Life-in-Progress

A New Chapter Begins

We are now almost officially at our two year anniversary in Austin.  I can say, without a doubt, that it’s been an amazing rollercoaster — not one that I ever would have knowingly signed up for, but one for which I am immensely grateful, in spite of its rockiest moments. In the past two years, [...]

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The Entrepreneurial Legacy to Gen Y

Like many of my peers in Generation X, my parents and my grandparents have never really understood what I do for a living. My parents use the web, so it’s not entirely outside their comprehension, but when it comes to my grandparents: I may as well be communicating with aliens via mental telepathy. Being an [...]

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It’s Not a Career Path, It’s a Career Highway

As a career management advocate turned Entrepreneur Evangelist, I recently had an epiphany that clarified some of the change I’ve experienced over the past two years, as I’ve moved from my old life to my new one. I’ve been lacking an effective metaphor to describe both the process and my present (and potentially future) state. [...]

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Small Business Skydiving

As my year-end consumption of ‘top ten lists‘ continues, I came across one on Chicago Now called “The Top 10 Small Business Trends of the Decade” by Barry Moltz.  In the list he mentions several things that have all dovetailed together to define the changing nature of work — most centered around the pros and [...]

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Not Being Penny Wise and Pound Foolish

I love startups. I love the chaos. I love the insane hours. I love the energy. I love the types of people who are attracted to work on high-risk ideas with long odds. I love the culture that evolves around them. I love it all. I have spent my career hopping from one startup to [...]

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Why Customer Service Matters

Many people don’t think about it specifically, but know it intuitively: if you want good customer service, skip the big guys and go to a small company. In Small Business’ Competitive Advantage, I discuss that Customer Service is the magical pixie dust for small business. Think about your normal daily experience: if you need to [...]

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We Never Called it "Cyber Monday"

I’ve been feeling nostalgic this week. After so many years in ecommerce, supporting catalogers and retailers whose year entirely revolved around the Christmas season, I am almost at a loss for what to do if I’m not running around putting out fires from Thanksgiving weekend up until the week before Christmas. Strange as it seems [...]

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