For Every Yes There Are A Thousand No's

Apple has summed up its product philosophy in this powerful and very plain video manifesto.

It's vintage Apple ...  another shot at reiterating its long standing "Think Different" mentality. 

“People think focus means saying yes to the thing you’ve got to focus on. But that’s not what it means at all. It means saying no to the hundred other good ideas that there are. You have to pick carefully. I’m actually as proud of the things we haven’t done as the things I have done. Innovation is saying no to 1,000 things.”

– Steve Jobs, WWDC 1997

Formula for Entrepreneurial Success (From Ev Williams)

Excellent advice from Ev Williams (Twitter, etc.), one of the most prolific and successful entrepreneurs of our time.  

I can't say it better than this ... so I will just quote it in its entirety below: 

1. Work with Amazing People

Don’t compromise on who you choose to found your company with and hire. Do not put up with ego-centric personalities or downer attitudes.

2. Take on Big Challenges

It’s pretty simple: Hard things are valuable; easy things are not so valuable. Reaching the mountaintop is rewarding because it is hard. If it was easy, everybody would do it.

3. Focus

Say no to most things: Features. People. Partnerships. “Coffees.” Projects. Only a few of them really matter. (Yes, it’s hard to know which.) Don’t get distracted.

4. Take Care of Yourself

When you don’t sleep, eat crap, don’t exercise, and are living off adrenaline for too long, your performance suffers. Your decisions suffer. Your company suffers.

5. Love those Close to You

Failure of your company is not failure in life. Failure in your relationships is.

Take heed young entrepreneurs ... he's absolutely right.

Must Watch: John Doerr's Interview With Sarah Lacey

John Doerr is one of the most successful VC's in the history of Silicon Valley. His recent interview with Sarah Lacey is a revealing look inside the mind of the man, how he thinks and what he looks for in opportunities, companies, teams and leaders. 

Inspiring young entrepreneurs

At the recent Next Web Conference Europe, two 13-year olds showcased their companies. Inspiring stuff for the next generation of entrepreneurs.

Jordan Casey is the founder and CEO of Casey Games, a mobile gaming company he founded in 2012.

Puck Meerburg is a very talented young coder from the Netherlands, who has just released a fun new game called CatStacker.

For those of you who are interested in helping your kids learn to code at a very young age, LifeHacker recently published an excellent article on the subject. In addition, CoderDojo in Los Angeles has a great page summarizing some of the coding tools available to kids.

Finally, there is an excellent Ted Talk by Mitch Resnick, who reasons that true fluency comes from creating with, not just interacting with technologies. He also outlines some great resources in his talk "Let's Teach Kids to Code".  More can be found here on the TED Blog.

Mobile Is Eating The World - Are Your Ready?

Stunning data about the rise of, and importance of mobile on a global basis.

If you do not have a compelling mobile strategy (and vision) that lies right at the heart of your company and/or if you are not considering how best to leverage mobile as one of your top strategic imperatives, you will eventually be overtaken by those who are.

Win the hearts and minds of consumers on their mobile devices, or risk obsolescence.

2013 05 BEA - ’Mobile is eating the World’ from Benedict Evans

Mary Meeker on the state of the web

Mary Meeker's annual presentation on the state of the web is a must watch in my opinion. It's a fast paced and wide ranging review of the key trends we should all be conversant in.

The full slide deck is available below:

KPCB Internet Trends 2013 from Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers

Must Watch Interview: NEST Co-founder Matt Rogers

This interview with Matt Rogers, the co-fouder of NEST, is a revealing look at the formation of a truly great startup, and is a must watch for any entrepreneur.  

Matt left an amazing job at Apple in 2010 to co-found Nest Labs. Nest, which received funding from some of the best venture capitalists in the world including Kleiner Perkins, Lightspeed, Shasta and Google Ventures has revolutionized the mundane and oft ignored home thermostat. And my sense is that there is much more to come from this great company.

Nest is an exciting company at an exciting time. The rise of the internet of things, and the coming of age of the smart home are two interesting trends (among others) driving a renaissance in hardware startups. We're starting to see a plethora of internet connected appliances, from smart watering systems that know all about pending rainfall to power hungry clothes dryers that know when the cheapest electricity is available.

Smart Advertising: Smart Cars To The Rescue

From Creativity Online

To promote Mercedes Smart cars to Russians (who like driving big cars), BBDO Russia actively proved to potential customers the benefits of having a smaller vehicle. Many Russians get towed on weekend shopping trips for parking illegally; and the traffic is also notoriously bad in the city. So in March Smart offered free rides to those stranded by having their vehicles towed - getting them to take a test drive without requesting one, and see what a difference having a small car makes when parking is scarce and traffic heavy.

623 car-less drivers were rescued during three days. The agency encouraged people to thank the Smart brand on social media, while blogs and news portals picked up on the stories and test drives increased 10 fold. Sales increased by 300% in the two weeks following the event.

This had so many elements of a modern, multi-faceted, ad campaign ... purpose built for social media amplification. 

Re-imagining the UX for iOS 7

With Apple's WWDC just around the corner, we're being teased by the tantalizing possibility that Apple will deliver a much overdue refresh of the UX in iOS 7.

As the conference nears, designers are falling over each other to present their visions of what an iOS 7 remake might entail.

Here is one interesting one - in the spirit of flat design. It comes from the talented folks at SimplyZesty, a Dublin, Ireland based digital agency. 

You can read their full post here.

Building A Culture That Works: The CEO As The Cultural Epicenter

In this excellent post, Peter Levine, who's a partner at Andreessen Horowitz, talks about the profound impact a CEO has on the culture of a company.

This is so true ... companies are defined by their cultures ... and cultures are defined from the CEO on down. You cannot manufacture a culture that is inconsistent from the beliefs and actions of a CEO. No matter how hard you try.

It is a must read for any aspiring CEOs. Remember that the expectations you have of others must be aligned with the expectations you place on yourself. And that the behaviour of your team will eventually be aligned with, and influenced by, your behaviours.

“The organization reflects the behavior and characteristics of the CEO, and that establishes the culture. Foster an environment of open communication and the organization inherits a culture of open communication. Operationally detailed? The organization becomes operationally detailed. Political? The organization becomes political. Curse a lot? The organization curses. Angry? The organization gets angry. Have a big office? Everyone wants a big office. It doesn’t matter what’s written on a coffee mug or on a “culture” slide, what you do as a CEO, day in and day out, and how you behave will define your company’s culture.

Despite the best intentions, companies often become culturally dysfunctional. This occurs when leadership has a perception about the culture that conflicts with reality, or leadership behaves differently than what might be written down. ”

— http://techcrunch.com/2013/04/27/building-a-culture-that-works-the-ceo-as-the-cultural-epicenter/