I finally got around to throwing up some paint with my man Pose2 and his graffiti class. It had been a while (couple months) since I last held a can and, because the last go-around was so disappointing, I was afraid it might happen again.

I’m never COMPLETELY satisfied with the outcome but I’m definitely internalizing the idea of taking my time, moving deliberately, and taking the artwork line by line. It’s very easy, with spray paint, to rush through things and end up with a sloppy, ugly piece. The timing and movement is critical to (a) avoid drips and (b) ensure line consistency. I find spray paint to be a frustrating but eye-opening medium to work with. You HAVE to allow for a certain level of messiness but you’re also aware that you can be very neat if you have the skills and patience.

Personally, I find more “zen” and enjoyment in the drawing. It’s interesting to me to have constraints (like letters) but be free to express them however I wish. I do much better with a pencil and pen than I do with a can of spray paint. To be honest, each time I finish a piece, I’m ready to give up on the aerosol portion of the artwork. Still, I keep coming back and, typically, I’m glad I did.

These pictures were taken by a professional photographer who showed up to snap a few. You can find her work at www.creativeshake.com/karin. She showed Pose and I some of her other work on her iPhone (great way to carry around a portfolio) and we were blown away. She’s got a very broad talent and her composition was just fanstastic. She really knows the angles! Thanks for the copies, Karin.

The rest are off of my phone so pardon the quality (or complete lack thereof).

I built a blog a couple weeks ago for a very talented teacher and graffiti artist who stays here in San Diego. We were both excited to create something that could easily hold updates and be a central place for fans and potential clients. It has an urban feeling but is still classy, well-laid-out, and very functional.

So, now he’s got this blog… how does he build this blog up. The actual question:

ok so my blog is hooked up how do i send it and link it to other peoples sites… get it out there?

This is a key question, especially for someone who wants to use the internet to gani a bit of exposure. His current web presence is very static and not easy to manuever at all. The blog was my idea and, by the time I had explained it to him, he loved it.

So, here’s what I told him, appended after the fact with a bit more information.

Spread the word, my friend.

First things first, send an email to every email address you’ve got. Tell them about it, what it’s there for, and they they should expect to see. Even better, announce your intentions ON the blog itself as well.

Activate that friend and family network, that is step one. The people close to you and your existing fans want to hear more than anyone else how and what you are doing. The great part about running a blog that is tied into your personal life is that the news of your life can be slightly re-purposed and presented publicly. I like to use this site as somewhere I can announce what I’ve got going on and really analyze them completely. For me, writing about something either gels it in my head or it removes it completely. Sometimes I’ve got too much to say about something and can’t stop typing - these topics are ones I explore further and continually write about. Then, sometimes I think I’ve got something to say and I can’t write anything - these topics are ones I can forget about.

I’m digressing a bit (surprise, surprise) but the first thing to do is to send an email to every email address you have in your mail programs (that you can match up with a name). Here are a few resources to export your contacts:

• Export contacts from GMail
• Export contacts from Hotmail
• Export contacts from Yahoo

When you write, make sure to use the words you expect people to use when they search for what you do. Think of what words people might be using to find people who do what you do, feel me? For example, you teach graffiti techniques so think of the phrases people might be using to find that (”graffiti class” “graffiti classes San Diego” “can control” “how to write graffiti”). Be descriptive in your title and in heading text. Let me know if I lost you on that.

This is speaking to keyword research. I’m planning a few articles on how I do keyword research in the near future so I’m not going to go into depth but the KEY is this: you want to use words that people will use to search for what you have. This is confusing at first but pay attention and you’ll get it.

You probably use a specific set of words to describe what you do for people (in terms of your product, your service, your art, your instruction, etc). You use words that make sense to you and that paint an accurate picture of what you do. Now, imagine someone with whom you had coffee and to whom you explained your whole shebang needed to explain your shebang to someone else. Now, what if that next person needed to do the same. If you got two or three (maybe even the first one too) away from the original conversation, the words being used to describe what you do are not the words that YOU used originally. This is the first step towards understanding how to pick keywords.

So, for example, I might describe myself as a technology generalist, a tamer of technology, or a tech strategist, there are very few (read: no) people searching for this on the internet (yet). For my keywords, I need to pick things that people will search for to find me. These might be “build a web presence” or “design a personal web page” or “company email marketing.” I need to find words that people use to find the services that I’m offering.

Next, you’re going to want to try and find people who are doing similar or related things on the web and participate in what they’ve got going on. Go here http://blogsearch.google.com and start plugging in words that pertain to what you do. Do the same in regular Google. Start commenting on blogs, posting in forums, and connecting online. Also, sign up for Facebook if you haven’t already.

I’m talking about blatant and targeted self-promotion. Ready to virtually network?

I’ll say this: there are a million ways to go about this but, from personal experience, there is nothing more boring, unsatisfying, and time-wasting then spending several hours a day promoting yourself to people you don’t know. It’s boring because it’s repetitive, it’s unsatisfying because there’s a million other schmucks doing the same thing, and it’s time-wasting because it takes your attention away from the important things in life: relationship and creation.

I use Twitter (now) because I find a lot of great links, get some helpful information, and really enjoy the format and portability (I can add widgets to several other websites). I use Facebook because I have a lot of friends on there, it keeps me in touch with school people, and it makes me feel closer to home. I use LinkedIn because I see a lot of potential and meet some interesting people on there. I also use these tools to gently promote what I’m doing but that’s NOT the major reason I’m on any of those sites.

Read and comment on blogs because you like what someone had to say or this is a person you’d like to meet locally. I tried the “blatant self-promotion” half-heartedly for a month and found myself feeling like a blithering douche. This is why I don’t do “networking events” or anything like that. I like to talk to people that I respect, are interested in, or just like for no good reason. It’s very difficult for me (thought possible) to socialize with people simply to build the number of connections I have. I know this might be a great way to make sales or climb the ladder but it’s not interesting.

To be seen and heard online, you don’t need to trick people, you need to offer information and content that is unique, interesting, and useful. If you feel like it, just start writing about art, making art, what the experience means to you, what you learned the other day. You don’t need to write a diary but put words down that you would be likely to say to aspiring artists. Your blog will start doing its job if you’re making it important to you and start thinking “hmmm, that should go on my blog.” What starts out as somewhat of a chore eventually becomes an important piece of your day-to-day.

This is the kind of self-promotion that I do.

I’m not looking to trick someone into clicking on a link and reading my blog just so my Google stats look better. I’m also not interested in writing for a bigger audience about shit I don’t care about. I didn’t feel exactly like this a year ago but it’s what I’ve settled into. I’ll play the SEO game a bit, I’ll optimise my blog as much as possible, and I’ll spend time picking out keywords but, in terms of actual content, I’m going to write what I want to write… it’s the only way it gets done.

I used to write a blog about sustainable transportation. I followed the news religiously, went to events, and revelled in my own green lifestyle. It was fun, I got a few clicks, and made a few e-friends. But, after some time, it wasn’t much fun for me to stay on top of things. I enjoyed reading about it more than I did writing about it. Also, there were other much bigger, much more powerful blogs doing what I did only better. I became a aggregator for some of their content with a bit of commentary on top.

Now, I write about my career, what I’m learning, what I’m doing, and how this can help other people. I’m building this up slowly and still struggling to find my voice. However, like when I started the other blog, the words are just pouring out of me. I don’t have to sit in front of a monitor and STRUGGLE to find the words to say. I write about the web and science and tech and what I’m doing and it just feels natural.

Blogging, now, is a release for me rather than a chore. This is the only way to keep a blog going. It might even be a good thing not to monitor your audience (if you’re not interested in making money from advertisements). It’s like dieting without a scale: the depression of not losing weight can easily outweigh (har har) the elation of losing a couple pounds.

So, that’s my honest take on starting a blog from scratch. Do it because you like it and don’t assume you don’t like it because you have no idea what you’re doing. Really put yourself into it, find your voice, and screw what others are doing. Then, make sure the most amount of people know about what you’re doing in ways that are sustainable for your life.

Good luck! Come find me on Facebook or Twitter if you want to chat some more

Pose2 interview - 5th Door from Josh Cunningham on Vimeo.

I read somewhere that the worst thing that could happen to someone, especially someone with any kind of entrepreneurial spirit, is a great idea. Great ideas suck the life out of you, turn you into an obsessed lunatic, and can leave you with an empty home and an empty bank account.

After this last 2 weeks, I totally understand what that means.

See, I had a great idea at the end of last month. It started out as a cool idea (which is far less dangerous) but after talking with someone else about it, it turned into a really good idea. Now, after several brainstorming sessions, it’s become a GREAT idea and there’s no turning back.

I wanted to write about this great idea not to actually introduce the idea (because that would be silly at this point) but to chronicle what’s going on and what I’m doing about it. I look forward to more of these great ideas in the future and I hope to learn from my mistakes as well as my good moves. Also, if you have a GREAT idea and don’t know where to start, maybe this will help.

First, find someone.

Find someone and find them quickly, especially if you have sense that your idea is a really good one. Find someone you trust and find someone that knows what they’re talking about with respect to your idea. If you have a software idea, talking to an English major might not be too helpful, especially as you’re trying to put the different pieces together.

Also, make sure this is someone you can trust. The chances that your idea would be stolen and implemented without credit to you is pretty low but the closer to zero the better.

So, step one, go talk to someone you trust, someone that knows what they’re talking about, and someone that might want to help. It might be hard to find the right person but this is a critical step. Here’s a few hints:

• How did you figure this idea out? Is there someone you work with that could help you? Be very careful about the fine line between proprietary information from the company and your own idea. The closer tied to the company you work for, the easier it might be to get sued.
• Are you in school? Professors are great resources for things like this. They like to help students (most of them) and it’s unlikely they would be motivated to steal your stuff.
• In my opinion, finding someone you trust is the most important thing. If you don’t have anyone that really knows what you’re doing, at least find someone with half-a-brain that you can trust.

Talk to this person you find, blab the whole idea, and then get their honest feedback.

Second, get it down on PAPER.

Literally on paper. Paper and pen is underrated these days (ever thought that would be said). Write furiously, draw sketches of what it looks like, take notes, just get it all down. Get the idea as it is and get the idea of what it could be. Write down everything you want it to do/be and everything it could do/be. Get everything down, the bad, the good, the ridiculous, the impossible, put it all down. Do this with the person from above if they want to be involved or by yourself if not. Keep taking notes for a few days, mull it over, let it sink in.

The other thing to say about this step is that you might find yourself with an incomplete plan and a sudden urge not to chase after this idea. You also might get so caught up in planning this thing out that you never end up doing it. Be very “present-minded” as you’re planning out your idea so you don’t miss any internal red flags and yuo’re sure you want to commit a piece of your life to this project.

There’s no substitute for a good plan that outlines everything you could expect in the beginning but don’t wear yourself out planning absolutely every single move you are going to make.

Third, get it down on computer.

Now it’s time to boil that plan down a bit. Type your notes up and start mocking things up that need pictures. Here’s a few tips:

• When you transfer into a computer, write it in the most functional way you can. If your idea is a new business, format it like a business plan. This won’t be your final copy but the closer to the final copy you can be thinking, the less work later.
• If you’re working with 2 or more people on this, use something like Zoho or Google Docs so everyone can share. There’s no reason to be emailing master documents between people and risk losing changes. Just put it on line and relieve some stress.
• Remember to always be painting a picture. If you can use Photoshop, make realistic models of the interface you want to design or the web page you want to build. Make a video, draw something on paper and scan it into your computer, take a screenshot of a similar site and change it around in a Paint program. You’re going to need to explain things to people eventually (or right away) and if you can show them a little piece of the reality you’re creating, you’ll go a long way towards selling them on the concept.

Fourth, think long and hard about the money, the time, and the marketing.

Listen, I haven’t been neck deep in business forever but if there’s one thing that I know it’s that this is where things quickly break down. If you’re taking out loans for this great idea, you better have a solid plan on how you’re going to pay them back. If you’re using your down payment money for your house, make sure you have things in place to pay yourself back.

Also, consider how much time you really have to put towards this project. If you off-the-cuff assume that you’ll do all the HTML or writing or layout work but you have a full-time job and a family, think again. Time doesn’t just come from nowhere and you may have to resort to paying people to accelerate the process. Figure in extra money for staff, for incidentals, and for yourself.

Finally, and this might be the hardest, come up with a plan for how you’re going to get the word out there. Great products, great websites, and great blogs don’t just appear and suddenly become popular. Even if you’re offering the most amazing thing in the world, you’re still going to need to get the word out there.

Come up with an idea of how many people you need to reach and then figure out how you’re going to talk to those people. You can’t just say “email marketing” if you don’t have already have a list of people that want to hear from you (unless you’re a spammer). Your marketing plan won’t go anywhere if the only thing written down is “website.” How will people find your website?

Good luck with your great ideas!

I have a friend who works as a recruiter for Microsoft and, though I’ve never actually worked side-by-side with him, I know his work ethic, his commitment, and his intelligence well enough to respect anything he has to say about all things employment related.

I’m at a crossroads between several different career paths and, though I know, for the most part, what I want to do and what I don’t want to do, the state of the job market and the industries themselves have to play a part in my decision. On my own, I can only know about career opportunities by what I read in blogs and what I experience myself so, at time like these, it’s good to have someone to talk to that can put it all into perspective.

Microsoft’s perfect developer job description

I asked my friend to tell me what kind of trends he is seeing in online design/development (if any). Where does he think things are moving? More importantly, where is the money? Is it worth it to learn a language or use your people skills?

Here’s what he had to say (verbatim but broken down):

I think that the online design/development world is currently going through some major changes.  This is both product wise as well as company/business wise.  Over the past year there have been a lot of changes around Adobe, Corel, Apple and even here at MS.  Check out Expression, if you haven’t, to see some of the things that we are starting to do.  I think a large trend is moving from overall design to building experience that are truly media rich (video, interactive, etc).

I just started working with Expression Blend 2 to design a Windows user interface for a developing piece of software. This software allows you to draw things in completely scalable format and then see the XAML code that was created. I liken this to being able to draw vector graphics in Adobe Illustrator and then seeing the equations that are needed to make the artwork.

The application also lets you manage the “code behind” files (created in a language that I don’t understand like C# ["see-sharp"]) which creates an interesting “generalist” situation where I can have a hand in both the aesthetic design and the application code itself.

The implications behind this situation is that versatility is poised to become a skill in and of itself. There will always be a need for a specicalist but the Henry Ford style production line scenario, in software design at least, is going the way of the dinosaurs. If you’re taking computer science classes, it might behoove you to also pick up a few art classes or a digital design minor if it is available.

Taking this idea a step further, picking up two (or more) different disciplines at the same time means that you’re going to sacrifice something: sleep, your life, or absolute mastery of either. In order to be the best at something, it takes lots of practice which stems from complete commitment. It would be impossible (or, at least, undesirable) to put in the work to become the best, say, formula one driver AND the best short story writer; one of the two must suffer. But, if your intention was to simply blend the two as best you could and become really good in both, this is possible. You could probably become a world-ranked driver and someone who wrote great short stories (about racing, likely).

How do you build skills that are needed? Branch out.

To become a great designer and a great software developer, you would need to bring the two together. I would say that web development does this very easily. As a rule, if you’re writing usable, good-looking web pages on your own then you’re going to need a solid sense of layout and style as well as a good eye for syntax and, if you’re using Javascript or PHP, some idea of functions, variables, and good programming practices. Bringing it all together successfully means that you’ve learned all of this and practice it on a regular basis. There is just no way to be the top technology blogger with an award-winning blog that you designed and built yourself along with custom sidebar widgets implemented by you. Show me this guy or gal and I’ll show you my resignation from the field. You can, however, understand search engines, have a polished writing style, know how to construct themes, know enough PHP to not ruin anything, have a sense of design, and put it all together on-line. Understanding each of these skills and also knowing your resources well enough not to memorize everything is key.

This idea of versatility was echoed by another person at Microsoft I talked to recently. He works for the MSN team and has a background in journalism. He said (paraphrased):

There are amazing developers out there. These people can write code that works well all day long. There are also great graphic designers out there. But the person with great development skill and a strong sense of aesthetics is the one I’m hiring on the spot.

Versatility is key and there is nothing better to convey versatility than to actually SHOW versatility. Learn Blend and create something in it. Create something in Illustrator, modify it in Photoshop, then start a blog and post it on the web. It’s one thing to read the books and it’s a whole other to use the skills, hone them, practice them, and put yourself out there.

Answering my money question, the Microsoft recruiter said:

The money is in all of these areas, especially if you are using the latest products and are well versed in the product offerings that are out there.  If you already have some language knowledge, or know how to work with managed code such as Java or C#, etc. and have people skills, then you are in a good position.  If you look at the .NET Developer Platform and Visual Studio as well as other developer tools, more time is spent on creating a rich experience (application, UI or whatever) and less on overall coding.  That is why companies like MS make these tools for developers.  So, basically, if you can master the use of these and code ad hoc, then, IMO you are set up fairly well.

I’m the type of picky person who wants a career doing things I enjoy AND I want to get paid well doing it. Am I asking for too much? I don’t think so.

Should you learn a new programming language? The answer is yes.

There are hundreds of programming languages currently in use around the world so knowing one language perfectly is probably to your detriment. If, however, you understand the concepts of syntax, systems architecture, and variables very well and are able to use several different languages, you are set up well for progressing in the future. When you start a new job or gain a new client, there is a variable learning curve based on information related to that job. If, for example, you learned Adobe Flash and Actionscript perfectly, you might have a hard time picking up the Javascript that is necessary for one job. Being knowledgeable and able in several different disciplines shows that you are flexible and able to pick up new skills. It also becomes more likely that you’ll find a job that requires one of your existing skills.

The other part in that paragraph that it’s easy to breeze over is the comment about having people skills. I’ve worked in several different industries and, let me tell you, there is no substitute for a positive attitude and an open mind. In my own experience, there are more people that think that their skills excuse them from getting along with others than those who put their people skills first and their productive skills, robust as they may be, second. Especially in the sciences, being personable and likable goes a long way.

Last but not least, my recruiter friend makes a very astute observation about the tools available to people these days. While I choose to write HTML in a notepad, there are tools out there like Dreamweaver that are making it easier and easier to create great content without being a ten year veteran of a certain piece of software or coding language. This speaks directly to my mission statement, helping people do more with the technology available to them. You might want to get into design or upholstery or personal training but don’t know where to start or how to manage everything that needs to be done. Through Google, blogs, free software, and a plan, you can do a lot more with your time than you ever thought possible.

The relics of the past clinging to old processes, dusty and stagnant tradition, and archaic methods are finally beginning to see some competition from people who know how to manage their time and are smart enough and brave enough to see past the status quo and blaze a new path. The people clinging on to the “same old same old” are getting surpassed, naturally, by those who have an open mind. Maybe the old way to do things is a way that’s going to be around for a while (think about books and the Amazon Kindle) but if you’re not at least looking at other options then you’re going to be blindsided when change happens.

Just think of all the industries, products, and companies that seemed like they would be around forever - newspapers, fax machines, radio, any of the number of collapsed financial institutions. When you assume nothing is going to change and when you take it for granted that the way things are is the way  they will continue (and the way they should be without question), you put on the figurative blinders. Learning new tools, new techniques, new pieces of software, meeting new people, trying new things… these all either lead to great new innovations and change they way everything is done for the better OR they reinforce what is already in place which is just as good. Nothing has replaced HTML as a web presentation language (unless you count XHTML which I guess you could) because there isn’t anything better right now. What did affect HTML was CSS and now that’s the standard. Sadly, there are still people coding exclusively in HTML but this won’t go on forever.

So, there’s a bit of job advice from a guy in the know and a little analysis from the guy who breaks it all down. If you think you match what they’re looking for up there in Redmond, feel free to send me your resume and I’ll pass it on!