50,000 watts of power … Got my radio on
The web development community in the Kansas City area, like Kansas City itself, tends to be a bit insular and scattered, at least in my experience. And quite frankly, many of the developers in this area are sadly lagging behind the times when it comes to building modern, standards-compliant, forward-thinking sites. Sure, there’s folks like […]
Over on Creating Passionate Users, Kathy Sierra is musing on the value of ideas and how they spread.
In particular, I like how she pointed out that ideas by themselves mean little. How they’re implemented means everything.
It’s not about our ideas, it’s about what the ideas can do for our users.
Ideas are a dime a […]
My article on “stupid users” seems to have stirred quite a bit of debate, with quite a few people seemingly convinced that the users are, in fact, stupid, and there’s nothing that can be done about it. That’s just not the case.
There’s quite a bit that can be done to help “stupid users.”
I’m […]
It’s true. Every day, in web departments and web design firms across America (and probably the world), a common and ugly refrain is repeated”
Our users are stupid.
They won’t get it.
Project managers and developers describe their own users as below average, behind the curve and not savvy.
It’s disgusting. No other mainstream industry would dream of […]
Too many people do what they’re told. Worse, too many people do what they’re told without ever asking why. They blindly follow, unquestioningly, whatever mandate they’re presented with.
Which is why we’re surrounded by bad ideas, poorly executed.
Derek Powazek suggest that designers should try asking “why” instead of just saying “no”. Designers, both in print and […]
If there’s one thing that drives me nuts, it’s management types making the same dumb mistakes over and over, never learning from their predecessors. Peter Anspach tackles the problem with flair in his 100-item checklist on How to be a Successful Evil Overlord.
If only corporate managers had such a clear view of their role […]
Whether you’re writing for a newspaper, a magazine, for the web, or pretty much anyplace else where you’re writing to an wide and varied audience, there’s a few things that always remain true:
Know what you’re trying to say.
Say it succinctly and clearly.
Don’t lie.
Above all else, make it relate to the audience
I have written professionally for […]
I got a little shout-out from Kathy Sierra over at Creating Passionate Users today. Woohoo! For those that don’t know CPU is one of the most interesting blogs out there. It deals with technology, marketing, the brain, and how we learn, or, as is too often the case, don’t learn.
So what did I do to […]
I see where Martin has decided to throw away more than 100 years of greatness, diluting their proud name with a bunch of cheapy knockoffs.
Sad, really.
My beloved Gretsch, on the other hand, has never been stronger since Fender took over operations. Funny how having a few key players with a ticket on the […]
I don’t claim to know everything about business, or how to successfully lead a team. In fact, I can’t claim to know much at all. But I have witnessed the absolute wrong way to do things a few times, and can share my surefire methods of being a lousy manager. So, if you’re a manager, […]
There had to come a day when I disagreed with Seth Godin on something. Today’s the day.
Godin uses the immaculate and sparkling trucks all fire stations seem to have as an allegory for businesses making busy work for themselves while they wait for the next fire alarm. The polishing-the-brass-on-the-Titanic argument, if you will.
There’s a few […]
I don’t know if Ramit Sethi can really teach anyone to be rich or not, but he’s got some really interesting thoughts on when (if ever) the bottom line should be the first priority:
Here’s a pattern I see a lot:
1. Somebody launches something
2. He tries to make money
3. Then he tries to make it valuable […]
Marketing is not complicated.
Marketers try to make it seem more complicated than it is, so they can justify their parasitic career choice, but despite all their self-important puffery, marketing is just not that hard. Whatever you’re trying to market, one simple rule will make your marketing campaign — and your product — successful. Ready […]