A recent study in the UK demonstrated that having a BlackBerry device may add up to 10 extra work days a year because people feel compelled to leave them on during off-work hours. Chances are, if your BlackBerry is on and a work email comes in, you are going to feel stress and pressure to respond, even it is during off-work hours. That has become the new expectation.
According to research millions of Brits find it impossible to switch off and keep their work devices on even when they're not in the office. The study found that a fifth of UK workers keep their phones on over the weekend.While the main premise of the study may be true, perhaps there is an underlying problem that all of this technology and the 'always on, always available' mentality has spawned that is far more responsible for added work days than simply carrying a BlackBerry in your pocket. Interruptions. Whether it is the pinging push of an email arrival, a text message, a meeting, a conference call, a knock on the office door, or a shout from across the room, the work place has become cluttered with a steady stream of interruption.But even more - 24 per cent - complain they feel stressed because they are always on call. Men find it the hardest to switch off with only a third turning off their phones and BlackBerrys when they leave the office, compared to over half of women. Of those that do switch off, 22 per cent still can't resist having a peak at their work emails over the weekend.
Jason Fried from 37signals was recently interviewed and he talked about how difficult it is to get work done in an environment where the concept of a 'work day' has eroded to the point where it is really just a series of 'work moments' due to a constant barrage of interruptions. Jason convincingly argues that the primary reason people are working longer hours and weekends is specifically because they are going to work to be interrupted.
Watch this interview, and ask yourself if this describes your work life? If so, developing strategies to eliminate interruptions may hold the key to getting a better work / life balance.
Related News:
Blackberrys add 10 days extra work each year
POST TOOLS: 
TAGS: Entrepreneur, Entrepreneurship, Productivity, Technology, Workforce, Workplace
Posted on March 4, 2010
As 2010 ramps up, entrepreneurs will set goals and strategy for the year ahead. Vator.tv's Bambi Francisco has outlined 10 tips for entrepreneurs to be mindful of in 2010 based on the numerous interviews she has done with founders, angels and VCs. Here are the broad points she mentions followed by a video that highlights each of these tips with excerpts of relevant interview footage.
1. Vision is a process - If there is a misconception about a founder's vision for a given venture, it's that the founder should actually have a firm and clearly articulated one at the beginning. However, in many cases vision is a process that often results in some bumbling, stumbling and searching before coming together. Founders should learn to enjoy this process, not fight it. Persistence and long-term thinking is the name of the game.
2. Failure is not a 4-letter word - Instead of stigmatizing failures as mistakes, entrepreneurs should view it as a right of passage. Failure is data. Use the information you gain through failure to make adjustments on the fly. Talk to enough successful entrepreneurs and most will tell you that failure is a pre-cursor to success, not an impediment.
3. Dreams are the nourishment that feeds success - Quite simply if you're not dreaming, you're not passionate. If you lack passion, you will never get through the drudgery and obstacles that await you throughout the entrepreneurial process.
4. Dreams depend on teams - A lone maverick entrepreneur won't survive in the jungle of startup business. You need a tribe, a team to survive and thrive. And not just any team, but a team that has the right chemistry and talent mix. Like everything else, this is a process and one of the biggest mistakes you can make, is to hire too quickly. Be patient and wait for the right people.
5. Revenue is your best friend - Not a day should go by that you don't think about revenue, period.
6. Two steps backward, one step forward - Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. Don't be afraid to start over.
7. Venture obesity is a killer - That is to say that staying as lean as possible is critical to survival. Learn to do more with less and avoid overspending on anything from marketing to office space and everything in between.
8. Talk to your money - Keep your investors in the loop with regular communication no matter if it is positive or negative. A good line of communication between founder and investor will help manage expectation and keep small fires from burning into bigger ones. Over-communication is a good thing.
9. VCs are not the only game in town - You do not need a VC to be highly successful. Money can come from many different places these days. Put on a good pair of shoes and pound the networking pavement to explore your options.
10. Don't be so liberal with your equity - Yes, you need to give up equity to bring in the right investors and people. However, many entrepreneurs give up too much equity without truly factoring in how the dynamics will change as their equity pie shrinks.
For some great real-world excerpts that reinforce all of the above points, check out the video below.
POST TOOLS:
TAGS: Entrepreneur, Entrepreneurship, In Tech, Startup, Tips, Video
Posted on January 25, 2010
Gary Vaynerchuk the uber-successful wine entrepreneur and social media maven posted a salient video on the changing expectations of consumers in a world that is becoming more social with each passing day.
Gary's broad point is that consumers are increasingly expecting companies/brands/people to reach out to them and/or listen to what they have to say about your business. If your business doesn't have at least one ear to the ground and one arm extended in the world of social media, not only are you missing out on an opportunity to foster a better one-to-one relationship with your customers (something every business can benefit from) but you are also at risk of losing business to competitors who are actively engaged in social activities.
Perhaps the real lesson here is that becoming a more social company and brand is not an overnight process. It takes time to find your voice and your footing in the social sphere. As such it is paramount that your business start this process now before it loses a competitive advantage or loses customers that may not be so easy to get back down the road.
POST TOOLS:
TAGS: Customer Loyalty, Social Media, Technology
Posted on January 20, 2010
As the world continues to wade through the economic wreckage of a recession and muster some kind of recovery, investors around the world are having to make tough decisions about where to put their cash in uncertain times.
When it comes to safe haven currencies the U.S. Dollar has historically been king of the hill. However, with U.S. debt levels tickling record highs and double-digit unemployment numbers, the days of the U.S. Dollar being the best defensive currency may be coming to an end.
The national debt has risen above 50 percent of GDP (gross domestic product) from 40 percent two years ago, and within 20 years will blow past a previous record above 100 percent of GDP set after World War Two without stern official steps.If the U.S. Dollar is losing its status as the de facto global currency of choice, could the Canadian Dollar be viewed as one of the best alternate safe haven currencies? If foreign buying patterns of Canadian Bonds is any indicator, that answer may very well be 'yes'.Mounting debt could sap investor confidence in the economy, and the nation's ability to honor its obligations, pushing up interest rates and causing a steep fall in the value of the dollar as international creditors seek safer returns elsewhere.
Foreigners invested heavily in Canadian bonds in November as credit markets recovered and the Canadian dollar rose, pushing total purchases of Canadian securities to C$10.54 billion ($10.23 billion) in the month, Statistics Canada said on Monday.Not only are the prospects of the Canadian Dollar looking favourable, but it may be poised to blow past parity with the U.S. Dollar for reasons that go far beyond fiscal responsibilities and conditions.Their net purchase of C$97.82 billion in the first 11 months of 2009 is higher than any previous annual foreign investment on record.
It (Canada) has gold, skyrocketing in value as a hedge in a worrisome economic world. Oil in the west might be problematic for environmentalists, particularly that which is extracted from the oilsands, but the world needs petroleum products to grease, propel and construct wealth. As for cleaner fuels and energy sources, Canada has them too -- natural gas and uranium. Greener is our extraordinary store of natural gas.Ready or not, Canada's time is now and the world will be coming to our doorstep with money and expectations. Can Canada get comfortable in its own skin as a global financial leader after so many years of being a monetary subordinate to our southern neighbour? How well Canada capitalizes on this window of opportunity will likely shape our country for generations to come.This country is one of the premier exporters of potash, critical to the supply of world food. Canada is itself an exporter of food, which is becoming more valuable as developing countries demand, and can purchase, better diets.
Global industrial countries, as they pull out of the recession, need our natural resources to replenish inventories as demand develops.
Related News:
Dollar Crisis Looms if US Doesn't Curb Debt: Experts
Foreigners bet on Canadian bonds in November
Canada's time is now
What is driving the Canadian dollar right now? with Camilla Sutton and Rob Carrick
Expecting Bank of Canada to Leave Rates Unchanged
POST TOOLS:
TAGS: Currency, Dollar, Economy
Posted on January 18, 2010
As the venture capital market continues to shrink, there is an increased burden falling on the shoulders of angel investors to fill the gap. With startups requiring less capital thanks to the lower costs of software and development, angels figure to be a growing source of seed capital for early-stage ventures.
But what do angels investors look for in an investment opportunity, and is that criteria much different than your typical VC?
As Kevin Krauss explains in the video above, the advantages of working with an angel investor are pretty clear. Angels are typically more patient, and active angels will have a higher invest-rate than your garden variety venture capitalist. Finding angel investors really boils down to networking.
One of the key points made in Tim Draper's comments was the importance of solving a problem. In other words, what pain-point does your venture solve? In many cases, entrepreneurs look to solve a problem they personally want to see solved for their own need or benefit. For example, Steve Chen and Chad Hurley founders of YouTube, wanted to upload videos taken at a party but couldn't find anywhere on the internet to do it, so they built YouTube to solve their own problem.
Perhaps the best advice on securing angel investment can be found in Jason Cohen's essay entitled '4 ways to get automatically rejected by an angel investor'. Josh has been a startup entrepreneur and is now an active angel investor, and he outlines four key pitfalls that entrepreneurs should avoid when preparing to pitch to angels.
1. (Don't) Be dismissive of the competition. - Failing to acknowledge competition and/or addressing the advantage(s) they really do have, is a major faux pas. Give proper recognition to your competitors and then explain coherently how they are under-serving a portion of the market or how they won't be able to compete on your level.
2. (Don't) Have five-year projections. - Angel investors are wising up to the notion that 5-year projections are a waste of the paper they are printed on. You're just guessing, and they know it. Don't bother. Focus on other timelines, like how quickly you can become cash-flow positive.
3. (Don't) Gloss over your strategy for customer acquisition. - Spend more time on customer acquisition with real details on what your actual strategy will be. Be creative and be specific, don't just do what everyone else is doing.
4. (Don't) Do what you think you “should” do instead of what feels right. - Plain and simple, think for yourself. Your mother always told you honesty was the best policy, and in the case of raising angel money, honesty and original thinking will get you further than following what the herd is doing.
Related News:
4 ways to get automatically rejected by an angel investor
POST TOOLS:
TAGS: Angels, Capital, Entrepreneur, Entrepreneurship, Funding, Investors, Startup
Posted on November 30, 2009
Stewart Butterfield loves the internet. Dating back to his days as a student at the University of Victoria in 1992, Stewart has been immersed in all things web for the better part of two decades. Stewart's web journey has taken him from opining about his favourite bands Phish and the Grateful Dead in BBS and usenet groups in the early days, to creating the world's most popular photo-sharing website called Flickr which was born in Vancouver in 2004 and sold to Yahoo in 2005. Flickr now hosts over 4 billion images and has well in excess of 60 million users.
Now Stewart Butterfield is back with a new web venture, and for those who know the Flickr story well, it may seem like deja vu. Before Flickr looked anything like a photo-sharing service, it was an online game called Game Neverending. While the original incarnation of Game Neverending stoked the creative fire that ultimately led to the launch of Flickr, the game itself had to be shelved in favour of the more commercially-viable photo-sharing concept. While details of Butterfield's new venture called 'Tiny Speck' are still few and far between at this point, it sure seems like Game Neverending is getting dusted off the shelf and making a comeback.
“There hasn't been, yet, a great realization of play online that we have in the real world, the kind of social interaction people have playing poker or bridge or a board game or a round of golf,” Mr. Butterfield said.Very few entrepreneurs get the opportunity, or would even have the desire, to re-visit a concept left behind years ago. But that's exactly what Stewart Butterfield is doing with Tiny Speck.Inspired in part by the artistry and sensibilities of writers Theodor Geisel (Dr. Seuss) and Jorge Luis Borges, Mr. Butterfield says Tiny Speck's goal is to create a “fun and really interesting world with its own rules, absurdist and strange but fully realized, if imaginary.”
While we don't know much about Tiny Speck right now, we do know one thing. With Stewart's passion for gaming and social interactivity leading him back to his roots, the future world of Tiny Speck will be anything but tiny. Stay tuned.
Here's a video keynote that Stewart Butterfield gave earlier this year where he talks candidly about his 'love affair' with the internet.
Stewart Butterfield Keynote - Northern Voice 2009 on Video.ca
Related News:
Flickr co-founder tries his hand at another Web startup
POST TOOLS:
TAGS: Canadian, Entrepreneur, Gaming, Online, Startup, Technology, Vancouver, Video
Posted on November 20, 2009
Startup entrepreneurs are a brave lot. The odds of success are against them and the journey of taking a company from zero to hero, or basement to boardroom, is both all-encompassing and permeates every nook and cranny of a founder's life.
Most startup entrepreneurs inherently know the entrepreneurial road less travelled is paved with blood, sweat and tears. However, one common phrase often used to describe startup entrepreneurship is 'expect the unexpected'. What about the surprises? What are the unexpected twists and turns that most startup entrepreneurs don't anticipate?
That's precisely what Paul Graham wanted to find out. Paul is a partner in the well-known startup incubator Y Combinator which has funded over 100 early-stage companies. Paul recently sent an email to over 100 founders in an effort to learn more about the 'unexpected'.
So I sent all the founders an email asking what surprised them about starting a startup.Here are some of the most popular things that surprised startup entrepreneurs the most:
* Issues with cofounders - Choosing the wrong cofounder(s) can lead to big problems down the road.
* Startups take over your life - Your startup is your baby, literally. It will occupy your attention morning, noon and night.
* It's an emotional roller-coaster - The highs are high, the lows are low. It's an extreme way to work/live.
* Persistence is the key, think long-term - One of the most common surprises among startup entrepreneurs was how important persistence was as a precursor to success;
"Everyone said how determined and resilient you must be, but going through it made me realize that the determination required was still understated."In addition to persistence, the actual length of time it takes to grow a successful business caught many entrepreneurs off-guard;"If you are persistent, even problems that seem out of your control (i.e. immigration) seem to work themselves out."
"I've been surprised again and again by just how much more important persistence is than raw intelligence."
"I'm continually surprised by how long everything can take. Assuming your product doesn't experience the explosive growth that very few products do, everything from development to dealmaking (especially dealmaking) seems to take 2-3x longer than I always imagine."These are some great tips to be mindful of when thinking about starting a new company. Clearly the value of patience and resilience can not be over-stated."The top thing I didn't understand before going into it is that persistence is the name of the game. For the vast majority of startups that become successful, it's going to be a really long journey, at least 3 years and probably 5+."
For more insight on starting a startup, Paul Graham's essay What Startups Are Really Like is a must-read.
photo credit: flickr user: /J
POST TOOLS:
TAGS: Culture, Entrepreneur, Entrepreneurship, Startup
Posted on November 19, 2009
Networking for business happens on the go and on the road more than ever before. While your laptop may be a key component in your mobile office, it won't help you much on a conference floor, at a dinner party or in your car between meetings. Thanks to Apple's robust selection of iPhone Apps, more and more people are relying on their iPhone for simple business tasks and managing their networking while on the move.
Here is a list of our top iPhone Apps for general Business use.
LinkedIn
If you're not a member of LinkedIn yet, what are you waiting for? Arguably the largest social network for business, LinkedIn has become the gold standard for managing your precious network of contacts. The app is free, and puts much of the power of LinkedIn's website offering in the palm of your hand.
Publisher: LinkedIn
Price: Free
Evernote
This app ambitiously claims to be an 'extension of your brain' and by all accounts, it comes pretty close to being true. Feed this app anything ie, random notes, a snapshot, a voice recording, a video etc. and Evernote organizes and synchronizes all of your random ideas and data into something far more coherent and usable.
Publisher: Evernote
Price: Free
Groups
Drag and drop mobile contact management that puts your entire rolodex on steroids. Search your contacts with just about any criteria you can think of, and email a group of contacts with one-click are just some of the features in Groups. If you're serious about accessing your rolodex on the go, this is the app for you.
Publisher: Groups
Price: $4.99
MeetMe
You've finally got that important meeting scheduled, now you just have to pick a place to meet. MeetMe is a brilliant little app that takes two destination points and suggests potential meeting locations between those two points. MeetMe also sources Yelp customer reviews and ratings to help determine the best potential locations. You can easily adjust the results closer to one person or the other through the use of slider. In a word, awesome!
Publisher: MeetMe
Price: $1.99
BeejiveIM
If instant messaging (IM) is an important part of your communications mix, then Beejive is the Rolls Royce of mobile instant messaging apps. Quite simply, it does just about everything your full-featured desktop application does giving you unfettered access to a wide array of IM networks including AIM®/iChat®/MobileMe®, MSN®/Windows Live®, Yahoo!®, Facebook, MySpace, GoogleTalk®, ICQ®, & Jabber. It's not cheap, but it is the best.
Publisher: BeejiveIM
Price: $9.99
Encamp
Do you use the uber-popular Basecamp project management service? If you do, then Encamp is your new best friend. Encamp brings the best of Basecamp's project management tools to your fingertips with a well-designed and simple-to-use iPhone interface.
Publisher: Encamp
Price: $9.99
QuickOffice Mobile Office Suite
If you need to view, edit or create Microsoft Word or Excel files on the go, there is no better iPhone App for this task than QuickOffice. There are other apps that do this like Documents for example, but none of them are as feature-rich and capable as QuickOffice Mobile Office Suite. It's not the cheapest by any means, but it is the best.
Publisher: QuickOffice
Price: $9.99
Related News:
What's next for future iPhones?
LikeiPhone.com - iPhone News Updated 24/7
POST TOOLS:
TAGS: Apps, Best Of, Business, Iphone, List, Mobile, Office
Posted on November 17, 2009
ABOUT
Profit.ca -
Guide to Canadian business.
send tips/stories to
contact us
click here.
LANGUAGE
En Français
SEARCH
