Monthly Archives: October 2006

Web Designers, Video Ring Tones, Vancouver and New Delhi

Posted inLife3 Comments on Web Designers, Video Ring Tones, Vancouver and New Delhi

Three housekeeping items.

1. I’m looking for a web designer to build a simple web site for my book and re-design this blog in a matching color scheme. Please email me if you know of anyone who is suited for the task (or if you want to suggest well-designed book web sites) and I can email the spec.

2. I have a friend who’s developed some awesome video ring tones. Not just sounds / music, but animated video that will play on the phone. This is the future of this market. If you have any contacts in the ring tone industry / mobile phone world, please let me know.

3. I’ll unexpectedly be in New Delhi, India and Vancouver, British Columbia in a week. If you live there and want to meet, email me. Thanks.

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Asking for Water in China

Posted inChina7 Comments on Asking for Water in China

I gave the Europeans a hard time over the summer for their assault on h2o.

China is worse.

First, you can’t drink from the tap. A pain.

Second, asking for water in a restaurant is too challenging. I ate at Steak King across the street from my apt in Shanghai two days in a row. Same waitress. On the first day I asked for water, and pointed to “water” on the menu (which had the corresponding Chinese characters below the English phrase). It cost 4 yuan so I assumed it’d be mineral water or something.

She brought me a mug of boiling hot water. No tea, no flavor, just hot water. Might I ask what anyone would do with a cup of boiling hot water? I told the waitress, No, I want cold water. She didn’t understand. I said, “Ice”. She brought me back the SAME MUG except with ice cubes in it. Now I had a cup of boiling hot water with ice cubes. Two counteracting forces fighting vigorously for what they believe in. 10 minutes later the ice won and I drank lukewarm water.

The next day I went through the same routine with the same waitress. Only this time i made it clear when ordering, “COLD water. ICE!” She nodded. She brought me a mug of boiling hot water. I sent it back. I said, “ICE”. She brought it back boiling water w/ ice cubes.

I know I’m doing something wrong…when Eisen ordered for me I got a tall glass of cold, iced water. Not boiling water. Maybe I should ask for boiling, hot water?

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Talking With, At, or To Someone – Arrogance in Conversation

Posted inEntrepreneurship3 Comments on Talking With, At, or To Someone – Arrogance in Conversation

We’ve all met arrogant pricks whose pretentiousness takes your breath away.

Arrogance can often reveal itself in conversations. I see three types of conversation people: someone who talks with you, someone who talks at you, and someone who talks to you.

Someone who talks to you implies a lecture. A one way street. Mr. Busy Guy with Mr. No Name Who Should Thank God He Is Even In My Office. Someone who talks to you feels like his life is simply more interesting than yours.

Someone who talks at you still implies a one-way conversation, but I have more sympathy for these kinds of people. In this case the guy or gal may be too arrogant to ask what you think or let you say a word, but there’s a kind of raw energy flowing from them that can make it worthwhile. These kinds of people are usually so wrapped up in their own life and work that they forget they’re with someone else!

Someone who talks with you engages in a real two way conversation. This kind of person usually isn’t too arrogant, or at least he has the wherewithal to see each meeting as a chance to learn something new. He remembers that if you want to spend an hour bragging it’s better to call your mom than call a business contact. He remembers that people want to feel important and asking the other person what’s new in his life is a good start.

I want to add that some ego and arrogance is good. Staunch self-confidence can often border on arrogance, and that’s OK, since self-confidence is so important. Chris Yeh and I have joked about our own narcissistic personality disorders. Hell — most every blogger falls in this boat! But self-confidence in private is different than a live interaction with another ego-filled human being.

Also, just because someone is arrogant doesn’t mean s/he is not genuniely smart or right. As the line in the Big Lebowski goes, "You’re not wrong, Dude, just an asshole." For example, the word is that Larry Summers‘ preferred style of participating in meetings was to paraphrase what everyone said: "So what you’re really saying is…" And of course it was was they were really saying — Summers is a genius — but his style screamed asshole, and he ultimately lost his job.

Related Posts:

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Ten Things To Keep In Mind When Making a Difference

Posted inCurrent Affairs1 Comment on Ten Things To Keep In Mind When Making a Difference

Peter Singer, the famous animal rights activist and ethicist, writes about ten ways to make a difference when pursuing your cause (and changing minds). Here are the ten headlines. He offers details under each one. Thanks Ramit Sethi for the pointer.

1. Try to understand the public’s current thinking and where it could he encouraged to go tomorrow. Above all, keep in touch with reality.

2. Select a target on the basis of vulnerabilities to public opinion, the intensity of suffering, and the opportunities for change.

3. Set goals that are achievable. Bring about meaningful change one step at a time. Raising awareness is not enough.

4. Establish credible sources of information and documentation. Never assume anything. Never deceive the media or the public. Maintain credibility, don’t exaggerate or hype the issue.

5. Don’t divide the world into saints and sinners. [BTC: This is an excellent tip. Bifurcating the issue into good or evil is a recipe for disaster.]

6. Seek dialogue and attempt to work together to solve problems. Position issues as problems with solutions. This is best done by presenting realistic alternatives.

7. Be ready for confrontation if your target remains unresponsive. If accepted channels don’t work, prepare an escalating public awareness campaign to place your adversary on the defensive.

8. Avoid bureaucracy.

9. Don’t assume that only legislation or legal action can solve the problem.

10. Ask yourself: "Will it work?"

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BusinessWeek Top 25 Entrepreneurs Under 25

Posted inEntrepreneurship6 Comments on BusinessWeek Top 25 Entrepreneurs Under 25

BusinessWeek just published "Young, Fearless, and Smart," an article about young entrepreneurs, which includes a slideshow of the Top 25 Entrepreneurs Under 25, a lineup which includes yours truly. They’re asking their readers to vote for their favorite entrepreneur of the batch. Given that I’m by far the youngest person on there with another seven years of eligibilty, the rational person might give the charity vote to the 25 year old. But loyal blog readers know better! 🙂 Thanks to Atul Khekade of India (and anyone else) for nominating me, and kudos to my newly married friend Michael Simmons for also getting mentioned.

When Ben Casnocha was 12, Apple Computer’s "Think Different" ad campaign inspired him to become an entrepreneur—he wanted to change the world on his own terms. In 2001, after a string of ventures, including selling gumballs to his brothers, he started Comcate, a software company that focuses exclusively on improving operations for public agencies.

So far, more than 50 small and mid-sized government agencies around the country have hired the company and installed its Web-based software to improve customer service and office efficiency. Casnocha says Comcate is now focused on one thing: growth. He plans to have Comcate in more than 300 agencies by 2010 and predicts revenues will grow from close to $1 million now to $6 million by then. And there’s more to his story. He graduated from high school in June, and he’s already got a book coming out. My Start-Up Life: What a (Very) Young CEO Learned on His Journey Through Silicon Valley (John Wiley & Sons) is due in stores in May. He starts at Claremont McKenna College in California next fall.

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