Twitter - a recap of my first year on the stuff

I first heard of Twitter from my dad (give him a follow @phenzbiz) a few years ago. He mentioned how this micro-blogging site was the next big thing. I was hesitant and skeptical, as I assume most people are before they join, but it is an awesome tool. If you're not using Twitter, here is a great summary on why you should "Why Twitter? 10 Great Uses for Twitter".

I started using the 'Favorites' feature to bookmark my top articles articles and tweets. As the 2010 comes to a close, I thought it would be cool to summarize my favorites for you:

Top Articles:

• Why business school is a waste of time and money http://tinyurl.com/29shn5t

• The Saddest Book Ever Written: Microwave Cooking For One http://tinyurl.com/y9ohlfx

• Really good article from @HarvardBusiness; which one are you? - Trouble with Sales People from HBR ~ http://ow.ly/3jwTK

• Startup Lessons From Foursquare’s Dennis Crowley http://tinyurl.com/2dyznpy

• Meet the New Enterprise Customer, He’s a Lot Like the Old Enterprise Customer bhorowitz.com/2010/11/15/mee… via @bhorowitz

Love the quote at the top of this post:
Cause hustlers hit the block when police change shifts
New York, California different toilet, same s#@t
—The Game, Let Us Live

• Interview with Iron Mtn CEO - Defensive? It Leads to Destructive http://tinyurl.com/29knjcu

• The business of software by, Seth Godin http://tinyurl.com/3ywec7c

Top Tweets:

• If you think there's a chance you can make a dent, GO. Now. Hurry. You have my permission. Not that you needed it. #godin
• I invented "it's not you, it's me". Nobody tells me it's them not me! If it's anybody, it's me! #costanza
• it’s prescriptions that matter. So how do we move from here, and what specifically do you recommend? (quote from Iron Mountain CEO)
• Be better, be different or be cheaper. And the last is no fun. #godin

New additions to the library

 

Inbound Marketing: Get Found Using Google, Social Media, and Blogs

 

Influencer: The Power to Change Anything 

 

Unstuck: A Tool for Yourself, Your Team, and Your World 

 

When Pride Still Mattered : A Life Of Vince Lombardi 

 

 

The New Breed of Consumers

What's your approach?

Here are a few approaches I have seen people take:

• pretend they don't care
  
• give up
• become average
• complain
• look over their shoulders
• wonder what everyone else is doing
• have a negative attitude
• blame others
• quit

What's your approach?

Trust Agents

I started reading "Trust Agents" by Chris Brogan and Julien Smith after it was recommended at a recent Sales Centre meeting.

My main takeaway so far is the idea of embracing transparency. This is something I have struggled with as I tried to decided to create a blog to begin with. The concept of giving the world visibility into your life, thoughts, and ideas.

How do you feel about living transparently online? Kind of crazy, eh?

Focusing and executing on what you can control

Control. Think about it. What do you control today? What can you control that you aren't taking advantage of? Are there some things you can control pieces of but get wrapped up in the bigger picture you can't?

I started reading Wooden: A Lifetime of Observations and Reflections on and Off the Court and was immediately sucked into this book. A reoccurring theme in this book is John Wooden taking complete advantage of things he could control and letting go of the things he could not (rankings, hype, streaks, pressure). The result: he won 10 National Championships.

For example, John Wooden would spend time teaching his athletes how to put on socks and tie their shoes properly. Why? Because socks that were put on correctly and without wrinkles prevented blisters. Blisters can affect a players performance. Shoes that were properly laced and tied would help prevent ankle injuries. He could help people control that.

Wooden also spent hours preparing detailed note cards of every single practice he would run. He kept an archive of them and referred back to certain points in the season. Why? Because he could control his preparation and dictate how practice was executed.

How simple is that? Focusing and executing on what you can control.

I have always found understanding what you can and cannot control as a stress reliever for me. Learning from this legendary coach and dedication to execution of what he could control was very inspiring. I recommend you do the same.

Why is blogging so difficult?

I've always enjoyed writing and I have no shortage of opinions and ideas. Blogging seems like a natural fit. Blogspot makes it incredibly easy to deliver my ramblings on a cool looking website too.

So why is it so difficult to keep up with? How do you make it happen?

New Business Books!

I recently added the following books to my collection... I am very interested in the qualities, strategies, and mindset of successful coaches (the late John Wooden and Pete Carroll). I want to see what qualities separate a consistent great coach from an average one.

I am also really getting into Seth Godin. I read his blog daily (Seth's Blog) and think he is brilliant and precise. "The Mesh" by Lisa Gansky was a book recommended by Seth Godin recently on his blog.

Here is a brief summary of "The Mesh"

Traditional businesses follow a simple formula: create a product or service, sell it, collect money. But in the last few years a fundamentally different model has taken root-one in which consumers have more choices, more tools, more information, and more peer-to-peer power. Pioneering entrepreneur Lisa Gansky calls it the Mesh and reveals why it will soon dominate the future of business.

I'd be interested to hear any comments or suggestions on similar types of books. 

  

The Dip: A Little Book That Teaches You When to Quit (and When to Stick)

 

Win Forever: Live, Work, and Play Like a Champion 

 

Wooden: A Lifetime of Observations and Reflections on and Off the Court 

 

The Mesh: Why the Future of Business Is Sharing

I got sold P90X

I wanted to let everyone know that I bought P90X... after tons of references and doing my homework; I have decided to commit myself to the 90 day program.

My hat goes off to Tony Horton for putting together a Marketing campaign that includes a resource filled website, blog, Facebook page, Twitter account, countless success stories, video testimonials, and a customer base that constantly promotes the results and product.

 The thing that sold me on this is you have to actually work out, eat right, and stay dedicated (unlike the other miracle routines); which won't be easy, but I am looking forward to the challenge.

I will keep you posted along the way as I go through the program... it arrives next week!

If anyone has any advice on how to execute on the program... please comment below.

Stress Relief

Two causes of stress are:
1. Lack of control
2. Lack of predictability

Next time you feel stressed, take a deep breath, and decide if you have either. 

Then move on.

It will change your life.

Business.Made.Easy.

You take this product or service

You build momentum, excitement, and a culture around it with great people

You grow it

You sell it

You retire

Business.Made.Easy.

We Will Beat Any Price, Guaranteed!

I heard a radio commercial for a local mattress store that said loud and clear... "We Will Beat Any Price, Guaranteed!"

We have all heard these types of promotions before and have probably even taken advantage of them. Something about this commercial struck me; my heart instantly went out to all of their mattress competitors. They stand no chance of ever winning a mattress sale on price.

How are these competing stores still in business? How is the store offering this promotion making a profit?

 If you can't win on price, then what how can you win? Any thoughts?

- Bob

AA-ISP Webinar Series: Sales Productivity: Is there a Silver Bullet?

Have you been looking for that one silver bullet that will make you more productive and more effective in your sales execution?


Join Jim Wilson, VP of Sales at Merced Systems, and Larry Reeves, COO of the AA-ISP, on Friday July 16th for a “nuts and bolts” discussion on what approaches Merced Systems is taking to dramatically improve their sales productivity and sales effectiveness.

Who should attend? B2B sales leaders and professionals who manage sales efforts, generate pipeline and close sales.

Panelists:
Jim Wilson, VP of Sales at Merced Systems, discusses:
- What are the keys to sales productivity and effectiveness?
- How did Merced evaluate alternatives for improving sales productivity?
- How do we approach Sales effectiveness at Merced?
- What results are we seeing?

Bob Fenner, Manager, Account Development at Merced Systems, discusses:
- How did we evaluate options for improving sales productivity?
- How are we using our solution?
- What results are we seeing?

Date: Friday, July 16, 2010
Time: 3:00 EST, 12:00PST

Presented and hosted by the American Association of Inside Sales Professionals and InsideView

Complementary and open to all.

Here is the link to register: http://tinyurl.com/2un2jou

How to partner with Sequoia Capital

After living in Silicon Valley for a couple years, I am really surprised how difficult it has been to cut through the hype around the "hot start-ups", the "next big thing in technology", the "who's who of top Executives", and the fast-growing companies backed the "top venture capital firm" in the Valley.

You have to be careful on how you analyze an organization and remember that the grass is not always greener. It took me a while to uncover, in my opinion, the #1 Venture Capital Firm in Silicon Valley, Sequoia Capital. Their resume of successful companies is beyond impressive. They have been able to create and repeat a formula to identify and grow companies.

According to CrunchBase, "Sequoia has funded an unprecedented number of enormously successful companies including Google, Yahoo, Paypal, Electronic Arts, NVIDIA, Cisco Systems, Oracle, Apple, YouTube, Admob and Zappos. Sequoia estimates that 14% of the NASDAQ’s value is made up of firms they have funded." 

http://www.sequoiacap.com/ 

Sequoia Capital was founded in 1972 by Don Valentine. Don was an original investor in all the companies listed above among the others listed here. I would love to sit down with him and learn (if any of my readers can make it happen, please let me know).

What strikes me most impressive about Sequoia (besides their track record) is a simple page on their website that breaks down what makes a sustainable company. Here it is:

Elements of Sustainable Companies

Start-ups with these characteristics have the best chance of becoming enduring companies. We like to partner with start-ups that have:

Clarity of Purpose

Summarize the company's business on the back of a business card.

Large Markets

Address existing markets poised for rapid growth or change. A market on the path to a $1B potential allows for error and time for real margins to develop.
 
Rich Customers

Target customers who will move fast and pay a premium for a unique offering.
 
Focus

Customers will only buy a simple product with a singular value proposition.
 
Pain Killers

Pick the one thing that is of burning importance to the customer then delight them with a compelling solution.
 
Think Differently

Constantly challenge conventional wisdom. Take the contrarian route. Create novel solutions. Outwit the competition.
 
Team DNA

A company’s DNA is set in the first 90 days. All team members are the smartest or most clever in their domain. "A" level founders attract an "A" level team.
 
Agility

Stealth and speed will usually help beat-out large companies.
 
Frugality

Focus spending on what's critical. Spend only on the priorities and maximize profitability.
 
Inferno

Start with only a little money. It forces discipline and focus. A huge market with customers yearning for a product developed by great engineers requires very little firepower.

There it is; plain and simple. Before you believe the hype of a company, I would encourage you to evaluate the sustainability of an organization based on their criteria. If you want to partner with them, they offer an email to send your ideas and business plans - start@sequoiacap.com. Good luck!

- Bob

Additional Links:

Sequoia Capital on startups and the economic downturn
http://www.slideshare.net/eldon/sequoia-capital-on-startups-and-the-economic-downturn-presentation

The iPad Revolution & The World I Want to Live In

I just purchased an iPad and realized within minutes that this technology is the beginning of something much bigger. Furthermore, it made me start thinking of all of the different technology devices I own today and how all of this will change.

To provide some insight, this is how I am using my iPad... you press a button and it turns on (sounds crazy, right? my work laptop takes 6 minutes to turn on and load everything before I can open a browser), I can instantly browse the internet with my fingers, listen to music on Pandora, play piano, stream Movies & TV Shows on-demand via Netflix (with no delay and HD quality picture), check my Gmail account, look at my current location via Google Earth, store music, pictures, and videos, directly connect to YouTube, and type this blog post. It also has a 10 hour battery life.

Here is my personal technology device inventory:

• 2 old, dying, barely breathing Laptops
• 1 Laptop for work (did I mention it takes 6 minutes to turn on and load everything before I can open a browser?)
• 1 Blackberry
• 1 iPad
• 1 DVD player
• 2 Digital Cameras
• 2 USB Web-cams
• 2 Flat Screen TV's
• 4 iPods in various shapes and sizes
• 0 Wii's (but don't think it will be long before I own one)
• 1 DVR
• 1 Netflix Account
• 1 MIFI Device (mobile internet & router)

What is even worse, is that with limited success, most of my personal technology devices don't talk to each other. There has to be a better way!

This is the world I want to live in:

• "One Device" will control every piece of my personal technology - mass consolidating my list of current devices
• "One Device" is portable
• This "One Device" is so small it will look like what we all know today as cell phones and it will be a cell phone
• Flat screens will act as big monitors and the device will be able to connect wirelessly to multiple screens at the same time
• Internet will become faster, cheaper, 100% reliable, and there will be free WIFI everywhere I go
• Streaming and on-demand delivery models will completely take over to deliver content
• All TV Shows are commercial-free (I don't have time for commercials) and will be accessed over the internet (bye, bye cable bill)
• No cords will be necessary to charge or connect the device
• Nickel and dimming consumers for usage won't work as a long term business strategy for wireless and content provider (i.e. Verizon offering a 250 mb usage plan?)
• The all-you-can eat models and free applications/products with low-cost subscription based models will continue to win over consumers
• CD's & DVD's will be non-existent - things we tell our kids about

To take it a step further, I believe Apple will provide this "One Device" (the iPad is the first step in this direction), Netflix will deliver the content, and they will absolutely dominate this space.

 A little more on Netflix.... Reed Hastings, CEO of Netflix, posted one og the clearest business strategy PowerPoint on Slideshare that was brought to my attention from a blog post by Mark Cuban. Everyone should check this out. I also believe they are very modest in their publicly stated business strategy

Maybe I'm just plain crazy and full of wishful thinking, but it will be very cool to see how personal technology will continue to evolve and deliver content to consumers. If the world I want to live in becomes a reality, just remember.... you heard it here first.

- Bob

Takeaways from a Silicon Valley Legend

I was fortunate enough to listen to a motivational talk and go out to dinner with Tom Mendoza, a Silicon Valley legend, in the fall of last year.

Tom was one of the original founders of Network Appliance (NetApp). If you haven't heard of NetApp, they are ~$3.5 billion company that competes with the likes of HP, EMC, and IBM. During my experience competing against and almost working for the storage giant, I have found their customers love their technology and they have built a fantastic company.

The head wrestling coach from the high school I volunteer at brought Tom in to speak to our students about what he learned from wrestling and how he has applied it to his personal and professional life. It was an awesome experience to meet and learn from one of the best.

Just to give you a quick history of their stock price, NetApp went public in late 1995 for ~$2.00. Since then, the stock has split 4x, peaked around $150 a share (during the bubble in Silicon Valley) and currently sits ~$40 a share. Both Tom and his wife have put their fortune to good use, among other things, they endowed the University of Notre Dame's College of Business in 2000.

Here are a few quotes and takeaways from sitting down with Tom...

1. I look for people who are young in their career and hungry, that take ownership, and I can mentor.


2. If we remove the founders from our business and it will fail - we have not created a sustainable business model
   


3. How do I motivate people? I fire them.


4. The reason I like wrestling as a sport is because it matches people who are even and then you see which athlete wins
   


5. 90% of top performers from a Yale study showed they all had one thing in common - they all wrote down their goals


6. Adversity doesn't build character.... it REVEALS peoples' true character


7. It's not all about business - tell stories, tell jokes, build relationships, include people in the conversation, have fun

Additional links on Tom...

• The Wall Street Journal. How I Got Here: Tom Mendoza, Vice Chairman, NetApp


• YouTube. Tom Mendoza Motivational Speech at West Point

How to Kick Start Your Job Search

Friend: “Bob, not everyone knows what they want to do with their career.”
Me: “Then they will never find a job.”

Here are a few tips on how to kick start your job search:

1. Do some soul searching

• Go to a coffee shop, put on headphones, and write
• Make a list of what you like to do and don’t like to do
• Draw charts and graphs
• Play around with some numbers
• Make a list of “I would be miserable if I did _______”
• Make a pros and cons list
• Determine potential work locations (in state vs. out-of-state)
• Develop a personal SWOT analysis
• Do you want to do B2B? B2C? C2C?

2. Google “Job Openings”

• Write down 6-7 positions you could see yourself in
• Find out who is hiring in your parameters based on your degree, experience, etc.
• Diversify the websites you use to find job openings and bookmark them
• Try http://www.simplyhired.com/ or http://www.indeed.com/ on top of the other usual ones

3. Create an Action Plan and Set Goals

• Stick to the plan and your goals
• Show them to people and get advice
• State them publically on a blog or Twitter
• Track your results in Microsoft Excel

4. Write down who you know

• Start with family and friends
• Dig into your LinkedIn Network - if you're not on LinkedIn it is free to sign up
• Think about who you could sit down with for a coffee or a quick phone conversation on potential careers for advice

5. Use LinkedIn all the time

• Join Groups
• Update your profile regularly
• Search the job functions on LinkedIn
• Build your network
• Connect with recruitiers

6. Analyze potential companies

• big vs. small
• financial health
• reputation
• competitors
• benefits
• pay
• career development
• training

7. Ask around

• This is a polite way of saying network like crazy
• Change the “do you know of anyone hiring?’ question to “Steve, I’m really excited about finding a position as a Graphic Designer in California, do you know anyone in that field? I’d love to pick their brain on their experience in this position.”
• Follow up on any referrals people give you.

*Disclaimer – always follow up on these requests. Maybe you’re out at a bar or party and you meet someone who mentions they have a friend of a friend in X role at Y company. People always feel weird introducing you to other people; especially if they don’t know you that well. Make them confident and comfortable setting this up.

8. Customize your resume to match the job requirements

• At a minimum, change your objective
• It is OK to have different versions of your resume for different positions

9. Find out who the hiring manager is 

• Call into the HR Department at the company and ask
• Find them on LinkedIn (their email is first.last@companyname.com, first_last@companyname.com, or firstinitiallast@companyname.com)
• Ask someone in your network for an introduction (if they know the manager or someone at the company)
• Send an email introducing yourself and ask for time to learn more about the position (aka an interview)
• Email and follow up with a phone call (be persistent, but not annoying; try a new contact after two attempts). Keep in mind people are busy.
• If you can't find the hiring manager then ask for referrals to the right person
• Remember your goal is to schedule a “First Interview” (either in person or over the phone)

10. Rinse and Repeat

Do you Oodle? A sit down with Craig Donato, CEO & Co-Founder of Oodle.com

I had an awesome opportunity to sit down with Craig Donato, CEO & Co-Founder of Oodle.com last week. Craig is changing the world one classified at a time.

While building a cabin with his father and trying to find different furnishing; it hit him that classifieds were a mess.

After kicking around an idea to consolidate these classified sources and sort them by vertical, his wife told him to stop talking about it and either get a job with someone who is already doing something like this or to start his own company. The rest is history.

Oodle provides consumers with a friendly local marketplace to buy, sell and trade. Oodle is also the engine behind many classified postings and even Facebook's Marketplace. Check it out.

www.oodle.com

Although Craig and I didn't discuss where to find a bottle cap necklace, a rare Leonard Cohen Poster, or a golf bag shag; we did chat about various personal and professional topics including career management, starting your own business, MBA's, and defining success... here are a few highlights:

The Idea of Career Management

Career what? I loved this. It made me take a deep breath, because I think I am doing an OK job with this. Craig explained that you need to build experience that will lead you to your ultimate career goals.

Everything you are doing should be leading you in the right path to succeed. You don't become an expert overnight or get rich quick by hopping company to company.

Starting Your Own Business

"The only reason you should start your own business is if you are laying on your deathbed and will regret it." Craig made this point very clear. Everyone talks about the glamorous side of owning your own business once it's successful. No one talks about how it's selfish, irrational, adversely affects relationships, and is filled with manic highs and lows.

I kept smiling when he said that taking the risk and the challenge is irrational (I like that). It goes against everything that you're supposed to be doing - #linchpin.

You Don't Have to Create a Product or Service

Let someone else do it. Craig talked about how you can build a reputation and be positioned as the "go-to" person in the venture capital community and in your network.

What if a company built this crazy new product, but had no one to build their sales team? How do you position yourself as the person to bring in?

Also, what if you can find a place with momentum? Did the #20 employee at Google possibly think they were onto something? 

Getting an MBA

Craig received his MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business. He mentioned you can learn strategy own your own, but he couldn't have seeded a better foundation for his network (scroll down to 'Alumni') . 

Defining Success

You are excited about coming to work.

How to Network Effectively

I met Craig through volunteering as a wrestling coach at a local high school. When I asked if he could introduce me to other people in his network... he gave me a crash course in networking:

• Networking to just network isn't efficient – you need a clear message, topic, business idea, or specific problem you need help with 
• Meeting with people regularly is good; especially to have them point you to others
• The people you meet that will turn into mentors and resources most likely share a common bond and emotional connection with you (alumni of the same program, involved in the same activity, former colleague, etc.)
• People like doing things (not just sitting and meeting) and then talking
• Most of your network is built through company interactions or customer relationships  

Thank you again, Craig. I look forward to sitting down again soon.

Cheers,

Bob

Focus in your Job Search

"I noticed on your resume you have experience in a bunch of different fields, you ran your own business, been in real estate, product marketing, and have spent time in sales. What makes you want to go into this position we have open?”

"To be honest, I am flexible. If you have a position in a different area like Finance, Marketing, Sales Operations, or Customer Service, I would be interested in that too."

STOP RIGHT THERE.

Guess what... your future employer doesn't care.

When a company has an open position (especially in sales), they are looking for the best candidate for that role. Many of the interview questions are generally focused around figuring out if this is the position you really want, you will be happy with, and will stick with it when things don’t go exactly according to plan. If you can't convey the focus in your job search, you will have a long road ahead of you.

It is perfectly OK and normal to want to do other things. You should have confidence in your ability, be incredibly optimistic, and dream big. However, if you want this position, you need to convey that this is the job you want and you want it now. Focus.

A typical interview question that usually makes people feel uneasy is, “where do you see yourself in 3-5 years?” You are probably thinking I want to get my MBA, start my own business, take the job of the person interviewing you, or maybe even if I’m still working here I will be absolutely miserable.

The decision maker and stakeholders in an interview process have social, political, personal, and career liability on the decision of hiring you. If you leave the company, that affects them. How are you going to mitigate their concern?

The best answer is to frame your response in their terms. The employer is looking for confidence that you want this position and see potential to grow organically with the company.

I’m not telling you to lie in an interview, just to be more prepared and focused then your competition (understand you aren’t the only candidate interviewing either). The last thing you want is to leave an interviewer with any uncertainty that you really want this job.

Two quick tips…

1. Never go on a job interview you don’t plan to nail
2. If you think the open position is a stretch for you; imagine what the interviewer is thinking before you walk into the room (I hope you are prepared to prove them wrong)

A great book to help you with preparation and focus is Me 2.0: Build a Powerful Brand to Achieve Career Success. This book outlines how to build a career and personal brand; which is a large part of building focus in your job search.