Finding Free WiFi

Moving On

Hello All,
This blog was originally started while I was in college, built to help businesses market to college students more effectively.  As I spent time on my startup (which did not market to college students) time for blogging was eliminated, and I put my head down and focused.

As the web has evolved so have I, so rather than continuing here I'll be running a new blog at BrentLamphier.com (where the focus will not be marketing to college students).  However, the time when that starts is TBD

For now, would love to connect with you on twitter

@brentlamphier

Cheers, and thanks for reading

Brent

Shift Happens, 2008 Edition

More text messages sent every day than there are people on earth.  Crazy.

Follow Me On Twitter

Well, I caved.
I've had a twitter account for nearly a year and a half, ever since my co-founder first told me about it. 
Now I actually started using it.  More business than personal (I leave the 'I'm the greatest' style posts for texts to the only person I feel is obligated to listen (my girlfriend))...but, go ahead and say hi if you use the service.

Mine:
@brentlamphier

Athleon's (mostly me posting):
@athleon
@coachtips

The Great Debate: Should We Keep Dumping Money Into the Money Hole?

Thanks to @npost
In The Know: Should The Government Stop Dumping Money Into A Giant Hole?

The last 10% is a dogfight

Quoting A.L. Williams (and my girlfriend's facebook page):

You beat 50% of people in America by working hard.  You beat another 40% by being a person of honesty and integrity....the last 10 % is a dogfight.

Rational Hesitation of a Would-Be Entrepreneur

Saw this on the back of a Starbucks cup this morning, inspirational enough to share:

"The irony of commitment is that it's deeply liberating- in work, in play, in love.  The act frees you from the tyranny of your internal critic, from the fear that likes to dress itself up and parade around as rational hesitation.  To commit is to remove your head as the barrier to your life" --Anne Morris

I love the middle line, that 'fear parades itself as rational hesitation.  One privilege (well, sometimes it's a privilege) of having started a company is that, one people know you've taken an idea to market, they feel inclined to tell you about their great ideas. 

One such individual had been 'incubating an idea' since college.  He was in his early 30s.  When I asked why he hadn't gone for it yet, his answer was simply 'the timing just hasn't been right.'

I then launched into my typical ra-ra speech that it's hard, it's painful, you'll lose sleep, you'll cry, but nothing should stop you from pursuing it immediately, as long as you're passionate enough about it.

He'd allowed his fear of failure to manifest itself into a perpetual state of rational hesitation...which really is the worst place on earth to be.  All you end up with is a bunc of 'woulda coulda shouldas'  and a laundry list of excuses. 

If you've been thinking about the same thing for over 10 years...it's probably time to start doing something about it.

Startup Anecdotes

One of my Developers (while comparing our new site with some off Apple's old stuff with my CTO)
"Your comparing yourself against the best brains in the world"

My CTO:
"Well who else would you compare yourself too?"

Awesome.

Seattle Web Awards

Over at Seattle 2.0, Marcello has announced the Seattle 2.0 web awards, though without "Most Likely to Eat at Salumi's" Athleon will probably have to wait until next year.  Nominate your favorites here:

Cool Charity #2- Kiva

In my quest to learn more/support about the 'other entrepreneurs' (those aiming slight right of the make money vs save the world line) the next on the list is Kiva, which has received a lot of press lately as the poster-site for micro-lending.

Kiva offers 'loans that changes lives,"  But I like their positioning statement:  "We let you loan to the working poor."  Kiva collects $25+ donation from individuals and loans them to 3rd world entrepreneurs looking to expand, grow, or sustain their businesses.

Every entrepreneur or wannabe entrepreneur needs to head immediately to Kiva and donate $25.00 for some good old fashioned startup karma.

Mine went to a 28 year old father of one in Togo.  (By the way Togo is a tiny country in West Africa...Kiva is good for geography lessons as well).  He runs a motorbike repair shop.  He requested a loan so that he could buy more parts...since his supply couldn't meet his demand.  If he has more parts, he can do more repairs, make more money, and so on.  Standard business.  Awesome.  All for $25

He's even paid back $2.08 already.  And, just like vegas, Kiva has it figured out.  It's REAL easy to reinvest when your money's already in the system.  Who should I fund next?

Good...startup...karma.

Kiva.  Change the world through the entrepreneurial drive of others.  

How To Survive 2009

I saw this on a church billboard I drove past today:

"To be successful in 2009, just get up one more time than you get knocked down"

Keep Fighting.  In you startup, you business, your marriage, your faith, or you life.  Keep Fighting.  I don't know many people who I consider 'winners' that give up easily.

Keep Fighting.

Sports and Startups

Living in the sports/startup world is interesting.  One minute I'm reading Sports Illustrated making sure I'm up to date on the industry (as well as getting my college basketball fix, GO DAWGS!), the next minute I'm reading some obscure random tech/entrepreneur/vc blog that the majority of Sports Illustrated readers have never heard of.

Luckily for me, the lessons are occasionally the same:

From SI's Feb 2nd Issue (On How LeBron James is, well, scary good):

"Cleveland general manager Danny Ferry attributes the new regimen (weight lifting) to James's national team experience.  'From a corporate sense, it's like those guys spent their summer sharing best practices," says Ferry.  'If they have a meeting in the morning and Kobe Bryan comes in sweaty, LeBron's going to say Holy ...., this guy's already working.  That's what it takes."

Maybe it was just the sweat comment, but it reminded me of the Five Smells of a Startup CEO.

  (I of course like the sweaty CEO since that's where I live).  More than the sweat, it's the idea of 'best practices' of Startup CEOs and how to learn from the successes (and mistakes) of all those who went before you.  

I love sports.  Startups rock.  I'm lucky I get to live in both worlds.  I hope you're as excited about the worlds you live in.