Making sure this post will NOT go viral

I’ve been wracking my brains for a while, trying to think of something super interesting and catchy that would go viral. The more I think about it, the fewer good ideas come into my head. People get writer’s block all of the time, but that isn’t my problem right now…I could write a 100-page software […]

Oops! — The week social media exposed lies in Texas and Florida

We’ve had a big week for political news and no matter what side of the aisle you sit on, it’s clear that no one can hide from social media. While we think of social media as a wave of sentiment, it is also a remarkable fact checker in itself, as saw. Gosh, look at the […]

Class of 2013: Think more like the Class of 1973

LinkedIn is running a series on commencement speeches and advice as older, more experienced people are imparting wisdom for the class of 2013. As someone who was supposed to graduate in 2013, this still somewhat applies to me and I thought I would contribute my own thoughts. Anecdotally speaking I was supposed to graduate in […]

The business world is but a stage

Everyone enjoys a good movie, play, concert or any public performance and work is simply no different. I recently saw Prince for the second time, knowing that he gives a nonstop, thrilling performance that gets the crowd dancing in their seats. When the curtain comes down, people are left screaming for more and demanding multiple […]

Management, dark art, and disguises

Management is a tough job, done well. There is an enormous difference between an employee and a manager, besides the obvious difference in pay grade and power. An employee is someone who works to provide value to the company and has the company’s interest in mind, first and foremost. A manager has to innovate and […]

Young people hate LinkedIn

There are just no young people on LinkedIn. Young people complain that there are no jobs when they get out of college, but the fact that they aren’t on LinkedIn makes me think they aren’t trying very hard to look. They certainly aren’t doing what they can. Who failed to give young people the memo […]

Respect is not kissing up

Respect. The word gets used a great deal but do people ‘get’ it? It’s not just an Aretha Franklin song or a hot topic issue now because of “donglegate” – I mean, who cares about forking repos? Respect is a must in any company, social situation, or everyday interaction. I haven’t given it much thought […]

Compensation for work is much more than salary

There are two metrics of success that most people acknowledge readily: money and power.  The further you are up on the food chain, the more responsibility you naturally have, but also the more a company must trust you with this responsibility. Compensation is supposed to be proportional to your output of work and responsibility. However, […]

The war being waged on technology

With the recent announcements that Yahoo and now Best Buy are not allowing employees to telecommute, it seems some people simply refuse to keep up with technology of work. It looks like top executives are resisting, and not in the noble motion picture kind of way where humans have to fight off evil robots. Humans, […]

Society killed the Renaissance Man in all of us

All the Renaissance men and women have are gone because there were only ever Renaissance children. From the moment we enter school at five years old we become more and more specialized until it has been engrained in our minds that it is undesirable to be a “Jack of all trades, but a master of […]

Best advice: never eat the yellow snow

Full disclosure: I have never lived in snow, have only played in it a few times, and don’t actually care for the cold that much. However, the best advice I have been given is to never eat the yellow snow because that’s what my grandfather advised me. It seemed like a good idea at the […]

22 year olds should design everything

22 year olds should design everything. I am just 22 years old and I’ve decided that’s the first line on my resume. I turned 22 just a few days ago and it was an opportunity to reflect. I decided we live in an oligarchic society ruled by just a few men with receding hairlines. This is […]

Workplace fun is not the same as fun work

With different companies like Google, Facebook, and Box famous for putting slides, scooters, and playgrounds in their offices, I could not help but question if I should be having more fun at work, separate from getting enjoyment out of the work I am doing. But before my mind could wander too far, I realized something […]

Where I work: I’m mobile

I’m a very flexible person and that has made the difference in a job that can take me virtually anywhere.  I have taken calls from the shoulder of the freeway, the patio of my apartment, and coffee houses all over California. The life of a blogger/social marketer/actor/comedian is an exciting one. Pick any of my […]

Dare to be wrong

How many times can you afford to be wrong at work? In life, we are probably wrong everyday. We make wrong decisions, make a wrong bet, or say the wrong things to people. However, life keeps going and we move on pretty quickly, learning something new as we go. In love, we are often wrong […]

Are you a social media super hero?

I am not talking about the Facebook user with one million friends. I am not talking about the social humanitarians who are saving the world one tweet at a time. I am talking about our social media alter egos. Every super hero from Batman to Superman to Spider Man has an alter ego. By day […]