Aviation Pic of the Week

Welcome! If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed . Thanks for visiting!

This week’s pic is good for a bit of comic relief. Comments online say it’s a Photoshop job, and a darned good one at that. I present you the Boeing 747 LCF in Oscar Meyer livery, being towed by it’s little brother:

Licensed under Creative Commons. See the original photo on Flickr.

Three Thoughts I Used to Break Through My Exercise Wall

I’ve seen some breakthroughs in the way I exercise recently that I’d like to share. First, some background: I grew up an “athetically challenged” child. I was the classic slow, uncoordinated, last-picked kid who admittedly gave up easily in favor of activities that were less threatening and more comfortable.

Starting in early Jr. high and through late college, I carried a few extra pounds around with me. At my heaviest I was 240, and lost ~75lbs for a low of 167 in early 2003. Since then I’ve kept my weight between 170-185, mostly by portion control and remaining conscious of the food I’m eating.

Through the years - before and after my weight loss - I’ve tried my hand at lifting weights and cardio with limited success. To be honest with myself, I just didn’t put the extra effort into learning the right way how and didn’t set and follow through with plans. No wonder I remained frustrated for lacking the results I desired.

This year I set the goal of breaking through my prior limitations with distance running, as this is the biggest mental struggle I’ve faced with physical activity. Last year when I would run, I hit my limit after an average 20-25 minutes on the treadmill. On two occasions I ran :30 and :45, but I couldn’t bring myself to overcome the mental hurdle of accomplishing that again.

Last winter I had the fortune of meeting Dean Hewson, a triathlete and technical writer, at a seminar I attended. I asked for some pointers on breaking through my wall and his advice was pure gold to me.

• First, Dean instructed me to slow down. To build endurance, I wasn’t in a race. I’m already a slow runner, so this frustrated me, but I gave it a go anyways. After all, he was a triathlete, I was not.
• Second, he told me to think internally “I’m not even going to start this run until 15 minutes in.” This was a real shocker. I hit my limit at 20-25 minutes, so 15 was my valley of death. How the heck was I going to start at 15 minutes?

Since my goal this year is to run a 5k by May and a 10k by September, I started hitting the treadmill regularly about a month ago. I took Dean’s advice, slowed it down, and drilled into myself that I wasn’t starting until 15 minutes in. This alone wasn’t enough to bring it all together though - my early times were in the 30-40 minute range - good, but not great.
Then another thought came to me that brought it all together:

• I once heard a speaker admonish his listeners; Don’t dwell on how you feel before a difficult activity, but how you will feel after you’re done. I’ve lived with that thought in other areas; so I applied it here and started focusing on the feelings of accomplishment I’d have once pushing through (I wish I could remember the speaker and the exact wording).

Thanks to these thoughts, in the last two weeks I’ve been consistently running for 45 minutes and 1 hour on the treadmill. That’s right, one hour! Last night was one of those runs. For the last ten minutes, I thought my legs were going to fall off and my lungs would give out. But I kept my head up, avoided looking at the clock, and laser-focused on how I would feel about accomplishing what I had set out to do when it was all finished. It’s an amazing feeling - I know the athletes reading this can relate. If you’re reading this and can’t relate yet, don’t fret, just get out there, take action, and persist until you reach your goal (and don’t forget to write me when you do!).

Pet Peeves Reveal Your Underlying Values

Lately I’ve come across more than my fair share of aggressive drivers on the road, and the advent of spring reminds me that when you roll down the windows you often become someone else’s ashtray. But in order to feel justified venting about such things here, I must deliver some insight into the topic.

Everyone has pet peeves, you do and I do. As I’ve pondered some of mine, I’ve come to realize that things set me off because they are counter to values and beliefs I hold strongly. Here are a few examples:

Peeve: Tailgating & Aggressive Driving
Value: People are responsible for their own actions and responsible that those actions don’t recklessly endanger others around them.

Peeve: Smoking in Public
Value: A twist on the above. Do what you want, so long as it doesn’t infringe on someone around you.

Peeve: Passive-Aggressive Behavior
Value: Straightfoward, honest relationships where people are up front with each other, aren’t manipulative, and don’t backbite.

Peeve: Ugly MySpace Profiles
Value: Good, clean design, proper use of the English language in written form, and intelligence. ;-)

What are some of the things that set you off, and what values do they highlight?

Aviation Pic of the Week

I stumbled across this photo quite by accident. It was taken by author, helicopter pilot, and prolific blogger Maria Langer of An Eclectic Mind on a recent trip to Alaska. I don’t have any words to do the photo justice. She calls the photo “North to the Future.” Here is a link to the photo. Enjoy!

Use Association to Pull Yourself Up

I started this blog to build up my presence on the web. A positive side effect has been that I feel a sense of accountability to my audience for the things I write; especially when writing about personal goals. Hence, it’s become quite helpful in keeping me motivated, especially after my Week 10 2008 goal wakeup call post. Life is different when you have an audience, no matter how small.

Recently I started attending Jerry Mitchell and Bill Price’s 6-month Bootstrappers class on new venture creation. It’s the same class they teach in a local B-school. I decided that now was as good of a time as any to get a rounded education on the startup process and use it as an excuse to research some long-term business ideas. The side effect of this is I’m in a class with (and in some cases working in a group with) successful entrepreneurs. I see their work ethic, resourcefulness, and commitment and it challenges me to up my own game in areas where I need to grow. In effect, they’re my audience and my silent accountability.

If you don’t have one already, I encourage you to seek out a reference group. Find yourself a group of peers, both at your level and above, to pull you up. You’ll be surprised with the improvements you start making when you associate with the right people.

On Criticism, Sarah Lacy, and being the Man in the Arena

Having read many of the criticisms leveled at Sarah Lacy in the wake of her Mark Zuckerberg interview at SXSW (video), I offer this quick thought. In fact, it’s not even mine. Nor is it new, some dead famous guy said it.

“It is not the critic who counts, nor the man who points how the strong man stumbled or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena; whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly…who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, and spends himself in a worthy cause; who, at best, knows the triumph of high achievement; and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat.”

Theodore Roosevelt

Offering my own analysis of the interview itself (which I did watch, though I wasn’t there) would be beating a long-dead horse. The point here is, for the mistakes made, Lacy was the one in the arena. While there’s value in constructive suggestions and lessons learned for improvement, outright (and sometimes mean-spirited) criticism reveals character.

It’s easy to take pot-shots from the sidelines. In some circles, it’s even cool. It’s much harder to get in the arena and put your neck on the line. I’ve played both roles, as I’m sure many of you have. It’s my constant aim to criticize less and do more. Is it yours?

Never shred the wrong document again.

Last year, a vendor called me sheepishly and asked me to re-send the contract we had signed with them a few days prior. She couldn’t find it, and the only thing she could think happened to it was it went to the shredder in a pile of other papers destined for destruction. Has this ever happened to you?

Avoiding this pitfall is simple: tear the documents you intend to shred in half. If you consistently do this, you can safely put these in your outbox pile, and even mix them with papers to mail or file and not risk confusing the two.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

Aviation Pic of the Week

I’m trying to use this weekly exercise to not only find cool pictures of planes, but of rare or unusual planes that capture the simplicity and fun of flying. My primary source is Airliners.net, though I go off in other directions as well. This week’s plane is a Grumman G-164 Ag-Cat taken in Serbia. This guy just looks like he’s having fun.

How to Build Confidence as a Computer User

I’m a geek and a tinkerer, but not much of a coder. While I used to actively code sites in high school and college, today I consider myself a power user. On an almost daily basis, I talk to people who are like most people — they have a general computer knowledge but are largely fearful of them, especially fearful of screwing something up.

Through these interactions, I’ve come to view these users in three basic categories:

• Lacking Confidence: These people need encouragement and to be stretched in their knowledge. Most average users I’ve met have fallen in this category. While explaining concepts may take a while, they really do want to understand how to use computers at least to the point where they aid in accomplishing daily tasks (My mom is one of these people; ten years ago I taught her the basics of Windows and she’s picked up the rest on her own). It’s rewarding to see the light bulb go off in these peoples’ heads as they become competent and confident.
• Willfully Ignorant: These people are almost proud that they know little to nothing about their computers. They lean on advanced users as if helpless and they make little attempt to grasp concepts as they are taught. This behavior soon exhausts the goodwill of all but the most patient advanced users.
• Explorative: This is the 20% group. Not all of these people become code ninjas or sysadmins, but they aren’t afraid to stretch themselves. They are consistently learning how to do things better and do a greater variety of tasks with their computers. These people range from the power user to development pioneers like David Heinemeier Hansson.

The only way to “help” the second group listed above is for them to change their attitude and cultivate a desire to learn. People in the first group are a pleasure to work with, they just need encouragement and prodding from time to time.

So, here’s my advice to el groupo uno: Tinker.

Computers probably feel like rocket science, but they aren’t. Maybe you want to get better at Word or Excel, or make your web browsing experience better (say, less popups and ads?). Or perhaps photo retouching is the next step so you can assemble the family scrapbook.

• Break down big concepts. Take what you want to learn and break the concepts down bit at a time. You can learn as you go. If you need help getting started, ask a power user friend. Believe me, we want to help (in fact we’re almost too enthusiastic to share).
• Test your assumptions. Don’t be afraid to screw something up. Click that icon, the one you have no idea what it does. There’s usually an ‘undo’ button (just remember the old adage; save early and often).
• Learn to take shortcuts. Find ways to do simple things like opening, saving, and printing without using the mouse and then move on to accomplishing bigger things the same way. No matter what program you are using, there’s likely a keyboard shortcut for most things you’ve always done by pointing and clicking. Lists of these commands are found in the help file under “keyboard shorcuts.” Do this and you’ll work faster and enjoy using your computer more.

Example: Editing Text
I edit what I write almost exclusively with the keyboard. Here are some common shortcuts to help:

• SHIFT + Arrow Keys highlights text from your cursor in the direction of the arrow you press.
• CTRL+SHIFT+Arrow Keys (Windows) or ALT+Shift+Arrow Keys (Mac) highlights in whole-word blocks.
• CTRL/CMD+X: Cut
• CTRL/CMD+C: Copy
• CTRL/CMD+V: Paste

You can do 90% of the editing necessary with these five simple keyboard commands. Use the first two to select your text, and the bottom three to manipulate it, just as you would with the Edit menu. Practice this and become proficient at it, and you’ll find yourself itching for other things you can do to make life easier using your keyboard.

I hope you find these tips helpful. I’m always up for sharing pointers on using computers (Windows or Mac), so don’t hesitate to ask if you have questions.

Happy Friday!

LED Billboards Pollute the Mental Environment

The last few times I’ve driven into the city, I’ve noticed more and more of these LED billboards popping up. They’re like having a bunch of TVs pointed at you as you drive, unavoidable in their bright flashes and demands that you BUY BUY BUY.

Until recently, displays like these have been relegated to downtown crossroads like Times Square, now they’re invading our backyards. I can only imagine the recent growth in LED technology and reduction in cost to producing these devices has contributed to their emergence. Couple that with media fragmentation and advertisers desperate for eyeballs, and what do we get? Advertising that’s more and more interruptive and irritating (as if the stretch of I-294 between 88 and O’Hare wasn’t bad enough already).

I won’t pretend that I don’t revile these billboards. What I don’t have (yet) is a consistent philosophy and belief system as a marketer myself, of what advertising is ‘good’ and what is ‘bad.’

In my pseudo-hippy phase, which was brief (and no I won’t show you pictures), I became a fan of Adbusters magazine. I resonate with a lot of their thoughts on how commercial culture pollutes the mental environment, but I eschew the mag’s hyper-liberal conspiracy theory politics. In fact, the latter is the reason I don’t currently read it, even though I still agree with their views on media. They talk about the “mental environment” the way environmentalists talk about preserving our physical environment. In essence, they brought a phrase to what I’d been sensing — an onslaught of commercials and content that was not relevant to me and that was designed to disrupt thought and create a sense of need that wasn’t there before. The intense, sickly feeling of being sold to at every corner.

From a business perspective, these billboards are a new market opportunity, the result of technology enabling advertisements to be more effective. Now advertisers can fraction off use of a billboard space, presumably making outdoor advertising more cost effective for advertisers, and allowing ads to be more targeted (an ad for morning commuters, for example, who tend to fall in certain demographics). Seems innocuous enough, until you consider how this affects the audience on the road and how these blaring ads stir up more angst in an already frustration-filled part of the day–the commute.

So I must ask, at what cost will we continue to push the envelope of interruptive advertising? In an age where online, marketers are moving more and more towards permission-based techniques and even social marketing that’s far more targeted, mass media is soldiering on with more resolve than ever to annoy the p*** out of people. Continuing, as they always have, to talk AT their consumer (whom they see as an object to sell to) rather than TO their customer (a person who chooses to buy).

LEGO iPhone Social App?

A friend just sent me this link, and apparently it’s not all that known on the Internet yet. The site did get Dugg, but I haven’t seen anyone in the online LEGO community pick up on it.

The web site play/nyc first displayes a strange copyright notice, then this screen:

It appears to be a mockup of a native iPhone application (perhaps coming after the June update?) and highlights features where you can build a model by dragging parts onto the screen, challenge friends, and share models with friends.

It looks like a cool concept, and I’d love to see an iPhone app for either LDraw or LEGO Digital Designer, but I hope it ends up being a bit more robust than this. And on this one, I have a gut feeling it isn’t official, based on the fonts chosen and the way the logo is used. Which means if it isn’t, the page may be short-lived…

Aviation Pic of the Week

I found this remarkable photo of a 777 slicing through clouds and illustrating wake turbulence. This beautiful phenomenon is usually invisible, and something you don’t want to be caught in, especially if you’re a smaller plane!

Need better marketing measurements? Start using this tool today.

While home for lunch yesterday, I read a great column by Robert Kiyosaki in this month’s Entrepreneur magazine, “Keeping Tabs: Numbers that are tracked and reported are numbers that grow. How does your business measure up?” Lately I’ve been immersed in looking at CRM tools and developing measurement systems. This article was a breath of fresh air; here’s my takeaways:

1. Measurement doesn’t [have to] equal complexity. Pick one thing [tied to sales/profit/growth] you can measure and do it diligently. They chose to measure how many people played the Cashflow Game as an indicator of how they were serving their customers.
2. Get started. “At first, the reporting was awkward and the numbers weren’t always accurate. But over the past year, the reporting has become much more precise.” -Robert Kiyosaki

A Tool You Can Use Today:
As if that article wasn’t timely enough, today Ben Bradley at the Bradley Wiltjer Marketing Group posted an article on measurement that includes his very simple marketing measurement tool. The post helped me bring clarity to our own measurement efforts, and I believe you will benefit as well. Read Ben’s post and learn:

1. Why measurement is not one-size-fits-all.
2. What things you should and should not measure.
3. A simple tool you can use to get started with your own measurements.

BenBradley.net: Dont Sweat Marketing Measurement

Zoolander and the Meaning of Life

We all live in a world of perceptions. Though I didn’t watch much MTV, I’m a card-carrying member of the generation that borrows it’s namesake. Further, I “grew up” on the Internet through high school and college, where the concept of online reputation has grown in importance to the point where the web set obsesses over it.

We’re barraged every day by messages telling us what to be, how to look, and how to live. Mass media and peer pressure insists we wear certain clothes, buy certain brands, and act in certain ways to be accepted. In online terms, article after article shows and tells us what to do online to build your image and reputation: produce a certain amount/quality of content, and even to use certain “cool” web sites and have social profiles that tout not only your business acumen but show that you can party like a rockstar.

With this barrage comes the fear that you don’t look good and that others see right through you, but as Derek Zoolander asks:

I wonder if there’s more to life than being really really, ridiculously good looking?

It’s easy to lose sight of the fundamentals in life when you’re living on the inside of a digital bubble. Life is more than how people perceive you.

Integrity
“Looking good” won’t gain you respect when faced with a difficult decision. The decision or stance you take might not be popular in the moment, but those whose opinion matters will respect you in the long run. Integrity isn’t a badge you slap on yourself and suddenly have. Integrity is a character trait you have as a result of being truthful in a situation even when it doesn’t benefit you, and by living a life where your actions line up with your words and your stated beliefs.

Relationships

“And what about those shoes you’re in today
They’ll do no good
On the bridges you burnt along the way”
– Jack Johnson, “Gone”

“Looking good” and being successful won’t gain you fulfillment without rich relationships and people to share your life with. The most important of these people are family; spouses and children, parents and lifelong friends. Also are those in your areas of influence including church groups, hobbies, civic activities, and your professional network with whom you have a strong connection. Even if you are really really ridiculously good looking–either financially speaking or with a glowing career, it won’t mean much without the love and friendship of others.

Aviation Pic of the Week

This pic is a little bit late, so expect another one this weekend and I’ll be back on track. This time around, I found a toy airplane on Flickr, and I think this really captures the joy and exhiliration of flight. Enjoy!

It’s Week 10: Are 20% of your 2008 goals accomplished?

This post is a serious self-check, and a bit more vulnerable and less polished than I planned when I started. Dear reader, I hope you are 100% on track for your goals, and if not, that you take my honesty as a kick in the butt to get on track. For me, this year is a year of no longer accepting excuses for my own laziness and no longer tolerating how my mouth doesn’t match my actions.

2008 is now 20% over. Now that most people have dropped their New Years’ resolutions and resumed life as before, it’s time to dust off the goals you set for yourself just two short months ago and review them. Below are a few of mine along with my status updates, here:

• Business: Attend and Present at 1 Conference: I’ll be bold and admit that I haven’t attended any conferences for a few years. Some seminars here and there, but no industry conferences. I’m looking to change that this year. While I’d like to attend more than one, I’m setting the goal there so I at least do that. Progress Report: Still looking for conferences to attend, likely in late 2nd quarter into 3rd quarter.
• Business/Relationships: Cultivate 5 solid relationships with local business leaders: I’m on track with this goal, as I have 2-3 relationships I’m nurturing that would qualify. I need to focus this goal and further define the type of relationship I’m looking to have, though I’m implying a pretty high bar by this. I’m looking at these relationships as potential mentors, influencers, or high-level referral partners.
• Relationships: Write handwritten notes: I’ve had stationery on my shopping list for a while now and will be buying some this week. People don’t write handwritten notes anymore and it’s a good way to differentiate yourself when you do. I was floored when I received one from Mike Maddaloni after meeting him at TechCocktail. While I might not take it that far for starters, Mike sure made an impression on me with that.
• Family: Spend one Sunday each month with my parents: My parents live just across town, and I want to make an effort to spend more time with them. While I haven’t hit the Sunday goal 100%, I have noted more time spent with them overall including impromptu stops there during the week. This is a good check, though, and I’ll work to focus this goal more.
• Fitness: 5k Run by May, 10k by September: In my own mind, I’m falling down on this goal. I actually took about 6 weeks off from going to the gym, and though I have elaborate excuses I’ll credit it to laziness. I’ve been more diligent as of late, and now it’s time to find a race, register and pay for it (so I’m mentally committed), and start training. (Side note: Several friends are running the Chicago Marathon, including two who need to lose a crapload of weight first. I’m still considering it given the mental barriers I’ll have to overcome, I’d love to because I know it would be life-changing).
• Nutrition: Overhaul my diet, eat more fresh vegetables, and learn to cook: My diet has consisted of pre-packaged Trader Joe’s meals, canned chili, and crackers/fresh salsa for as long as I can remember. The diet is heavy on carbs, and many sources including my chiropractor tell me what I already know, to cut out complex sugars and eat veggies. I like veggies, but old habits die hard. Progress? I’ve started to buy fresh greens more, and I do prep some cous cous (more carbs, meh). Next up: getting over my squeamishness of raw meat.
• Discipline: Go to bed consistently at 10pm, get up consistently before 6: My heart is so in this goal, and I’m excited for the success I’ve seen so far. I have to admit I’m still working on doing this consistently. The problem lies in how easily I get distracted in the evenings with reading or surfing, and using that as an excuse not to go to bed. This throws my wake-time off. Today was good: I was up at 5:15, made coffee, spent more time than usual with God, and now am writing this post. The goal behind this goal is to have an hour each morning to hone my writing skills and build presentation materials so I can start presenting.
• Fun/Life Goal: Save up and get my Private Pilot’s license: Ask anyone close enough to me and they’ll tell you how much my heart is in this one. I just ordered a book and have been gathering knowledge online for weeks. Financially I’m not yet on track for this as my car purchase last year has taken away the (nice) cushion I once had in my budget. I’m looking at ways to creatively shave my budget and increase income so I can at least get Sport Pilot certified or qualify for solo instruction this year, and finish the Private next year.

With that, I challenge you to write a similar post on your own blog and send me a note/comment with the link.