I’ve been talking with a lot of entrepreneurs lately, and one thing I can say for certain is that, as a group, they’re very eager to help each other. They get just as excited talking about the pursuits of others as they do talking about their own, and they’re more than willing to go the extra mile for those around them.
But how do you tap into this invaluable resource? It can be intimidating to go to others for help and can be perceived as pushy and self-serving if approached the wrong way. Here are a few tips to help others help you. Read the rest of this entry »
Gist, the relationship management service that went to open beta last month, today announces the release of an iPhone application, available through the App Store, that makes getting access to your data easier while on the go.
By its very nature, Gist compiles a sometimes overwhelming amount of information about your contacts so I was a bit skeptical about it being possible to reduce it down for the mobile interface. Gist combats this by really focusing on your most important people: those who you are meeting with next. Read the rest of this entry »
In college, and grad school, I mostly hung with a crowd in which everybody shared the same interests, hobbies and field of study. I know that a lot of college faculties are beginning to move towards a more interdisciplinary approach, because it more accurately reflects what students can expect their post-school life to be like. College professors tend to be somewhat protective of their disciplines, however, so progress is moving faster in some areas and at some schools than others. The result is that a lot of people in the workforce have a pretty narrow view of what the word “colleague” means. It’s important to broaden that definition and cultivate relationships with people in other fields. Here’s why.
Who Do You Consider a Colleague?
Especially for freelance web workers, defining a “colleague” can be a complicated matter. Is your stakeholder a colleague? How about the project sponsor for the contract you’re working on? More likely, you consider people doing similar work in similar fields to you colleagues, over and above people that you work with directly, who are responsible for entirely different aspects of a given project. Read the rest of this entry »
In case you weren’t aware, the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) was held this week, which basically means we gamers have been finding it rather challenging to keep our attention focused firmly on work. Not only was one of the world’s biggest gaming show on, but this past Tuesday also marked the release of The Sims 3. It’s been a recipe for disaster. Or at the very least, a dip in productivity.
Luckily, I had professional cause to engage with The Sims 3. And it was with strictly professional interests in mind that I devoted upwards of 14 hours over the past two days to EA’s wildly popular life-simulation franchise. Well, maybe that’s not strictly true, but there was work involved.
In-game, I was working, too. Specifically, I was pursuing Sim careers in both the music industry and professional sports. In doing so, I realized that I think of my job in exactly the same way a Sim would. Here are the specific parallels I’ve drawn between my real-life and simulated experiences. Read the rest of this entry »
Web Work 101: How To Escape The Cubicle
