Innoveering Nebraska

I haven’t been posting as much lately, but I have been writing.  What I’ve been writing about are my adventures (successes, failures and the daily grind) in creating three new businesses. 

Each is very different from the others, but I love them all as though they were beloved pets.  I think pets are a good analogy for businesses.  You plan what type you’d like to obtain, train and nurture them as best you can and encounter many unexpected delights and expenses. 

I’m writing these posts as I go so that those of you who haven’t started a business have a chance to see what it’s really like.  Those of you who have started a business will probably enjoy knowing someone else has made even worse mistakes. 

I’m hopeful that I’m doing some things right – which is why I’m not posting these blogs right away.  Too many trade secrets!  I do eventually have to make a living with these businesses.  

In the meantime, I’ll post from time to time about ideas not related to the businesses.      

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“There are few monsters who warrant the fear we have of them.”  – Andre Gide 

I think he was on to something.  Occasionally, we find ourselves in over our heads.   Far more often, we don’t jump into the water because we’re too fearful of the failure monster. 

Which will you regret more when your ride is over, having gotten in over your head or not having taken the risk?

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Some things in life simply aren’t possible without failure.  Correction, most things in life that matter – the things we really want and the things we really treasure – these things are rarely possible without failure.  

Think about it, few people and few endeavors are instant successes.  Oh they may seem like instant successes, but that’s just because we didn’t witness the failures.  J.K. Rowling illustrated this nicely in her Harvard commencement speech (she also makes a great pitch for creativity for the sake of empathy).   

The point is that we really only fail when we stop evaluating why we failed, coming up with another plan, and trying again. 

Let’s resolve to be kinder, more patient, and more adventuresome with regards to our failures and the failures of those around us. 

Check out this Huffington Post article entitled “Raise Children, Not Flowers!” if you require any additional persuasion regarding the need to be kind after a failure.   

If you’ve recently failed and need to be reminded that you’re not alone, check out Failure Magazine.  “Failure magazine is the online publication full of humankind’s boldest missteps.”  You can even buy a T-shirt. 

Icarus Talks is a relatively new organization focused exclusively on failure.  Its tagline is “failure is most definitely an option.”   Check them out the next time you need some encouragement after a failure.

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On Valentine’s Day we focus on who we love – or sometimes who we lust after. 

 But this Valentine’s Day I’m wondering what you love doing. 

What makes your heart race?  What do you look forward to with great anticipation?  What makes you as gleefully happy as a child?  Do you know?  Do you have a list?  Does the work you do on a daily basis match this list?  What would have to change in your life for your work to match your list?  What could you do today to start that change? 

This Valentine’s Day, resolve to love what you do. 

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Two things happened tonight.  First, I found out that I don’t suck at presentations.  Don’t get me wrong, I’m no Steve Jobs and never will be.  And I’m okay with that – there are other things that I do well. 

My point is that I thought I was absolutely terrible.  So bad that no one would want to voluntarily listen to me.  So you understand the magnitude of this revelation.  I also realized I need to stop telling people I’m bad at presentations.  I think it was a form of apologizing for subjecting them to my poor presentations skills – but no more!

Which brings me to the second thing that happened tonight.  I heard the phrase “risks weren’t that scary once you took them.”  More importantly, I realized just how true this phrase is. 

Think about it.  All the fear happens before you take the risk.  Once you’ve made the leap, you’re too busy fixing problems, coming up with solutions and generally too focused on the task at hand to have time to be fearful.  What a freeing revelation.  I’m going to remind myself of it next time I’m tempted to turn down an opportunity to give a talk or presentation. 

What risk do you fear?  What have you always thought you couldn’t do well?  Are you sure you really suck at it?  What might happen if you decided to end the fear phase and jump into the risk sooner rather than later?

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Every life has a rhythm that is influenced by the people and things around us.  Sometimes our optimal rhythms, the pace of life at which we are our best selves and do our best work, can get lost.  Sometimes we don’t even realize it’s gone.

I nearly lost my optimal rhythm last week.  A situation had me a little stressed.  In the past I would have soldiered on, trying to do it all.  And as a result, I would have done nothing well.  But I’ve learned a lot in the last year. 

Instead, I took a break.  For four days, I didn’t blog or clean house.  Nothing fell apart, the world kept spinning, no one even seemed to notice that I had stopped cleaning (thankfully someone did notice I wasn’t blogging).  Because I cut myself some slack and took a break, I was able to continue experiencing flow and eventually came up with a pretty good idea for resolving the stressful situation. 

Maybe someday this process will come naturally.  I really hope so.  Until then, I plan to guard the optimal rhythm of my life fiercely.  It’s too valuable an asset to compromise. 

In a related matter,  I’ve been shocked to learn I’m a night owl.  Who knew?  (Who, who?)  I think I was always too tired  to realize it.  Life is somehow easier and more fun when you’re able to operate at your optimal rhythm.  Do you know what your’s is?  Want to find out?  Keep a little paper or electronic journal for two weeks and note the circumstances (time, location, people, surroundings) when you feel especially productive, especially not productive, miserable, happy, and especially when you experience flow. 

Below are Rick Lee’s night owl lamps. 

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On January 7th I posted some thoughts on what qualifies someone for the “entrepreneur” label.  I still don’t have a firm definition, but I wanted to share a couple of opinions which have recently influenced my thoughts on this matter. 

First, two fellows I met at Awesome Camp in Lincoln on January 30th are very certain that someone can be entrepreneurial without being an entrepreneur.  If I understood them correctly (and I confess it was the end of an exciting day at the end of a tiring week) there must be several livelihoods dependant on the endeavor for someone to qualify as an entrepreneur.  To cite my earlier example, by these definitions my friend’s Lego operation is entrepreneurial, but doesn’t qualify her as an entrepreneur. 

This makes sense to me, but I find it unsatisfactory.  I think more words might be needed. 

In the meantime, I received an email today with a link to Hugh MacLeod’s new prints related to Seth Godin’s latest book, Linchpin.  In Linchpin: Are You Indispensable, Godin has a different definition of artist than Rocco Landesman, the NEA Chairman I quoted in my January 7th post.  Both Landesman and Godin believe artists are entrepreneurs. 

I’m going to quote MacLeod’s website directly, because I can’t say it any better than he has:  By Seth’s definition, an artist is not just some person who messes around with paint and brushes, an artist is somebody who does (and I LOVE this term) “emotional work.”  Work that you put your heart and soul into. Work that matters. Work that you gladly sacrifice all other alternatives for. As a working artist and cartoonist myself, I know exactly what he means. It’s not what you do, it’s the way that you do it. – end quote

The idea that people doing “emotional work” are entrepreneurs resonates with me.  However, I have great respect for the two business men I met and their belief that entrepreneurial activities do not qualify one as an entrepreneur. 

I’m wondering if the words and definitions would line up to everyone’s satisfaction if we made a distinction between “entrepreneurs” (those with emotional work and/or entrepreneurial activities) and “business entrepreneurs” (those with livelihoods depending on their endeavor). 

Check out the rest of MacLeod’s prints here or order his book, Ignore Everybody: And 39 Other Keys to Creativity, here. 

Read reviews or order a copy of Godin’s book, Linchpin, here.    

By the way, isn’t it fun to see how one creative work inspires another?  How creative are you feeling today?  Do you think we have any obligation to share our creativity with others?  Who inspires you to be creative?  Can you spend more time with them or their work?  Can you do it today?

Below is one of Hugh MacLeod’s prints inspired by Seth Godin’s Linchpin. 

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Driving back and forth to Lincoln this week I listened to Seth Godin‘s Purple Cow.  It’s one of those books that just sort of resets your focus.  Also, the version from the Omaha Public Library is read by Malcolm Gladwell or someone who sounds just like him.  Check it out if you don’t believe me.   

One of the key points in this book is the concept of otaku which is the Japanese word for something that is “more than a hobby but a little less than an obsession.”  Godin’s point is that if you create a product in an area that has a large number of people with otaku for that area, those people will market your product for you. 

My favorite example from the book is hot sauces.  Lots of people feel strongly about and go to extra effort regarding their hot sauces.  Mustards on the other hand can have even more variety, but far fewer people care about them. 

Being reminded of otaku made me realize how often it had come up recently in my life.  My financial bookclub just read Rule #1 by Phil Town which advocates strongly for only investing in a very small number of companies that A) fit a profile over the last ten years and B) do business in one of your areas of otaku.  For the record Town doesn’t use the word otaku, but his description matches the word. 

The other time I think otaku is relevant is when you’re choosing a business to form.  Often this is described as passion for the business, but passion is built into otaku.  If you start a business around one of your areas of otaku, you can’t help but be passionate about it. 

So what is your otaku?  What do you make time for even when you’re busy?  What brings you joy?  What are you doing when you experience flow?  My otaku is new ideas, writing, maintaining my home and various gardens and teaching.   Nearly everyone who knows me could tell you this.  If you can’t figure out your otaku, ask the people around you.  I bet they know. 

By the way, if you want to talk about this idea with someone, it’s pronounced ew’ tacu (almost like “oo! a taco.” but “tacu”).  I like this word a lot and would love to have it integrated into our American English.   Please help.  It’s a great word and idea.

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I’ve been contemplating this afternoon when we know we have enough knowledge, training and experience to do what it is we want to do. 

I met someone at the bar camp in Lincoln last Saturday (Awesome Camp) who started this train of thought.   Just when I had decided that you have enough when you feel ready to start, Rachel Roy threw me for a loop this morning. 

Rachel Roy is a New York designer I admire.  Trust me, I’m no fashionista, but Omaha Fashion Week last fall made me realize just how little I know about this area and I’ve been exploring.  I like how she runs her business and her use of cardigans (see – so not a fashionista). 

This morning Rachel Roy was on Rachael Ray’s Show.  The focus of the show was 2010 trends.  My point however, is that neither of the RRs received any formal training for their chosen fields.  Ray mentioned she’d learned to cook from her mother and Roy said it was her passion and persistence that led to her success.  Their comments rang true and challenged my earlier conclusion. 

So I’ve changed my mind.  I now think you have enough knowledge, training and experience to do what you want to do when you try and succeed.  The key I think is to try, fail, learn from that failure and try again.  Try as many times as needed.  Try until you succeed.  It’s scary, but we’d better get started if we’re going to succeed.

Last Saturday in Lincoln a group of people gathered at a bar to talk about things that matter to them.  

There were great people, passionate presentations, good discussions, wonderful food and lots of drinks – in other words it was a typical bar camp.  This one was named Awesome Camp and I hope its major sponsors and planners, Toolulu, Social Media Club in Lincoln and Red9, host another.  There was a similar Bar Camp in Omaha last October at the Nomad Lounge.

I learned many things at Awesome Camp from both the presentations and from talking to people I met there.  The highlights for me included: the Lincoln Kyak Polo Club (and the Omaha Kyak Polo Club I intend to check out), the Turbine Flats in Lincoln, Stephanie Scharf’s new book on social media design and Corey Spitzer’s explanation of html. 

All in all I learned a lot, met many lovely new people, made several new friends and had a lot of fun.  Keep an eye out for the next Bar Camp and seriously consider attending.  You never know what you’ll learn.