Where to Host

Maybe I'm late to figuring this out, but as an entrepreneur we have so many daily tasks that once a decision is made it is challenging to revisit it. Thats why I wasn't keeping up on our hosting provider.

We had been using a lesser known company and enjoying great customer service.  They were not only responsive, but they were pro-active.  It was a nice feeling of being a valued client. But as a startup, our bottom line is the bottom line.

Recently we made the decision to move back to Amazon (after a 6 month absence) because of their deep knowledge and compliance with all things HIPAA. I held my breath today when I refreshed my memory on their pricing. Wow, what a difference 6 months makes.

Network world had a great article (that apparently I missed) outlining Amazon's AWS price reduction.
http://www.networkworld.com/news/2012/110112-amazon-cloud-prices-263895.html
Their pricing page was my first stop: http://aws.amazon.com/ec2/pricing/

Don't take me for a AWS fanboy (yet, at least), I 'm just a startup. While I like the individual service of the smaller provider, I'm busting at the ~5k a year that I'm about to save--I'll sleep so much better tonight.

Just keep it in mind when you plan your infrastructure.

Cheers,

Brian
http://atomictower.com

Entrepreneur of the Week

Good for the US Post Office!
I am now a big fan.

For the longest time, they have been in the news as the poster child for failing to adapt. They have been characterized as a burdon on the tax payer - supporting a government organization that is going out of style but not allowed to fail. Well they have done something about that. They have put our principles of creative, out of the box thinking into place to compete in the market place. And it's not about communication.

The Daily Caller had an article called "Struggling US Postal Service to Launch New Apparel Line: http://dailycaller.com/2013/02/19/struggling-us-postal-service-to-launch-new-apparel-line/ .  Here is what this cash strapped business did - they decided to take stock of what they do well and capitalize on it. They were not doing so good competing with the internet, so what else do they do? They have mail personel out in the elements in all weather and all seasons!!! Those folks are experts at dressing to stay comfortable in all temperatures and precipitation levels - WHY NOT SHARE THAT?! Brilliant, I say.

 With this move, the US Post Office demonstrated their execution of the rules that all of us business owners must play by:

1. They are flexible - something wasn't working that endangered their business, so they developed and marketed a secondary strength. 
2. They did not abuse power. Too often I read about conflict in our government (both sides) regarding government waste. Well instead of taxing more to support a going-out-of -style department, they got creative.
3. They are bold. All of us as entrepreneurs have to take risks on what we believe. 

Will this work? Will the public respond favorably and buy this gear? I don't know. What I do know is that win, loose or draw, I will think differently about our postal service going forward. I'll think about how they tried to solve their fiscal issues the way that we all try to solve ours. I'll look at them as a model for how government agencies should work. 

Congratulations US Post Office - you're my Entrepreneur of the Week!

Convert Your VHS Tapes

I just finished a massive project.

The scope of the project wasn't that big, but the weight of it on my shoulders was heavier than I believed.

Our early family videos were on VHS tape, in a grocery bag, on the top shelf of our pantry. We don't have our player hooked up any longer, so I stored them out of reach for safe keeping. ONE DAY I would get around to converting them to DVD. That was 7 years ago.

This project was combined with all of the pics on my phone or harddrive that I hadn't uploaded to Picasa. I knew I needed to so that they wouldn't get lost, but I had more important things to attend to.

Both of these project by themselves (and most definitely taken together) are a prime example of managing your company.  Let things go long enough, and they build a weight on your mind that is disproportionate to the reality of the task - and this causes stress and degrades your performance. Make time for maintenance.

1. Update your CRM often
2. Write thank you notes promptly
3. Blog on a schedule

In short, organize and make it a habit.

I know this isn't news to anyone, but it was so "in my face" this week as I spent hours converting my precious life memories that I wanted to share. 

Mentor Team

I've been at Mass Challenge for almost a month now. When they said "accelerator" they meant it. Things have been moving quickly.

One of the first things that we were asked to do was to put together a mentor team from the pool of fantastic execs/lawyers/investors that have generously contributed their time and experience to help out. This was an intense process of multiple "get to know you" events where finalists got to meet and connect with these folks.

When the smoke cleared I had a good idea of who connected well with me and my company. Comparing this with mentor backgrounds and areas of my business that I want to spend time strengthening, I came up with a fantastic team. We met last week and came up with top level goals for our effort over the course of the program. It feels really good to know there is a group of experienced professionals that are on-hand to keep me on track. This is a short summer/program, not a moment of energy or time to waste!

So one of the great benefits to Mass Challenge - a superior group of mentors generous with their time.

Password Security

There was a great article in the WSJ last week regarding password security on the internet. I clipped it, brought it to the office and threw it away :(
I meant to use it to illuminate and inform and instead I couldn't find my coffee cup and got distracted. I think I can hit the high-points though. I'll try.

IMPORTANT: use strong passwords.
Coming up with these is easier than you think. They suggested thinking of a song and using the initials of the title in camel case. Ex. "I Dream of Jeanie" would be "IdOj". Then, add your zip code to make it "IdOj02145". You can change song title to favorite saying and add a bible ref number like "6:14". EZ!

Another suggestion was to have one password for all applications in a specific category. So, categorize for "buying stuff", "family", "web storage" etc. That way you'll have the same password for each site in a specific category. I like this idea, however, I use a password safe (free online) and have a different password for each site. But this idea seems manageable.

Finally, the author said to create throw-away passwords for one time access - like you have to create an account to respond to a blog post that interests you.

So, I think I summed it up. What do you think?

Brian
Atomic Tower - We Power the Cloud!

Is Linkedin Relevant?

In the cold hard light of day in the month of June, 2012, how relevant does Linkedin continue to be?

Back in the day, it seemed the most important career move one could make on-line. The idea of putting my resume on the web and networking with acquaintances/coworkers was exciting. I could share my accomplishments, thoughts, book recommendations etc. But does it hold up today?

I try to keep up on the site and have a fair amount of connections. But what is the value? Is the value that folks can view my profile and see that there I'm connected? Well, that is important, but how important?

Last week Facebook released data that showed active users were dropping off. So if FB is starting to become stale, what about the "premier" business social network?

What I have seen is very few connections that actually "work" the site. More often what I see is dead air until someone is in need (career-wise) and then furious activity: updated pics, book recommendations, friend requests.

I caught myself lecturing a couple of colleagues yesterday that they needed to get cracking on Linkedin,  but is this good advice any longer? I'm thinking this one through. Any thoughts would be appreciated in the comments section.

Cheers,

Brian
http://atomictower.com  -  web reporting engine

Leadership

This is a fantastic book. I don't know if it'll save lives, but it can certainly save a few careers. My recommendation is to get this  book. It was suggested for me and straight away I found it useful - especially at a startup.

Startups are a challenging and demanding environment for all involved: execs, managers, individual contributors, everyone. Not only is it critical to find the right team members that thrive in this fast pace, but keeping them motivated with ever changing priorities is your task.

Keeping the dev team motivated isn't all that is important. As managers take on more responsibility in the shaping of the new company's direction and emerging culture, it is important to keep the senior management team motivated too. Keeping them feeling comfortable is the way to ensure your continued increasing role.

To do this, as Heifetz says, we must keep the values and vision that started the venture in constant sight. In real ways demonstrate that you know what is important and are on course. "Answer the 'why' question and you'll increase people's willingness to endure the hardships that come with the journey to a better place."