In a great Open Forum post on How to Escape Mundanity (which is actually about how to start your own business), there’s this great quote from Pamela Slim:
If you are in the very early stages of thinking about a business, spend your time getting to know yourself. One of the best things I learned from author Jim Collins is to study yourself as if you were a scientist observing a bug. Pay very close attention to the things that either make you feel great or feel crappy. Note the kind of environment, work, people, topics, industries, schedule, and activities that make you thrive. When you start your business with this awareness, you will feel natural energy and clarity which will make all the next steps of the process like choosing a business idea, figuring out the money, planning your business, identifying your customers, and creating a marketing process a lot easier.
To me, this quote – and the post – is not so much about becoming an entrepreneur and starting your own business as it’s about finding what you love and doing what you’re passionate about.
The way you stand out in a non-profit organization isn’t that different from what you do in any group or company. You show up, give more than expected, and try to make other people look good.
Unbelievably true.
90% of success might be showing up, according to some, but it makes a big difference how you how up. Are you just there, or are you really all there? Do you do the minimum, or the maximum that you can contribute? Do you make others look good, or are you just focused on your own goals.
This is a shout-out to announce that fact that 3 amazing web/software developers/technology managers that I know really, really well are looking for work.
If you’re looking for developers these guys are great:
Mike Skovgard:LinkedIn, blog
Mike is a commando. Give him a tough development job and he’ll attack it like it’s a Nazi and he’s a WWII stormtrooper. Unbelievably smart, quick, and tenacious.
Bernie VanSpronsen:LinkedIn
Bernie is a concensus-maker. He quickly gets concepts, builds a business case, and figures out a project plan. If there’s a person he can’t get along with, that person is likely pathological.
Carl Forde:LinkedIn, blog
Carl is a thinker and architect. He designs systems, and then he build the bricks of the wall that will form the structure. He’s also working on a PHD in educational technology.
Reason why they’re looking
The company they’re working for – which I used to work for – is centralizing operations at their US location. So the Canadian workers are out of luck.
I feel bad because this is an awful time, economically, to be faced with this situation. But I take comfort in knowing that each of them is super skilled and extremely capable, and good things are in store for those that hire them.
Full disclosure:
I hired Carl and Mike when I was at Premier. And, when I moved on to Director of Home & Family Markets, Bernie took over the Technology Solutions Department from me.
Week two of my brand-new job is coming up tomorrow. Here’s what I need:
Office space in Richmond, BC, for 10-20 people
Accounting, Bookkeeping, and Payroll services, ideally all from one provider
Developers, developers, developers, developers
(Just channeling Steve Ballmer in text here … what I need are Delphi developers, including at least one who speaks Russian.)
Technical writer who understand usability and can write UI strings, help, & maybe even some marketing-type text
Once the office is in place, internet, phone, supplies, etc.
Once the developers are hired, computers, screens, software, etc.
If you know someone who can help with any of the above, give me a shout!
While I’m on-call for another week, and will return to the office next Friday for a cake&coffee with the team, I’m leaving the company that I’ve been with for 15 years (give or take a month).
That’s 15 years through 7 different jobs:
Research Assistant
Staff Writer
Marketing Project Manager
Technology Solutions Manager
Director of Home & Family markets
Product Manager
Director of Product Development
And 15 years through 3 different ownership stages:
What a wild ride it’s been, from a company that did about $40 million in annual business to a company that does over $130 million yearly. From a small family-run operation to a cog in a billion-dollar public corporation. From a small, cramped office in a leaky Abbotsford building to the former President’s (Henk Berends) corner office in Langley, and then to Bellingham, WA.
The opportunities I’ve had have been incredible. Just one of them is the travel, which has enabled me to go to San Francisco multiple times, Silicon Valley, Salt Lake City multiple times, Seatle, Portland, Wisconsin, Asheville North Carolina, San Diego multiple times, New Orleans, Virginia Beach, Texas multiple times, Florida multiple times, Quebec, Phoenix, Whistler, Winnipeg multiple (multiple multiple) times, Chicago, Philadelphia, Atlantic City, Moose Jaw (!?!), and many more places. Business travel is not always all it’s cracked up to be, but I always made a point of seeing or doing something at each place that I could not have seen or done at home … and so it has enriched my life.
Other opportunities have been career development. I started with Premier almost right out of Simon Fraser University. I had some previous experience managing a retail sports store … but Research Assistant was my first real career job. From that beginning people and experiences at Premier taught me product development, marketing, and basic business realities. My interest in technology grew significantly while at Premier, and the company had an opportunity for me to start and lead a web development department. From that, I moved on to other interesting and challenging jobs, including the one I’m currently leaving from: Director of Product Development. What a blessing! I feel truly fortunate and blessed to have had the career opportunities that I’ve already had.
But probably the best opportunity at Premier has been the people. Meeting and working with the amazing people at Premier … the David Leoppky’s, the Henk Berends, the Joel Zuckers … and so many more. I can’t – really can’t – name them all, but ones that really stand out are Pat Graham, Brandon Bird, Foeke van de Poel, Kelly DeVries, Bruce Morris, Sibrand Stulp, Andrew Westrink, Raymond Kenny, Teresa Alexander, Brad Kuik, Kevin Moore, Jane Hix, John Flokstra, Jonathan Catherman, Harold Ludwig, Wim Kanis, Natalie Critchley, Ronnie Zindorf, Larry Huinker, John Wesselius, Steve Misenhimer, Rastin Mehr, Arie Veenendaal, Ray Kuik, Dave Shoots, Bob Goodman, Diego Rodriguez, Sheldon Atkinson, Dominique Fugere, Francois Lupien, David Boone, Larry Renooy, Tom Osborn, Mike Skovgaard, Bernie Van Spronsen, Lisa Peumsang, Brian Koning, Steven Leyenhorst, Anita Lofgren, Phil Minderhoud, Tyler VanVliet, Bram Vegter, and Cheryl Vandeburgt. There’s more … I know there’s more, and I apologize if your name isn’t there. But those are the ones that came to mind. We had a great run together, and I wish you all the very best of everything.
Some of my favorite memories of these 15 years are:
Running the annual convention in ‘98 or ‘99 in Victoria, BC – the first convention that we made a huge splash with a major show-biz type presentation. That was a blast!
Bringing out the Discover Zone … an online learning, edutainment, productivity, and groupware environment in 2002-2003. What an application it was, and what excitement it generated!
The convention we held in Quebec, about 3 hours North of Quebec City along the banks of the St. Lawrence. 35 or so of us stayed in the hotel lobby/bar until 1 or 2 AM, singing around the piano and generally enjoying each others’ company.
Visiting our partners The FaQtory in Winnipeg in the winter and playing outdoor ice hockey at Ray Kuik’s house in -20 degrees Celcius … in shirtsleeves because we were so hot from the exercise.
Building out a new department when I became Technology Solutions Manager. Finding space, painting, furnishing, hiring, and managing … tons of fun!
A lunch with Henk Berends when he pointed out a serious error in judgement that I was making in a very gentle, tactful way, and saved me from a major, major disaster.
Playing hockey with the Canadian sales team at their regional meeting this year.
Giving a presentation on Royal Dutch Shell-like scenario planning at one of our company’s top meetings in ‘97 when I was still young and green, and hearing via the grapevine that Chuck Farnesworth said “that kid made more sense than all the rest of them put together!”
Getting to write for audiences of tens of millions when I was a staff writer. Our product goes out to over 20 million students internationally, and their parents and teachers view it as well.
Pulling an all-nighter with David Boone to get the Premier website ready on-time in ‘98.
Boogy-boarding in 10-foot San Diego waves in ‘96, dislocating my shoulder in the surf, and swimming 100 feet back to shore one-handed.
Working for a month on a Discover Agenda presentation to executive in 2007, presenting it, and getting an unbelievable reception.
Getting the 3-day training sessions on 7 Habits as well as the Organizational Effectiveness Model when we joined FranklinCovey.
Going to San Antonio for a conference and staying at the Emily Morgan hotel in a suite looking directly down into the Alamo.
Getting a massive one-day raise in 2001.
Jim Gibson’s last day, when he came to me at our north campus. We found an available office; he told me he was leaving; and we prayed together before he walked out the door.
Imitating Henk Berends’ speech style in a send-off at his retirement banquet, and managing to do it well.
Winning the company-wide crud tournament with Loren VanCorbach and Sheldon Atkinson at the Portland conference in 2007 while playing the last few games on a severely sprained ankle.
Taking off from the Phoenix conference with a colleague (Mike Suto) in a van, not knowing where we were going, and finding the most amazing still quiet desert spaces where we stood still and silent for minutes just to hear nothing, and then continuing on to find a deep, cold desert lake.
Climbing the foothills of the mountains surrounding Salt Lake City during a visit to FranklinCovey.
Setting up a ping-pong net on my Technology Solutions department “boardroom” table to knock away the tensions of long, busy days.
And far more than I can list …
I have been very blessed, and very happy to have been a part of Premier from December of 1994 to November of 2008. And while I’m eagerly looking forward to new challenges, I’ll remember these times and people with fondness and some nostalgia.
Reason? I worked out last night … even though it was a crazy, crazy day with a full 9 or so hours at work, an hour coaching baseball for my son’s team, and a coffee with friends.
I think it was Penelope Trunk who said it a few months ago … something along the lines of: you should work out if you want to be successful in your profession? Why? Most successful people work out.
That’s a correlational as opposed to a causal relationship. But it’s still significant.
Feeling better, feeling stronger, feeling more alert, just generally feeling physically better is going to translate, most of the time, to acting better, performing better, and simply being better.
I haven’t been able to work out regularly lately due to a crazy sports schedule (I signed up for two ice hockey teams – big mistake) and a neck injury (probably unrelated but its hard to tell). But in the past 5 days I’ve worked out twice, and I feel incredible already.
As someone who’s recently been promoted, I need to be extremely self-aware about what I’m doing, what I’m saying, why, how, and how others are perceiving it.
As Bob Sutton quotes Dacher Keltner’s The Power Paradox, positional power is a very dangerous thing:
He argues that — contrary to the claims of many experts, going back to Machiavelli — that people who are selected for powerful positions and are able to hold them are characterized by modesty and empathy. BUT he shows that being put in a position of power turns people into them into worse decision-makers, makes them more likely to act on their whims and desires, and makes them more likely to interrupt others, to to speak out of turn, to fail to look at others when they are speaking, and to tease others in hostile ways.
I think the key is being open to criticism, not closing your mind to new learning, and having people around you that will call you on BS behavior and actions. That’s something I don’t think I can ever stop working on.
I had lunch with a colleague today. He’s young, smart, and creative … and in a job where he cannot possibly exercise all his talents.
(Kind of the way I like to think of myself!)
But he has a good-paying job. And a mortgage. And 3 kids. And a wife.
So it’s hard. Hard to take the plunge. Hard to take the risk. Hard to not settle. After all, if he has a hard landing, it’s not just him at risk.
And yet, a good-paying job doing often-interesting work is not enough. It’s not enough for him, and it’s not enough for me. There are some people who won’t settle – can’t settle.
Settling means dying, even if just a little. To settle, you have to kill your dreams, or at least shut them off, wall them up.
The colleague I had lunch with is not willing to do that. I’m not willing to do that. Someone, I think Eleanor Roosevelt, said that the biggest risk is not taking any risks at all.
The challenge is risk management.
In other words, if you’re going to take a risk outside the cozy corporate womb, have your ducks in a row. Plan it for some time in advance. Have a fairly large sum of money (12 months worth of living expenses, I think) in reserve. Then go for it.
Why?
You might as well ask why we live. Life is risk. Doing the same thing over and over, always staying within the lines, always doing the safe thing, is not life.
Life is experimentation. Life is change – without change there is no life. Literally, when you stop changing, you’ll be dead.
I want to live.
[ update ]
I just saw this article on risk-taking. It gives the following three reasons why people take risks:
the drive to transform the tension of unresolved emotional conflicts from childhood into individual expression, vindication and mastery,
the drive of a “lonely crusader” determined to challenge the group’s or the organization’s need to preserve the status quo, and
the drive of profound self-awareness and alienation: “the person (must) construct a framework of meaning that is personal rather than imposed externally.”
Welcome to Sparkplug 9, John Koetsier's blog on technology and social media.
I'm a software exec who cares about UX and UI, scours web & social media, lives in Canada, plays hockey, uses a Mac (mostly). Oh, and I blog and speak at conferences.
Welcome to Sparkplug 9, John Koetsier's blog on technology and social media.
