Well, not my first talk ever, but my first one since starting Afterthought. I’ve been itching for an opportunity to present some of my ideas to a larger audience, and even though public speaking scares me to death I still try to get as much practice as possible. It’s just too good of a skill not to have.

This Thursday I’ll be giving a brief presentation on the art, science, and frustration of elevator pitches. I hate hate hate using marketingspeak (especially the term “elevator pitch”…it sounds so cheesy), but I just can’t think of a better catchphrase. If you come up with one, you know where to find me.

The talk is part of the brand new Ultra Light Startups NYC meetup. To my knowledge this is a brand new term that we just made up, and we’re using it to describe the complete outsourcing of a product’s development–everything but the idea itself, of course. The ultra light approach is critical to a new product called Hirefly which I’ll soon be releasing into the wild, and I can’t wait to connect with a few other like-minded individuals.

A brief description of the meetup itself:

- Mutual support for maximally outsourced entrepreneurs
- A gathering of entrepreneurs sharing best practices for launching prototype concepts in the most lightweight way possible.
- The focus is on launching “quick and dirty” proof of concept ventures (websites, Facebook apps, mobile apps, etc) using outsourced talent, open-source/off-the-shelf software components, virtual/cloud computing services, and minimal capital.

If you’ve got that itch to work on a great idea but aren’t sure how to start executing, this meetup’s for you. All the gory details and more on the official Facebook group.

Posted on Jun 03.08 to Pitching   

Work-life balance may be a challenging proposition for a budding entrepreneur, especially when you’re a geeky engineer too. Luckily it’s not all bad news–the secret is in how you spin it. Thus was born The Top 10 Reasons to Date an Entrepreneur.

I’m taking notes.

Posted on May 27.08 to Random Or Close To It   

Last week I had the pleasure of watching a Blue Man Group (BMG) show. Although I live only a few blocks from the absolute mecca of theater (*cough* Broadway *cough*), I’m not a huge performing arts fan. Having said that, I did spend a few years in the Drama Club in high school (major geek alert…) and know a thing or two about putting on a show.

Expectations

Admittedly tickets are a bit pricey, and before attending my friends and I conducted the obligatory YouTube search to see what BMG was all about. After only a few minutes of clicking, I wasted no time dismissing them as a quirky mishmash of novel technology to produce music. I figured it was just like Stomp, but with computers and wires instead of trash cans. Sure I thought the show seemed fun, but had it not been for the determination of my friends I probably would’ve sat this one out.

The Aftermath

BMG didn’t get to where they are today by delivering only on those expectations. In fact, I found myself fascinated by their ability to push the limits of acceptable theater etiquette:

1. -Climbing into the audience (literally climbing up onto the mezzanine and on top of peoples’ seats)
2. -Taking an audience member backstage, hanging him upside down by a rope, painting him blue, and slamming him against a wall to produce a work of art
3. -Causing utter chaos and mayhem with streams of paper descending from the heavens
4. -Leaving the theater in the middle of the performance to catch a cab
5. -And last but not least, just generally wrecking the stage and all the props

Lesson Learned

One of the harshest lessons I learned in the world of business is that conforming to the rules of the game is a surefire way to fail. Or as Emerson so poetically put it, “imitation is suicide.” Rules are meant to be broken, and those who manage do it in a way that exceeds expectations and challenge what was previously thought possible are destined for greatness.

This leads to Afterthought Myth #4: whatever your dream may be, don’t ever let anyone tell you the “the world just doesn’t work that way.” If you have a dream and a passion, you owe it to yourself to see it through no matter how nonconformist it seems.

Posted on May 19.08 to Myths   

At least by one metric (number of comments–a whole four!), yesterday’s post on work-life balance clearly struck a cord. It’s obvious that this is something people care a great deal about, and I want to expand upon my point, because I think I may have sacrificed clarity for brevity.

You may be familiar with the story of Archimedes, the famed Greek mathematician who discovered, among other things, how to determine the volume of any object regardless of its shape. As the legend goes, poor Archimedes had been summoned by his king to find a way to determine whether a gift, a wreath claimed to be made of solid gold, was all it was cracked up to be. Of course, melting down the gift to find out what was really inside was a non-starter, and Archimedes wrestled with this problem for weeks–all the while being tortured by his king to find a solution.

Realizing her husband was on the brink of exhaustion, Archimedes’ wife encouraged him to take a break. Don’t worry, she assured him, a solution would come in due time. Soon after, while taking a bath, Archimedes noticed the water level rise as he got in. In a moment of respite, the genius had stumbled upon displacement as a way to determine volume. So excited was he, the story goes, that he cried Eureka! and ran dripping wet and butt naked all the way to the castle to report his findings.

It’s a charming tale, but by now you’re probably thinking that I just disproved my theory–had Archimedes not taken a break from his work he might not have discovered displacement at all–but that was far from my point. Indeed, some of my own best ideas come at the most surprising times, when I’m not working on a problem at all. It’s as if the moment you stop searching for something it finally reveals itself.

The message I was trying to relay is that if your work is truly something you enjoy, then there’s no need to feel guilty about enjoying it. Too often we see work as this thing we do in order to earn enough money to do the things we really want, but why can’t we see that both are possible at the same time?

This has nothing to do with being too busy to call your mom on Mothers Day, helping coach your kid’s little league game, or finding the time to spend a quiet evening at home with your loving wife. Of course those things are important. Rather, it’s about that guilt that amasses when we feel like we spend our entire lives as machines destined to work, work work. And it’s also about finding work that feels like fun, fun, fun, in a way that fulfillment, not guilt, consumes us. I’d argue that entrepreneurs are more likely than most to attain this enlightenment, in the sense of having the audacity to follow their dreams regardless of the risk.

No matter what you do, whether you work at a company big or small, whether you work 20 or 100 hours a week, remember that it’s possible to find harmony and balance in your life every second of the day, regardless of the task.

Posted on May 19.08 to Balance   

If you’re an engineer at a large company (you know, a “corporation”), your job is most likely so specialized that I’m not quite sure how beneficial a blog on marketing will be to you. There, I said it.

Now that we’ve possibly weeded out one or two subscribers, it’s time to focus on the entrepreneur in you. What is it that drives you to leave a cushy job with a nice salary and discount membership at the health club in order to break out on your own, to blaze your own trail? Passion is the most common answer, but I suspect there’s more to it than that.

I recently read a quote from a very enlightened mind who said that the minute he mastered something is the minute he became bored with it. I suspect that this is true for all people, but what makes an entrepreneur tick is the nagging, irresistible temptation to push past that comfort zone–to boldly go where you’ve never gone before.

And there we have it: the source of that “passion” hinted at by the masses. One of the fundamental concepts of Eastern philosophy is the idea of harmony: for every yin there’s an opposing yang. So while being a successful entrepreneur requires steadfast dedication, it also requires major sacrifice.

What’s puzzling to me is why many so-called entrepreneurs strive for a greater “work-life balance.” To adopt this mentality is to ignore the fundamental requirement of what you’re trying to accomplish. Why is it that work and fun have to be mutually exclusive? Even more perplexing is that this idea has its roots in America, the land of opportunity, where hard work pays off.

My theory is that the whole work-life balance movement is perpetuated not by entrepreneurs, but by those with jobs they detest, those who choose not to follow their dreams. This is not to say that entrepreneurs are the only people who follow their dreams. That would be horribly inaccurate. But what I find most evident about entrepreneurs is that they truly love what they do–enough to endure all the risk, rejection, doubt, challenge, and long hours that come along with it. And if that isn’t harmony, I don’t know what is.

Posted on May 18.08 to Balance   

It’s frustratingly common for many first time entrepreneurs to have trouble expressing exactly what it is they do. Having braved the business world for several years, all I can say is that your elevator pitch really needs to become an instinct.

What’s an Elevator Pitch?

An elevator pitch is a 60 second high level overview of you and/or your project. The theory goes that if you suddenly found yourself in an elevator with a business luminary who could potentially take your career to the next level, would you be prepared to present your ideas compellingly? You never know when this could happen, or who it could happen with, so it’s probably a good idea to get some practice to avoid fumbling your way through.

Before going any further, check out this great elevator pitch by Tim Ferris (who just wrote a post on the same topic).

Personal Story

Marketing is all about storytelling, and your elevator pitch should be too. Identify the parts of your personal story that others find most appealing and amplify them, all the while emphasizing how those things put you in the position to offer something unique and valuable (you are offering something of value, right?).

When I think about personal stories, a few obvious ones come to mind: Steve Jobs, the counter-culture icon who once traveled to India on a path to personal discovery; Mark Zuckerberg, the shy 24-year-old who began one of the hottest sites on the internet from his Harvard dorm room; and Larry Ellison; billionaire playboy founder of Oracle, and a man who possesses no shortage of creativity in finding ways to spend all that money.

I realize you might not think that all those stories are good ones, and sure, yours might not even compare. The point is you need to find what it is about yourself that other people find memorable and embrace it. At a meeting where 20 people give their own elevator pitches, how do you stand out?

Explain Your Idea Simply and Coherently

Now that you’ve devised a memorable personal story, it’s time to focus on what you do.

First, check all your technical jargon at the door. When presenting an elevator pitch you should assume that your audience knows nothing about your industry, because many won’t. Rather, invest the time in coming up with three or four sentences–no more–that bypass all the distractions and get to the absolute core of what you’re building. In other words, skip the part where you explain color options or addon modules.

Speak clearly and from the beginning. Your elevator pitch should harness a clear, lucid train of thought–chipping away like a sculptor to marble, molding and shaping the idea until a complete picture is formed.

Demonstrate Value

Finally, how does your project add value? This may not be immediately obvious, and it’s up to you to put it front and center. Without that aha! moment where a person finally gets why your thingamajig is important, the only thing you’ve convinced them of is that they have something better to do with their time.

Practice

You can’t just wing an elevator pitch and expect it to be great. Like all things, it takes practice–the more you say it, the better it gets. An easy first step is to write it down and read it aloud, memorizing it in the process. Then practice on your friends and family, taking note when you seem to lose their attention.

It sure isn’t easy, and the practicing part is embarrassing and surprisingly horrid, but the warm fuzzy feeling you get after reciting your masterfully crafted elevator pitch will be worth all the effort. May the force be with you.

Posted on May 05.08 to Pitching   

I’m not usually such a socialite, but this month brings a flutter of activity. If you’re in the New York area and are planning to attend any of these events, don’t be afraid to find me and say hello.

NY PHP Meetup - May 6th @ 6:30pm

As a PHP developer for the past 8 or 9 years, this is a must attend event. I’m not quite sure what took so long for a PHP meetup to get started in NYC, but it’s finally here. The kickoff party is on Tuesday, May 6th at Pound & Pence. More details here.

Open Coffee - Thursday mornings @ 9:15am

At Fred Wilson’s suggestion I attended one of these a few weeks ago. I found it to be a very refreshing crowd and I’m looking forward to attending again. Open Coffee is an every Thursday morning chat for entrepreneurs and investors in NYC. More details on Meetup.

Media Meshing Party - Thursday, May 8th @ 6pm

The Media Meshing party is “a monthly afterwork bar night bringing New York media types together.” I’ve always felt like media was an inherently vague term, so I’m curious to see who shows up. At the least.  I’m hoping that I manage to say or do something outlandish enough to land my mug on the next morning’s edition of Valleywag. No such thing as bad publicity, right?

MashBash NYC - Friday, May 16th @ 8pm

Despite filling up my RSS reader with more posts than I could possibly read, there lies a special place in my heart for Mashable. I’m not quite sure what the point of MashBash is (the best I can figure is it’s a party for the sake of having a party), but the combination of VIP + open bar + Grandmaster Flash on the decks is more than I can resist. Hoping to be the first person to ever outdress Pete Cashmore, you shouldn’t have trouble spotting me in full rock star attire.

Crawfish Fest - May 30th through June 1st

Admittedly this has nothing to do with marketing, engineering, technology, or even New York, but I’ll be attending the 19th annual Crawfish Fest at the Sussex County Fairgrounds. It’s no secret that I’m forever homesick for the laissez faire attitude, great music, and world class food that emanates from my hometown of New Orleans, and since I couldn’t make it down for Jazz Fest this looks like a great compromise.

What am I missing?

Are there any other must attend events I’m missing out on this month? If so, drop me a line at myfirstname at squidoo.com.

Posted on May 04.08 to Random Or Close To It   

Kurt comments on a recent talk by 37signals’ David Hanemeur Hanson:

As I was watching it though, I had the same thought that I always seem to have when I hear someone from 37 Signals talk, and it came to me right when I saw the slide that said:

1. Great Application
2. Price
3. Profit!

If only it were that easy. The thing that these guys always leave out seems to be step 1.5:

Market the hell out of your product, and get a bunch of people to use it.

That step is really, really hard.

I bet that if you asked DHH if he thought that 37 Signals would be just as successful if he hadn’t invented Rails, and without the flood of free publicity that that got them, and he answered truthfully, the answer would be “no”.

As I’ve said before: marketing isn’t an afterthought you tack on once your product is complete. 37signals have been relentless marketers for years, although you’d be hard pressed to find them mention it. And that’s the beautiful thing about well executed marketing: it’s completely transparent.

Posted on Apr 25.08 to Transparency   

You and your best buds just started a company. Through trial and error you managed to release a version 1.0, and although you have some traction, you’re struggling to succeed in the marketplace. You’re young and this is your first business, so you begin probing your contacts to find an angel to invest in your idea. But you don’t want to find just any angel–doctor and dentist money isn’t what you’re after. What you need is someone with a name brand and connections. Someone who will hold out a hand and pull you onto the platform they stand on. Yep, that’s what it takes to get to the next level!

Hold up a sec. You’re ready to take funding, but you’re more concerned about the connections. So why take the money in the first place? Sure money is good, but investors have a tendency to be pushy, and giving up a large slice of your company is no fun. Now we’re getting somewhere. What you really need is an advisory board: a group of savvy, seasoned business owners who can help you through the tough decisions and plug you into the gravy train, minus the pressure of financial investment.

Here’s where I should probably explain that I don’t consider advisor and mentor to be analagous. By advisor, I mean someone who periodically opens up strategy conversations, using their experience as a guide, and helps you work through problems in exchange for owning a small stake in your company. By mentor, I mean someone who influences your professional growth, with no incentive other than to pass on their knowledge and resolve. Advisors work for you; you work for mentors. Mentors are a very unique phenomena, and I’m saving that for another post.

I hate to burst your bubble, but if you think a strong advisory board is going to solve your problems, you’re just being insecure. Now that’s ok, because starting a business is really really hard, an emotional rollercoaster. All I’m asking is that you take a deep breath and think this through. Here are a few things to consider:

1) Many entrepreneurs are able to build great companies on their first try (probably even the potential advisers you’re drooling over). Yet starting a company isn’t something you can learn in school. Is it possible that you can only learn through experience?

2) The advisers you’re looking for probably have busy schedules, and it’s not likely that you’ll get much of their time anyway. When you do, they’ll probably tell you something that either doesn’t make sense or you won’t want to hear. Since you’re so confident that your idea will work, you probably won’t take their advice.

3) Placing the success of your business in the hands of someone else’s connections probably isn’t a smart idea.

If you’re still on this train of thought, it’s time to start thinking like a marketer. Because people tend to buy for emotional reasons, and because stories can be so captivating, great marketing is primarily about great storytelling. Flipping your problem on its head, all of a sudden you have a fascinating story: the fledgling young company working from the basement, funded by your busted piggy bank and supported only by your mom, who is nice enough to bring down afternoon snacks because you boys just need a break sometimes.

All this considered, which story do you think is an easier sell: well-connected company bound for superstardom, or underdog garage venture morphed into toppling success? If you’re the latter, use that as a strength, not a weakness.

You’re an entrepreneur, a born risk taker. Trust your instincts and let the market validate your idea, not a panel of experts.

Posted on Apr 24.08 to Strategy   

Jason Fried writes about a recent speaking gig:

But the one thing that really sold me on these folks is why they invited me to speak in the first place.

UIE professes a user testing and research driven methodology. We have a different point of view on how to build usable and useful products. Most folks who make their living on testing and research would not invite someone with a significantly different approach to speak directly to their customers. But UIE knows that different perspectives are ultimately good things for their customers.

Just like how Amazon lets their competitors sell against them on Amazon’s product pages, or how Progressive Insurance gives you the quotes for their competitors, UIE is a purveyor of valuable information, not just their information. I think that shows the mark of confidence and a genuine interest in helping people make good decisions. Shielding people from opinion because it’s not your opinion is petty and shallow. UIE is smart to avoid that tack. They know well rounded customers, a.k.a. informed shoppers, are ultimately better customers.

Jason is well known for his company’s Getting Real philosophy, a main tenet being that marketers should always design products not for their customers, but for themselves. That’s a stark contrast to the research-driven approach favored by UIE.

Both Jason and UIE have embraced their competition, however. They recognize that ideas aren’t always mutually exclusive, and having an in-depth knowledge of the competition fosters innovation and keeps you on your toes.

Posted on Apr 21.08 to Random Or Close To It