When did it become cool to romanticize Failure?

I am not sure if this is just a tech thing or perhaps a version of modern day political correctness but it seems like it is ok all of a sudden to aspire to fail.

Failure has become not only acceptable but also fashionable.

Not only is the concept of failure appearing on Magzine covers but was recently the topic of a panel featuring Ben Huh (I Can Has Cheezburger), Micah Baldwin (Graphic.ly), Lane Becker (Get Satisfaction), Charlie O'Donnell, and Rashmi Sinha (Slideshare) at the Web 2.0 Expo Conference.

Failure used to be shameful and something you tried to put behind you. Failure was bad. The shame of failure used to be motivation.

There is no denying that you always learn more from the bad times then the good and adversity makes the strong stronger and the weak weaker but as a community I think we need to stop romanticizing failure so it doesn't become a self full filling prophecy.

I have been around a while and seen a lot of things and if there is one thing I do know is that failure finds everyone eventually (sometimes big and sometimes small) but success doesn't....so from now on why don't we try to make success (even small ones) sexier then failures.

What says you?

[Please Note. I don't consider any of the above noted folks failures and consider a few of these friends...I am using their good names and stellar reputations for SEO purposes.]

Social Media Talkers vs. Social Media Doers.

I am kinda lucky cause I get to go to a lot of conferences. Conferences are fun because you get to sleep in other peoples beds and every now (I have been told) and then you get invited to really sleep in other peoples beds.

Even luckier than going to a lot of conferences is that I get invited to speak at a lot of conferences and try to accept every invite I receive, cause you never know when the invites will stop coming.

When I speak I talk about a slew of different topics with interesting examples that almost always involve myself as a case study. I dont do this because I am an ego manaic (an argument could be made) but because I am the only person who can really tell you what was going through my head when I dreamt up whatever idea or concept I am talking about.

I was at a conference recently and I sat through two separate presentations from two people with nothing memorable to their credit explain (as fact) why Zappos sold/merged with Amazon and the best part was that the two speakers who spoke one after the other had opposite opinions...and this makes perfect sense because well, the only person who can really tell you why the sale/merger really happened is Tony Hsieh (CEO of Zappos) and some of his business associates...and this got me thinking about how easy it is to be a social media talker and how few social media doers there are.

I am using Social Media as an example here cause it is easy and makes for a snappy title but in reality I am talking more about people in general.

So still with the conference speaker example (and I can come up with many more examples if you want them) why not make some minimum requirements to speak at a conference....something like you need to have done something.

Pretty outrageous huh?

...and by something I don't think it even has to be a successful "something" since you can learn more from people failing then you can from the stuff where everything goes well. Conference presentations should be about your projects and learnings from the time YOU did something and not a new spin on something you read in INC or Fast Company.

If you can't point to a handful of url's showcasing your accomplishments and you are not willing to present about yourself then what are you really talking about?

Sure there are exceptions like people talking about Metrics and such but even that can come from a personal angle with personal insights.

If the goal of a conference is to teach or inspire then the goal of the conference organizers should be to invite doers and not talkers because people who "do" are usually the ones that inspire...and people who talk, well they are just talking.

P.S. If you are reading this and thinking I am being harsh and making it harder for people to "break in". I see it as the opposite and if you want to become a doer as apposed to a talker just go out and do something, make some content, stop repeating other peoples stuff and discover something on your own...I promise, you will sleep better at night...and get more of those conference invites to sleep with others.

*UPDATED* I have gotten a slew of (and by slew I mean 4) email/DM telling me that this post is harsh and that in fact I am a consultant (this is true...you should totally hire me) and I don't know what I am talking about. All I can say is that this is my opinion and I stand by it. All it takes today to become a "social media expert" is getting a shiny stack of business cards and that is kind of the problem. If you show results you are a doer. If you can point to projects and says "That was me" than you are a doer. Anyone who thinks the solution to any companies problems is to sprinkle a little facebook on it and set up a fanpage and walk away is not a doer.....and if you own a home that is mobile and 5 cars that aren't..you might be a redneck.

My Presentation from DemoCamp 21

I owe a HUGE thank you to Geoffrey Wiseman for not only recording my presentation from DemoCamp 21 but for also posting it online.

Please take a look and let me know what you think...and to answer your questions in advance, yes the SuperFriends story is true.

Are you good to the people who follow you?

I know a lot of amazing people.

So many that people I was once called the Kevin Bacon of the tech community.

Ok...I made up the KB part up but if people were to make any connection for me I would like it to be known as the Mother Theresa (of Calcutta...not the other one) of the tech world because, I wash a lot of feet but also go out of my way to do other nice things for people, even if it isn't asked for.

Here is why.

This past Wednesday I attended the monthly Wired Wednesday put on by the nice folks at RedWire and while there I got to chatting with Aran Hamilton.

Ya see, chatting is what I do.

...anyway, Aran is the VP of Strategic Partnerships with the new (and very impressive) startup Zoompass....and over the course of our conversation we started talking about our networks and I offered to help him with any introductions I could because I think his product is cool and want to see it do well. Somewhere in our chatting I blurted out (and I don't remember the exact thing that triggered it anymore)

"What is the point of having a network if you don't use it?"

Spending most of 2008 traveling to every conference or speaking opportunity I could find put me face to face with so many of the smartest and nicest people in the Tech and Entertainment industry, and I consider myself a pretty connected person...but seriously, what good is knowing all these people if I am not helping them?

The goal of this post is not to pat myself on the back but I am going to use "me" as an example and challenge everyone else to do the same because while this may sound odd but in my free time I sit around thinking about who I know and who I could introduce them to.

I do this because it makes me feel good to help people, but also because I usually get repaid in hugs and long kisses. Out of the hundreds or thousands of folks I meet over the course of a month or a year, only a small number of them will actually have a fit into what I am doing work wise...but all can help me in other ways...and I think the best way to get people to help you (if needed) is to help them first with something.

This has nothing to do with Karma or Pay it Forward but just good old fashioned un selfish introductions because there may not actually be a time where you need help from one particular person but if you help them find a job or escape from a bully I bet they will remember and help if called upon.

In the past month I have helped one person land a job. Made intro's and helped secure interviews for two other people and made at least 10 introductions that resulted in real business or a new clients for people.

Does this make me a better person than you? Not really, like I mentioned earlier I am doing it for the warm loving embraces....because I like the way those make me feel but if you have time this week why not take a look at your network and make an unsolicited intro to two people you like and think can work together...and if you don't get a hug out of it let me know and I will send you one.

The Future of Social Media.

Here is a presentation about the Future of Social Media that I gave at the Canadian Telecom Summit. Please take a look as this may be the most thoughtful explanation of this whole phenomenon..ever.

or maybe not :)

The Future of Social Media was told in 1975. from saulcolt on Vimeo.

Support your local Startups!

Unlike most speakers who run out with the same talk for a year or more I (perhaps foolishly) come up with a new presentation every time I speak somewhere.

Why you ask?

Well because I post them all here so I can share anything I know with all of you!

So just say thanks!, and please watch this talk (first one ever about Zoocasa!) I gave last week at Red Wire's Wired Wednesday!

Support your local Start Ups! from saulcolt on Vimeo.

Building Communities is pretty much just like dating!

I have been pretty lucky lately because I have been invited to speak a bunch of times in front of large groups of people and spread my possibly misinformed opinions on all sorts of things. In the blog post before this one I did a little talk on relationships and in this video I chat about building communities for your products. I gave this chat at the Red Wire event Wired Wednesday (#wiredwedto) and considering this is the very first time I delivered this talk I am pretty happy with how it came out.

One little thing is you sorta need to see the slides in a few places and the video doesn't always capture them so I threw up the slides on Slideshare...if you play the video and look at the slides it is sort of like "SAUL COLT TALKS : THE HOME GAME"

Anyway, please take a look and I would appreciate your comments on this!


My "How Building a Community is like Dating" presentation from Wired Wednesday #wiredwedto from saulcolt on Vimeo.

How Building Communities are like Dating a Pretty Girl!

View more presentations from saulcolt.

Would you give up your Klondike Bar for a new friend?

I had the honor of participating at the Refresh Toronto event last night and spoke to a packed room of people following the Pecha Kucha format of presenting 20 sildes for 20 seconds each on any topic you wish.

I had planned to give a quick lesson on building real world relationships from your online relationships but Erin Bury from Red Wire spoke on that subject just before me and did a great job, so I switched things up a little bit and just talked freestyle about another form of relationship building that I always have on my mind.

I am pretty proud of this short talk so please take a look and let me know what you think of it


My "Would you give up your Klondike Bar to make a new friend" presentation from saulcolt on Vimeo.

...also if you need further proof of what I was talking about take a look at this interview with my friend Becky Carroll from Customersrock.net and Petra Consulting Group. Becky understands Customer Service as well as anyone out there and we all can learn a ton from her!

Becky Carroll (Customer Rocks.net) shares thoughts on Customer Service! from saulcolt on Vimeo.

In closing, (I like to use that phrase cause it makes me sound like a Lawyer) and I am the last person to get all preachy but I hope you take a second to think about the messages in these videos because they literally could make you happier and more successful....and it is so simple to boot!

Cause when the going gets tough....will the you be going?

[Disclaimer: I work for FreshBooks.com and I am pretty lucky cause FreshBooks is one of the best places to work in the entire world. That being said this post is my opinion and only my opinion and does not necessarily reflect the opinions of anyone else besides little ole' me]

One of the best things about my job are that I get to talk to hundreds of people every week about their lives and their jobs and it gives me a clear picture on what is going on in the world.

So using this insight I have to tell you all that I am really surprised by the fact that one of the real results I am seeing due to the economic downfall is that some companies are treating their own staff poorly. Now I understand layoffs if they are for financial reasons but I don't understand when employers don't recognize that their own people are their most valuable resource.

My CEO at FreshBooks is a handsome guy named Mike McDerment and he always talks about how "if you take care of your staff, your staff will take care of your customers and your customers take care of your business."

As you can see Mike is not just handsome but also pretty sharp because this makes sense in any economy but in this current climate it rings more true than ever.

Simply put, When times get tougher it is easy to panic or even give up and some people will...and this will create huge opportunities for the folks who are willing to jump on them and not give up.

So how do you do this, well...best way is to treat your staff well...heck, dare I say like family and show them that if they work hard and stick out the hard times you are going to stick with them and you are all in this thing together. A great example of this is how when you hear celebrities talk about their humble beginnings and they always say "I never know we were poor because my parents always provided something for me". Something doesn't have to be a tangible thing and a lesson that employers don't always understand is that you can show appreciation for your people in hundreds of ways that doesn't include spending big money. By doing fun low cost things to keep spirits up all year round no matter what the economy is like will motivate your staff to, like Mike says "to take care of your customers".

I could go on and on and get very preachy with this but I feel this is an important message to get out there. Yes the economy is going in the wrong directions...Yes the next year may not be like a Beach Boys song but the facts are that new business is going to be everywhere because people will be looking for new options and new vendors so no matter what you do or what industry you are in there are going to be little pots of gold lying around and if you have a motivated staff you may just find them.

...and if this hasn't motivated you to re-examine your company culture/general staff happiness maybe this will help to get you amped to do great things.

I have an IDEA! You should totally make out with someone today!

Recently I met a pretty awesome lady and she told me that she had a feeling that there was a lot going on in my head....between you and me, She has no idea how true that is. One of the strange things about me is that I am pretty much unable to "turn off" my mind and I am always working on things. I am sort of a genius with a super computer for a brain but instead of using my abilities to solve the worlds problems I use it to process song lyrics and lines from movies and television shows...oh and to generate a lot of ideas on many different subjects.

I have been thinking a great deal about ideas and idea generation in the last few days because I picked up the book Catching The Big Fish - Meditation, Consciousness, and Creativity by David Lynch (yes, That David Lynch). The book is a fascinating read and delves into a lot about letting your mind generate ideas etc and my favorite advice in the book is about love!

Love is my favorite thing in the world and am always thinking about how LOVE (the emotion, not the physical act) can be used in your job and your career. The best example in the book is, about falling in love with an idea....really falling in love with an idea and I am now going to take that example to an extreme......I agree falling in love with an idea is the way to go but I think you need to fall so in love that it gives you butterflies and you are always thinking about it and even when you are not thinking about it you have a piece of it with you and you are wondering what that idea is up to and how you can get back to it.

Believe me when I say I know that sounds creepy but if you are really interested in great idea development you have to really find it from somewhere deep inside yourself (hence the title "catching the big fish") and if you really think about it......Love makes you do things and take risks. Can you remember a time you just grabbed a girl or a guy and kissed them not knowing if it would be received well. That was a big risk but I bet it felt awesome and exciting.

Now take that feeling and implement that in an idea or a project.

Fall in love with things and take a love risk.

Oh and find someone you have never kissed before and grab them by the ears and give them a sloppy wet kiss.....today only...you can tell them I said it was Ok!

I am rocking the boardroom!

In about an hour I will be making a presentation to a bunch of folks from Network Solutions in Herndon, VA. I am currently in their swanky boardroom setting up and and testing the setup by music videos up on the screen. As I type this I am playing this video.



All I need is a disco ball and some pretty girls and I will have successfully converted their boardroom into a nightclub!

What do Craig Newmark, Jimmy Wales, William Gaines, Ghandi, and Myself have in common?

We are the only people to be interviewed so far on Tivate.com

Well Ghandi and William Gaines weren't interviewed but I do channel them in my interview so that is kinda like they were interviewed as well.

This is a nice, quick and inspirational little interview so please go check it out

HERE!

The videos of my Third Tuesday presentation are now in YouTube

There are five excerpts up on YouTube from a presentation I did back in February where I had the honour of speaking at Third Tuesday hosted by Joseph Thornley of Thornley Fallis. Pretty early in the presentation I think Mike and I could tell that this was going to be a special night because the crowd was incredible, the questions were really thoughtful and there was just a great vibe in the room.

The 5 videos have are over at the Pro PR blog and I am pretty jazzed about sharing it one of them here with you here!

Yes I know the videos are a bit hard to see but they are way clearer and more entertaining then a Paris Hilton sex tape so give the rest of the videos a try here and here.

...and if you want me to come speak at something you are hosting just ask...I will speak just about anywhere :)

I love David Lynch and hope to one day.....

be in a position where people will hang on to my words the way I hang on to his.

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