Trapped in Time

New Maven Digs

FALLOUT   The ash plume of southwestern Iceland’s Eyjafjallajokull volcano streams southwards over the Northern Atlantic Ocean in a satellite photograph made April 17, 2010.  (Photo: NERC Satellite Receiving Station, Dundee University, Scotland via Reuters / The Boston Globe)

(via inothernews)

Thanks to the ashy fallout, my business partner is stuck in Europe for at least this week, and if his flight out of Madrid Saturday is delayed or cancelled, he’s likely not getting back for another two to four weeks. Germany currently has over 2.5 million extra people in the country that can’t leave, and the same problem is facing just about every other major European nation. There is not a single seat available on any train leaving Germany for the rest of the week, and every cruise ship in Europe is booked heading back to the U.S. for just as long.

While it isn’t a huge deal, it means he’ll be doing about 1,500 miles of driving from Berlin this week in hopes of catching a flight home next weekend, while I double up on meetings and other responsibilities here in Chicago. I can’t even imagine the true dollar amount of productivity loss across the world due to an angry, ancient volcano.

One of my clients, Bin Donated, was featured on ABC 7 Chicago this evening.  It coincides with a revamped layout we launched, and is the pre-cursor to some more revenue-generating features we’re going to be rolling out.

Bin Donated places barrels in residential and commercial buildings across Chicago, allowing people to pass along old books and clothing, food, and hygiene products with minimal effort. Homeless Chicago school students and a variety of other groups in need are the end recipients.

In addition, Bin Donated’s founder Jud puts on a lot of fun nightlife events with all ticket proceeds going to the organization. I’ll post details on next month’s event when it’s announced, but in the mean time, check out the new site and if you’re feeling generous, make a secure donation on the site!

Only be involved in our business enough that all work we do can be completed on an iPad*.

*As strange as this may sound, I believe this is an obtainable goal if we no longer are coding or designing.

clientsfromhell:

Client: You know those links across the top of the home page?
Me: You mean the navigation?
Client: Yeah, we think it makes the page too busy. So we’ve decided to just have one link called “Site” and when you click on it, you get one of those drop-down lists. A list of all the pages on the site. Pretty cool, huh?

This is the point at which I would inform them they are no longer my client.

JobMedian.com Launches

Over the past six months, we have worked with Business Bullpen to help create Job Median, a new tool that will enable job seekers to leverage their social networks, and find local networking events and job fairs, among other things. The site is just in beta and has a long way to go, but I’m really proud of the design work we did in developing the Job Median brand.

In addition to designing the Job Median logo and website interface, we also created this animated video. This was the first time we’ve done a project like this, and I think it turned out pretty well. It was pretty much a joint effort between our lead graphic designer and I. We planned out a general story we would tell and how we could do so in a fun, animated way. We chose the music which I think fits perfectly, and then I actually ended up doing the narration for the whole thing. I’m no Morgan Freeman, but considering our budget and resources, I think it turned out pretty well. Check out the site while you’re at it!

WeGiveToGet.Com

Our newest site has just launched, which might be of particular interest to those of you in Chicago. We Give To Get is a deal of the day site for Chicagoans with a twist: 10% of every order goes to the charity of your choice. There are going to be a lot of great deals available from some of the biggest organizations in the city (hint: including sports teams), changing on a daily basis.

From a business standpoint, this is also the largest and most technical site we’ve created, and we’re really proud of what we’ve made here both on the front end of things and the back end in facilitating bringing users, businesses, and charities together in one place.

If you’re in Chicago, definitely check it out and create an account!

REPLY ALL is your friend.  And my friend.  Everyone’s friend.  It’s like that rug that ties the room together.  So let’s stop pissing on the dude’s rug and use ‘reply all.’

By Guy Kawasaki

Most advice to entrepreneurs focuses on what they should do: build a great product, assemble a great team, provide great service. All are “duhisms.” Unfortunately, many entrepreneurs don’t realize that there are things they should specifically avoid doing too. These are also duhisms, but somehow no one ever talks about them. Here is my list of the twelve most important things that entrepreneurs should not do.

(via michaelikesit:billda)

GPOYW: Building A Website On The Back Deck Edition

Front Runner For Client Email Of The Year

(via lfarm)

Just finished another project for a client (at least on the frontend).  I’m really happy with how this project solidified itself over the past week.  We created the entire corporate identity, website, and have a backend application close to complete.

If you’re out of work or in need of a job change, looking for a free critique of your resume, or know someone who could use some help with their career, check out Trumpet Consulting.  And if you or someone you know need web design, pass along our website.

Winter Work Area (via trappedintime)

When it gets into the negatives with wind chills over 20 below zero, the comfiest spot wins out.