The Secret to True Innovation

One thing you'll discover when going beyond quantitative metrics is the reason why your customer does not purchase. This is often an even more important area to focus on.

If there isn't a product or service that fits a customer's needs, they'll choose not to buy anything rather than settle for a less-than-perfect solution.

Customizing a product or service to fill this need is where many entrepreneurs have made billions of dollars. If you've looked at a niche and felt like you don't have any room to compete because it's over saturated that's a big sign that you probably haven't defined your client avatar's Why well enough.

It's a whole range of experiences that create the need that you're solving. This goes far beyond the basic demographic information of age, gender, location and interests.

When you captivate the story of every day consumers in that split second of struggling to move forward and being stopped by not having what they need - this is the real gold.

Workarounds Offer Insight Into Product Development

Finding out what things your customer base is substituting for what they really want is another opportunity to growth hack. If they have a work around that's pretty "meh" because what they want isn't available you can become very successful by solving that trade off.

Start paying closer attention to the workarounds you use in your own life to get things done, digitally and physically. Being both the consumer and the entrepreneur at the same time can yield new insights because of the way you can think outside the box than just quietly suffering wishing for something better.

Take note of both your own circumstances, and social-emotional depths when faced with something you can't solve perfectly. Observe other people's buying habits and workarounds and discover if consumers are repurposing something it isn't intended for.

This will signal a new gap your product or service can fill. It's a story that mere metrics won't tell you about. This type of market research reveals the nature of pain points in a way that offers you a chance to stand out in solving them.

. . .

Available for freelance writing and guest posting on your blog: [email protected]

Twitter Censors Trump’s Attempt to Incite Violence

Credit: dole777

My last blog discussed how entrepreneurs to go from good to great and today we're going to dive into tech news as Trump faces off a battle with Twitter and free speech.

Twitter has started labeling questionable tweets the president has made with a little “i” and a warning.
Due to the shut downs implemented by national & local governments, responding to COVID19, many states are considering mail-in voting ballots as the most viable option to avoid long lines and crowds.

Trump tweeted that mail-in voting would lead to voting fraud and stated sensationally, that:

“Mail boxes will be robbed, ballots will be forged & even illegally printed out & fraudulently signed.”

Twitter responded with a warning that implied this was all fiction:

When interviewed by media sources like TechCrunch, Twitter stated Trumps tweets “contain potentially misleading information about voting processes and have been labeled to provide additional context around mail-in ballots.”

But the intrigue doesn’t stop there. A few days later after the fact-checking label Twitter labeled another one of Trump’s tweets with a “Public Interest Notice.” This label states that he broke Twitter’s rules about promoting violence on the platform.

Trump reposted this on Facebook and Instagram before Twitter came down on his post for glorifying violence.

CEO of Facebook, Mark Zuckerberg, while defending Facebook’s policy to not fact-check politicians has stated there are limitations to what is allowed on Facebook.

“Even for politicians we don't allow content that incites violence or risks imminent harm — and of course we don't allow voter suppression,”

- Mark Zuckerberg

Trump threatening to send in the national guard was in reference to the situation in Minneapolis where there are tons of riots in response to a white police officer killing a black man who posed no threat to the police.

The man’s name was George Floyd. A shop keeper had called the cops because he suspected Floyd was using counterfeit money.

Floyd was being led away, peacefully in hand cuffs, but moments later the police had him on the ground. George Floyd was filmed dying with a cop's knee on his neck as he begged for mercy saying,

"I can't breath!"
"I'm about to die."

Floyd died, without cause, or justifiable reason for being killed. It is thought to be a racially motivated killing by the police as there has been a history of police killing blacks without just cause in in Minneapolis and America as a whole (just like Eric Garner died in New York for selling loose cigarettes).

The public's response to the blatant killing, on camera, of Floyd, without cause, by the Minneapolis PD is rioting in multiple cities and states.

Trump said, in response to the protesters of Floyd's death:

“When the looting starts, the shooting starts,”

This statement being an outright threat of violence and murder against American citizens, unhappy with the way George Floyd was murdered by the Minneapolis police.

The policy that this tweet violates is listed in Twitter’s policies, visible to anyone in the public that takes the time to read them:

You may not threaten violence against an individual or a group of people.”

Twitter, Facebook and Instagram (owned by Facebook) are all private websites, and many forget that they agree to bide by the rules of the website by using it.

Trump has been at war with tech companies for years, and it looks like for the first time, we are seeing the policies being universally enforced even against the president.

I think what’s hard to define in an issue like this, is the fact that free speech is guaranteed as part of the first amendment in the constitution but not in every environment.

Free speech is limited if you’re trying to:

Incite violence
Falsify statements of fact
Promote harm to children
Violate intellectual property rights
Talk sh*% at work or school

Basically it’s like, you can have free speech in public but if you’re at school you have to follow their rules. If you’re at work your free speech rights don’t include jumping on a table and inciting a riot.

The same applies with personal property - if you’re trespassing your free speech rights don’t supersede other rights.

The gray area is while Twitter, IG, FB and other social media sites own the digital real estate of their private websites & make following their policies a requirement to use their websites - there are billions
of people on their websites.

You have in essence entire countries all on a single website, so the public’s perception of what they can or can’t say is like, “I have a RIGHT to say ANYTHING I want online,” without considering, this isn’t a school. It isn’t a plaza where peaceful assembly is allowed.

It’s (in the case of Facebook) one man’s website you are a guest on.

It’s a hard pill to swallow, and there are many upset and indignant Facebook users whose content violated the community standards or advertising policies but feel owed and entitled to be allowed to break the rules, as if a private website has to guarantee their rules of use, terms of service if you will, are broken at anyone’s random impulse.

Similar to being a guest at someone’s house, upsetting the home owner by being disrespectful, being asked to leave, but refusing to, stating, “I have a RIGHT to be here,” when, technically, you don’t unless you own the house.

When you are on IG, Twitter or Facebook you are a guest at their house, and to stay there, you need to follow the rules of the house or be kicked out.

However we are in new territory just due to the sheer massive amount of people on these platforms and the ability of social media sites to influence elections, get hacked by Russians and have bots on Twitter manipulate people into chaos and socially engineer political opinions.

These types of hacks and social manipulation affect the world at large. They can lead to real physical harm and changes in society that aren’t beneficial.

Would Trump have been elected if there was no Facebook?

How would life be different, politically? Would Bernie Sanders or Hilary be president instead?

We don't live in that reality so it's impossible to say. But it gives context as to why social media companies are under scrutiny for what they allow on their platforms and what they don't.

Trump’s response to being somewhat censored (Twitter left the tweet up just made people have to click through a warning to see it) is to try to use his executive powers to limit the legal protections social media companies have.

However, many legal experts have stated they doubt this executive order would have any real effect on the tech giants.

Trump’s vindictive executive order targets the Communications Decency Act. Section 230 of the legislation gives a wide range of immunity to websites who moderate their own platforms.

It’s been called "the 26 words that created the internet."

Facebook and Google replied to the executive order saying that if passed, it poses a real harm to the internet and digital economy.

"Undermining Section 230 in this way would hurt America's economy and its global leadership on internet freedom,”

said Google spokeswoman Riva Sciuto.

Facebook spokesman Andy Stone said that by putting the liability of what anyone says on their platform, back on Facebook and other social media companies, this would only lead to censoring billions of people. The idea is that it’s practically impossible to never offend anyone all the time.

Twitter responded to the proposed executive order by tweeting:

"#Section230 protects American innovation and freedom of expression, and it's underpinned by democratic values."

Twitter also tweeted:

"Attempts to unilaterally erode it threaten the future of online speech and Internet freedoms."

. . .
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How Entrepreneurs Go From Good to Great

Credit:NeONBRAND

As an entrepreneur you are a risk taker by virtue of your chosen profession: to be a leader instead of a follower takes courage. But how good do you have to be to succeed? How is success defined in your professional and personal life?

My last blog, COVID Economic Recovery Solutions, discussed the benefits of investing in employees, and seeing the return of professional development in productivity, profits, and increased word of mouth marketing.

In the same way you may invest in your staff, you can also invest in your company's other assets.

Don't Settle for Good Enough Go for Great

We walk a fine line between "just good enough" and "great." To the average suburbanite, just being able to pay bills without a boss breathing down your neck is a huge success.

But the line between good and great, while being thin, is what separates the quitters from the Elon Musks and Steve Jobs of the world. Entrepreneurs benefit from a daily check in and brainstorm sesh on how to make what's good even greater.

You will feel the difference, those few extra hours here and there add up to the bling, the shine, the razzle dazzle of a clean mean business machine. Your customers will feel the difference too when you put in the energy to fine tune and improve what's "just good enough" into something truly excellent.

Drive & Dedication

It feels good to solve a problem - this is at the heart of 99% of all marketing messages. When you've gone through the rigmarole of questioning how to fix something until that eureka moment - it's satisfying to arrive.

But don't rest on your laurels. The allure of complacency is strong and keeps you at mediocre instead of embracing your brilliance. You have to cultivate the inner engine to improve. It has to be an attitude. A mantra.

Once you create the habit of improving, you can't help but get better. This is across the board, personal, romantic, business, family, social life, hobbies, sports - attitude is gratitude.

What I mean is, you'll thank yourself for creating the habit of dedication to improvement. It's a new routine that once developed will help you reach the next level of your potential.

Self Sustaining Networks & Teamwork

There are plenty of entrepreneurs who can wear 10 hats and play multiple instruments. But to be truly successful as an entrepreneur, this means building a strong network. Creating a team that fills the gaps in your own competence is part of what crosses from 'just good enough' to something great.

I chose to use the word sustainable with a specific intention: The personal and professional networks built must be mutual, reciprocal and headed towards a destination that is beneficial.

If only one business is benefiting, see where you can help the other business benefit even more. This goodwill will not go unnoticed. It's all about who you know right? You may catch the eye of an affiliated interest that yields even greater return.

At the very least, you've increased loyalty to your brand and secured a better professional network.

The Self Efficacy Question

Self-efficacy is, in a nutshell, increasing your abilities by believing that you can increase your abilities. And of course taking action to increase them.

It's shown remarkable results in test scores in children in Kansas City, Missouri, and strengthening people's beliefs that they have what it takes to succeed produced even better results in college students at University of Wisconsin Milwaukee.

Student underachievement brought about by low academic motivation is a major factor contributing to school dropout levels according to the Department of Teacher Education and Higher Education at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.

Beyond Social Cognitive Theory in an academic setting, self-efficacy has huge potential to help businesses improve. 7 League Boot leaping over obstacles with emotional resilience is achieved by believing that you can overcome these obstacles.

The consistency and commitment to keep on trucking, and examine your methods for achieving success along the way is the key to making that success a reality.

Live, Breath, Sleep the Mindset of a Champion

Whether you're fighting cancer, winning an olympic gold metal, or mastering the art of public speaking - the mindset that you have frames your ability to perform at low or at peak levels.

To even consider quitting a day job requires a whole shift of mindset. But let's take that one step further.

When you believe your company will succeed, in addition to making the efforts to ensure it will, the mindset of a champion means that that needed grit to not only survive but to thrive is present.

Having the mindset of a champion doesn't mean you ignore the less-than-great realities of a situation or sugar coat the gaps in your business.

It means you don't hesitate to face these head on, and do what it takes to succeed. With of course, no moral ambiguity. Doing the right thing, for your business, only improves who you are and the quality of customers you attract.

I've mentioned this before, but one of the defining moments of my life was when my childhood mentor drove me to a homeless shelter when I was kicked out of my mother's house.

He let me know that while he doesn't support this happening, I also needed a wake up call and realize that even if I didn't like my step father, I had to do what it takes to survive with a roof over my head.

Hows that for a gut check?

I didn't have the mindset of a champion then. But 3 days ago I graduated the University of Texas at Austin, having gained acceptance into UT with a recommendation letter from the president of Austin Community College.

It was a hard struggle but once my mindset changed from victimhood to proactive reluctant hero - life aligned to produce the results I wanted.

The same is true for entrepreneurship.

What separates us from the 9-5ers is our ability to innovate, think outside the box, create solutions, and have an unshakable belief in ourselves, our brand and the goals we set out to achieve.

This is the mindset of a champion.

Available for freelance writing and guest posting on your blog: [email protected]

COVID Economic Recovery Solutions – Treat Employees Right

Credit: Husna Miskandar

The economy's crashed, hundreds of thousands of jobs are lost and now as society begins to rebuild and open up again it's time to rethink how jobs are structured.

Recently, when moving 4 filing cabinets out of my living room, in order to build an at-home library I spoke with the manager at U-Haul. There were 7 people waiting, with an average wait time of 40 minutes just to check in a rented truck or U-Haul van.

When I asked the manager, a man named Christopher, if it was possible to hire one or two other employees to help manage the customer load he replied,

"I can't get people to work here. They all want to stay home and collect unemployment benefits due to COVID."

I was shocked that the economy is hurting not just because of COVID fear making local governments close down brick & mortar shops but also due to people not wanting to come to work to mooch off of unemployment.

Credit: https://writingboots.typepad.com/.a/6a00e55283a630883401bb0953519e970d-pi

This hurts retailers but also local cities and their economies because when and if local businesses reopen, if they are understaffed, with long lines, it's just going to push consumers to order on Amazon instead of shop there.

Obviously some businesses like U-Haul you can't order online..though drones are doing some amazing things these days.

Low Quality Jobs = Low Quality Work

Aside from the rather unique moocher situation with some staying home to college a paycheck and not working remote but living on tax-dollar funded government benefits...

- There is a lot to be said about flipping burgers or working a register or answering phones and being treated poorly by management.

The Trickle-Down Effect of Incompetence

When the number one concern of employers is not investing in employees to create a high quality work environment, but how can we cut costs, outsource labor to 3rd world countries, lower the hiring wage, reduce worker hours and spread them out over more employees and reduce benefits - well is that motivating people to do a good job?

The question answers itself. If an employee is given a half-ass training (because the manager is also underpaid and under trained), and they are disrespected and made to feel like:

"You are easily replaced so appreciate this shitty job,"

Then it's the trickle down effect of incompetence.

On the other hand, if employers approached training employees as an investment, with professional development included to help employees not only gain competence but additional skill sets to make them more of an asset to the company and their growth opportunities - this changes the ripple effect in workforce management.

Investing in both higher wages and professional training, with work culture more evolved than mashing buttons to get minimum wage then employees will find their own reasons for working harder to do better.

This creates a better quality product or service for the end user that the company serves, which then increases customer retention, loyalty and lifetime value.

Brand loyalty is something that shouldn't just be customer-centric. Brand loyalty cultivated in both the customers and the employees, when increased also increases profits and productivity.

Strikes at Whole Foods and Amazon

If decision makers at the CEO level can't read the room or doubt the logic in the above paragraphs just look at the strikes by Whole Foods workers and Amazon employees who continued to toil on in unsafe working conditions.

When you aren't given a lot benefits-wise, as a bargaining chip from your employer, you don't have a lot to lose if you get fired for striking.

This loses time, money, convenience, customer satisfaction scores drop and just as employees leave for a job that pays $1-3 dollars more an hour so will customers when there are delays due to poor work ethics and project management skills by hiring managers and those who structure employee business models.

Businesses Have to Adapt to Survive COVID19

Instead of making excuses about how an existing system can't change, employers should wake up and smell the Jamaican Blue Mountain Coffee: with the lack of foot traffic now is the perfect time to retool the business model

Sam's Club, Costco and HEB grocery store have all taken the lead here and raised wages for their employees as well as invested in their safety.

As mentioned in management philosophy blogs, research has proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that when intrinsically motivated individuals apply their efforts to a task they are 10 times more productive and successful than people who are only money-motivated.

This means it isn't just about the money - don't treat your employees like dirt anymore and they will reciprocate. So few jobs actually invest any sincere time in building new skill sets in their employees but every time a company does this, the employee becomes an unofficial brand ambassador.

Feeling respected and appreciated is the cornerstone for every social interaction that's successful, from family, to relationships, to friends to business both B2C and B2B.

Creating this feeling in employees with concrete specific investments in improving their abilities, you now have a spokesperson for how great your company is. Many of these employees are like micro influencers with their own social networks sometimes rather large.

More employee loyalty creates more profits because you get better work done, word of mouth organically spreads to their friends, families, and facebook and twitter accounts without a single ad dollar needing to be spent.

In a large company multiply this by 100 or 1000 - it's pretty damn clear it's stupid to treat employees as disposable to-go containers or warm bodies to fill a space when there is a much higher return from professional development in the workspace.

Where We Go from Here Matters

Ecommerce is booming, many jobs and even schools may utilize more remote work than in person attendance now. Businesses will have to adapt to a post-COVID world in order to survive. This means the old guard has to change.

Instead of hyper focusing on reducing labor cost - putting some real thinking and research behind it to create a 2020 strategy that involves treating and paying employees better, will only benefit everyone better and rebuild the economy. Mic drop.

Available for freelance writing and guest posting on your blog: [email protected]

Facebook Buys Giphy Sparking Anti-trust Investigations

Recently Facebook purchased Giphy for $400 million dollars, and while the two companies had been in talks about this prior to the COVID19 crisis, it may have played a role in speeding up Facebook's new acquisition.

Facebook bought Instagram for $1 billion in 2012, WhatsApp for $19 billion in 2014, Oculus VR for $2.3 billion in 2014. Considering all of these acquisitions, according to Axios, Facebook buying Giphy has the risk of sparking anti-trust scrutiny by regulators and state lawmakers for antitrust violations.

Can FB Use GIPHY to Spy on the Competition?

With Facebook's problems with privacy (eg SDK bug, Cambridge), it's possible competitor platforms that use GIPHY like Twitter, may not want to use GIPHY due to potential data collection efforts. FB can see emerging trends if a GIF starts trending & reverse engineer it for Facebook owned sites.

What this would look like is if say a GIF happened to be popular on Twitter, Facebook could simply remake this GIF, commission a few graphic designers and customize it for Facebook owned platforms like IG and WhatsApp.

Facebook has already been under fire for duplicating many features from Snapchat so it's not out of the realm of possibility.

Privacy Apps Like Signal May Ban GIPHY

This new merger also raises the question that if apps like Signal, whose main USP is that they are private will continue to allow use of Giphy. Many people are starting to see the value of their privacy amidst the hoards of data mining and cookie thieving going on.

Per The Verge, the Giphy API can be proxied to hide user information, so realistically, Facebook wouldn't have access to individual user stats. But, who knows, with technology for data mining continuing to evolve every year.

If the privacy of Signal is compromised by using Giphy, then it seems likely Giphy would not be very compatible with Signal and other privacy-centered apps.

Congress Aiming for Pandemic Anti-Monopoly Act

Congress wants to pass a Pandemic Anti-Monopoly Act that would impose a moratorium on large mergers until the FTC decides the we're not dealing with covid-related economic downturns.

The Act, introduced by Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY- 14) states:

"The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic triggered an economic crisis that has hit small businesses especially hard, making them potential targets of large corporations seeking to increase their power through predatory mergers.

Reports suggest that private equity is planning to jump at the cheap opportunities; big tech has moved to snatch up struggling start-ups; and Rite Aid is looking to scoop up smaller pharmacies and PBMs.

Although antitrust agencies are tasked with defending open and fair markets by stopping anti-competitive mergers, their inability to aggressively take on concentration before the crisis began has further limited the federal government’s ability to respond effectively to the pandemic."

The Plot Thickens

It's clear that this new acquisition is multilayered affecting privacy, the economy, the free market, legislation, anti-trust laws and a society struggling with the effects of COVID19.

What are your thoughts on Facebook buying Giphy?

Available for freelance writing and guest posting on your blog: [email protected]

Entrepreneurs Are The New Super Heroes

Credit: Ayo Ogunseinde on Unsplash

We live in challenging times, and entrepreneurs face a serious challenge with so many businesses shut down now. Everyone is asking the same questions:

Is this really happening?
Will we get through this?
Will my business survive?
What does the aftermath look like?
What should I do next?

Yet, incredibly, entrepreneurs are finding ways to create, adapt, pivot and still succeed despite the economic crisis.

"I am a firm believer in the people. If given the truth, they can be depended upon to meet any national crisis. The great point is to bring them the real facts."

-Abraham Lincoln

How We Overcame Rock Biters

Why are entrepreneurs able to bounce back while many are still staring at their hands, like the Rock Biter in Never Ending Story?

I realized it's due to the fact that we are used to thinking outside the box. Making it up as we go is part of the business plan. Firing off from the hip battling market trends, product design, venture capitalism, securing funding and a working prototype, having to throw it all in the garbage and rewrite the script at a moments notice - these are well honed survival skills of the mind and intuition.

My mother gave me a coffee mug for Christmas last year, realizing her son is a legitimate business owner now. It says, "Entrepreneurs jump off a cliff and build a plane on the way down."

Anticipating the unexpected is part of the job description - and it's really amazing how resourceful entrepreneurs are when the rubber hits the road.

Ever stall on completing a project and only start to make progress in the last quarter right before you run out of time? I call it Last Minute Syndrome. When sh$& is about to hit the fan, we pull out all the stops and create some genius on the spot like a damn vending machine.

Last Minute Syndrome

Only now, it's perpetual Last Minute Syndrome. The economy's tanked, trillions have been lost on Wall Street, last month over 500,000 jobs were lost in just Texas alone. The impetus to act, to save the day, and save our businesses is always right now, right now. The last minute is 24/7 as we all try to put damage control on warp speed 8.

Just because adversity happens, it doesn't mean we put our dreams on hold or stop striving to create a better life.

While the vast majority are paralyzed by fear, entrepreneurs understand the value in taking risks and have already thought of all the worst case scenarios with plan A, B, C to Omega.

Being aware of the risks, doesn't mean you're pessimistic. It means you are like smart texting, predicting the next move. Seeing where obstacles might be like an experienced skier almost sensing the path ahead on a black diamond.

The Time is Now

We solve problems. We identify solutions. We calculate risks. And above all, don't let ourselves become shaken by the doubts of others, our own insecurities, or past failures.

Right now is crazy af - there is no nice way to say it.

But we will get through this. You've done it before when faced with a challenge, and you'll do it again. The time is now to hitch up your pants, draw on the strengths that got you to this day today. There's a chance you may come out of this even better than before.

"Close scrutiny will show that most 'crisis situations' are opportunities to either advance, or stay where you are."

-Maxwell Maltz

. . .
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Check out my Medium page here
Is Facebook not explaining why the disapproved an ad?
I worked at FB for years and offer FB Policy Consulting here
Available for freelance writing and guest posting on your blog: [email protected]

5 Steps On How To Overcome Sales Objections

Every business has to overcome sales objections, spoken and unspoken, to grow and prosper.

Whether your company is B2C or B2B, the sales process of client acquisition will always involve initial objections before purchase.

There are certain tactics that work across the board, in most verticals, so today we'll go over how to overcome sales objections to get the sale.

Anticipate Objections

It sounds simple, and isn't impossible to do, yet it isn't always common to hear a company be the first to say your objections. It's incredible effective when you do this, saying something like:

"I know you're probably thinking, this is way too expensive, but honestly can you put a price on happiness?"

By calling attention to a topic that many customers want to avoid, which is their reason to object to buying, you start to overcome objections before they happen.

Anticipating objections means taking the initiative, and calling out objections as you sense them. There are the standard objections, and also new ones specific to your prospect and this particular selling circumstance.

How can you sense which objections are hidden beneath the surface but aren't being aired out? By changing the nature of how you're listening to your prospect.

Always Active Listen

Many people, regardless of trying to make a sale, will listen only to wait for their turn to talk. This won't get you the sale. Listen with the intent of understanding. This builds trust with your potential client, and allows you to hear the 2nd reason behind a no.

The first reason is the surface level 'no' which doesn't have the emotional triggers that the real reason for the no has. The real objections are rooted in emotion, and association.

When truly listening to understand, there is more data to draw from. You start to get the feel for what isn't being said, as well as what is being said.

This creates an opportunity to anticipate their objections and have a solution ready to go in your response.

Respond

Your response should validate the type of concern that the prospect has, even if it’s that your competitor offers a better deal.

Even if it’s the latter by using curiosity, not defensiveness, you’ll be able to fully explore what is that the prospect likes better about the competition.

Many times it’s just a matter of sticking with what they already know and not wanting to risk an unknown.

In other cases, by asking questions with a true active listening approach, you’ll find that the customer isn’t as sure about their decision to go with the competitor.

You’ll unearth new pain points about the business they currently use, and can position your reply to show your company
connects those gaps.

And if it doesn’t, you’ll also be in a great position to use this as market research and tweak your own business model to offer what your competitors don’t offer but your customers / their customers want.

This is a high leverage position to be in.

With my clients, who are tired of getting Facebook ads disapproved without a solid answer from Facebook as to what part of their ad triggered the disapproval - I offer something no other competitor can offer:

Insight into why Facebook makes certain decisions, and the exact words, copy, in ads and landing pages, that caused the ad to get flagged as well as what ad copy would be approved instead.

This enables me to acknowledge gaps in the market, identify objections, and overcome them ahead of time by offering a solution Facebook doesn't offer - a clear explanation of what caused an ad to be disapproved and guidance on getting it approved.

(Does your agency need a FB Policy Expert? Schedule a free discovery call here)

Confirm - Check for Understanding

After discussing their objections, and how your company overcomes them, touch base to make sure you’re on the same page.

In schools, this is called a “Check for understanding” where a teacher double checks the class understands the material thus far, before moving on to new topics.

This is very similar, you’re the teacher, with the secret knowledge, and your prospect is the student, yearning to learn, even if they don’t know what is possible to learn.

Look for the confirmation, by paraphrasing their objections, summarizing your response and defeating of the objections, and ask if that sounds right.

Budget concerns - If they are objecting due to you haven’t built enough value first. It means you need to build more value.

I need to talk to my husband - We’ve all heard this one, or a version of it. Make sure that you aren’t playing a game of telephone and get the decision maker (DM) on the phone, or in the meeting before going for the close.

I’m too busy right now - Emphasize the fear of missing out, either a quantity scarcity, or a special price scarcity as the price will go up after tomorrow, or for a mastermind group, there are only a few spots left approach works well.

I need to think about it - This is a question of credibility, trust, and the value that’s been built (or hasn’t been built) about the product or service.

Price

If a prospective customer says your service is too much, it’s to your advantage to know what the competition is offering.

The difference in cost can be overcome with the unique selling mechanism your company has, that’s part of the brand slogan, ideally.

“You get what you pay for, and you look like someone who appreciates a quality product.”

This approach shifts from “It’s too expensive” to “Am I really giving myself the [royal] treatment I deserve?”

Conclusion - Know Your S#%t

Ultimately the better you know a product the better you can sell it.

The real secret is not only knowing your product, but also being well versed in:

▶ Your product/service's unique selling mechanism
▶ The market your business is in
▶ Your competition

The more you can speak on why your product or service specifically stands out - the more this confidence and expertise effortlessly translates to the customer who will mirror your energy.

If you’ve done the research and speak confidently based on knowledge, statistics, and results this will motivate your prospects to buy from you more than anything else.

. . .
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Secret Dreams

Running a business is a stressful job if your heart isn't into it. When you're driven by a sense of a calling, a passion, and as previous blogs like "Uh Oh Management Needs A New Business Plan" have mentioned, armed with an intrinsic motivation much of this can transform into a labor of love.

But what of the paths not yet taken but dreamed about? Those nights entrepreneurs lie awake, thinking of the next million dollar invention or business model are full of the promise of what's to come.

The nights of enigma, mystery, and that sense of a far away destiny calling you. It is as if there is a party on the other side of the horizon line, just out of view, that you've been invited to, but can't find the address.

It was a feeling like this that introduced me to entrepreneurship in the form of blogging 4 years ago in April 2016. It was taking action on this feeling - refusing to miss another beyond-the-horizon opportunity - that let me quit my day job. It is the nature of being proactive that actions product results.

Instead of acting 'normal' and just chalking up my late night ideas as fantasy or 'unrealistic' I pursued my passion. Taking little steps one at a time, starting companies on the side while I worked at Facebook.

Getting proof of concept that there was a market for my services, a demand that exceeded the supply and thus the side hustle became the main hustle.

That's not all though. We want to make it to the top with our goals and ambition. For someone truly motivated I feel like there are not limits to how high your energy and focus can take you. As Lil Wayne raps, "No ceilings."

In the time I've spent working as a full time entrepreneur I realized there are secret dreams I have yet to act on. Sometimes it's out of nervousness that I'm not capable of achieving them. Other times the to-do list takes over and I forget about the never-talked-about dreams a part of me is still nurturing.

Some of it are businesses and iPhone apps I want to start but haven't been brave enough yet to seek venture capital for. And there are secret dreams I have for my own human potential. Many of these secret dreams surprise my family and myself when I shared one last week for the first time.

I want to be a classical pianist, and perform classical piano pieces in concert halls by Bach, Mozart, Chopin, and Ludovico Einaudi. There's no background that justifies this - I didn't have piano lessons as a child or study it in college. I play some blues piano improv, but I've never been good enough to consider myself "a pianist."

Yet - this is something in my heart that I really want to pursue. I'm considering taking piano lessons now, to make this secret dream a reality, once the world opens back up for regular business after COVID shutdowns. I had the fortune to see Ludovico live at the Bass Concert Hall in Austin, Texas last year, and he was incredible.

I suddenly realized, after I took the leap of quitting my day job, and following my instinct to become a business owner, now that this was possible, I could pursue another secret dream: sailing. Again, there is no context that makes any sense at all. My family hasn't been big on boats, I didn't grow up with any experience on boats that was memorable.

Well there was one moment, as a child, I heard my father say that one day he hoped to get a sailboat. Except, he invested poorly into his life, and business. Ended up old and broke, never pursuing any of his dreams. I guess I took that lesson to heart: how not to be.

I joined a sailing club, befriended a few skippers, and ended up going sailing on $100,000 dollar yachts. The waters glistening with beauty, the wind on my face, as a new friend let me steer his Beneteau Oceanis 38 across the lake. I marveled at how my secret dream, while not yet achieved of owning and sailing a yacht, was at least made more real now. Someday this will be my yacht, I'll let my friend steer.

Another ah ha moment came in a flash, as I found myself thinking about music. I've never seriously pursued learning how to make electronica music. I've dabbled here and there with a few experimental tracks like this one.

But, overall, I didn't take this seriously. In a sort of heart-to-heart moment, before I fell asleep a couple nights ago, I came to terms with the fact that this was something I never thought I would be capable of doing but have a very real interest in learning.

Chillstep in particular, with sampling beautiful singers, on a broad spectrum of neat soundscapes, complete with clips from movies relevant to the mood of the track - this is a dream I've denied myself the chance to see if I can make it happen.

I don't know when I will (perhaps if I meet DeadMau5 at a party & he's cool with sharing a few tips) but...I'm honest with myself that this isn't bullshit. It's a legit passion and interest I just haven't nurtured a whole lot. Another path yet to be taken, waiting, on the other edge of the horizon.

Any one of these secret dreams, has a startup idea behind it. It's part of what guarantees success - if you are genuinely interested, beyond just the money, in making something happen, that kind of motivation is unparalleled. I encourage you to look inside, and ask yourself,

"What are my secret dreams?"

Think about what you may have written off as unrealistic, or just not for you. And revisit these dreams. You just may discover that million dollar idea. Or at the very least, create a new route, for a path not yet taken, that leads to a good work-life-balance and increased personal happiness.

. . .
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5 Steps for Designing a Successful Chatbot Flow

Chatbot marketing is one of the newest trends to gain a foothold in the marketing world and there's a reason why: chatbots work.

When you can automate basic questions that most customers always ask, it saves time and money. If you're paying someone to design a chatbot, you'll want to direct them to create a flow that works for your website.

Or perhaps you're creating the chatbot yourself, either way, here is a quick tip on chatbot design:

Option 1 - The Opt In

If someone sees your ads, lands on your website and your messenger bot pops up, the first step is to give them 3 options for what action you want to funnel them to.

Don't make it open give them a path to take. If they are just browsing your chatbot can show a few resources your website offers and encourage them to opt in to your email list to get a lead magnet.

Option 2 - Learn More

The 2nd option could be "I'd like to learn more about your products, or services" and from there you send this potential customer to another sequence that offers them a chance to check out your latest products and services.

Option 3 - Book A Call

The 3rd one is perhaps they are looking for a case study or something specific from one of your services. And get them to book a call with your sales agent, or opt in for an email list, or provide their phone number to get updates.

4. Text Opt In Copy That Converts

"John?"

First name question mark? Is a great way to get people to respond if they opted in to your text alerts from your chatbot.

You can have a simple intro, after they reply to the first name question mark text of:

"Hey this is Thomas from [company name's] and wanted to see if you have any other questions."

And then your sales agents can close them on the phone.

5. Chatbot Flow

Once your potential customer has opted in, you want to have value-based content that solves their problems. When your content delivery includes value packed nuggets without any heavy sales pitches but gentle reminders of your services or products along the way it's a great way to increase conversions.

By providing value first, you gain more trust, and market authority that will boost conversions when your services are interwoven into the educational content they get for free.

You want to be careful with text messages because people will get annoyed if you send them too many texts. Web based alerts you can do more often without risking burn out.
. . .
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How I Got Started in Entrepreneurship

Looking at my first college graduation emails with professors, my mother, with the registrar - it becomes apparent how much things can change in a short amount of time.

The tips shared on entrepreneurship in the last blog highlight the importance of taking action. There are no risks only opportunities. I heard that said by a multimillionaire presenting at an entrepreneur conference in Orlando Florida, circa 2018.

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At the conference attendees were hyped up learning how to launch products online

One of the speakers shared how he convinced Amazon to front him products without having the money to purchase them. He used his business as collateral and talked with the suppliers and negotiated a deal with the suppliers and Amazon.

As a result of leaping first, asking questions later, he made millions of dollars and launched several side businesses as well.

The Biggest Risk is Believing in Yourself

Creating a filter in Gmail for emails sent during 2016 for the month of April revealed new realizations on entrepreneurship, college, and blogging. This was when I first got serious about starting a business.

While I had tried online businesses back in the last days of the Dot Com bust, I was just a teen, and never that serious. 2016 marked the first year I legit took entrepreneurship seriously. It started with blogging.

Reading through these emails in 2016 college graduation for one of my degrees, I remember the risks I took back then. I risked failing out of college by attending college then the University of Texas.

I risked failing in business when starting one of many companies - not all made it. Most of all, I risked believing in myself.

If you've ever flown on a plane, gotten in a car, or asked a girl out on a date then you've taken a risk. None are as scary as starting a business and throwing in your chances with an unconventional lifestyle.

Inevitably some will tell you that "It just won't work," and doubt your abilities to start your own business. It just isn't something that most people typically do.

The Safe Choice is More Dangerous

As a result of this being a tad bit against convention, you'll have fellow alumni from your college, busy working for the Man, tell you that this just isn't feasible. Or the time isn't right.

I think the worst part is having family members tell you that you're being scammed or that you're just too 'gullible' by pursuing entrepreneurship. Because, [sarcasm] everyone knows that your real future is at a 9-5, with benefits and a retirement package.

But reality tells a different story. There are alarming statistics that show most who retire on a pension (better) or just on social security (the worst) are living at the poverty line. These folks believed in the American dream.

They took the path of least resistance, believed in the 2 car garage, white picketed fence and apple pie.

Yet there wasn't a chicken in every pot after the cost of living kept rising at an exponential rate, and the buying power of the dollar fell year after year.

“Get a good job with the state,” they said.
“Retire with benefits,” they said.
“Just put your time in,” they said.

Living to work and waiting to live your life until after you are all used up, already peaked, and the best years of your life was spent being some middle management’s whipping boy because of unresolved freudian issues they had with their parents?

No thanks.

I just didn't buy the hype.I wanted to work to live. Not the opposite.

I thought there has to be a better way than dying broke, relying on a system that doesn't support the elderly. I had to face the fact that I was going to be old someday. And before I was, I would be older.

One of my friends who is successful in business is saving his way into retirement.

I thought that was smart af. It's great to have smart friends. And it's great to have friends smarter than you about certain topics.

Sunday April 11th, 2016 I discovered entrepreneurship.Startup life came knocking on the door. I wracked my brain that Sunday and asked,

“Trevor, you are a fairly intelligent person, why do you ever struggle with money?”

Then it dawned on me: I never used my brain for business. It was such a Eureka moment. My grandfather used to franchise all the Arby’s and Schlotzky’s in Texas and had a computer with tech support business.

Entrepreneurship was in my blood and I could hear it calling that fateful Sunday, April 11th, 2016.

It started with blogging. I learned about the sky scraper technique. I set up Bluehost & installed WordPress for my 1st blog, Cyberpunktron. One of my friends who was a manager with me when I managed teams coordinating Breast Cancer Awareness Walks was one of the 1st people to comment on a tech review I did.

I got a freelance job as a nutrition blogger at a website called Wellness Nova and entered the world of entrepreneurship sending out emails to guest blog

The Start of Something Greater

My 1st paid blog post was “15 Steps to Maintaining a Macrobiotic Diet,” The same year Facebook within a month of April 11th, offered me a job, in May.

Reading about Eugene Schwartz’s breakthrough advertising, Neil Patel’s never ending wealth of marketing strategies, the Copywriter’s Handbook by Robert Bly, taking courses by Amy Porterfield, discovering the meaning of consulting, startups, and local entrepreneur meetups.

I learned valuable mindset shifts like:

Think outside the box, create services and products but charge by value not by the hour.

It’s been an epic journey. I got away from blogging for the past couple of years. Now, the journey continues with Jetski Shaman.

Writing new blogs I hope return to some of the original gold. As I spend hours working on the design, releasing new thoughtful articles twice a week I look forward to watching it grow. And I’ll always remember that Sunday and celebrate the start of something much greater.

. . .

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How to Win at Entrepreneurship

Entrepreneurs are a strange lot, we work odd hours, we fear regret more than failure, and our desire to build a legacy supersedes job security. Skating on the edge of homelessness and prosperity many founders don’t know how to make sure they’re on the right path.

Groundbreaking studies on human achievement have revealed that family, social standing, even money doesn’t predict success. Grit — the ability to push on passionately pursuing goals regardless of obstacles, predicts academic and business success. Grit is a type of force, but it doesn’t feel forced. It inspires you to take action.

Massive action is such a buzz word it loses meaning when repeated in so many entrepreneur articles about startup advice. But when you combine taking massive action, with resiliency and consistency that’s when the needle starts to move, and things improve.

Getting even a little better every day moves businesses forward. You’ll have to get outside the comfort zone, take a walk on the wild side of grinding like there’s no tomorrow. If you plan is to hope to be discovered, that’s about as strategic is planning on winning the lottery — you won’t succeed. There are strategies for overcoming obstacles that need to be in play.

Challenge yourself to overcome obstacles to success by first developing the honesty to self-evaluate where you could do better and making specific plans to bridge those gaps. And a Plan B, and Plan C if things don’t go according to Plan A.

If you read the news today you know that being able to pivot, change, and adapt your business to the current times is vital to staying in business.

Here’s a pro tip: Actually care about what you’re doing not just the recognition and revenue when you on the cover of Forbes. If what you’re doing doesn’t match what you’re passionate about and feels forced, motivation to continue will suffer. The element of force, leaves a bad taste.

If you force yourself to do something make sure that force is tempered with purpose such as: I’m forcing myself to think up 100 new ideas for how my business can scale to new markets after securing future cash flow projections.

That kind of force is ok. Forcing yourself to overcome laziness to work on your dream project, something you lose track of time working on? Yes — that kind of force will yield great results.

TLDR: Switch from force to passion, do what you believe in.

Trust yourself and Take risks

Bravery means something completely different

Even thinking about starting a business is a risky thought. There’s the fear of failure, fear of rejection from your family if they don’t believe in you, and the fear that you may not be good enough to actually launch a business.

Yet every great founder had to overcome these fears in order to start companies we rely on every day. When I started a business advising companies on Facebook policies and how to make sure their ads were approved I didn’t know if I would succeed. I quit the best job I ever had in my life, working in back end tech supporting Facebook’s servers.

We had free catered gourmet meals 3 times a day, I was given a Macbook and iPhone Facebook paid for. I was troubleshooting remote access tools while sitting on a bench at the park, watching the ducks swim in a pond. It was crazy to quit a job like this to run a consulting firm as a Facebook policy expert. I had so many doubts.

It is such a small niche that no one else occupies and yet, there is a demand because social media agencies often don’t get clear answers from Facebook on why ad accounts are shut down or Facebook ads are disapproved.

I took the leap, without a concrete plan, just the desire to be an entrepreneur and knowing the market was desperate for answers I had. Almost a year later it dawned on me:

There is this fear that maybe it’s a dumb idea, but when you look at the smart phone apps that exist right now, even dumb ideas can make people millions of dollars with the right deployment strategy.

Turns out, I didn’t fail and have run point on ad policy analyses for recent launches by Tony Robbins (to learn more or get me to write for your publication feel free to schedule a chat here).

TLDR: Bravery isn’t a lack of fear it’s a willingness to act.

Risks Are an Illusion — There Are Only Opportunities

A new way to turn weaknesses into strengths

Dr. Seuss’s first story, On Mulberry Street got rejected 27 times before it was published. If Theodor Geisel (Dr. Seuss) gave up after the 20th rejection (which would be understandable) millions of children would have never read his stories that brought so much joy.

Can you imagine a world without Dr. Seuss? He had to take a risk of being rejected to start his business as a children’s book author. When wantrapreneurs make up reasons why they can’t do the work needed to launch, they should take a page from Dr. Seuss’s book and find the cat for their hat.

It comes down to the mindset founders have when starting a business. Reframing new ventures in a different light will help motivate us to take action. Realizing it’s fear that we fear (thank you Shakespeare) more than actions we avoid empowers us to reframe our next move.

Fear of failure prevents people from success more than actual failure does. Pro tip: Treat risks as a chance to find out what you’re really capable of.

TLDR: Risks are an illusion — there are only opportunities.

Create Smaller Goals 1st That Are Easier to Achieve

Even castles are built one brick at a time

Credit: Tim Rebkavets on Unsplash

Just like exercise burn outs, taking on too much at once can lead to overwhelm. So instead of trying to recreate the light bulb in one magnificent giant shining blueprint spread out on your writing desk, see what steps you need to reach for those in-between milestones.

Once you’ve hit those benchmarks, use this momentum to carry you towards much bigger goals. Beloved Millennial author Malcolm Gladwell proposed in his book Outliers that true mastery of a craft or skill comes from practicing the right way to for either 10,000 hours or 10 years. Gladwell sites the success of the Beatles and Bill Gates as proof of this theory.

However, fear not, intrepid entrepreneur, a new study reported in Business Insider states this is only true for fields that have a super stable structure such as music chess or sports. In professions it only makes a 1% difference. Business Insider quotes Frans Johansson’s book “The Click Moment,”

“But in less stable fields, like entrepreneurship and rock and roll, rules can go out the window:

Richard Branson started in the record business but quickly branched out into fields well beyond music: Virgin Group has 400 companies and is launching people into space.”

You don’t have to wait 10 years to feel like you’ve mastered something in order to launch a successful business. You just need to believe in what you’re doing and find out how to scale this to a specific audience that resonates with your vision.

Show don’t Tell

Selling is only one aspect of client acquisition

The biggest inspiration to buy isn’t a clever sales pitch, it’s presenting your product or service in a relatable way. When we watch movies, it’s irresistible to put ourselves in the main character’s shoes and wonder what we would have done in that situation. Your brand needs to inspire this kind of feeling in your target audience.

Ever heard the express seeing is believing? When the usefulness of an idea is made real through testimonials, case studies, and free trials it’s much easier to get to those first 1000 die-hard fans that build your business.

Ever been at a networking event and got cornered by someone with a sales pitch? Or perhaps at a family event, a relative offered their unasked-for advice on your life? That doesn’t exactly translate into sales or marketable strategy.

Yet many entrepreneurs are so convinced they have the best idea they ignore the strategy part of launching. There’s a better way to do this.

Focus on helping more than selling. Make everything you do centered around a single simple result that solves a problem your audience has. Be open to feedback, especially negative feedback as a way to close gaps. Yes, yes, this is your baby, how dare anyone criticize it! But, feedback helps you transition a product from ‘just good enough’ to great.

Keep your ear to the ground as you develop your idea into real life business, and it will evolve into something even better than what you started with.

TLDR: Build brands with purpose this attracts ideal clients.

Your Net Worth is in Your Network

Find what works and do it better

Find someone to mentor you who is successful in your field. Buy them lunch. Go to the same Meetup groups for entrepreneurs. A simple shift in perspective is what created Gmail from Google during the legendary FedEx days where engineers were allowed to work on any project that peaked their interest.

Your perspective is going to continue to change as your business and the world changes. Adopt a strategy of building your network before you need it, and surround yourself with people smarter than you. This can pay off in literally millions of dollars in the long run through successful partnerships and product launches.

Above all else, don’t be afraid to fail — the best way to fail is to never try at all. Be brave, and don’t chase your dreams — strategically plan on their achievement. To quote Smashing Pumpkins: So start, start today.

TLDR: Switch from force to passion, do what you believe in.
TLDR: Bravery isn’t a lack of fear it’s a willingness to act.
TLDR: Risks are an illusion — there are only opportunities.
TLDR: Build brands with purpose this attracts ideal clients.
TLDR: Your net worth is in your network

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I’m Not for Everyone Here’s Why…

Do we trust people we like with less experience more than we trust people we don't like with more experience?

Yes and the reason comes from caveman times. If we felt that someone was going to be able to stick with the herd and provide consistently they were always the safer choice.

Times have changed though, and many build their entire careers from being immune to social niceties. Whether it's Gordon Ramsay or Gary V these public figures have disregarded wanting to be liked. Or at least trying to sugar coat their social interaction skills and language.

There is a lot to be said for the walk-away feeling one gets after shopping at a store. Whether this is an online marketplace, or a retail establishment, we tend to remember the last thing more than the first thing.

On the opposite end, there are people who will say anything to get you to like them. Some have personalities that cannot stand to feel the disapproval of others. Crippling social shyness aside, there is a magnified effect of personal dishonesty that goes hand in hand with trying to please everyone.

How can a business please everyone, and still remain true to the core values that founded it? There are a few businesses that deliberately take confrontational stances on an issue to gain media attention and customers. The crazy thing is it works. (Look at whose president right now).

However, there's something to be said about caring for what kind of CX your company provides and the residual income that is purely from testimonials being shared. I think there is a balance between kowtowing to every little thing your client base needs and drawing the lines for ethical behavior.

One of my clients asked me to do work on making sure their client, who was running political ads on Facebook, was Facebook policy compliant.

I Had to Take a Step Back

There are some crazy people out there right now that want to encourage unsafe behavior, and many are political. I had to do a gut check and ask myself,

"Can I live with myself, if my FB Policy Analysis helped a candidate get elected who endangered the lives of others?"

It wasn't easy. Times are hard, business is slow, and you take money from the money tree when you can grab it.

I gave my client an ultimatum and said that I would need to review the goals of their political ads client and end game before I could say yes.

I wasn't going to walk into this with blind faith or just wanting to make a profit.

What I stand for, and the ripple effect of my business decisions matter.

I would rather starve than steal.

But that's just me. If I was having to feed a bunch of mouths at home, with mounting bills and little options, would I have chosen differently? I can't say as that's not the reality.

The reality is that I have to trust the people I work with to do business (and their clients) otherwise I won't sleep easy. In the last blog we discussed the power of showing up and this counts for showing up for what your business stands for.

Profit Over Principles

This also made me realize that there are lot of businesses that don't factor ethics into their business decisions. Walmart has dumped tons of toxic waste into Texas tributaries and was almost sued by the EPA before they stopped.

There are plenty more examples of behavior like this that puts profits over principles. I think I learned something about myself through this last experience: I'm not for everyone.

I'm fine with that.

As an Entrepreneur I Get to Choose Who I Do Business With

Abdicating that choice because I was being lazy, or too eager doesn't seem fair to the many people who don't get to choose who they work with. It also doesn't do justice to the hard work I had to put in to become a startup founder who has options I didn't have in my 9-5er past life.

What experiences have you had that made you question your business choices?

Comment below:

If you want to hire me to freelance write for your blog email: [email protected]. Need FB Policy help? Book a time on my calendar here.

SMART Goals & Stretch Goals in 2020 Quarantine

"The moment you find what you truly enjoy doing, is the moment you should start focusing all your efforts on that particular thing. In the long run it will eventually pay off."

- Steve Jobs business,business,business,business,blog,blog,blog,blog,blog,blog,blog, entrepreneur blog, blog

Business success is so often contingent on the passion, vision and leadership of founders who relentlessly pursue their goals. As last week's blog discussed, motivation is vital for work productivity. Now we face an interesting challenge of the world on shut down due to the corona virus.
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This has affected markets unexpectedly, for instance right now there is a 100 million shortage on condoms as the Guardian reports here. Small businesses struggle to adapt to this new, strange world we live in.

Business owners can benefit from going back to the basics, foundational tactics that help every new entrepreneur starting out define the parameters for goal achievement.

Just like any scientist, advanced in their profession, may always fall back on using the scientific method they learned in undergraduate classes - there are tried and true methods for improving business. Let's talk about goal setting and achievement in this framework - keeping in mind we'll need to pivot how we do business for these troubling times.

SMART & Stretch Goals 2020 Quarantine

As business developer Mike Gingerich mentions, setting SMART goals is key for starting 2020 off on the right foot. Stretch goals are goals that are just beyond your current reach and abilities but are definitely worth pursuing as long as you don’t get burned out taking on too much. Now, for a long time we believed that stretch goals unconditionally fueled performance.
And it turns out that stretch goals can create superior performance. But there's risks associated with setting stretch goals, or challenging goals.business,, business,business,business,business,business,business,business,business,business,business,business,business,business,blog,blog,blog,blog,blog,blog,blog,
Stretch goals or especially aggressive goals, can engender unethical behavior - as people cut corners to make an unrealistic goal on a deadline.

Good people can do unethical acts to meet deadlines.That’s where SMART goals are a great way to balance your time and energy.

SMART Goals Defined

▪ Specific
▪ Measurable
▪ Agreed-upon
▪ Reasonable
▪ Time bound

You have to ensure that folks have the needed skills to reach a goal. If they don't, help to mentor them, or seek mentorship & support to make sure that not only are these goals reasonable - but the view of these goals in your perception is realistic.

▪ Short timelines lead to dissatisfaction

After setting the deadline and your team starts working towards it, it's important that leadership examples the desired behavior. You want to be a role model. Reward teammates (or yourself) appropriately after accomplishing those goals. Goals are most effective when you secure employee's public commitment to goals.

Skill Sets Must Match Job Duties

A fireman is a heroic profession and as much as the nation is grateful for their efforts you wouldn't automatically assume they know how to do open-heart surgery or be an astronaut. Yet - many employers place job candidates into roles their innate skill sets aren't matched for. This leads to job dissatisfaction from the employee side and a lack of quality work - leading to employer dissatisfaction. That topic deserves a whole blog post which I'll get to in the next couple weeks. But for our purposes let's apply this to SMART Goals.

Do assessments and make sure that people have the necessary skills to achieve a particular goal. If they don't, you might want to provide necessary mentorship, support and training to make sure that they view these goals as reasonable.

Now once you set that deadline and the team starts working on it, be a role model. The most demotivating thing you can do for your team is you set this tough deadline, and then leave early or take a 5 hour lunch.

SMART goals framework is very popular among many, many organizations. Take Amazon, for example. Jeff Bezos, the CEO of Amazon, is personally overseeing over 400 goals, and they’re all in the SMART goal framework.It is absolutely imperative that your SMART goals are aligned with that vision and strategy for your team.

We’re in a time of change right now and small businesses (and large) face new decisions for how you run your operations and customer support and acquisition. Being able to work well with retail shut downs, city shut downs is going to require adapting your business model to this new environment.

I would encourage more collaboration, and networking in order to effectively pivot. This is going to involve going more online with business operations and customer support. Various tools will help you achieve this:

Zoom - for video conferencing, meetings, customer support, Zoom webinar
Slack - to communicate via chat and virtual interface with your team
Chatbots - solves initial customer questions visiting your site & can transfer to human agent chats
Dropbox - cloud based storage of large media and other documents
Social media - more Facebook Lives, more aggressive targeting strategies, scheduled events

Want to improve your pivot-skills? Great I have some homework for you: Use the SMART goal framework and apply it with developing your business adapted to COVID19 quarantine skills. Set a SMART goal in terms of developing your business model shift for these current times. Make sure that it’s consistent with the SMART goal dimensions.

Comment on this blog post, and discuss with your peers your progress, obstacles and wins. There’s a high probability we are all facing similar challenges and if we work together, we can maximize resource access for each other and our businesses.

Uh Oh Management Needs A New Business Plan

Tuesday April 14th 2020
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Management philosophy in business hasn't changed since the 1800s - yet the world has changed dramatically. The old guard will always think work is a bad thing in employees' minds. Traditional management philosophy holds that most need to be manipulated with rewards or threatened with punishments to do their job.

This simply isn't true anymore. It was never true.

When you see a sculptor so in love with their art, they lose track of time, you start to grasp what it means to work playfully. To do something for the sake of doing it.Chasing the all mighty dollar is a rather soul-less task by itself.

But putting the work in because of the world your efforts create? That's a different feeling. There's longevity in that.You can be creative, seek challenges out for the sake of just that achievement regardless of money - and still enjoy making money.

But what drives you has to be bigger.

When it is, not only does this lead to better results but it puts you on the path of truly mastering your craft.If profit is the only thing that drives you - you'll miss out on opportunities in the periphery. Thinking will be limited. You won't feel inspired.

Being inspired sparks a particular alchemy that isn't matched by robotic checking check boxes. It is what sets you apart from your previous self and those who live thru habit.

What inspires you?

A lot of old school thought is centered around the concept that bonuses alone will improve the way we perform at
work.

Despite the evidence that these type of incentives actually decrease overall productivity. It's a simple enough concept but not obvious to the casual observer: When an employee (or anyone in any role doing a task) is motivated by wanting to get the dollar attached to completing the task - we do the bare minimum. Because I mean, why bother doing more if we just want the money? If there's nothing beyond the surface get us to use inherent gifts of imagination and creativity - the boring tunnel vision creeps in.

What's rather puzzling is how much this has already been proven - coloring inside the lines only gets you so far.

As the New Patterns blog explored, entrepreneurs create innovation often by thinking outside the box. In a similar fashion, literally everyone, entrepreneur or not, has a much better chance of realizing their hidden talents by not being static, rigid, and motivated by achieving only one goal.

Back in the 60s, J.W. Atkinson, the leading psychologist on scientifically examining human motivation, did a study that demontrated when people knew there was a reward, or were attempting to avoid being punished, the quality of their work degraded. This was attributed in part to less spontaneous engagement with the activites and more of a routine nature, and habitual energy expenditures - in other words "autopilot."

However, when someone is driven by the need to explore their own talents, just to see what they are capable of (like children often do), there is a stark contrast in results. As people become more focused on the bigger picture, their field of vision expands on what's possible...both from their own abilities in addition to additional resources that a profit-only-driven person would have missed.

Interest = Competency. Wait..Wut?
So I'm going to propose an idea that may seem pretty out there. The more interested we are in a task, the more competent we become. If the task bores us our performance suffers. That's not too out there. It's pretty logical. Do you think your son, forced to wash your car against his wishes, is going to pay extra attention to getting all the smudges? But it goes deeper.

Even if we think we are giving it our all - we aren't using all of our brain's power, neurologically speaking. We've compartmentalized off just enough to get the task done. As Dr. Ryan and Deci discuss in their Self Determination Theory when you are intrinsically motivated this creates an innate tendency towards self-examination, in addition to a focus on growth and meaning. And it makes sense. If a person is genuinely interested in something, this reflects on self-image and identity. I'm the type of person who is good at math, likes Nascar and Netflix.

Right? We self-identify with the jobs we work at and it only makes sense that this is segmented into individual tasks that comprise the entirety of our work. How many times did you think about where you were at in life, working a shit job right out of high school, at a convenience store or 7-11? We reflect. The thing is, this sort of reflection happens instinctively (and often unconsciously) when we are intrinsically motivated to complete a task. It isn't a task, it isn't effort, it's part of who we are. As a result, our competency increases because we are not working we are self-expressing.

The old approach of cracking the whip, throwing up the cheese for the mouse hasn't ever worked well. No one wants to be reminded they are in a rat maze or treated that way. Being threatened with punishment just makes folks resentful - resentment doesn't improve your employees competency. Rewards aren't helping either. The regions called the “brain reward network” that light up when stimulated by the thought of rewards are rather tunnel vision in range and variety. There is an information gap between seeking to attain one item, and the self-directed learning that satisfying a curiousity generates.

You ever have a word just on the tip of your tongue but can't remember it? Meet someone at a get together and forget their name? Remember a scene from a movie but not the name of the movie? It gets a lot of attention and the urgency to satisfy this curiosity is only matched by the feeling of relief and accomplishment when we finally have that "ah ha" moment. This is like a macrocosmic application of that feeling across work forces. The problem is, very few, if any, business models in corporate hierarchy are structured to support the type of intrinsic behaviors that lead to the best results.

Uh Oh, Management Needs A New Business Plan

Regardless of the thousands of studies done on this phenomenon management in most large corporations is still based on non-working models that are proven to consistently fail. The reward/punishment system is still well in place. I've worked at Microsoft, Apple and Facebook - they all use this same system. Yes, there is more of a startup vibe - but craft beer and ping pong tables don't make up for a lack of leadership and understanding of how to extract the best work from employees at the top of their game.

The irony is that we see this in every every field - pay an artist to do a mural you'll get better results if they are doing it for a charity because they believe in the cause. The many old school hip hop heads who say that hip hop has died - they do so because (aside from stylistic preferences and autotune) the money-motivated artists lack the soul that Erykah Badu effortlessly broadcasts over thousands of heads at live concerts. Jack Harlow isn't Eminem - setting aside skill, age, connections to Dr. Dre - simply because his music doesn't have passion, or the feeling that he has to do this because it's part of who he is.

My own personal analogies aside - there is a shit ton of evidence from countless studies that demonstrate that the old management style just isn't working. A system focused on creating a personal connection to the work done, and more autonomy is definitely a step in the right direction. Rewards based on specific details regarding an employee's character, skill set and contribution are 10Xs more motivating than a generic compliment or external item. Many tech jobs are partially there with remote work, giving more trust to software engineers to get the job done in their unique way rather than a mass produced factory of cubicles (but I like putting pics up and decorating my little cubicle!).

What do you think? Share in the comments your thoughts on management.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5364176/

New Patterns

Entrepreneurs think eclectically - right now we need more of this type of entrepreneur thinking. While we discover new patterns* like the emergence of 1980s synthesizers, for how we schedule the day, a theory of human behavior comes to mind. Abraham Maslow is one of the most influential psychologists of the 20th century. His biggest contributions to humanistic psychology was the development of Maslow's hierarchy of needs.

Maslow proposed that everyone must satisfy lower level survival needs before meeting higher growth needs.

Maslow developed the Hierarchy of Needs model in 1940-50s. His approach was a Gestalt humanistic psychology. Each of us is motivated by needs. Our most basic needs are inborn, having evolved over 10s of 1000s of years. In order to account for those like Mother Teresa, who were both self-actualized but also had the desire to "identify with something greater than the individual self," Maslow set a higher motivational level above self-actualization. He named this motivational level "self-transcendence."

Maslow talks about these levels in terms of homeostasis. Homeostasis is the principle by which your furnace thermostat operates: When it gets too cold, it switches the heat on; When it gets too hot, it switches the heat off. In the same way, your body, when it lacks a certain substance, develops a hunger for it; When it gets enough of it, then the hunger stops. Maslow extends the homeostatic principle to needs, such as safety, belonging, and esteem, that we don’t ordinarily think of in these terms.

As you've read in other blogs, it seems like that as we've all hunkered down, WFH (work from home) life and social distancing, taking care of our homeostasis for basic needs - now humanity is branching out to fufill higher level needs of belonging to a tribe. To feel social, creative, and nurture needs beyond food-clothes-medicine. How we listen to music is changing in response to establishing homeostasis.

Couch Concerts are where musicians perform, sometimes live, over video that streams to fans. Whether this is on Youtube, Zoom, Facebook Live or another platform, it's a new innovation in response to city shut down ordinances.

The Roots jammed on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon: At Home Edition, in late March, via live video. Broadway musicals are such a classic piece of entertainment history and now, Broadway actors have united on Zoom, all over the world. Just another sign that we won't be stopped from finding ways of overcoming imposed isolation for safety.

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Flint to the stone tool, to the lever, to the wheel

Human beings show incredible potential to evolve and adapt to changing circumstances.

Virtual performances are now coordinated better to produce new mediums for musicians to showcase their talents as Tao & The Get Down Stay Down's Phenom music video demonstrates. Multiple performers in a video grid sync their singing and dancing together in this video.

Entrepreneurs are known for being innovative and coming up with solutions for the Rubik's cubes of the world when creating business ideas, startups, & unique methods for how to make money. I think in a sense, the rest of the populace has had to nurture their own entrepreneurial spirit. Thinking outside the box doesn't come naturally to everyone, but in the times we're living in right now, it's become almost second nature.

We're going to get through this rough patch and with new insight. I wouldn't be surprised to see new inventions that solve new problems arrive.

Misfits, poets and renegades are often viewed with envy, enigma and confusion as this collection of sometime misanthropic folks color outside the lines of societal expectations. However, in an unprecedented time like now, those who think differently are ahead of the curve (as we attempt to flatten the curve). We've certainly created new routines for new situations in 2020.

As Jeff Goldblum famously said in Jurassic Park:

Michelangelo was said to believe that the job of every sculptor is to discover the statue inside the stone, then chisel around it, freeing the statue to form. In many ways, the new conditions we live under are the raw unchiseled stone we are shaping into lives today.

Virtual music shows, blogging, hiking, learning a musical instrument or craft.
In my own case, I decided to finish writing a detective novel I started in 2018 & didn't finish.

We live in a very anthill busy-work society, often missing little beautiful details like seeing our reflection on dew drops in the morning, resting on the tip of flower petals and blades of grass. From all counts, we constantly try to escape thinking, reflecting and considering the choices we've made in life. It's much easier to accept that:

"This is just who I am, I can't change anything."
"This is just my life, it is what it is."

But..perhaps now, we can start to wonder...

"What are some questions I have avoided asking myself?"
"What are projects I've put off for a while that I can do now?"

This can be anything from interior design, to new workout routines, bicycling paths yet to be taken (or new road bicycles to be purchased), learning a musical instrument, starting a blog, archery, gardening, photography, starting an online business, learning painting or drawing, reading books friends gave us that we didn't get around to reading [guilty!] and maybe...asking yourself:

"What are some choices I've made, interacting with others, or choosing life paths, that...I could have chose differently? What can I do better going forward?"

I encourage you, dear readers, friends, family, entrepreneurs and blog fans - perhaps use these moments of lots of downtime, to do some personal growth. Professional development.

We've got the homeostasis down (or once you do get it down...find a good remote job), so now may be a good time to look within. Once we polish that pearl, of our personalities, outlook, specific plans to improve all areas of our life can come to fruition easier, more naturally.

Many studies have found that when people are baited by money, the whole carrot on a stick approach, to improve performance - productivity actually goes down. But we produce bette results from being intrinsically motivated (instead of extrinsic) because the joy of discovery. Including:

discovering what we are capable of
solving a puzzle
finding out the answer or solution to a question/problem

People doing intrinsically motivated actions will outperform money-motivated, or goal-motivated actions - every time. This is true in the workplace, it is true for all ages, adults and children. In a study designed to find out how to motivate kids to do drawings at school, one group of children was told to play with the markers in order to receive a certificate with a gold seal and ribbon on it. In two other conditions, children either received no reward, or they were given the reward as a surprise after they played with the markers, and were not told beforehand that they would receive any certificate.

Children who expected to receive the reward for playing with the markers were significantly less interested in playing with the markers afterwards, whereas interest in playing with the markers remained consistent for children in the other two groups (Lepper, Greene, & Nisbett, 1973).

Perhaps now is a good time to intrinsically motivate ourselves beyond homeostasis. To do something for the sake of doing it - we grow, and develop skills, and observation powers seeing opportunities in the periphery that would have been invisible to us before. I am reminded of the meditation book, The Miracle of Mindfulness where Thich Nhat Hanh describes "Washing the dishes to wash the dishes" instead of doing a chore. The idea was that if you washed each dish like there were no other dishes, and fell in love with the act of doing something for the sake of doing it - your actions took on new, deeper meanings.

Don't let me get "too deep for the intro" to quote J.Cole just perhaps consider repurposing the time we are spending sheltering-in-place at home. Instead of 'waiting it out' shift your mindset to getting sh%& done. Leveling up. Becoming your best you. Little steps, one at a time, build something great over time - shalom!

*New Patterns is also a great song by Sea & Cake linked in the word New Patterns above

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Real Meaning of Going Local

For years we've heard, "go local" as a cry to champion local businesses over big box retail stores that have often outcompeted smaller stores. In some ways, 'go local' became coopted by hipsters as a way to feel trendy and superior - not exactly a motivating factor to support this in spirit.

These days, businesses and consumers are rethinking outsourcing as a feasible means of doing business. With supply chains experiencing massive disruption (gone to a grocery store recently or tried to buy TP?) manufacturing for lower costs in other countries doesn't seem as appealing.

This approach has pretty much destroyed British manufacturing jobs.

For years we've heard about human rights violations in 3rd world countries whose factories create the Nike shoes and JC Penny apparel. The factories that make our toilet seats and fishing rods and lead-based children's toys have very little incentive to treat workers humanely other than eliminate the bottom line.

It's about creating the cheapest product possible, regardless of quality or the blood, sweat and tears of the underpaid workers whose backs American luxury is built upon.

After watching a documentary called the High Cost of Low Prices back when I first entered college, as part of a research paper due in my Composition 1 class, I refused to shop at Walmart on principle. Walmart deducts rent out of their employees' paychecks in China regardless of if these people want to live in Walmart or not.

So most made the fiscally conservative decision to just live at Walmart.

They live in the upper floors of the department store (similar to the movie Sorry to Bother You depicts in a fictional context only, this is real).

But please excuse me, and let me step off the soap box. It isn't about whether this is right or wrong in the aftermath of this corona debacle. It's about survival of the planet and this is something to consider: the values of a business model along with the supply chain's geographical distance to retailers. Health and safety, when neglected have economic costs, as we are seeing today.

Patrick Geddes, one of the most influential city planners to exist, advocated neotechnics, and regional planning. Geddes proposed that physical geography, market economics and anthropology connected social life together.

He felt that physical geography should determine how buildings were built to facilitate social interactions. This was done by first surveying the environment and instead of building grid cities using the scientific method and civic surveys to create a series of self-sufficient cities interconnected but not wholly reliant on each other to survive.

Right now, we live in a world where much depends on the health and vitality (and political maneuverings) of cities, countries, far from where we live, across oceans. When calamity strikes, we are at the mercy of how capable foreign governments are at dealing with emergencies.

Their mistakes have ripple effects, globally felt.

"Go local" isn't just a catch phrase right now.

It's something that needs to be revisited strategically, for economic sustainability. What will the world look like, when we've overcome the covid19 epidemic? I hope we learn from this, how to work together in the market, similar to a Geddes self-sufficient city, connected to, but not dependent on other cities.

Our survival depends on learning the lessons history has taught us, we just need to pay attention to them and take action to course-correct.

So go local, pay attention to supply chains, let's support each other.

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Think Different

The kind of thoughts in my head
these days are different than before. I think you’ll understand, given that we are all in this together.

Past
Last year around this time, I’d just returned from Paris for the 1st time. I’d become trapped in an airport in Miami, Florida for 2 days all the flights back home sold out due to spring-breakers and the airlines wanting to sell as many tickets as possible. New country, new experience, new little moments that will stick with me. I saw and entered Notre Dame before it burned down, and took this photo:

Present

Right now, I’ve watched the rain, listened to online radio while reading a new Ken Follett book, A World Without End. I don’t feel trapped inside or suffer from the same cabin fever some of my friends and business associates do. Perhaps the years of solitary survival, before social networks were invented, prepared me for what’s going on, with the city on lock down.

Future

Looking to the future, I can’t help but think this whole experience is pushing us to take better care of ourselves. As challenging as it may be, looking for ways to be thankful right now is helpful. I am thankful for my neighbors. After self isolating for weeks, the first friend I interacted with (at a safe distance across fences) was my neighbor. She talked to me about going bike riding with her friends through the neighborhood and feeling safe at that distance from each other – yet able to socialize still. It was nice to hear.

It was kind of low key shock to me, how much I enjoyed our short convo before walking to a local Mexican restaurant (remember to support your local restaurants for delivery and pick up during these times) to pick up a gordita and breakfast burrito. I guess I was so well adapted to being myself I didn’t realize it’s healthy to socialize with other people you know and care about. I encourage you to get on Skype or Zoom with your friends and family on a weekly basis to maintain lines of communication.

Years ago, in my 20s, I was working at a job doing tech support for wifi interconnectivity. My roommate bought me a swivel chair so I had a big black leather office chair since it was one of the first work from home jobs I ever had. We had a group chat and only interacted digitally, boss and coworkers included. On my breaks I would throw horse shoes in the backyard or walk around the block. Back then, working from home was a novel concept.

Today it’s necessity.

Scanning the years that passed since then, there is a lot to be thankful for. The travels, new friends, books, random experiences with art, music, community and the kindness of strangers are all pieces of the large infinite beautiful mosaic of life. I know I am not the person I was back then. Parts of each of us have changed, sometimes in imperceptible ways.

With these tiny changes also comes new perspectives, because the little adjustments in how we frame the same issues are a ripple effect in the aspects of our personality that responds to the world. Our personality responds to how our personality responds as we are agents of our own change, for better or worse.

The people we have to become in order to survive ordeals, and the people we have to become in order to achieve our goals are comprised of these tiny changes. So as you adapt to the way things are right now, be perceptive. Don’t lose yourself. Remember what matters most regardless of external circumstances. Treasure the bonds of friendship you’ve created with meaningful people and the shared experiences that define us.

It’s hard because we’re all human right? I’ve had people text to ask if everything was ok given what’s going on right now, who will often go a whole year never even expressing interest in hanging out. And I have to quiet the inner critic and respond compassionately with genuine concern and interest for his family and well being because – we are all trying to make it through the day. Make it through, somehow intact, mind, body, spirit. Let me share a song I was listening to today, that helped uplift the spirit:

Follow the Sun

Tomorrow’s a new day for everyone

Brand new moon

Brand new sun

So follow, follow the sun

The direction of the birds

The direction of love

Routines help us cope, and many of us struggle to create them. It’s like a ship lost at sea, in uncharted waters. And yet, land is almost visible on the horizon line. Having to restructure the day, and create new patterns that include physical and emotional self-care may feel the twinge of growing pains but push through it.

You are the architect of new tiny changes that will help create the version of you that is going to pull through this.

As Kendrick Lamar raps:

“That’s why I do the best I can, because I know how blessed I am,”

Power of Perception: Business & Life

Is Struggle Always Necessary?

Have you ever heard the saying "struggle leads to success" ?

There's a lot of talk about how life has to suck before it can get better. But is this a false dichotomy? That's a fancy way of saying, do we have blinders on and just aren't seeing all the options?

I agree working hard can produce results - IF you're aimed in the right direction. But is hard work always a struggle?

Labor of Love

"Labor of love" is often a term ascribed for when you ARE working hard but, you believe in your work, your steps to the big goal, the pay off, and every act that gets you closer is worth celebrating.

Is THAT a struggle?

Isn't 'struggling' just mental for how we choose to think about actions?

I mean, physical pain aside, generally, being on the grind, if you always frame it as 'a struggle' wouldn't that make it harder for you than framing it as necessary steps towards becoming that bad ass you know you already are?

We can go deep on this one.

If you do become successful but are an a$%hole to everyone, and don't have good social skills (Steve Jobs, asperger et al) - is that success?

How We Look at Ourselves
The World
Our PROCESS

All of these things...determine how hard life is, and if work is really a struggle or just a system you use to become el jefe. If there's one super power you can opt in to having, without being bit by a radioactive spider (which would make you sick in real life), it's the power of perception.

The Power of Perception

Being able to look at how we look at things is a strange gift I've had since I was fighting tooth and claw to not become my father, fighting for scraps living on the streets as a teenager. It's the one thing that led to getting accepted into the University of Texas, working at Facebook, and starting my own businesses.

It's easy to fall into a habit of if this, then that.

This is SQL terminology for how results of a search are defined by certain parameters.

YET...

IRL this means we tend to start to draw conclusions before actually looking at what's happening. Our eyes are not really seeing. We are going through a series of automated emotional habits.

However, it's mainly unconscious. And it can have draw backs when you want to innovate your company but are still coloring within the lines and not thinking outside the box. The habit-thinking of expecting the same thing despite there being different variables and inputs limits our growth, professionally and personally.

How Good Becomes Great

Taking the time to look at your business and ask the hard questions, without sugar coating is how good becomes great. The challenge with thinking bigger is we tend to self-impose mediocrity, and creating artificial ceilings that limit our flight path. These ceilings are due to the habitual way we think about potential. The definition of identity, of a company or a person, if it's habit-based, is going to suffer adapting to a changing world.

Do your self a favor, and begin to cultivate a sense for how you look at things. For how you look at how you look at things.

---------->Start Here<------------

What are habits you have on how you think of yourself or your business?

Are there conclusions you assume about people or situations?

What is a new way to think about this and rewire your process?

Think, be, explore - it's an adventure.

Secret to My Success

The value of exploring new things can change your life. Every university likes to talk about academic "excellence" with hundreds of pages in the course catalogue of course subjects. The attitude seems to be that you can choose anything you want, as long as you do it well.

What's the end result of this?

Many students end up staggering under the burden of student loan debts (spoiler alert I'm in it for $90,000 for just my bachelors). The student body becomes unknowing subscribers and executors of "Peter's theory," that purports a theme of getting just good enough not to suck at your role in a company, then getting promoted as soon as you start doing well. (Leaving a chain of events where everyone is always partially sucking at their jobs).

The college mindset is often (tho of course it depends on the school, and your professors),

--from an academic advisor standpoint--

"It doesn't matter what you do. Just graduate, and that piece of paper will get you set for life."

Yet Bill Gates dropped out of Harvard to become a millionaire starting Microsoft. Steve Jobs dropped out of Reed College to found Apple Computer that is so part of our lives today.

What can we conclude from this? Baby Boomers often feel a sort of intangible optimism due to the rapid technological advances for the 18 years following the 1950s that seemed to infer things were always going to get better regardless of if you made plans, because success is based on luck. Which is incorrect.

Success is based on strategic planning and including within these plans, projecting for the future.

Millennials looking back to Baby Boomers often also ascribe success to a series of fortunate circumstances, family, money, private schools, who you know etc. Yet, there is a lot more to achieving goals than just opportunity. Plenty of other people had chances to capitalize on a market gap their company could solve but failed to innovate, clinging to old designs instead of evolving to meet the changes in public preference and society (Blockbuster, Kodak etc).

The worth of a product today, has to be adjusted for the devaluation of the dollar, and increased cost of living that continues to rise every year to some degree. And projected technological advances. Automation right now is big and will continue to grow, voice command software, eCommerce, all these are going to grow and evolve rapidly in the coming years as an example.

It definitely does matter what you do. Focusing on what you are already good at, and developing this into a master skill set is a good start. But hard work and dedication aren't enough. You need to look ahead, research trends in your industry, and determine if it will be valuable in the future.

You know the difference between people who have big dreams, but end up working at service-level jobs, and not making a lot of money and those who end up in Hollywood, on the cover of Forbes, or at least, making great money in either a phenomenal career or as a business owner?

Masive Action.

Consistency.

Research.

Mentors.

Massive Action.

It takes actions to make things happen, not endless convos about what life would be like if you got a big break. It is not luck that changes your destiny - it's mindset combined with taking specific actions on a daily basis to move the needle.

All the energy from making plans sipping jo at the coffee shop with friends, should be transferred into taking action. Being strategic, and prioritizing your dreams over drinking with friends, Netflix, socializing, video games on your phone, family drama, habits and hobbies, none of that excuse my french means shit if you can't 10X your income and lifestyle improvements as a result of:

Taking action
Guidance from mentors already successful in your field
Do Research - in-depth, results-based research not a blogger's opinion of success

And this requires a real sincere dedication to breaking down the steps in between you and your goal, as well as determining, specifically, how to overcome obstacles in achieving those microsteps to the bigger goals.

Sometimes you are your own obstacle.

Sometimes you need to remind yourself why you give a damn in the first place.

For me, it's family. I care about my family, and have unique gifts that will enable me to do a lot more with my life, and income earning potential than many of my fellow UT Alumni who subscribe to the "participation-award" ideology. I work hard to help friends of mine who are broke without exit plans.

But I don't work hard at just achieving mediocracy. I work hard at doing the impossible. The impossible is only impossible if you don't believe it's possible. So believe in your dreams as possible. They said we'd never put a man on the moon. The telephone was laughed at by early investors as impossible. Yet - it became possible because at least one person believed it was possible.

Be that person for your own dreams.

You need your own buy in. Give yourself permission to win.
To defeat your own demons you have to recognize your life is worth fighting for.

And it is, you are worth it, you've gotten this far haven't you?

So don't sell yourself short by accepting less than what you deserve. Dream bigger, work harder, BUT be strategic on specific outcomes from your actions. Hard work isn't going to accomplish much if you're only working to maintain. This energy needs to be directed towards something with much faster scalability. Seriously, figure out your Why and use it to motivate yourself to do the work necessary, inner work and outside, to live a better life.

You got this.

Not So Secret Weapon

What's the one thing that brings people together?

Common ground. Community. Shared Purpose.

In these trying times, it's easy to look for ways to cast judgy eyes onto those that are different from you. In business, there are seldom second chances to make a great impression. As a result, if there is contention, often this loses customers.

For good.

Ever been to a restaurant where a waiter was rude and dismissive? This makes an impression.

Impressions cost money.

One time I was in a restaurant with a friend, enjoying some chips and queso. Everything was going great, until one of the waitstaff started talking loudly to the bartender about their life. The things they had to brag about. The intimate personal details I was not volunteering to hear or participate in - like being locked in an elevator, with someone on their cell phone pouring out TMI stories as if no one else exists.

This experience cost that restaurant a customer (and perhaps more than one, if others also weren't keen to learn the backstage view of their waiters personal life).

While it may seem like a small loss, word of mouth alone can magnify this loss - if I were to say the name of the restaurant and other locals read it. Shoot, one place I ate at with another friend, she found a metal screw in her sandwich - hows that for customer retention practices???

Ironically, I still go to that restaurant. Why? Because the attitude and impression the waitstaff made on me before and after the 'screw-gate' incident was supportive and understanding.

A big contrast to self-absorbed life-story narrative waitstaff whose superpower is ignorance of the world around them. (Not sure who her arch-nemesis would be...Self-Awareness Girl? Kind of an anti-hero set up).

I can't solve national political debates, or bridge the divide between differing religions, beliefs, and social constructs - at least not with just one blog alone. However, we can all do our part both in business and in our personal lives to build community.

Community helps those with different view points find gaps we can bridge in eachother's skillsets by virtue of our shared membership in a tribe. That's our common ground. Whenever something goes down that requires team work - that sense of unity creates friendships, rebuilds relationships and helps others.

I was freestyling rhymes about living with intention at a local freestyle rap cypher here

What many may not realize is that finding common ground has to be a conscious decision to be effective. Well, I guess not necessarily if you are just a community-minded person. What I mean is most people have to make an effort to start finding what they have in common with other people.

I'll never forget...riding in the peach colored F-150 Ford truck my father drove and listening to him yell at other drivers. He'd insult them and make up all kinds of reasons why they weren't ANY good.

It always stuck with me because of the intense effort he made to find reasons to belittle strangers. I wondered if he knew how exhausting it was to listen to him yell insults. How exhausted this made his own life? I bring this up because I had a real epiphany when I was working at Facebook.

I'd take my breaks outside, and walk around downtown Austin. I started remembering my dad's judgements when people walked across the intersection at 6th and Congress entering coffee shops, jewelry stores, delis, comedy theaters and more. His words floated through my brain about how this woman is probably like ___ or that man is probably just___ [insert insult].

I don't know why it hit me at that moment.

I thought of how much control my dad completely let go of by doing this habitually. But I started to realize, as I heard my father's voice inside my head, that I had a NEW choice:

I could look for reasons to compliment people. I could find reasons to celebrate people.

I could choose to be positive. Being positive sometimes gets a bad rep from some who feel it's negating reality or practicing avoidance of harsh truths that need to be dealt with. But this wasn't it at all.

It is more of a choice on what to focus on. And when your attention is focused on adding details, filling in the blanks, with the intention of veneration, the intention of giving people back their humanity from these bullshit static labels we fall in the habit of accepting - this creates a new opportunity to build community.

Even if this is silently, just watching, enjoying little moments. Not creating negative imaginary backstories for why someone appears a certain way but instead creating positive, supportive opinions about people. Believing in their goodness. Believing in my own goodness. Feeling the glow of selflessly loving strangers just because I can and I choose to.

Does this relate at all to business?

To entrepreneurship?

Yes. And to enjoying life. When we pause, and look beyond trying to make money and focus on building relationships, nurturing a community, those who receive these messages respond in kind.

Humans have an innate urge to support positive socially constructive behavior.

Taking the initiative to create this within your customer's journey will not only empower you to extend the life time value of a client and build brand loyalty - you also won't feel like a shitty human being trying to manipulate others to buy from you.

Living with intention is not another millennial buzz phrase - when you start to fill in the details. What is your intention, specifically?

And in regards to which part of your life, or your business - how do you fill in the gaps for your intention? How does your intention manifest itself in each part of your life?

This is where you are the sculptor, molding the clay of creation, deciding to create a life that celebrates diversity, new ideas, the raw unpolished surface of the planet where all these little creatures live and die and share moments of joy.

We are part of this. We continue to choose which moments to nurture, to dwell in and continue to make. We choose which thoughts become our dominant narrative.

Yes, life is hard sometimes. We lose people we care about (RIP Kobe Bryant), sometimes money is tight, hospital bills pile up, impossible obstacles seem to face us - even if that obstacle is just waking up the next morning. I've been there. Some things we overcome quicker than others.

But when we focus on building a community, locally, within our business's customer journey, among fellow professionals, sharing hobbies like horse riding, golf, sailing, gaming, photography, education - these shared values, moments, and people create a beautiful caring network that is sustainable.

Money aside - this is the legacy we can build and contribute to - the networks and communities we build and are a part of that nourish each member with a sense of belonging and support.

This is the not-so-secret weapon against apathy, isolation, pain, ads that don't convert into sales, and brick walls we hit sometimes when deciding on our next move.

The people I know, friends, family, fellow entrepreneurs - all have given me great ideas and vice versa because we chose to listen to each other.

So keep listening. You may learn something new.

Are You On the Right Track?

Bonjour!

The world is changing at a rapid pace and as we enter the next year the often trivialized concept of "specifies survival" has become an intriguing concept in business.

The popularity of sustainability is indisputable.

But it's a paradox.

As many celebrities, and social movements have popularized "going green" there are often disconnects. People with "don't support the war" signs in their yard after 911, and the invasion of Iraq for their oil, still continued to buy oil guzzling SUVs.

Consumers still mindlessly buy products from companies that dump toxins in local tributaries (Walmart has had lawsuits threatened by the EPA for doing this in Texas - it isn't just 3rd world countries suffering). The motivation to actually do a little bit of research - I promise you, it's not any more time than you spend scrolling the FB newsfeed per week - is very little.

That's kind of mysterious.

The survival of the human race appears to depend on how popular an idea is, which Kardashian endorsed it to their fans (like the fires in Australia destroying an entire country ignored by the west, until more celebrities jumped on board and publicized it), and if it's convenient.

If there was some sort of complete trust in political leadership, around the world, to:

Care more about the long term survival of our species than getting re-elected
Prioritize resource preservation over doing arms races
Look at impacts of companies more than business deals subsidizing the very companies dumping toxins into our water supply

...then active citizenry wouldn't be as pivotal.

The World Grows Smaller & Bigger

Increasing access to technology and education are providing greater opportunities in developing countries and contribute to the expansion of the middle class as well. India is rapidly becoming more of an industrialized nation than ever before. New issues such as pollution are going to come to the forefront with this progress as well.

Per to the World Economic Forum, the world has fewer people living on less than $1.25/day by one-half. We are on the path to meeting the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development’s (OECD) 2010 forecast that the global middle class may double by 2020 and triple by 2030.

Many say this is a result of urbanization, the increased access to education (no doubt increased by access to the internet as well), tech and growth expansion opportunities.

So while Walt Disney may have banned plastic straws from its theme parks we the people have a ways to go for changing our buying habits. It is from within society that lasting change happens.

Change starts with us.

For most people it's incredibly difficult to analyze their own buying behavior in relation to large changes in the world. We have 2 contradicting mindsets:

1. I don't matter, I can't make that big of a difference by myself

2. Everyone is looking at me, I have to be careful not to embarrass myself

The latter is called the spotlight effect - the idea that more people are staring at us than actually are (as the mass self-absorbed public rarely stares long at each other before power walking on).

The majority of consumers resist change to habits & established behaviors. The comfort of ignorance, the benefits and luxuries of not taking responsibility for anything we do with our money is the luring siren call of a real zombie nation.

Unthinking, feeding, breeding in large comfortable chairs like Wall-E's cast of characters or Jabba the Hutt (By the way Mandelorian is a great series..no Disney did not pay for that name drop)...we march on into oblivion. But wait. There's more. Hope.

Entrepreneurship+Sustainability = Opportunity

Entrepreneurs have discovered the benefit of sustainability as a business model due to it's popularity in pop culture. New ideas for new products that are eco-friendly pour out in the thousands every day.

Jason's Deli has little cards on the table talking about their sustainability work, more notices about where and how GMOs are used are no longer hidden but front and center.

Stating that your vegetables are organically grown not GMO isn't just an About section; it's a marketing tool and brand development asset.

I take heart in these type of changes. It's more than a business opportunity: being conscious of how what we do affects the world and being motivated to act on this knowledge helps save the world.

Saving the World

More than a general hippie euphemistic statement - but actually implement sustainable systems for land, air, and water and solar - it's simply incredible what is available now.

But the turning point, before we reach another critical mass for resource deprivation, deforestation, and water scarcity is going to come from a value shift in buying habits.

The 3 seconds it takes to make a buying decision based on the business practices in relation to resource-management is going to be what really helps us as a species survive.

These little decisions multiplied by the billions add up.

Every choice you as a person make - adds up. You are not alone. You are part of something greater.

Consumers are smart. Startup founders can make use of the growing consensus that companies should do more than tout 'sustainable' as an empty slogan. People are now expecting facts and data to back up a business's sustainability claims. The fluff just isn't enough anymore.

I take hope from this.

It's new opportunities to do a new kind of business: one led by less selfish money acquisition and more global heart-conscious decision-making skills. Entrepreneurs have can build partnerships with environmental organizations, 501c3 nonprofits and sustainability research groups to verify the sustainability claims of a product, service or company.

I like this. I like this a lot.

My thoughts are that once it becomes a core value, inherent as 'do no harm' and 'try to not be a douche bag if you can help it' that we'll see values and companies align easier and in greater quantities. Yes, fossil fuels will fight this every step of the way until they start building better cars with less of a carbon footprint.

While there may be a dark before the dawn, the way things are trending is that we, as a global consciousness are continuing to evolve. I tip my cap to you, sip my Texas Pecan Coffee, and wish you a good day!

When do I get to buy a Ferrari?

What's your dream car?

Ferrari's are high on many people's lists - personally I would rather have a Bentley. When you start a business, and get an early windfall, it's often tempting to blow all your money on a big purchase like a Ferrari. But if there isn't an infrastructure and a way to diversify your sources of income this may be taking valuable funds from other areas of your business.

As a business owner you have to make hard decisions. When first getting started, sometimes these decisions take the form of:

"Do I want to buy food this month or keep my phone turned on?"

Financial education is not included in most people's high school experience. Even college, unless you are majoring in a field like economics, doesn't teach much about money management.

Balancing a checkbook
How to invest, or even
The difference between an asset and a liability

are still skillsets the majority of people do not have in America.I remember the first time I learned about assets and liabilities...I was 19 years old, just made it off the streets into my own apartment. One of my classmates from highschool had a sister who was into a MLM type company. Essentially a pyramid scheme, as many MLMs are, like Avon. The company was called Quixtar - which years later renamed itself as Amway.

I was supposed to convince people to join, and buy groceries wholesale price from a website, which would deliver things like toothpaste, toilet paper and other nonperishable goods. I was 19, and pretty lazy, so I never got too into it. But, the required reading for the program was Robert T. Kiyosaki's Rich Dad Poor Dad. Reading that book was probably the best part of the program before I quit it.

The Rich Dad Poor Dad book defined what a liability is (what you owe other parties - like a student or business loan that's an investment into higher returns ideally) and what an asset is.

Assets add value to your company and increase your company's equity, while liabilities decrease your company's value and equity. The more your assets outweigh your liabilities, the stronger the financial health of your business.
Wallstreet Mojo gives a good breakdown of them here.

Being good in business means having financial smarts, not just a degree from the McComb's school of business (which, by itself without a vision and strategy can often equal just being a manager at McDonald's).Learning how to make wise investments in time, money and a blue print for the future is something everyone can benefit from, not just entrepreneurs.

At a recent entrepreneur conference I was at, I was exposed to the money smarts of Ezra Firestone who is a multimillionaire. We're friends now on Faceobok at least, and I remember one of the key takeaways I got from his presentation:

Use the money your business makes to reinvest capital into that business, and sell the company, liquifying your assets, and then with the extra time and money you have now, invest in a new better company.

Rinse & repeat.

I think about his presentation, and a recent conversation I had with a friend of mine. We were talking about my plans for launching another business and getting into a bigger house as a result.He warned me to not spend too much money on it and cut costs where I can.

It was good advice.

I mentioned this and that I wouldn't make this decision until I had revenue above certain margins, and ideally multiple streams.I need to figure out the amount of investment capital I can get to jumpstart this project but I wouldn't be able to do this unless I spent time first looking within.

The way to become successful is to figure out yourself first.

Developing healthy routines for introspection, life path planning, and how to get to those first milestones is crucial to maintain momentum.So when do I get to buy a Ferrari? Or perhaps an Aston Martin?

The answer is when you're able to put money back into your business to grow it bigger and see that return, with more than once source of revenue - then it may be time to splurge.

A promotion doesn't equal a business. Big wins are great - but the follow up plan is how you stay winning. Daily routines, mental, and emotional are how we get there - babysteps to creating a better future.

P.S. Enjoy these blogs? Know a friend who does too? Get them in your inbox as a cool entrepreneur newsletter? Send them the subscribe link here

Exciting New Era of the 20s

As the new year approaches, we make our resolutions for the next 365 days, and reflect on the past year. But, it's a special time; we are concluding a decade.

Seems crazy right?

I don't know about you but for me this feels like the first official decade of the 2000s. 2000-2010 still seemed like just the year 2000 extended. The teens, (which is what I consider 2010 - 2019), gave the feeling of still being the year 2000 extended - era wise.

Is it just me?

Did you feel a sense of "we are living in the new 70s, 60s, 80s, 90s" ?

I didn't. But now, after society has adapted to all the new innovations in technology it feels like the start of a new era.

With the ever present smartphone, how that shapes art, music, the club scene, schools' Edtech ventures, the accessibility of media, the rise of Netflix as an ever present background for home entertainment, the normalizing of online dating apps, the prevalence of rideshare companies like Uber and Lyft now becoming a household term

- it feels like we've balanced out to a distinct way of life that has its own culture.

The last era I remember having its own sense of zeitgeist was the 90s. But with the 20s - this is the new decade complete with new ways of living.

A New Era

The past 20 years seemed like an experiment but now, there is kind of a balance. We've adapted with new mores, and a way of talking about things that is unique to post 90s. Socially though - I would say we still have a ways to go. New habits have created new problems in the new era.

Younger people - from babies given iPads to stare at for hours, to 9-18 year olds are all heavily co-dependent on technology to communicate, socialize and feel connected. The ability to focus on one thing will full attention is on a sharp decline.

Even sitting still isn't as common. Critical thinking, using our brains for more than googling has been suffering. Online behavior has given many an excuse to be mean, hiding behind the screen.

Social media is used to validate the youth's sense of SELF-ACCEPTANCE- which is a real problem given the trolling, fake profiles, and artificial community social media giants like Facebook have created.

At the same time, incredible community efforts to assist those in need for wild fires in Cali, to floods in Houston, Texas have been assisted by social media. People have literally been rescued from rooftops because of posts they made online - that is a win and it's a...err...haha rather 'new' as a way for helping folks.

On the flip side, among the youth, there is a huge issue of substituting attitude for integrity - I have a phone, I can call a rideshare, I can talk back and organize my escape from any discipline for crossing boundaries by coordinating with friends and questionable characters on my smartphone.

"I do what I WANT mom and dad!"

"I will public shame you online if you don't let me just live my life!"

Sense of Purpose

Rampant drug use amongst the Asian communities, small town white suburbanite communities, in addition to the generally accepted state of ghettos and impoverished grottos - is on the rise.

Young people are also doing a lot of drugs - not just marijuana but bath salt, barbiturates, molly, X, etc. The irony here is, often the spike in drug addiction is amongst successful college graduates with profitable careers in industries like software engineering.

Part of it is ease of access in our ever increasingly connected world, but much of it is due to the same issues the youth face with technology addiction - a lack of purpose. A missing place inside for a sense of why we are here.

Some fill this hole with staying busy all the time working, or with drinking going out to bars almost every night of the week. Others turn to tech, and obsess over the newest gadgets, turning hostile if the social behavior this creates is ever put into question.

Tech has become the new religion - if you question validity, or suggest a balance in turning the black mirror screens off, many act like you insulted their god - just as defensive and scared.

Others use religion to fill the missing pieces inside with a consistent whole, to define life purpose with. This can be benevolent and based in compassion - actions speak louder than words - other times it's predatory.

It's a way of not accepting people who don't think, feel, and believe the same way, thus creating a false moral superiority.

Jesus in the gospels said a bunch of helpful things, that regardless of religion, if practiced, would make us all better people. Walk a mile in someone else's shoes, be forgiving, understanding of those different from you.

It is simply a tool, and how it is used depends on the user.

Dozens of Ways to Look @ the Same Thing

Philosophy, humanism, and rational thinking have addressed questions of purpose and meaning for centuries. Whether there is one cohesive solution found or not the underlining theme is to be open.

Be less rigid, more curious and to be adventurous in exploring our own perspectives.

To be brave enough to find out what is beneath the surface of roles we play and attitudes we hold. To balance one's self by not getting too attached to one way of thinking. To cross reference sources, til you feel something that feels right. It's an intuitive, instinctive moment.

Reading philosophy for 20 years now, I've questioned my own beliefs many times - not motivated by self-doubt but simply asking,

"Is there a better way to do this...living, being, adulting thing?"

This led to revelations, understanding the world, who I am, and added a sense of direction to where I am going. By asking, "What's really possible for identity if I get better?" and evaluating different view points - I found my center.

Many live and die never exploring who they are. Because it's a paradox - on one hand accept who you are, on the other also ask, "What can I do to improve?"

Body, heart, spirit, mind, life.

All of it.

Realizing..when looking out, how few have gone this deep, compassionately questioning their beliefs, wanting to give back

- I see there's a gap in many childhoods.

With this increased access to resources, through the internet, smartphones, laptops, video conferencing, texting, social media apps displaying entire lives - the real sense of meaning for living is often lost if kids don't have an underlining sense of right and wrong.

So they turn to drugs, even after becoming successful, making money, but having no real inner sense of direction.

At The Very Least...

The hands off approach of let kids raise themselves (which Will Smith has, as a scientologist, for his kids - and the results speak for themselves) doesn't really work because how easy it is to influence children through social media, blogs, rando websites and such.

At the same time, indoctrinating a child into a religion from an early age steals the freedom of choice - they should be allowed to decide once they are of sound body and mind what they believe in.

Yet - at the very least kids should be taught the value of compassion, the value of active listening and validating other people's view points, to lend a helping hand when possible, not be self absorbed but appreciate what we have and look for opportunities to improve one's self.

I feel...at a bare minimum, these traits will at least create a blueprint for self discovery less self-destructive than many students I observed when substitute teaching.

Reflecting on the 20s

I, haha, will not attempt to solve this entire issue in one blog post.

But, something really strikes me when a friend of mine last night was telling me about her friends with successful careers but drug addiction problems.

As I sip coffee I got for Christmas and watch the sunrise this morning I am thankful for my sense of purpose.

Reflecting on entering the new 20s, the 'roaring 20s' of the previous century, I wonder what this new decade has in store for us.

Will we finally get hoverboards? Teleportation?

Will values re-enter social dialogue as a worthwhile focus for the youth? How will we continue to evolve as a species?

We have neat benefits of information being shared like plastic eating bacteria to clean the oceans, solar and wind renewable energy becoming more easily available and cheaper each year.

Yes, there are still challenges, but I remain hopeful as humans still have the ability to amaze.

Happy New Years!

Fitness FTW

Sunday August 12th 2018 Press play to hear the music that goes with this blog

Jesse Cook : Tempest

Maybe it was almost dying in New Orleans that finally pushed me to seriously commit to living healthier, eating more nutritiously an adopting a rigorous swimming regime. Perhaps it was all those years of body-shaming I endured, both from my friends who’d make fun of me in good spirited jokes, or from my inner monologue staring in the mirror and really being unhappy with what I looked like

Certainly throwing up blood violently, passing out, waking up, and throwing up more was a gut check on how I lived my life. The unexpectedness of almost dying from blood loss on my summer vacation slapped me in the face. RUDE. I felt like the world was spinning out of my control. Standing up in the AirBnb and having waves of pressure hit my head on the left side, now the ride side, and the blackness creeping up on the edge of my vision affected me more than I care to admit.

I’ve come close to death many times in my life. Car accidents, comas, allergic reactions, guns being pulled on me at 16 years old and being threatened by homeless people with knives. Somehow, I was able to cruise through it, in some sort of functional shock that pushed the emotions of what I had to deal with far below the surface. This time it was different.

I have more to lose now & bigger dreams than simply surviving until tomorrow morning. Authoring my first book, writing the second book, teaching myself Spanish to prepare for going to UT this month, working at Facebook and absolutely loving my job, I’m on the cusp of greatness I feel, now more than ever. I have so many creative inventive ideas for business that haven’t been put into play yet.

Entrepreneur Blues

It’s like, I feel like I’ve made my forays into the mindset of an entrepreneur but I am still filling out the application. I don’t feel like a true entrepreneur yet until I have a steady income each month from my projects. But getting into better physical shape, and enjoying what I look like when I look in the mirror are part of my vision of myself as an entrepreneur. So when I almost kicked the bucket in June this year and spent 3 days tied to a hospital bed with IV tubes, something inside of me snapped. In a good way.

Enough bullshitting Trevor, you can and will do better than this. On all fronts. Be a better son, be better to my son, be a better coworker, be a better friend and take better care of my body. Be better at this life mastery type ish. Taking the time to work more authentically on my goals, my business and journey into entrepreneurship is intrinsic to the person I’ve decided to become. Fitness is something I have put off for far too long.

Diet Progress Fitness Goals

4 Weeks and 4 days ago I began a 6 Week Eat To Live challenge: I’ve given up dairy, all bread except for once or twice a week pita and hummus, all oils, and eat only fruits and vegetables. Part of it is I can’t really afford to see an internal medicine doctor the docs in New Orleans wanted me to see in Austin so I figure just eat as healthy as possible and the rest will fix itself. So far so good.

After the 3rd week of eating only fruits for breakfast and greens for lunch and dinner I began to feel ravenously hungry for the first time. Really hungry. It’s a wonder that I made it 3 weeks before missing full meals with bread, cheese and um…Creamy Creations Mint Chocolate Chip! But I made it. I didn’t cheat. I just added heavier things to my diet like portobello mushrooms, seasoned with lemon-pepper and basil, sautéed to perfection in an iron skillet. Near the end of the 3rd week I developed a craving for Green Tea. I’ve never been a huge fan of Green Tea, but I bought some and drink it on the reg now.

I work out 5 to 6 days a week, cardio, weights, and calisthenics. I meditate almost everyday. I go swimming twice a week. For 45 minutes I do front crawl laps and then 4 laps using a kick board. I feel better. I am better. Inside and out. I’ve lost 14 pounds, and am on track to becoming the fittest version of myself yet. I’m still overweight right now with a belly:

I want to be as cut as Mark Walhberg is (we have similar body types), and sport a six pack of well defined rectus abdominis, Transversus abdominis (TVA), and serratus muscles.

When will this happen? Realistically? Given my progress so far, around 3 months or less. I’ve seen more definition in my biceps from both weight lifting and swimming laps, I feel a square beneath my belly forming but my body fat percentages are way too high to show any muscles yet. But that day is coming, sooner than you think.

Eating salads everyday has an ancillary benefit to losing weight and getting in better shape: you are mofreaking healthy. I enjoy feeling good inside and out. I have more energy to do the things I love and am aligning with my goals more intuitively than ever before.

Yes, I still have a belly, but not for long. Them washboard abs are on their way, express delivery. And the lifestyle to go with it, sailing on yachts, becoming a book author, driving my Mini Cooper. I have lots to work on. But I’m motivated by the consistency of the dedication I seem capable of now, and see bright things in the future. Until next time SpaceCowboy…

Dr. Robert Young

Press Play: Back To The Rivers Of Believe: Way To Eternity/Hallelujah/The Rivers Of Believe

Wednesday April 18th 2018

Real Life Heroes

It’s not often you get to meet your heroes. Its even less seldom that you become friends with your heroes. I’ve gone through many iterations of who I am over the years. Each new experience bringing to light a new view of the planet and how one small person can make a huge impact. All through my life I’ve had a surreal feeling of living in a dream. The habits that make us walk through our daily routine on autopilot without questioning why we are the people we become sing a seductive lullaby. This is punctuated by catalysts that shake me into periods of being awake, aware, and purposeful.

It’s hard to predict falling asleep because you’re not aware of it while it happens. I feel this is a modern dilemma which plagues many of the deep thinkers of our time. The comfortable embrace of forgetting introspection, and continuing to stimulate our senses rather than our mind, or that intangible spark which ignites our spirit into active engagement. In the spring of 2015 in many ways I was asleep. I’d done years of work for many Ralph Nader organizations and volunteered in my local community. I’d been a public speaker for the families of minorities shot by Austin Police Department officers under questionable circumstances. Speaking at City Hall, the Human Rights Commission and the State Capital about the ethical use of tasers, and the divide between east side grottos and law enforcement, I did my best to become involved and make a difference adding honesty and truth to the public dialogue. I’d studied environmentalism and to a small degree, sustainability. But, nothing could prepare me for how much taking Dr. Robert Young’s Green Cities course at UT Austin would change, and evolve my perspective.

I had the type of arrogance which comes from too often being a big fish in a small pond. I was used to being the most outspoken person in the room, and the one most engaged in realistic practicalities for, well, not just complaining about the woes of the world but finding a real solution. When selecting this course, it was not done with much forethought, I just knew I needed a Signature course for my degree requirements. I really liked the name “Green Cities,” it appealed to my love of nature. My curiosity was peaked, so I thought, “Why not? Let’s explore!”

First Day Of Class

I remember the first day of class, January 20th I think, 2015. Dr. Young’s classroom was held in kind of a basement floor of a pharmacy building on campus. The feng shui was less than ideal. I walked in, with my REI backpack full of notebooks, and slid into a seat midway between the front row and the back row. Dr. Young began speaking about the basics most classes covered. Then he got into the course curriculum. I was struck by how relevant, dynamic and interesting everything he was saying was. Dr. Young seemed to know what he was talking about on more than a purely academic level. I was intrigued.

After class was over, I approached Dr. Young and introduced myself. I gave a short synopsis of some of the volunteer work I’d done and how fascinated I was with his class. He was short with me and reserved, not really knowing who I was and if I was just another student who was going to drop out in the first 3 weeks of class. Curiosity, and a genuine interest for where this class was going made me eager to attend the next. Over the course of the next couple of months, my appreciation for Dr. Young and what he was teaching grew immensely. We eventually moved to the Sutton building and got a much better classroom.

I met some of the other students in his class and there was quite a range of people who were taking his course. I made a couple of really good friends who changed my life for the better many months and years later. This is the course description from the syllabus:

This course examines the history and future of the ecological city and the technological and social forces that continue to shape it. Metropolitan transformation is explored in conjunction with alternative transportation, renewable energy, green infrastructure, recycling and resource management, and sustainable economics as means toward advancing cities to become the basis of an ecologically sound and socially just society.

The first part of the course introduces students to the long, but often overlooked, history of environmental city development in the western planning tradition. Specific emphasis is placed on the classic period as well as 19th century garden city planning and encompasses early efforts to establish solar design, mass transit, and green infrastructure as the basis of urban systems that still inform contemporary green city strategies.

The second part of the course reviews present-day efforts to apply these approaches in the face of modern metropolitan challenges to creating ecologically responsible cities. Specific case studies are studied within the theoretical context and political struggles that frame them.

Required Reading:

Civilizing American Cities – Olmsted (Sutton-ed.), Da Capo Press
Garden Cities of To-Morrow – Howard, MIT Press
The Great Financial Crisis: Causes and Consequences – Foster and Magdoff, MR Press The Ecology of the Automobile – Freund and Martin, Black Rose Books

The Big Picture

Each successive class, more of the big picture became clear to me. Much of the work I’d done in the previous years laid the groundwork, on top of which Dr. Young built a magnificent shining city of sustainability, agriculture, economics, and urban planning. The group discussions were animated and full of insight. I learned that Robert created a company called American Soil and was instrumental in helping America set up recycling systems and much of his passion came from practicing what he preaches. I expressed this feeling of admiration and being able to connect the dots in an email I sent him the 2nd month of class:

Thursday, February 12, 2015 11:30 PM

To: Young, Robert F
Subject: Re: Toronto’s Ecology Park Today

Hey Dr Young, I was just thinking about your class, it was such a random choice, after being forced

to take a freshman class due to my academic plan aging out, I had the option of choosing other UGS courses that better fit my schedule, and allowed me to have Tuesday and Thursday off to work. I decided, ultimately and on a whim to take your class instead because it seemed so interesting and worth sacrificing the ability to work during this semester for the only two days i would have off.

I am glad I did, today I really had one of the biggest realizations of my sustainable-activist-public speaker-volunteer career, and although it was a point already reinforced earlier in the course, it finally dawned on me, this is what I have needed for so long; an appeal to the decision makers in business and politics to associate capitalistic value to the sustainable approach…in a less wordy way…

I have been working for a long time on changing the world for the better, through many MOs,

and the road block consistently was, how do I make those in industry who are for lack of a better

term, morally depraved when it comes to a global view and doing things for the good of the world

rather than self interested motivations—ok I was too optimistic on this being less wordy–

But that was again a wall I beat my head against time and time again, in different sectors of business, the self interested projections of futures shaped by big business, came down to a social more they simply did not share, and a foolishly so in my opinion.

It dawned on just now, listening to the Floyd track attached and thinking of your class:

Green spaces ensure a quality of life that attract and keep companies like Mercedes in New Jerz

which therefore ensure jobs for workers, and circulate worker’s capital in local economies creating

windfalls for local and national chains of business that all benefit ultimately from protecting the environment in a psychosocialogical and monetary manner rather than the simplistic but true epithet of “why kill that which keeps us alive,” the natural habitat, and resource sustainability. The latter seems simple but still is not grasped by Forbes top ten lists, who have politicians in their pocket.

This is the gap I have been needing to connect; how to appeal on a economic level for preservation

of ecosystems which we are connected to and need anyways to survive, but that low level thinking

and motivations of greed have often blinded those with the power to change the world for the better

from changing it. But to connect economy to ecology like this does a lot for my ability to use

the talents I’ve already developed in this field to further reach different diasporas I perhaps would

not have otherwise, so thanks. Someday I will learn how to write in cliff notes lol

Trevor

One Person Actually Can Make A Difference

It felt amazing, the joy inside of me growing, that changing the world for the better wasn’t just some anachronistic adage from the 70s but something that can really happen. We’d have the lecture with Dr. Young, and then on another day of the week, we’d meet with his assistant, a graduate student of City Planning named Katharine. There were many animated discussions in those meetings and they offered a chance to get to know my classmates better. One of the classmates I had was a young Russian girl, who sat in the front row during Dr. Young’s lectures. She had an interesting way of speaking, as she was very intent on exploring where her ideas and understanding met Dr. Young’s knowledge. I felt there was something different about her, that she came by her world experience in a way which wasn’t as traditional as most students. One day after class, I introduced myself to her when we were standing outside of class together. For the sake of her privacy, we’ll call her D. I started sitting in the front row next to her and another student named Nathan who I became good friends with.

Dr. Young had a thing about punctuality, no matter what your excuse was, he really didn’t like it when you got to class late. This is because he was literally dropping gold mines of how to effectively sustain the planet and felt that if you didn’t share his passion or respect it at least, it was an insult. In a way it was comical, how worked up he was about people arriving late. Also, if you were looking at your cell phone during his lecture, this was a big no no as well. When you consider how valuable what he was sharing is, it’s easier to understand how intense Robert got about the class he was teaching.

Hip Hop Scholar

We had what was called, Journal Reflections due each week. The format was up to us, whether we wrote something down that was poetic, or artistic, Dr. Young wanted us to put what we learned in our own words, or creative format as a way of synthesizing the material. It was a smart move because when you teach something you learn it even better, and essentially he was getting us to teach him what he was teaching us. After one class, one day, before the first Journal Reflections were due, I approached Dr. Young and explained that I am a hip hop artist, a rapper. I’ve made mixtapes that I’ve gone to Rock the Bells with and handed copies to Souls of Mischief, Big Krit, and Cypress Hill. Some of the local shows I’ve done had headliners including Devin the Dude and Prince Paul of De La Soul. Could I perhaps create a hip hop song for my reflection, instead of a journal? Surprisingly, Dr. Young whole heartedly agreed.

By this time, we were more well acquainted. I frequently spoke out in class asking for clarification or adding knowledge to a topic he was covering. We met often in his office hours to discuss the course and the issues of society. I didn’t realize it at the time but I had made a huge commitment to write, record, and release a new hip hop song every single week. Due to my course load, it became a challenge to do, but I always delivered. I’ll always remember those Wednesday nights, half way delirious, half way asleep, rapping into my microphone after spending 2 hours creating the instrumental, another hour or 2 writing the rap that implemented topics of the class that week. To be honest, it was not some of my best work. The Rep My City mixtape released in 2018 is a better representation of this, but, still, creating those raps was all part of the experience of attending the Green Cities class. How many professors would let you create a rap in place of an assignment?? I was super grateful he was so open minded and appreciative of my efforts. It made me think outside the box trying to write raps about the Auto Industrial Complex or Wall Street Economics.

Unforgettable Moments

I’ll never forget our heartfelt discussions in his office in Sutton Hall. He had plants on his balcony that I think technically weren’t allowed there and the sunshine silhouetted their leaves. We talked about the inevitability of fossil fuels transitioning out into renewable energy and how there was a fight to the finish from the oil kings to keep things the same even if it was killing the planet. We talked about hip hop, and I helped educate Robert on the topic as he didn’t listen to much but a few old school groups like Public Enemy. He and I talked about my journey from being a homeless teenager, living in an alleyway, to getting into Austin Community College and eventually accepted into UT with a recommendation letter from the President of ACC at the time, Steven Kinslow. Often we spoke of Dr. Young’s feelings being hurt by the students that he felt didn’t take his class seriously. It was such an incomprehensible idea to him that students would rather look at their Facebook status on Android or iPhone smart phones than pay attention to Fredrick Law Olmsted and how Green City open space planning emerged in response to the Industrial Revolution.

Personally I was riveted in my seat for his lectures. I took as many notes as I could and even recorded many of his lectures on my iPhone. I attempted to convince him to forgive these students for not having the wherewithal to realize how important I knew what he was teaching is. I’d say things like:

“Consider this Dr. Young, these kids haven’t perhaps had the catalysts you and I have had to help them recognize the significance of well, taking care of the thing that keeps us alive, the Earth. Instead of resenting them for not really giving a damn, have compassion, like you would for a wounded animal, that perhaps they aren’t strong enough right now to digest everything you have to say. Give them time. It may be next year they think back and something you said dawns on them and suddenly they have that “ah ha” moment.”

He’d say something along the lines of, “I haven’t thought of it that way, that makes sense.” I couldn’t shake the feeling that he was like an older version of myself with the same unshakable faith in humanity but the same critiques of apathy. Me if I was born a few decades earlier. We were kindred spirits and I felt that instinctively. There are so many people who are just talking heads, reciting points they heard on a syndicated talk show or radio show without really sincerely investing their heart. I found someone who, at least for the few moments we shared, could see the same world I did. And give hope that we can work together to make it better through the power of City Planning and Garden Cities.

Green Cities

Before Green Cities, I never knew how influential City Planners were, and how much power they held over how culture, race, economic livelihood, schools, transportation and local businesses developed. City Planning was a Graduate course and I was still an undergrad. It made me rethink my entire Geography degree and wish I knew about City Planning before I started going to UT. Learning about edible furniture, solar architecture, urban ecology, Cuba’s mastery of urban gardening, green infrastructure, rooftop gardens reducing AC bills and of course, Green Cities.

A Green City is a a sustainable city that by its very design can feed itself without a lot of reliance on the surrounding countryside for imports. Having a kind of perpetual farmer’s market of agriculture surrounding the city to provide both fresh vegetables and fruit as well as a source of economy is one of the cruxes of a Green City. Using solar or wind or hydrology the city can power itself with renewable sources of energy. The core concept is create the smallest possible ecological footprint, as well as producing the least amount of pollution possible. Balancing pedestrian walkways with automobile routes and efficiently use land. Composting, urban gardening, recycling, or converting waste-to-energy.

The Garden city movement was first established by Sir Ebenezer Howard in the United Kingdom.

Our class’s syllabus describes a Green City as also supporting world peace with less involvement with resource conflict:

A green city is a city that manages resources cyclically for renewal and regeneration, thus improving the prospects of peace. Note, this does not mean it is completely self-sufficient or autarkic, i.e. it is self-sufficient to the degree that it never engages in any trade or produce tradable surpluses. It does mean that it has set up systems for the responsible management of its own resources such that they are enhanced or made continually available rather than consumed and destroyed.

The Feeling Beneath It All

The energy that vibrated in that class was something beautiful to witness and it changed my life forever. Finally, I understood feasibly, how we can create a better planet, a practical utopia. The tempting cynicism of the current times was pushed at bay, and I could finally hope again. I wasn’t some idealistic but a catalyst for change. When the semester ended, I made it as clear I wanted to stay in touch with Robert and find some way to help him create the reality of Garden Cities. D and I became much closer friends than I think either of us had expected. She is super intelligent, majoring in engineering but also interested in the esoteric. We introduced each other to new reading material and concepts. Some of the things we talked about in deep conversations at coffee shops changed my life, and helped to evolve how I saw the world. We both shared Dr. Young’s sincere feeling that we too can improve the planet and that it’s worth caring about, in our own unique ways.

Green Cities Epilogue

Dr. Young and I met several times after the Green Cities course concluded. While he gave me an A, I did not do so well in Geographic Information Systems, and Spanish. I became academically dismissed and could not continue my education at UT until the fall of 2018. We touched base every few months at the Crown and Anchor, having a beer and some black bean tacos while discussing how we could work together. He also kept me updated on his adventures, meeting with the Waller Creek Conservatory for something that I think was going to be kind of like a winding greenbelt through the city (Waller Creek stretches pretty far distances across Austin). It was always a treat to see Robert, we’d catch up about our lives, and world issues. He told me about his peripatetic since of wandering, and not being sure if Austin was a city that he wanted to live in. But when his wife Katherine, got tenure at UT, that solidified Austin as his home base. Dr. Young didn’t know what to make of this, and we commiserated about gentrification and hipsters. Being a Native Austinite, I championed my city to him and let him know that he would grow to love this city too.

We would communicate through emails fairly frequently. He used to have a phone but he got so frustrated with it, not being too hip on modern technology, that after leaving it at an airport accidentally, he just swore off having another cell phone. Getting in touch with Robert was a task as I’d have to wait until he checked his email or hope that he’d be around his office at UT to answer. In August last year I watched a Ted Talk one time where the founder of Lyft was telling Tony Robbins about how Robert Young inspired him to create Lyft and emailed Dr. Young excitedly:

Turns out Dr. Young was meeting with John Zimmer the next day, how funny is that? Dr. Young was always in a juggling act, balancing his career, with taking care of his 3 kids, helping his wife, trying to make tenure at UT and the frequent traveling he did working on various projects. I thought at one point, because he hadn’t responded in a long time, if I may have said something offensive to him. I emailed him, apologizing and asking him what was going on. He wrote the kindest reply:

The Last Supper

On Sunday March 26th 2017 I saw Robert for the last time.We had dinner together at my townhome. Our plan was to create a global network of students who had taken his Green Cities class, as many of them had risen in business and were now influential. I had suggested the idea to him a year or two back, over a beer at Crown and Anchor. We were talking about the potential of all these students who really cared about the world, pooling their resources together to create Garden Cities, and implement these concepts into every day life. Rob had to go to the University of Oregon where he used to teach and find a way to get class rosters for who attended. I had created a Facebook Page for this community, but not much more happened as he was too busy with other projects to ever follow up. Last March we had a wonderful conversation and had a great time catching up. Little did I know that it would be the last time I saw Dr Robert Young before he unexpectedly passed away from a hemorrhagic stroke on January 6, 2018.

I didn’t find out until a few months later, through my friend, D. the Green Cities classmate, who texted me saying, this is not our Dr Young right? She’d gotten an email (and I had too, I just hadn’t checked my UT email yet) inviting us to a tree planting ceremony in Robert’s memory. I had a hard night that night. I was overcome with grief and it’s challenging to even write about it now. One of my real life heroes, who has done so many incredible things for the world, has now left the world. The last time we spoke was in an email was 2 weeks before he died. I was telling him how I made one of my son’s dreams come true. I asked my son in 2016 where he’d like to go if it was anywhere in the world, he said Hawaii, so in December 2017 I took him there. I emailed Rob about it in December:

Coping With It

I didn’t know what to do, my heart was hurting and I asked why we would lose such an amazing person. I didn’t have any answers. Robert Young was more than a professor to me, he was my hero, role model, and friend. As a way to cope with this welling of emotions and the feeling of powerlessness, I created a Facebook post as my own sort of eulogy, to reach out and tell someone about how much this man meant to me. I wrote:

I cannot describe what this man meant to me to ever fully give him justice, Robert Young, more than just the professor of the Green Cities UT course i enrolled in, was a mentor, an inspiration, a dreamer who made those dreams come true.

A man who not only motivated John Zimmer to create Lyft who took the same Green Cities course i was in, but also created the foundation to the recycling program America uses. Robert Young passed away January this year I just found out today.

I loved him like family, I wouldn’t be the man i am today without his positive influence.

Dr. Young changed so many lives for the better with his burning passion to help this world become a better place through city planning, economics and the sustainable architecture of Garden Cities.

His sincere desire to enrich the lives he touched with the knowledge, energy and realistic blueprints gave the gift of faith and hope in his beautiful vision of the future. My heart goes out to his surviving wife and children.

Dr. Young and I met several times in the years after I graduated his course and made many plans to change the world together through Green Cities and the community of talented professionals who took his course.

I stay committed to his vision, and will dedicate my life to helping to make this a reality. The world has lost one of the greatest people to ever walk this planet but i will never forget his words, his wisdom, and the fire that burned so true inside his soul.

The last time I saw Robert we had dinner together at my townhome and strategized future plans to bring people together, and create a Green Cities intelligentsia to change the world, by augmenting various strengths of each individual has towards creating an organization comprised of those who shared the passion for bettering the planet through sustainable city planning, architecture, permaculture, IT, social networking, economics, transportation, solar power, urban ecosystems and global interdependence

This photo was taken that night, may peace
be with you old friend.

We took that photo together in front of my home library where all the books of his Green Cities course are kept.

Tree Planting Ceremony

D. and I, we went to the tree planting ceremony in Rob’s honor together, she picked me up and we car pooled to UT. We were late to the ceremony and D. joked, “Dr. Young would be so mad at us for being late!” We laughed quietly in heartfelt nostalgia. I chatted briefly with Robert’s wife Katharine and let her know how much Rob inspired me. How I’m going to dedicate a significant portion of my life to helping make his dreams of Green Cities a reality. I mentioned that now that I have refined my musical talents more, I’m going to do a remix of all the Green Cities raps I created for Rob’s class. This is a promise I’m going to keep.

Afterwards, we were invited to a subsequent ceremony mainly of UT staff in honor of Robert Young. As I made small talk with various people including the Dean of the Architecture school I think, I found it hard to feel present. Seeing pictures of younger Rob with his children, in various cities, at younger ages made me feel like tearing up again. I didn’t feel up to social pleasantries but did the best I could with my Green

Cities classmate at my side.

Robert’s Future

Drinking a beer and walking slowly around the room, circling back to the table my friend D. was standing at, I was filled with sadness but also hope.Hope that I am a good enough person to help manifest Robert’s vision of sustainability. I emailed him when I recently finished writing my first book, on personal development, because his approval meant just as much to me as blood relatives.I don’t have a pithy platitude to make the loss of Rob any more bearable but over time a perspective develops. Instead of sadness, I’m gradually starting to feel more and more gratitude that I was lucky enough to meet Dr. Robert Young. You only get to meet a person like that once in your lifetime. The lessons of interdependent relationships between agriculture, transportation and city planning and the forever shining hope in his heart I share with my son. I’m grateful to have been there at the right time, to have felt his sincere caring for the planet and the people who live on it. And I’m grateful for the chance to pay it forward, however I can.

-Trevor

Awkward

Thursday March 15th, 2018

Awkward

Ever had an intense conversation with someone and their words continue to echo in your ears long afterwards? And it’s like you can’t stop feeling this lack of closure that beats on your mind like some kind of Edgar Allen Poe Raven on the window chirping “Nevermore, Nevermore!”

You start to go over the things that you could have said, should have said, and if you’d kept your cool more, would have said. The imaginary conversation replays in your mind only this time you are poised, calm, questioning of the other person’s motives for kind of attacking you -intentionally or not.

We all go through a situation like this, and whether or not we are in the right, there’s this nagging feeling that this could have been handled better somehow. Writing a letter about this experience, and stating what you would have said if you’d had that inner space can definitely help.

The other day I ran into someone that is part of a mean social clique I had the misfortune of being around last year. She is not an architect of the social engineering or mean spirited bullying that went on, but is friends with those who are. We had a heated discussion on why I deleted her off of Facebook. I felt put on the defensive right away, as if I had to justify anything I did to someone I didn’t know that well.

How often do you run into people you deleted off of Facebook in real life and are asked “Why did you delete me?”

Being honest is always a good policy. I was candid with her straight away, which took more balls than I felt I had at the moment and let her know I had to distance myself from everyone part of the rude social clique she’s a part of.

It didn’t take long for the conversation to get to a boiling point. She started randomly shifting the conversation to my life coaching program and demanding I justify starting a business. While I kind of shift my feet like with my best Katt Williams impersonation:

Exactly where does her opinion of what I do or anyone else’s permission to be an entrepreneur come into this? Ironically she’s got her own business on the side so it was an odd thing to be called out on like it was a bad thing.

Awkward wasn’t even half of what I was feeling right now. It was so out of place and random, to suddenly be discussing my business ventures with a person who I didn’t know that well and who is part of a group of people known to bully folks they judge as not worthy of their “coolness.”

Fast forward, I decided to get some space and shift my working environment, because I have location-flexibility. Walking away my last words to her kept replaying, “Just try being more honest, it may do you some good.” Not exactly the harshest thing I could have said and to be honest, I actually never had anything against her. We always had positive social interactions, even if her regular crowd tends towards toxic.

This is a good moment, where if you’ve had this experience as well, to take a word from the wise: We don’t (at least yet) have a time machine (and if we did – would we mess up the timelines trying to fix things like Continuum?) so it’s good to let things go. If you can’t, get a notebook, and write out all the things you wish you would have said but didn’t. This will help you get the stress, and trauma of the interaction out of your system.

Deep breath, tuck your abs in on the exhale, hold for a count of 10, release. Rinse and repeat. Woosa! It helps. Thanks for reading, and I know your day will get better now. Say it with me:

Sail Away

Thursday, March 8th, 2018

Press Play for mood music of this blog: David Gray – Sail Away

One of my favorite authors is John D. MacDonald, I only recently within the past year started reading his books. Classic reads like the Brass Cupcake and the Empty Copper Sea. The main protagonist is Travis McGee, a rough around the edges, but introspective gun-for-hire private detective. A self described “Salvage Consultant.” Travis is the last of the great knights-errant. He lives on a his yacht called The Busted Flush, named after a poker hand containing four cards of the same suit and one of a different suit, in the Fort Lauderdale Marina in Florida.

Travis drives a bastardized 1936 Rolls-Royce he’s converted into a pickup truck, & is accompanied by his best friend and next boat neighbor Meyer, a highly regarded economist. MacDonald’s concerns over the ecological destruction of Florida and his disgust for the greedy, corrupt forces driving it are reflected in his portrayals of villains McGee faces off and inevitably defeats.

“Travis McGee is the last of the great knights-errant: honorable, sensual, skillful, and tough. I canít think of anyone who has replaced him. I can’t think of anyone who would dare.” — Donald Westlake

My father once told me as a child that he wanted a sailboat to sail in. It was nothing more than a random comment 20 plus years ago. He’s had enough time to buy one but never has because of limiting beliefs he holds about himself and what he’s capable of. Transcending these same limiting mental habits is one of my life goals I continue to achieve everyday, by getting into college, getting a better and higher paying job at Facebook and keeping the promise I made to my son October 2016 to go adventuring in Hawaii by the end of 2017, last year. And we did.

Reading these noir Florida detective books has played a central theme in my life as of late which seems to revolve around large bodies of water and boats. I flew across the Pacific ocean with my kiddo for the first time December 2017. Seeing the endless stretch of waves beneath the wings of the airplane was magical. Standing on a cliff’s edge and watching the ocean stretch endlessly into the distance from the South East corner of the Big Island does something to a man’s soul. It fills you with possibilities, and the rusty chains of mental jail cells are broken as you roam freely as the seagulls.

Thoughts racing along the surface of the water, faster than the speed of light, filled with a wonderment, and the powerful curiosity that achieving your goals gives birth to, asking persistently, “What’s next? What’s next?!”

Perhaps Dad will never achieve any of his dreams for the simple fact that he doesn’t believe he can or will. I never felt like I adopted his dreams as my own, because we are very different people, growing up in different generations. And yet, 20 years later, I find myself fascinated with what it would be like to own and sail a yacht like a Hallberg-Rassy 94.

I remember the 1st time the ocean truly moved me on an emotional level. I was a reporter for the Accent Newspaper, when I was a student at Austin Community College. We competed in the Texas Intercollegiate Press Association with other colleges for front page news stories, news photography and other categories. I won honorable mention for my college in news reporting. The local swat team had been commissioned to tear gas bomb a car in the parkinglot of a hotel in Corpus Christi, Texas. It was a sight to see, I still can recall the vivid details of the canisters being shot into the car, purple smoke spewing out the car windows, as a mock news story event we competed for being the best reporter writing up a news story about this event, fictionalizing the circumstances.

One of the days there I went to the beach with my friend and fellow Accent news reporter Jenessa. We walked along the beach for hours, seeing and hearing the ocean waves hit the sandy shore. The sun beat down on us something fierce and we both got sunburnt, as it was a random urge we gave into instead of planning a trip to the ocean. But it was worth every second. Many hours later, after we had gone back to our hotel, I could feel the motion of the waves, rhythmically crashing against the shore, inside my heart. It’s hard to explain, it was as if, somehow, I, without intending to, internalized the giant movements of the ocean in synchronicity with my circadian rhythms. That was the first time I ever felt that way.

Standing on a cliff’s edge hundreds of feet above the south shore of the Big Island Hawaii, was another moment where the majesty of the ocean reach out and gave my soul a hug, in this quiet, powerful, sense of sentience. Smoking a cigar, my last night in Hawaii, on the northern tip of the Big Island in Kohala, watching the sun set on the ocean, with Maui in the shrouded distance, I felt the flame of possibility burn blue on the strength of keeping a promise. I plan on keeping more promises, especially the ones I’ve made myself.

While I cannot say the exact day I will get a sailboat, I know that this is part of the destiny I’ll choose for my future path in life. Whether or not I’m a real life Travis McGee remains up for debate. But like David Gray says, someday I’m going to sail away. Remington Brand typewriter on board, to type the stories inside me, my classical guitar to give voice to the songs I hear in the infinite poetry of the waves, lapping against the side of my sailboat.

Dolphin at Dawn

Coffee Adventures

Tuesday Feb 27th, 2018

Press Play for added atmosphere -Dennis Kuo’s Midnight Coffee

I love coffee – I grind my own beans and I never drink preground coffee. Blech! A year ago I had no idea what the wonders of grinding my own beans fresh would be, or how much better this made coffee taste. I was working at Facebook (that’s my day job) and one of the managers named David P. showed me how to make espresso. I expressed to him when the topic of coffee came up, that I didn’t drink Facebook’s coffee that was provided because I no longer got any caffeinated buzz from it, to combat the post lunch food coma. David offered to show me how to make espresso to up the ante.

That was the beginning of my journey into the coffee intelligentsia. I started making espresso every day at work, grinding the beans, frothing the cream, pouring hot delicious super caffeinated espresso into paper cups. After I was briefly laid off, before being hired again a few months later, I went through withdrawls from not having freshly ground coffee.

I was freelancing as a social media marketer at the time & decided to buy my own espresso machine. It was nothing special, just a Mr Coffee espresso machine, but it got the job done.I discovered how much I love Cuvee after reading many coffee reddit threads & forums about the best coffee in Austin. I learned about finding beans that were roasted within 3 days of my purchase. And then, I learned a new way to brew.

Pretty soon, I had perfected making the best espresso that little machine could make, and quickly impressed my friends who happened to stop by in the morning with just how full flavored and packed with a punch my espressos could be. I don’t follow the traditional small cup espresso route, making just a couple of shots. I usually fill up an entire glass like it was coffee because, well, I enjoy drinking coffee beverages so much, why skimp on the amount?

I found myself going to coffee shops like Epoch, and becoming disappointed with their espresso skills, being too spoiled on how I like to make espresso, and the beans I like to use (Cuvee Meritage is phenomenal). But, it was all for the best, because now, I could produce coffee at home that was much better, imo, than any coffee shop I went to. Fresher, tastier, more full bodied, and so on.

Fast forward a few months later, I’m working at Facebook again, and have a long discussion with one of the IT guys, Eric G. about coffee. I share my experiences making espresso and we talk about the different caliber of grinders and machines for making espresso -which can get pretty pricey. Eric advised me to focus more on making a high quality cup of coffee than on buying a $500-$1000 espresso machine.

The Aeropress

Eric introduced me to the Aeropress, made by the manufacturers of the Aerobie ring. Having thrown the Aerobie ring, a super long distance frisbee, as a child, I was nostalgically surprised to find out the same company made their own version of a French Press. My friend Jeff had given me a French Press years ago but I somehow lost it when moving to my townhome I currently live in.

So, I took Eric’s advice, bought an Aeropress, and used the burr grinder he recommended (technically everyone takes Eric’s advice since he works in IT). The coffee I made was above par in excellence, and I appreciated his suggestions. Grinding coffee by hand was a unique experience, I hand ground beans I used to make espresso and coffee grinds and I am pleased with the results.

Now, drinking coffee via Aeropress, espresso machine, and regular cone filter but grinding my own beans via burr grinder or my electric grinder, I was pretty happy…for a while. I tried many flavors of Cuvee as well as 3rd Coast, but, eventually wanted to try something new. At my friend John L.’s house, celebrating his wife LeeAnn’s birthday, I met a woman there who was the girlfriend of John’s old roomate from college. She suggested I try out Anderson’s coffee.

Last weekend I rode my new blue bicycle my mother gave me for my birthday, to Wheatsville, then to Anderson’s Coffee where I bought a pound of their house blend to start off before trying more expensive blends.

It was an interesting looking place with a wall of coffee mugs for sale on shelves. I love buying new coffee mugs and made a mental note to buy a new mug on my next visit. I rode my blue bicycle to Central Market and bought Cuvee’s Spicewood blend as a fail safe in case I didn’t like Anderson’s coffee. I have to have good coffee people! I wake up every morning at 6:20am to study Spanish, and that cup of jo really helps me become focused faster on learning indefinite article pronouns and the future tenses of ir: Me voy beber cafe todas las dias en la manana (I’m going to drink coffee every day in the morning).

I could barely wait to get home & try the new coffee:

I measured out a cone full of whole beans & poured them into my electric grinder:

Then started pouring the Anderson Houseblend beans into the grinder:

The freshly ground beans are now cascading beautifully into the coffee cone:

The Pour: Less than 30 seconds later, the boiling water was poured:

While some schools of thought advocate the water poured on coffee to be of a temperature between 195 F (91 C) and 205 F (96 C) – I choose to boil the water mainly because I haven’t seen a sacrifice in taste to equal coffee going cold faster. And I love cold coffee -when I’m deciding to have cold coffee (I’m actually drinking cold coffee right now as I write this). Not so much for a glass of hot coffee to go cold faster, hence, my boiling the water.

And now, drum roll please, the finished cup of Anderson Coffee House Blend is held up to the sky, steam wafting up to the ceiling, pre-1st sip, to marvel at its glory:

I got that cup from the top of Mauna Kea mountain, at the Visitor Center on the Big Island, Hawaii. It’s a special cup to me, I remember walking down the mountain for a mile or 2, in 25 degree temperatures, carrying this cup, staring at the stars with my son. The stars were super bright and close, I’ll always remember that moment when drinking out of my Mauna Kea coffee cup.

The Verdict

It was ok. I liked it. Was it great? Hard to say. Perhaps it will grow on me. The first moment I sipped freshly ground Meritage I was in heaven, and it never changed, that flavor of Cuvee has always been the most pleasing to my palate. Next week I shall try the more expensive blends and see if one appeals to me. The kind barista offered to drink sample sips of each blend before I purchased, so I think I shall do that.

Even if this flavor isn’t amazing, and didn’t wow me, I’m still drinking Anderson Coffee House Blend every other day to variate from Cuvee, which was my main goal; to find another kind of coffee I liked, to shake up the routine. This goal I achieved.

Cheers!

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