tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28293116230241308612024-02-08T06:19:17.604-07:00Mike AuerbachMikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06708867665569577046noreply@blogger.comBlogger23125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2829311623024130861.post-21645653005525680622009-08-28T15:43:00.000-07:002009-08-28T15:44:30.466-07:00New addressNew site is up <a href="http://www.michaelauerbach.com">Here</a>.Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06708867665569577046noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2829311623024130861.post-75352020868319016762009-03-24T11:17:00.004-07:002009-03-24T15:11:28.920-07:00Investing in yourselfWe remember our small victories vividly, and forget the small failures. But when the stakes rise, and more is put on the line, the opposite happens - we remember the large victories fondly, but they don't resonate nearly the same as the great failures do. This is like a built-in mechanism against going for the big prize, and instead to be placated and content with the little victories that occur throughout daily life. A mechanism to not stand out, and to accept the safety of the crowd. However, to turn it around and use either the fear of failure, or previous failure, to push yourself is to truly invest in yourself, and your own success.<br /><br />If you eliminate the reasons you could use to defend yourself in event of failure, you stand on your own two feet, with either success or failure almost solely dependent on you. I think that is true freedom.Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06708867665569577046noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2829311623024130861.post-22292388834024909652009-03-22T16:58:00.002-07:002009-03-22T17:16:51.603-07:00Link dump<ul><li><a href="http://www.paulgraham.com/maybe.html">This is brilliant. </a>Every city/state should at the very least consider this. Cities like Pittsburgh have completely reinvented themselves from what they were before, and this is a great strategy to bring in businesses for cities facing change.</li></ul><ul><li>If you don't know who Umair Haque is, then watch <a href="http://www.daytona.se/sessions/vol2/umair">this video</a>. He's one of the leading thinkers on the changing economy and the role of businesses in the future.<br /></li></ul><ul><li>The <a href="http://www.wired.com/politics/law/magazine/17-04/ff_diamonds?currentPage=all#">world famous diamond heist</a> explained by one of the guys behind it.</li><li>China has grown immensely, but with quick wealth comes major problems when there are bumps in the road. They've <a href="http://globalguerrillas.typepad.com/globalguerrillas/2009/02/journal-descent-from-the-apogee.html">lost 20,000,000 workers</a> from the cities to the countryside. Robb called this several years ago.<br /></li><li><a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/print/200903/meltdown-geography">The Atlantic</a> on how the crash will literally change the look of America. </li></ul>Also, my Delicious account is <a href="http://delicious.com/Mikeauerbach">here</a>.Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06708867665569577046noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2829311623024130861.post-51592598112806191782009-03-16T18:22:00.001-07:002009-03-22T23:44:18.582-07:00A level playing field<span style="font-family:times new roman;"></span><blockquote style="font-family:times new roman;">"Tactics are not the product of careful cold reason, that they do not follow a table of organization or plan of attack. Accident, unpredictable reactions to your own actions, necessity, and improvisation dictate the direction and nature of tactics. Then, analytical logic is required to appraise where you are, what you can do next, the risks and hopes that you can look forward too. <span style="font-weight: bold;">The tactic itself comes out of the free flow of action and reaction, and requires on the part of the organizer an easy acceptance of apparent disorganization.</span>" - Saul Alinsky <span style="font-style: italic;">Rules for Radicals</span><br /></blockquote><span style="font-family:times new roman;">This is one of the biggest problems with the way we educate. Because people have a natural aversion to putting themselves in stressful situations, they need to be forced into positions that are different and stressful, requiring a quick decision - something that lessens the stress of the moment in order to buy time to choose a strategy. This is one of the biggest reasons that job experience is so much more benefitial than just going to school, because you aren't always just given concrete assignments and due dates, but there is an ever-shifting playing field. This is the difference from being able to fly by the seat of your pants or always having to take timeouts to collect your thoughts.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;">Anyone can map out a strategy when everything is in order, but how do you get better at making the quick calls that have to be made when everything goes to shit? If Murphy's law is true, then why are we spending years in school practicing with a playbook that assumes order? Why not prepare for the eventual disorder, and maintain it when it starts to begin? The majority plan for what to do when things go right, so when things go to shit and change, who is going to be able to deal with it most effectively? People who have spent their lives on linear problems with due dates, or the ones who dealt with change and turmoil?<br /><br />With everything, to truly succeed you need the background knowledge to be internalized, otherwise you can't react quicker than your "opponent", and you will eventually find yourself reacting to their moves. But if you build up a base of knowledge, you can push until both you and your opponent are flying by the seat of your pants, and if this is something you continually practice at, you will likely be more comfortable. This can be trained by anything, even things completely unrelated to what you intended it for. You can just be playing tricks on people to see how they react, or putting yourself in intensely new surroundings to free up your mind. But there is no reason to stick to the field that everyone else plays on, that only makes it that much harder to win.<br /></span>Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06708867665569577046noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2829311623024130861.post-51289954968915169042009-01-28T19:54:00.002-07:002009-01-28T20:22:27.372-07:00What I'm ReadingI haven't done one of these in a while, so this is what I've read this year:<br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Art-Learning-Journey-Optimal-Performance/dp/0743277465/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1233197739&sr=8-1"><br />The Art of Learning</a> by Josh Waitzkin - This is one of the best books I've ever read. Waitzkin is genius, and has led an incredible life so far. He has spent his entire life analyzing how he learns and reacts to stimuli, which is why he has the credentials to write this book. I'm just going to go ahead and admit that most people won't like this book as much as I did, because about 25% of it is spent on an idea that I'm obsessed with: slowing down time. Many people have had these experiences - whether it is during an accident or just seeing something incredible - where time slows down to a crawl. He explains how to cultivate these experiences and use it when you want to. Not to mention the other 75% of the book which breaks down the learning process brilliantly.<br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Claudius-Autobiography-Tiberius-D-International/dp/067972477X/ref=pd_bbs_sr_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1233198161&sr=8-2"><br />I, Claudius</a> by Robert Graves - The first historical fiction book I've ever read, and it was very, very good. The story itself is incredible. If you don't know who Claudius was, he was born lame in 10 BC. He hid behind his shell of a body and used his appearance to stay alive during an extremely tumultuous time in Rome, where he eventually became Emperor. Amazingly researched, and while I don't know exactly <span style="font-style: italic;">how</span> much Graves made up, it was an awesome read into an idea of what it was like to live back then.<br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Art-War-Sun-Tzu/dp/1590302257/ref=pd_bbs_sr_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1233198434&sr=8-2"><br />The Art Of War</a> by Sun Tzu - Obviously a good book, but it didn't impact me that much for some reason. Possibly because I have already read so many of his strategies expanded on in other books. Most of what is in it just seemed obvious by the time I read it.<br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Great-Santini-Pat-Conroy/dp/0553381555/ref=pd_bbs_sr_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1233198553&sr=8-2"><br />The Great Santini</a> by Pat Conroy - Lifted out of <a href="http://www.tuckermax.com/archives/entries/the_tucker_max_reading_list.phtml">Tucker's reading list</a>, a well done book with a main character that you shouldn't like, but you can't help to.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Tribes-We-Need-You-Lead/dp/1591842336/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1233198744&sr=8-1">Tribes</a> by Seth Godin - I love the idea behind the book, it's one of those things that seems so innate, but having it spelled and fleshed out brings out the beauty behind it.Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06708867665569577046noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2829311623024130861.post-28289129404092553252009-01-26T15:48:00.004-07:002009-01-26T18:43:15.862-07:00Assuming Risk<span style="font-family:times new roman;">I recently had the choice between a couple different jobs. I could of chosen to do the type of job that I have done before, just mindless busy-work, or I could go in a new direction - a job that puts 100% of the risk on myself. Either I put in the effort, learn skills that I will need in the future, become good at what I do, and be very highly compensated for it, or I fail, and make nothing while losing a lot of time. Easy choice. I've been reading a lot about the selling process, but reading is only part of the equation, knowledge might be an ingredient to success, but it definitely isn't the key. If you don't practice and apply what you know, they just remain other peoples ideas, once you implement them and apply them to your own situations, then they become your own.</span>Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06708867665569577046noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2829311623024130861.post-79726537997847481542009-01-22T19:27:00.003-07:002009-01-22T19:44:57.337-07:00Ads in Google ReaderRight on the heels of <a href="http://www.micropersuasion.com/2009/01/google-killing-products.html">this post</a> by Steve Rubel, Google Reader just put ads up in their feed. I have no idea why he didn't think that Google would be able to run ads, but they apparently can. This pisses me off, because now the beautiful clean look of Reader is gone, but the good news is that there aren't ads in every feed for some reason. The only one I have noticed so far is in the WSJ's Numbers Guy blog, does Google have to ask for permission to put ads up? Hopefully, because if there are ads in every single post, then I might look for another reader.Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06708867665569577046noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2829311623024130861.post-44711171863532349372009-01-14T21:57:00.002-07:002009-01-14T22:08:29.386-07:001/18/08I haven't posted in a week, I've been really busy with trips and school starting up today, so sorry for not posting, but I should have some posts up soon. But I have to lay out who I want to win on Sunday, in the NFL Conference Championships.<br /><br />Arizona/Philadelphia: I was born in Arizona, and have spent my whole life here. During that time, I <span style="font-style: italic;">almost</span> became a Cardinals fan. They have been consistently horrendous through my whole life, but I was about 10 minutes away from buying season tickets when they were moving into their new stadium. I decided against it, but I've always secretly rooted for them, and anyone who is man enough to be a fan of a team this continuously bad has my respect. Everyone seems to keep doubting them, so that should continue to fuel them in their underdog role, and with Boldin coming back, and Westbrook getting hurt again, I think they pull this one out.<br /><br />Pittsburgh/Baltimore: Now for the game that I really care about. I have been a Ravens fan since 2001 or 2002. I LOVE this team. Pittsburgh played incredible against San Diego, and San Diego couldn't stop them from running the ball right up the middle. The Ravens can. Flacco has been completely unflappable, and I'd like him to get some more throws in this game, he is not a normal rookie. Both of the games between the two so far this year have been incredible, with plenty of controversy in both. For some reason, I just feel like the Ravens pull it together, (they've played 17 straight weeks without a bye) and find a way to win. I just think this defense has too much pride to be beaten 3 times in a season by their biggest rival.Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06708867665569577046noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2829311623024130861.post-29540716699399753472009-01-07T12:10:00.002-07:002009-01-09T11:26:54.003-07:00Training for the jump<span style="font-family:times new roman;">Throughout my life, I have always thought that big opportunities are all around us. The obvious problem is that we don't see them coming and almost all the time only notice them once they have past. Why do we constantly miss things that seem so obvious after they are already taken advantage of? Two reasons. We do not question enough of what we see, the motivations behind how something is done, or why it isn't done another way. But also, we cannot see what we don't understand. The only way to understand an opportunity that is almost certainly not the norm, is by engaging your mind with constant new ideas, testing them against one another, and then seeing which makes the most sense. How are you supposed to see something different if you are not questioning why things are done the same?</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;">That is why I have always tried to learn as much as possible, at all times. Every time I have an article that I don't want to read because I am lazy, I think about how maybe this is the article that will make the connection I need to understand something, <span style="font-style: italic;">and then act,</span> in the future. Whether it is seeing what's missing, or noticing a flaw that is making something inefficient. We have to incessantly be absorbing new things, or we will just get stuck in the static of current ideas.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;">Like someone smarter than me said, "If you challenge the conventional wisdom, you will find ways to do things much better than they are currently done."</span>Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06708867665569577046noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2829311623024130861.post-6307217019586956282008-12-31T13:29:00.003-07:002008-12-31T13:39:01.324-07:00ResolutionsNew Years is one of the stupidest real holidays there is, but an excuse to drink is an excuse to drink. Here are a couple of my resolutions that I am going to put here so they are on record, and I can't claim that I forgot them.<br /><br /><ul><li>Read 60 books this year (I missed my goal this year, so I'm going to increase it by 20. Makes sense)</li></ul><ul><li>Become fluent in Spanish and begin on a third language</li></ul><ul><li>Bring the GPA back up to 3.5</li></ul><ul><li>Travel - Don't just go on the 10 day trip to Israel, but stay and travel to Europe for at least 2 more weeks. Also, stay at least two weeks in Puerto Vallarta, and spend some time surfing in Sayulita.</li></ul><ul><li>Save 7k before the Summer to do this properly.</li></ul><ul><li>Study abroad Fall 09 or Spring '10</li></ul><ul><li>Break 175</li></ul>Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06708867665569577046noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2829311623024130861.post-72138171114488220832008-12-23T13:25:00.004-07:002008-12-23T17:57:47.081-07:00Various Links<ul><li>Tom Peters has a good post on <a href="http://www.tompeters.com/entries.php?rss=1&note=http://www.tompeters.com/blogs/main/010787.php">Christmas 2008</a>.</li><li>Faris Yakob tells why we should<a href="http://farisyakob.typepad.com/blog/2008/12/bet-on-the-future.html"> bet on the future,</a> with a story of John D Rockefeller during the Great depression.</li><li>Charlie Hoehn on the<a href="http://charliehoehn.com/2008/12/21/you-gotta-have-skills/"> importance of having and developing skills</a>.</li><li>Umair is required reading right now, and he tells why <a href="http://discussionleader.hbsp.com/haque/2008/12/how_not_to_treat_your_customer.html">real relationships matter.</a></li><li>The <a href="http://www.paulgraham.com/credentials.html">era of credentials</a> is slowly dying.</li><li>Ben Casnocha on <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/%7Er/ItsLikeBensBlog/%7E3/482210673/why-so-many-struggle-finding-a-job-or-a-calling.html">why it's so hard for people to find a calling.</a></li><li>Oh, and since I went to Vegas to watch Arizona destroy BYU in the Las Vegas Bowl, here is a <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1LejGZY--mY">video</a> of the awesome flyover by a couple F-15's.<br /></li></ul>Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06708867665569577046noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2829311623024130861.post-35490487382562972332008-12-22T14:06:00.003-07:002008-12-22T15:37:52.480-07:00Learning to think<blockquote>"Do not write it as a formula. Write it as a way to teach officers to think, to think in new ways about war. War is ever changing and men are ever fallible. Rigid rules simply won't work. Teach men to think." - Robert Coram,<span style="font-style: italic;"> Boyd: The Fighter Pilot Who Changed the Art of War</span><br /></blockquote>John Boyd was a proponent of Schwerpunkt, or the commanders intent. He believed that the most effective way to get something done, was for the leadership to give implicit commands that allowed people below him to do whatever it took to accomplish an objective. He did not believe explicit commands that told someone exactly what to do were effective – they were too slow and could be completely undermined by a changing battlefield. He said that to be able to make quick, effective decisions, a person must develop his fingerspitzengefuhl, or his "fingertip feel". This is the feeling that you get when you have a good understanding of your situation, and can fly by your gut, because you have a greater understanding of what is going on than your opponents. You can think and act much faster than someone who is still collecting information and disecting it.<br /><br />But the prerequisite for this is that you must not be caught up in the moment. You have to be taught to be flexible, to forget so many things that we have learned that confine us to one way of thinking. You need to recognize that the way you or people around you do things might be wrong, and try other ways to make things fit better. A lack of change and trying new things will only lead you down a road to nowhere. We have to question everything, and try and apply the meta-issues of what we learn to our lives.<br /><br />Without a doubt, this is the biggest issue with education today. This became more obvious during this past week, with everyone studying for finals by memorizing minute details in gen-ed classes like Classical Mythology. Instead of spending <span style="font-style: italic;">any</span> time talking and learning about the issues that each individual myth covers, we review pointless minutiae that everyone will forget immediately after the final. Instead of discussing <span style="font-style: italic;">why</span> the myths that we studied have been preserved for so long, the class focuses only on furiously studying who it was that beat Atalanta in a race.<br /><br />Or in my logic class, we learn and study the fallacies, and then learn formal/inductive logic, and yet we did not learn ONCE how to apply those strategies towards daily life. The book gives an example and states why something is wrong, but no one actually learns why it makes an argument wrong in day-to-day use. Instead of being told to create arguments for/against something, and then using what we learned to strengthen or weaken our arguments, we are just told to memorize information. This is completely ineffective. Studies have consistently shown that without application exercises, information will not be retained. To continually hold classes that rely on just memorizing and regurgitating information is to accept that you are not willing to actually teach the students how to apply what they are learning.<br /><br /><a href="http://chronicle.com/free/v55/i17/17b01401.htm">Bruce Flemming</a> wrote that:<br /><blockquote><blockquote></blockquote><blockquote></blockquote>"Nowadays we teach literature as if we were giving a tour of a grocery store to Martians who've just touched down on Earth. We professional storekeepers explain the vegetable section, the dairy section, the meat section, note similarities and differences among our wares, variations of texture and color, the fact that there's no milk where the applesauce is, and perhaps the fact (which we bemoan) that there are no papayas. We're teaching the store, not what's in it."</blockquote>Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06708867665569577046noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2829311623024130861.post-73159135689048636082008-12-10T12:39:00.004-07:002008-12-10T13:01:10.516-07:00OutliersI have yet to read Malcolm Gladwell's new book, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Outliers-Story-Success-Malcolm-Gladwell/dp/0316017922/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1228939217&sr=8-1">Outliers</a>, but I watched a <a href="http://poptech.org/popcasts/popcasts.aspx?lang=&viewcastid=206">presentation</a> that he gave two months ago, and it is a must-see. Some paraphrased excerpts:<br /><blockquote><br />1/6 High school athletes who earn college scholarships actually make it to college. This is a result of poverty (and gang affiliation, which is a byproduct). So the capitalization rate of football, the most important sport in America, is only 16%. Why is the process of getting good enough players into college not more streamlined? It's in the college's best interest to get as many talented prospects as possible.<br /><br />Why are the vast majority of hockey and soccer players born in the first 6 months of the year? The cutoff date for registration when they are ~8 (And first joining organized competition) is January 1st. So the older (bigger) kids get selected, and get 10 years of specialized coaching which eventually makes them the best players, even when they might not of been the most talented players for their age.<br /><br />Why is there such a big difference in the percentage of the Asian population in America that is successful compared to the White population? Culture. If you take 10 Chinese students, and 10 American students, and give them 15 minutes to try and solve a very hard math problem, the American students will give up after 2 minutes, and the Chinese will still be working after 15 minutes. The average white person's IQ is actually slightly higher than the average Chinese, but there is a cultural restraint on the idea of hard work, which over time leads to more success for Asian-Americans.<br /><br />Why do Kenyans dominate long-distance running? It isn't because of superior genetics, but rather that more than a million 12-17 year old boys who run 10-12 miles a day. While the number in the US is probably in the thousands. So those who are talented at running are fully capitalized in Kenya, while me miss thousands of talented runners in the US.<br /><br />Why is this important? When we look at people who have success, we tend to argue that it is the result of an innate difference in ability. This is wrong. We have a scarcity of achievement not because of a scarcity of talent, but because we are squandering our talent. Which is a good thing because it is something we can improve on.</blockquote>I have heard a lot of talk about how Outliers is not nearly as good a book as his previous, but I learned a lot from just a short 20 minute presentation. Definitely check it out.Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06708867665569577046noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2829311623024130861.post-20490957801551809442008-12-03T15:31:00.005-07:002008-12-03T18:28:14.959-07:00The Observance EffectWe seem to easily be able to notice other peoples faults and follies. We can then try to make sure that we don't follow on that same path, but by guiding ourselves by problems that other people have, do we end up missing our own? Is there any way to actually fight that?<br /><br />I can think of two ways. I would like to believe that I have the self-awareness to spot my flaws and try to correct them. Is that type of perspective even possible? Maybe it just takes more self-reflection to figure yourself out – more time without <span style="font-style: italic;">any</span> distractions whether they are cell phones, TV, Internet, Books, etc. Time where you do nothing but dig inside yourself and try to see what's there. But maybe it isn't enough to just reflect, do we need to be pushed over the edge to see our problems?<br /><br />By surrounding yourself with truly honest people that are smarter than you, willing to give you shit, tell you when you are fucking up, we can get more perspective. People that can push you to really see what you keep hoping not to find. I don't have nearly enough of those kind people in my life, and I don't know where to look to meet more of them, but I am looking.Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06708867665569577046noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2829311623024130861.post-547333955010639002008-12-02T02:12:00.003-07:002008-12-02T02:42:05.059-07:00The 3^3 Project<a href="http://charliehoehn.com/2008/11/30/3-to-the-third/">Charlie Hoehn</a> just posted about his 3^3 Project:<br /><blockquote><p>“Over the year, we all discovered new things that we now love and recommend to everyone. Restaurants, food, movies, songs, bands, books, websites, articles, Youtube videos, etc. We recommend them because we’re confident that they’ll enrich another person’s life in some way or another. This is genuine word-of-mouth marketing.”</p></blockquote> <blockquote><p><strong>“I’m calling this “The 3^3 Project</strong> (three to the third) because you need to recommend 3 things, describe each of them in 3 sentences, and then ask 3 more people to join this discussion.”</p> <p><strong>“What I want you to do is this:</strong></p> <ul><li>Post (preferably in the comment section below or on your own blog) your top 3 favorite things that you’ve really gotten into this year and want other people to check out. Your suggestions can be anything. They don’t even have to be things that came out this year; you just have to have fallen in love with them during 2008.</li><li>For each of your recommendations, you have to sell us on it in <em>3 sentences or less</em>. No paragraphs — just a few sentences. Bonus points if you make it actionable by including a link, which will make it easier for everyone to actually see what you’re talking about.</li><li>After that, you should ask 3 more people to add to the list.”</li></ul> </blockquote>He lists Delicious Bookmarking and It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia as two of his favorite things, which I agree with. I made a <a href="http://delicious.com/Mikeauerbach">Delicious </a>that I update pretty often. My three would go something like this:<br /><ol><li><span style="font-weight: bold;"><a href="http://www.3m.com/US/office/postit/products/prod_ft_fph.html">Post-It Highlighters</a>: </span>These have completely changed how I read and mark up my books. <a href="http://www.ryanholiday.net/archives/read_to_lead_how_to_digest_boo_1.phtml">Ryan Holiday</a> was the first person that showed me how helpful they can be, and they have made a huge impact on my reading process. The ability to instantly find important parts of a book, or phrases that were especially memorable is <span style="font-style: italic;">easily</span> worth the cost of the highlighters many times over.<span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span></span><strong><br /></strong></li><li><strong><a href="http://www.google.com/reader">Google Reader: </a></strong>I was pretty late getting on the RSS bandwagon, but it was also something that has really changed me for the better. Collecting blurbs from some of the smartest people in the world is amazing, and Google Reader saves a ton of time aggregating it.</li><li><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Girl_Talk_%28musician%29"><strong>Girl Talk</strong></a>: The first time I heard one of his CD's (Night Ripper) I sat in amazement for 2 hours while I listened to it twice. I can't describe how amazing it is to hear some of the most popular music today mixed all together with a bunch of classics, and to have the result be better than the original. The most famous example of his songs is mixing <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iDDdpxEf9hM">Biggie with Elton John (starts at 1:25)</a>. The CD's are meant to be played straight through, and they are <a href="http://74.124.198.47/illegal-art.net/__girl__talk___feed__the__anima.ls___/">free</a>, although you can make a donation, ala Radiohead's In Rainbows.</li></ol>Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06708867665569577046noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2829311623024130861.post-3285781197702514752008-11-30T00:17:00.000-07:002008-11-30T01:39:53.684-07:00What I'm Reading<span style="font-size:100%;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Siddhartha-Hermann-Hesse/dp/0553208845/ref=pd_bbs_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1228029659&sr=8-2"><span>Siddhartha </span></a>by Hermann Hesse - This book was incredible, and it instantly brought me back to another very good I read, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Separate-Reality-Carlos-Castaneda/dp/0671732498/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1228030099&sr=8-1">A Separate Reality</a>. The major running theme is that you cannot discover yourself through other peoples teachings, but rather through examining yourself and experiencing your own life.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Autobiography-Malcolm-MAXNotes-Literature-MAXnotes/dp/0878910042/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1228029761&sr=1-1"><span>The Autobiography of Malcolm X</span></a> - Every single person in America should read this, Malcolm is completely misrepresented in the history books. I remember reading in my High School history book about how bad a person Malcolm X was,</span><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span><span style="font-size:100%;">and how he didn't really accomplish anything other than breeding racial discrimination in America. I honestly don't know how he wrote this, he writes about the different phases of his life (Early life, hustling on the East Coast, in prison, the Nation of Islam, then finally him joining Orthodox Islam) like he was still in them, with seemingly no influence from his new views.<br /><br /></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Old-School-Tobias-Wolff/dp/0375701494/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1228029739&sr=1-1">Old School</a> by Tobias Wolff - Wolff is a great writer, and this book about a kid in school who struggles to find a true voice in his writing was a very quick read. I just bought another book of his, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/This-Boys-Life-Tobias-Wolff/dp/0802136680/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1228030509&sr=1-2">This Boy's Life</a>.<br /><br /></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Strategies-War-Joost-Elffers-Books/dp/0143112783/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1228029708&sr=1-1">33 Strategies of War</a> by Robert Greene - As with all of his books, this is one of my most marked up books, and is impossible to digest without a multitude of readings. The sheer amount of examples from History makes this a must-read for any person with even an inkling of interest in the past, and how it can be applied to the present and future.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Lives-Cell-Notes-Biology-Watcher/dp/0140047433/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1228029921&sr=1-1"><span>Lives Of A Cell</span></a></span><span style="font-size:100%;"> by Thomas Lewis - My dad read this 30 years ago, and still recommended it to me. It essentially shows how the whole world is a giant organism, and everything is interrelated. There were some amazing comparisons between the actions of ants and termites to how humans act.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Odyssey-Robert-Fagles/dp/0140268863/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1228029948&sr=1-2"><span>The Odyssey</span></a> - I re-read this for a class, and it was even better than the first time I went through it. I am going to be pissed if the Hollywood <a href="http://www.etonline.com/news/2008/10/66703/">remake</a> happens...<br /></span>Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06708867665569577046noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2829311623024130861.post-89787127444404355742008-07-18T20:59:00.001-07:002008-07-18T21:23:31.991-07:00Book DumpI have spent this whole summer traveling, and haven't really updated this at all, which I am pretty upset about. I am definitely going to focus and update consistently from now on. This is going to be a little book dump of some recent books, but I will have a normal post up soon.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Mans-Search-Meaning-Viktor-Frankl/dp/0807014273/ref=pd_bbs_sr_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1216440099&sr=8-2">Man's Search For Meaning</a> by Viktor Frankl: This book is incredible, and definitely a must read for pretty much anyone. His accounts of his time in Nazi concentration camps are amazing, and he gives a unique recount of them, because he looks at most of his experiences through a psychologists view. I think his form of therapy, logotherapy, has a much better underlying goal than other forms of psychology.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Tipping-Point-Little-Things-Difference/dp/0316346624/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1216440226&sr=1-1">The Tipping Point</a> by Malcolm Gladwell: This book follows the standard form of this type of book, like <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Freakonomics-Revised-Expanded-Economist-Everything/dp/0061234001/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1216440531&sr=1-1">Freakonomics</a> and others. But the premise of the book is <span style="font-style:italic;">extremely</span> important. That there are specific types of people that either know a large amount of others - connectors - and can push a product or idea successfully. There are also people that know the ins and outs of every product - mavens, as well as salesmen, who can teach those who do not know. We need to learn to recognize who these people are, and how to use them in the most effective way possible. Recommended.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Science-Hitting-Ted-Williams/dp/0671621033/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1216440306&sr=1-1">The Science of Hitting</a> by Ted Williams: This book is a little overrated as a strategy book in my opinion. Robert Greene uses it numerously in <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Strategies-War-Joost-Elffers-Books/dp/0143112783/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1216440930&sr=1-1">33 Strategies of War</a>, and while I think it is a great insight into the best baseball hitter of all time, and how to approach the game, I wasn't overly impressed. I didn't like the way it was written.Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06708867665569577046noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2829311623024130861.post-48429398403473651022008-06-03T22:01:00.000-07:002008-06-03T22:29:42.944-07:00Have FunWho ever said just because you own a business, you can't have fun? In an older Entrepreneur magazine, I found a piece about a pizza company that ran a promotion offering two pizzas for the price of one if the customer ripped out the yellow pages ad of a competitor. Awesome idea, just being different brings attention to you, whether the customer chooses to actually tear out your competitor's ad. There are so many ways you can gain a leg up on a competitor, or re-energize yourself, by trying something new or different, it's just laziness to not try.<br /><br /><em>"Whenever you and your opponent become stagnant, you must immediately employ a different method of dealing with him in order to overcome him."</em> Miyamoto MusashiMikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06708867665569577046noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2829311623024130861.post-61071446233207280982008-05-13T08:25:00.000-07:002008-05-13T08:42:54.864-07:00Brilliant Marketing or Bad Idea?<pre><a href="http://youtube.com/watch?v=LMzbwa6PvEE"><br />Recently, Food Network's Iron Chef played a one frame <br />McDonalds ad in the middle of the show.</a></pre>While some think this is a moral issue, that this should not be allowed, it is brilliant advertising regardless. Yes, you piss off some people for a couple days, but will any of them really remember in a week? The Food Network and McDonalds received millions of dollars worth of attention from the press and Youtube. This is attention that could not be caught with just regular advertising, and is the end result of something unique.<br /><br />This can only be a rare occurrence though, because the backlash when subliminal advertising becomes used - besides simple product placement - will be huge. But it follows a famous marketing slogan: Any news is good news.Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06708867665569577046noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2829311623024130861.post-8939961941212658812008-04-18T16:03:00.000-07:002008-04-18T16:04:29.465-07:00Those PeopleSome people have a complete lack of perspective, and I just can’t understand how. They can be doing something incredibly stupid, annoying everyone, and not have a care in the world. It is one thing to just be an asshole and screw with people for fun, hell, everyone does that. But when you feel a compulsive need to constantly chime in with your input every minute? I just can’t understand why someone would do that.<br /><br />This guy in one of my classes is blatantly homosexual, and while there is nothing wrong with that, it does happen to bring more attention to him when he talks. In a perfectly quiet class, he will constantly chime in with pointless comments like “Totally”, “He’s sooo right!”, and “Oh my gawd, did you hear that!?!” <span style="font-style: italic;">Constantly</span>. For no reason, in the middle of a lecture, and to no one in particular. People continuously tell him to shut up, but he never abides. What does he get out of acting like that? All he does is create dozens of people who can’t stand him and refuse to work with him. Why?Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06708867665569577046noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2829311623024130861.post-74196909189267602812008-04-14T00:42:00.000-07:002008-04-14T00:44:47.062-07:00The Spirit of CompetitionDuring an Arizona Basketball game when I was 12, my brother managed to convince me that sports were stupid. I cannot fathom how he did this, because I am obsessed with sports, namely UA sports. But nevertheless, he persuaded me that sports were all just a waste of time, that they had no real purpose. I'll just chalk that one up to being impressionable. In the end, he ended up just making me see how amazing competition really is.<br /><br />Whether it is writing, painting, business, education, or even cooking, competition is everywhere, in everything we do. The arena of sports is just the most obvious, and the most clear-cut between success and failure. The mere idea that teams can spend <span style="font-style: italic;">thousands</span> of hours preparing and training, only to have an entire game or season come down to one play or one shot is remarkable, and captivating. One lucky moment can be the difference between euphoric victory and gut-wrenching defeat.<br /><br />It pervades into every aspect of our lives, and is what drives us. The opportunity to be better. To be the best at something. It is why we go to school for years, why we practice for hours on end, and why so many parents who have never tasted victory try to attain it through their kids. Competition measures not by whether you think you are worthy, or by reputation, but simply merit. And that is why it is beautiful.<br /><br /><object height="355" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/cMV_gvBwL1g&hl=en"><param name="wmode" value="transparent"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/cMV_gvBwL1g&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" height="355" width="425"></embed></object><br /><br />"On this path, it is only the first step that counts."<br />St. Jean-Baptiste-Marie VianneyMikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06708867665569577046noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2829311623024130861.post-9468443947752409872008-04-12T17:46:00.000-07:002008-04-14T04:05:15.649-07:00Let's Just Stick To The OutineI know someone who checks his emails 25 times a day, and spends the rest of his day just surfing the web. 15 years ago this was someone who was deeply involved with WHO, ran for Congress, and had a great reputation in his line of work. Now he just sits and wastes the little time we all have. He constantly states that he <span style="font-style: italic;">desperately</span> wants to go back to Europe and spend several months there, yet continually makes excuses not to. When there are no more excuses, he checks his mail. Or surfs the net. When advised to do read a book; just to do something, anything, he gets bored midway through and goes back to the same old routine.<br /><br />The draw of comfort, doing something because it's easy, seems to be so strong. It's like a bear trap. Once you fall into it, you have to practically tear yourself apart just to get free from its clutches. Almost everywhere I look, I see so many people that refuse to put in work, just because it is easier to sit on their ass. We only get one shot at life, it's such a waste to be too lazy to do anything with it.<br /><br />This is not about physical employment, but the act of employing your mind to do something. Instead of finding a way to take that trip you have wanted to take for years, you go check your email. Instead of finally keeping a New Years Resolution to eat right and start exercising, you say "tomorrow", and go watch TV.<br /><br />I just hope I don't start making the same mistake. If I do, I hope that I have surrounded myself with enough people honest enough to give a swift kick in the ass. Don't think of why you can't, think of how you can. Start the journey.<br /><br />"What man actually needs is not a tensionless state but rather the striving and struggling for a worthwhile goal, a freely chosen task."<br />-Viktor E. FranklMikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06708867665569577046noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2829311623024130861.post-71715521718554333012008-04-09T22:44:00.000-07:002008-04-14T04:05:42.649-07:00Why Wait?Today I got the opportunity to listen to a conference call with <a href="http://sethgodin.typepad.com/">Seth Godin</a>, and he spent close to hour talking about how the business world as we know it is changing. He talked about the rise of permission marketing... how 5,000 people who want to hear your message are more valuable than 5 million who don't. He threw out some things about how it isn't possible to just buy your way into customers lives (See: Gillette) anymore, instead you must earn their attention, whether by finding a niche or by making an incredible product.<br /><br />A theme that ran through the end of his talk was of waiting. Waiting for school to be over. Waiting till you're not sick. Waiting till you have more time. Finding excuses to give into the resistance you feel and not do what you know you should. This is something we all feel, but like <a href="http://www.amazon.com/War-Art-Through-Creative-Battles/dp/0446691437/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1207809339&sr=8-1">The War of Art</a> says, the more resistance you feel, the more you know that you are heading in the right direction.<br /><br />It was nothing really new if you've read any his <a href="http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw/104-2274939-0555113?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=seth+godin&x=0&y=0">books</a>, but it was a nice change of pace from just reading his books/blog.<br /><br /><br />I'm going to end each post with a quick quote, just for kicks. Today's comes from <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Meditations-Marcus-Aurelius/dp/0812968255/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1207808024&sr=8-1">Meditations:</a><br />"Nothing that can happen is unusual or unnatural, and there's no sense in complaining. Nature does not make us endure the unendurable."Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06708867665569577046noreply@blogger.com0