Who? Me?
Well you're here now, you might as well introduce yourself. Oh, me first? So I'm @irms and this is my blog. I care about things like entrepreneurship and how Pepsi tastes better out of a glass bottle. (read more)
Archive for the ‘entreprenuership’ Category
The 59DaysOfCode Web & Mobile Apps Competition
February 25th, 2010
So my friends and I are putting together this little ditty that, really, is going to be quite the big ditty. We are holding a Web & Mobile Apps competition that is designed to highlight the programming/nerdy talent in the area. It’s open to everyone and the prizes are pretty major.
We are doing two categories: Zero Code, and In-Progress.
Zero Code is a timed category. You have 59 Days to build your app once the clock starts.
In-Progress is for those who might already have something started but still want to compete.
The way that it works is this:
Apply, Early March > Party + Kickoff, April 23 > Get your App Ready > Showcase + Awards, June 22.
We’re putting together around $40K in prizes with one of the winners landing $15,000 in cash. (More details about prizes in the next month or so.) The idea is, though, that after someone wins, my friends and I pull all our resources together to make your idea famous and successful. Sounds nice, huh?
Registration opens next week.
Go here for the last email we sent out:
http://59daysofcode.com/
Follow @59DaysOfCode on Twitter:
http://twitter.com/59DaysOfCode
Dispelling the Launch Myth
September 24th, 2009
I’m just going to lay it down in small words: “If you build it, they will come,” is a crock of shit.
To borrow a phrase, if I had a nickle for every time a website launch was delayed on account of the imperfections…
As a web programmer, I see a lot of projects come and go. We depend on the project manager’s ability to say, “We could spend more time polishing and adding features, but let’s get this in front of some eyes,” which is a hard thing to say, I’ll admit, because there are 10,000 things that could be better. If you happen to be the project manager, then that burden is on you.
And what makes it even harder is this strange voice in your head that says, in no uncertain terms, that as soon as you upload those files, all the world’s web traffic is going to come crashing down on your web server. We start to believe that Google will index those pages in their first five minutes of life rather than the week(s) we know it takes for everyone else’s sites to be crawled. We start to picture the angry emails about god-knows-what wrecking havoc in someone’s personal life because there are two instances where someone’s name is spelled wrong. What could be worse?
Yeah, but that’s not how it works. Uploading some files will probably not register with many people at all. In fact, it’s really anticlimactic when you’ve been cranking out an app or site for weeks and then the moment of truth…is quiet.
I know it’s really hard to picture a world where no one is paying attention to you, but don’t be fooled. That place is real and it’s called the Internet. I’m not talking about your Twitter account or your Facebook page. I’m talking about your new site. Your new application.
There will always be a sea of reasons to wait on a launch, and only one reason to go ahead and do it. (Hint: Progress.)
So you, programmer, in the back with the Redbull and Cheetos, I only have one thing to say to you: Quit being a pansy. It’s time to launch.
Why do you want to be rich?
July 12th, 2009
When circumstances change, we figure out answers to questions that weren’t relevant before. Women don’t buy men’s dress shirts, so they probably don’t know thier own neck size and sleeve-length. Mac users don’t do Windows Updates so they wouldn’t know how many reboots and extra space an XP PC (with no service packs) requires to be fully up-to-date (answer: usually 5 reboots, and roughly 250 MB of space). But a lady that receives a PC for her birthday and starts cross-dressing on the weekends gets familiar with that kind of information pretty quickly.
Lately, I’ve been thinking about my occupational circumstances.
I’m a nerd. I write code. I was a teacher for about a minute and a half. I’ve done tech support. I have launched huge systems for giant companies. I’ve lead teams. I’ve followed dumb directions. I’ve been the smartest person on the crew, and all alone feeling dumb. I’ve traveled a bit. I used to clean churches. I’ve served Italian food, and washed more than my share of dishes.
My whole life has been spent on a plane of “just barely enough, but no more than that”.
Let me be clear: I’m not complaining. Every fiber of my being is composed of the compulsion to achieve. That’s what I am. It’s what my parents made me. But now circumstances are changing. I’m good at what I do. I’m earning real money. I have flexibility in my life that didn’t exist before.
Seth Godin, in his post “Thinking about the compromise” writes:
If you sell crack to kindergarten students, no need to read this.
Same thing if you donate all your belongings and income to the poorest and sickest in the slums and ghettos.
The rest of us have compromised. We’re not profit-maximizing sociopaths, nor are we saints. We’re somewhere in between.
… …
Everyone is at their own level, but my impression is that most people sort of randomly end up somewhere on the greed/joy/work/good spectrum without really considering moving one way or the other.
These days, I have ideas about new things I could do. Ventures that are actually feasible, projects I am able to launch, and ways to make money doing things I feel I could be good at. The circumstances have changed and I have a new question to face:
Why?
‘Till now, I did most things out of necessity. But being in a position to do things because I want to means that, for the first time, I have to figure out why I would want to do them. It’s not a blind decision anymore, I’m making choices. I might end up rich. I could end up rich. Do I want to be rich? Why would I want to be rich? Are you? Can you tell me why?
Why do you want to be rich?
This is a real question. I think my life has always moved in the direction of ”let’s be in a position where we don’t have to struggle.” So what happens when you’re not struggling anymore? What happens when you you’re debt free, have a good job, and are able to contribute to the good of the world from time to time? By the way, I’m none of those things, but I imagine I will be soon. At least, that’s what I’m working toward now. And that begs the question: What do I work toward, next? Do I even want to have loads of money? And if so, why?
I’m interested in your answers. Please do write your thoughts in the comments.
[ Note ]
I’m not the only one asking this question. Both Get Rich Slowly, and I Will Teach You To Be Rich have good articles revolving the same question.