Trapped in Time

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.

I’ve been working for two straight hours finishing up the layout of the homepage for a client (and I didn’t even check my dashboard for most of that time).  For whatever reason I’ve found myself particularly productive and creative late at night.

This is one of the nicer perks of owning your own small business; yet, I’m worthless in the morning and haven’t even been awaking until 10-11 A.M.  I’ve never been much of a morning person though, so I have to believe that rather than wasting those hours behind a desk, I’m much better off spending them asleep and being productive later in the evening.  A small, but valuable luxury.

…that a dream is a wish your heart makes when you’re fast asleep. And for the first time in what feels like years, I can clearly remember - at least most of - the details of a dream I had. I was running down a beach as the sun was rising (so vividly I can be certain it was not setting); running at a comfortable pace, but with what felt like completely unencumbered strides, nothing stopping me from moving as fast as I wanted to. The beach was empty, and as I began to notice this fact within my dream, my running slowed. I slowed until I stopped, turned, and looked all around to make sure I really was alone. And without second thought, I shed my shorts and ran as fast as I could for the ocean. Naked as the day I was born. And even within the dream I felt the exhilaration of the cold morning water take my breath away and run through me, head to toe. A rush, perhaps because I had the freedom to make that happen, or because of the spontaneity of the decision. Whatever it was, it jarred me when I woke up today and remembered all of it.

Now - not so different from the dream itself - for the first time in my adult life, I feel like I have complete control and clarity of the situation that is… me. My life. Somewhere during the past five years, over the course of earning two degrees, I became caught up in all the bullshit I heard day after day. I got caught up in being part of a school or part of a program that would get me a job with some admired/sought-after/coveted position. Not so much caught up in what one would usually associate with all that. Not caught up in arrogance, narcissism, or greed, but caught up in what everyone else thought I was cut out to do, what everyone thought was best for me.

I can’t say with certainty that I won’t end up taking a job with a consulting firm or corporation in the city, but for the first time in years I am truly motivated to learn, excel, achieve, improve, explore, discover new facets of myself; to become more creative, to look at problems in ways a business school wouldn’t and certainly didn’t teach me; to work for myself, earn for myself, to do it on my own. And it probably won’t be all that easy. I also realize that some of the people who I thought were behind me, with me, on my side… well, they’ll probably be laughing, scoffing at what a loser/jackass/[insert word for one not living up to one’s own potential here], maybe even hoping I fail. None of that matters, and quite frankly I feel sorry for those people if they’re going to judge me because I didn’t go down the same path as they chose.

When I was fourteen years old, I was making over a grand a month (a lot for a fourteen year old) just running a website that I started for the fun of it. I was getting paid to work for myself, to manage a few employees. I had contacts at some of the largest media companies in the country, at fourteen and fifteen years old!! I told my parents and my friends that I wanted to go to college so I could own my own business, be my own boss. Somewhere between 19 and 21 I lost track of that, and stopped even mentioning it, which I didn’t even realize until my dad mentioned it to me the other day: “I know the past couple months haven’t been easy, but I’m excited for you, and I actually hope you see this through. For awhile I didn’t think you were really willing to take the chance to do it yourself, but I’m glad you are because it makes me proud that you’re starting to do what I know you are capable of. If I had it to do over again, I think I would have liked to work for myself too.”

Maybe it’s taken putting down the (non-crack) pipe [that on many days made bearable what probably wasn’t even all that beneficial for me in the first place] to regain the desire to go out and achieve something meaningful for myself (and it’s not as if I haven’t achieved much in the past five years), but I think it’s much bigger than that. I finally have stepped outside of a non-comfort zone that I’ve been stuck in for so long at school. I’m not worried about whether I work for a Deloitte or E&Y, and I don’t have anyone around trying to convince me any of that is for me, or that I’m meant for them.

Only in an academic environment can people make you think you need them (or need to pay them) to get a good job - even a great job - or to be happy. I’m happy, I know I’m prepared as anyone could be, and I know that I can provide for myself. So maybe a dream is not the wish your heart makes when it’s asleep, but what your heart wants when you’re awake and alive. And I certainly feel more alive and optimistic right now than I have in years.