What's Too Personal?

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Twitter_logo_header Here's the thing about Twitter and Facebook status updates that's really got me thinking.

Surely there are certain things that one can write but that they'd rather not share with the entire world, in real time. So, when one becomes inclined to 'Tweet" there must always be an assessment, even if subconscious, as to whether or not the musing is something that should be shared with the audience that's following the "Tweeter."

This assessment is of course made harder by the fact that the Tweeter's audience is always evolving, thus the thought required of this assessment increase over time.

Does this seem stressful to anyone else?

The Battle Against Outsourcing

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Seth Godin blogs about some of his predictions for the future. There's one that's particularly interesting to me.

Prediction: The effort required to outsource a task involving the manipulation of data of any kind will continue to decrease until it will be faster and cheaper to outsource just about anything than it will be to use in-house talent. What will you do today to ensure your prosperity when that happens?

I think Seth is dead-on with this prediction. Here are a few tips on how you can stay prosperous despite this trend:

  1. Get closer to the core value of your business. Your goal should be to either build or provide the product or service that your customers pay for; or to sell the product or service that your customers pay for. If you're an accountant at a construction company, you're doing neither. And it's only a matter of time before your job gets outsourced. Get on the front lines. Be an accountant at an accounting firm so that you grow as companies outsource.
  2. Focus on the right things, the valuable things. Every quarter list the things that you do that can't be outsourced. Find a way to double the amount of time you spend on those things.
  3. Innovate, innovate, innovate. Innovation is hard to outsource. Cheaper, faster, better, more efficient, more scalable. Every week give yourself an "innovation score" (from 1 to 5); answering the question: How well am I doing at continuously and radically innovating on the work that I do? If you're scoring a 4 or a 5 then you're way ahead of most workers, and you're in a great position to prosper. But don't forget, do this every week.

Finally, above all else, think like a CEO. Every quarter assume your CEO is asking the following question: How could I go about outsourcing [Your Name]'s work? Use the tips above to make it impossible.

An Internet Business Idea

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Here's an internet business that I'd be happy to invest in and I hope someone creates. A website where I can select my favorite clothing retailers, my zip code and my sizes. The site will feed back items in my size and location that are on sale. I could then reserve the items I like and if I get to the store within, say, 24 hours, the items are mine.

Of course the site would have email alerts for specific items I'm watching. This wouldn't apply to a widespread sale across the whole store or across an entire clothing line. I'm referring to a specific item that the store believes it can't sell at full price and gets stuck on a sale rack, never to be found.

Someone out there really wants to buy it at that price but there's no mechanism for the retailer to tell that consumer that it's available.  This website would facilitate that communication.

The value for the consumer would be savings and good clothes at the right price point. The value for the retailer would be far more efficient inventory management, increased traffic and sales, more intelligence to set prices and enhanced customer loyalty.

Diversify Your Job

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There are all kinds of books, blogs and articles telling people that they should get out of their boring jobs, start their own business and go to work for themselves. While I fully agree with the spirit of this advice, the fact is that we all already work for ourselves.

The problem is that we only have one customer -- our employer.If that “customer” goes out of business or decides it doesn’t want to work with you anymore (lays you off/fires you), then you’re completely screwed. This describes most people’s current lot in life, i.e. most people only have one job. Does anybody else think this is crazy?

The advice shouldn’t be to go off on your own and start a new business, the real advice should be to diversify. Find a way that you can have income coming from several different employers and/or clients.

A smart investor would never put all of their money into one company. A smart company would never put all of their resources into one client. That would be stupid. Because if that company or client disappears, then so do you.

Why is this different for workers? Why is it acceptable for a worker put all of their time and energy into one company?

Monday through Friday

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Monday through Friday contains 120 hours and makes up 71% of our lives.  I've been thinking a lot about what I do during these hours and whether or not I'm using them as effectively as possible. 

Here's the breakdown for me:

  • 54% - Work (65 hours)
  • 33% - Sleep (40 hours)
  • 4% - Exercise (5 hours)
  • 4% - Spending time with friends and family -- in person or over the phone (5 hours)
  • 4% - Chilling out -- reading, watching TV, internet, research, paying bills, etc. (5 hours)

Because a reasonable amount of sleep, or at least rest, is a requirement for me, I'm spending 77% of my Monday through Friday doing something that is more or less involuntary.

If you're anything like me it's crucial that you're getting a BIG return on the effort you're putting into your work. 

Twitter

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Ashton Kutcher now has one million Twitterers following his daily twits.  This is actually pretty significant news. 

I signed up for a Twitter account today. I don't plan to post anything or use it all that much at this point but I have to say that I'm completely fascinated by it.

I've read a ton about it and I truly don't think anyone fully understands the power and magnitude of this technology.The telephone, arguably one of the world's most revolutionary technologies, gave us the ability to have a real-time conversation with someone that's thousands of miles away. Now it turns out that Twitter allows us to have a real-time conversation with millions of people that are thousands of miles away. The ramifications for marketing are hard to imagine.

'Sully' Sullenberger

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image002.jpg 'Sully' Sullenberger, the pilot that successfully landed a plane in the Hudson River, is making the rounds through all of the popular media channels this week -- starting tonight with 60 Minutes.

I'm really looking forward to hearing from this guy. Because I live only a few blocks from the Hudson and I flew into LaGuardia on the day of the "water landing", I've been paying pretty close attention to the developments.

So much has been written about this so I really don't have all that much to add. But after hearing the calmness in the voices of the pilot and the air traffic controllers, the next time I fly I'll be a bit more comfortable. Twice, Sullenberger said that he was going to try to land the plane in the Hudson. I kept waiting for the air traffic controller to say, "YOU'RE GOING TO WHAT?!?"

Instead, showing zero emotion, he calmly suggested alternative runways.

Marketing this Blog

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To date, I've had virtually zero traffic on this blog. I've also done zero marketing.

The primary reason I haven't marketed it yet is that I'm unclear on what the value is for someone other than myself. I only blog because I like to write. And this seems like a fun place to do it.

There are a couple things that need to fall into place before I'll start actively marketing:

  • A more narrow focus of topics
  • Time and ability to regularly provide content that is remarkable; something that people will tell their friends about

Lastly, I'd like this blog to be an outlet for a certain area of expertise; an expertise that supports my career. I'm the best in the world at something -- something specific and narrow -- but I haven't identified it yet; I have some ideas, but I want to be sure. I literally have no idea when/if these things will come together. But in the meantime, I'm ok with a few hits a month.