Seth Godin - Why Things are Broken

Seth Godin at Gel 2006

Fun and great info....

Notable:
7 Reasons why things are broken

Seth Godin at Gel 2006 from Gel Conference on Vimeo.

Why are so many things broken? In this entertaining talk - one of the favorites of Gel 2006 -

http://gelconference.com/c/gel06.php

Seth Godin gives a tour of things poorly designed, the reasons why they are that way, and how to fix them.



See also: Seth's Blog, where Seth writes daily on marketing, business, and other issues -

http://sethgodin.typepad.com/

Larry Page Google Co-founder & Eric Schmidt CEO of Google
Standford Entrepreneurial Thought Leader Speaker Series 202

Notable:
Business vs Technology innovation company
Have a healthy disregard for impossible
Time spent on hiring is important
Airport & Exceptional personality test for hiring
Electric cost was a concern for google
Database for ideas

Link to page: http://ecorner.stanford.edu/authorMaterialInfo.html?mid=1072

Mark Suster on Starting A Company
Standford Entrepreneurial Thought Leader Speaker Series 2010

Notable:
Entrepreneurship is an emotional & economic roller coaster
You just need to get started...
Being entrepreneur is not sexy
You need to be passionate about it
Silicon Valley is lazy...do research
Build prototype...
Assemble a diverse team, get out side of box
Huge premium for taking the first leap
Branding ..name should not box you in corner
Stay away from 3F
Start with Angels instead of VCs
Selective bias...
Get Anchor Investor
Test monetization early

State of Connected World: Amazon VS Barnes and Noble

Amazon’s app ReadingList on LinkedIn.com won’t sync with Amazon’s Listwish, somewhat disappointing. Isn’t technology, collaboration, and cloud computing Amazon’s forte? It would be great if Amazon can release sync-able ReadingList for other social sites and particularly Facebook. It will be easier for the user to maintain single BookList as well as a business opportunity for Amazon.

It’s far bigger revenue opportunity for Barnes & Noble to fill the gap, being they are late in the game. This trivial utility could have a sizable impact.

Belief System and Value

Except life, nothing in this world has any value in its entirety. Context and human’s believe adds value to elements and existences. In most cases, value of any given item or matter completely depends on the belief system. Change the belief system and value will change automatically.

Pointing to something with an index finger in Southeast Asian culture means completely different from Western. This act certainly sparks very distinctive reactions in Southeast Asia, driven by the strong belief! Throwing a shoe is another one, and there so many more.

Approximately 3300 BC, people in Egypt used to bury dead bodies along with cutlery and other household items. Because their beliefs, they thought, these things will be needed in hereafter life. Today, regardless of any religion you believe in, most of us don’t think we need household items in hereafter life. Fast forward 3000 years from now, what of today’s believe will be considered as questionable as putting household item with a dead body?

Crosscheck your belief system with other cultures, religions, humans, time and space; and adjust them frequently. It takes a lot of courage to challenge and change our belief system, but it’s well worth it!

Perception Management

In the absence of facts, perception is reality. If a company (or you) will not make an effect to communicate facts and values, critics will. Make an effect to convey facts and values. Do you care how your company or brand been perceived in the marketplace? You can’t ignore it for a long time without going out of business. Do your part, get engage in social media, spread the facts, and let the marketplace to be the judge.

Perception management is a term originated by the US military and there is a very interesting article on Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perception_management