laugh, learn, & love

Let's Get Soaking Wet

I am not your typical Spring Break going college student, well at least not until this year. My past Spring Break trips included visiting my friend's house in snowy Pennsylvania and visiting my aunt in Florida. Not exactly MTV worthy trips. However, this year 8 of my closest friends and I decided to go all out. Let's go to Acapulco, we said. Not going to lie, I was scared. And I was nervous for so many reasons, but now that we have all returned safely from our trip, I realize how silly I was to be scared. Acapulco was essentially seven days of dancing until 6am followed by long naps in the sun each day. I needed a vacation to re-energize myself before I entered into home stretch (51 days until graduation...AH), and even though I came home more exhausted than ever,  the time away from work and school and responsibility certainly did me a ton of good. I danced a lot (and realized I am a GREAT dancer), slept a little, only burnt slightly, developed a love for house and techno music, and made great memories, all of which are documented on my camera. Spring Break Acapulco 2008: Total Success.

If I were Sarah Lacy....

So I am totally not one to pass judgment on or offer criticism of Sarah Lacy’s interview with Mark Zuckerberg this past weekend at SXSW. If you are looking for some criticism and professional insight, check out Jeff Jarvis’ post on the interview. He makes some great points and can offer a more experienced take on the interview than I can.

However, I was there too. I was very excited to hear Mark speak and, regardless of my opinions on how the interview was conducted, I decided to come up with some questions that I would have asked Mark. Now, I am not a developer, entrepreneur, journalist, or marketing guru. I am a 21 yr old college student who is about to graduate and start a career in the online world, but I still have some questions. And yes, my questions probably pertain mostly to me, but I still feel like Mark's answers to them would be valuable. (Note: I know that 10 questions will not suffice for a successful interview, but these are serving as my jumping off point.)

[Scene: The SXSW Interactive Festival. Sunday March 9, 2007. 2:00pm Austin Convention Center. Ballroom A.]
[Stage Direction: Techno music fades. Mark and I sit down. We great the audience and Mark tells everyone how excited he is to be at SXSW.  Queue Interview]

1. Sum up Facebook’s mission in two minutes…..Ready? Go!
2. Has that been your mission from the beginning or has your vision for the future of Facebook changed at all over the past 4 years? What are you, as the CEO, most concerned with and focused on?
3. Everyone knows that you aren’t focused on an IPO and are more focused on building a solid product. What steps has Facebook taken in recent months to work towards your goal of building this product?
5. So you have recently started to go global by launching in Spain and Germany. When do you think that all of Facebook will be available in these languages, since as of now only the homepages are available in different languages and applications and games are still only available in English? Can you speak to what kind of affects you foresee this expansion having on the company and on the global social space in general.
6. Okay, so what was the deal with Beacon? Can you talk about what lead Facebook to add Beacon? Why did everyone disapprove of it so much? And what steps did you take to remedy it?
7. I personally think that Facebook Platform is a genius idea, regardless of the fact that I don’t love most of the applications people create. On the other hand, some people see receiving requests upon requests to add applications as very annoying. Can you talk a little bit about how Facebook Platform started and also about the goals you have for Platform? How do you think Platform will help you reach your goals of creating this final product?
8.  How do you feel about employers using Facebook to stalk and judge potential hires? Did you ever anticipate this as a potential outcome?
9.  What is the one piece of advice you’d give to entrepreneurs that are just starting out? Looking back, if you could change one thing you did, what would it be?
10. What is the hardest part of being a 23 yr old CEO in Silicon Valley? What is your favorite part of being a 23 yr old CEO in Silicon Valley?

 

SXSW Wrap-Up

So I can basically sum up my SXSW experience in five words: It's all about the people.

I interacted with a whole slew of amazing people this weekend, whether it was face-to-face or just by listening to them speak during a panel. I wish I hadn't gotten sick so that I could have spent more time with everyone at night, but it was getting hard to hold a conversation without coughing uncontrollably. I'm sure everyone thanks me for not spreading my germs everywhere.

A couple of shout outs: Rachel Strate works for a VC firm in Utah.  Shawn Morton, the 4th best guitar hero player in the world, lives in KY and is a product development manager. He also co-founded Profilactic, a life streaming service that basically grabs everything you create and do online and puts it all in one place. Last but not least, the crew from DailyIdea.tv - Nikki Key, Jason Falls, and Todd Earwood. I had a great time with all of you! Thanks for making my
1st SXSW a success.

I would have to say my favorite panel was the Core Conversation: 10 Ways to Piss of a Blogger. I am very new to this and space and I found it incredibly helpful to hear from veteran bloggers what annoys them and what they absolutely can't stand in the way of other bloggers pitching ideas to them. I also really enjoyed Denise Shiffman's  book reading: "The Age of Engage: Reinventing Marketing for Today's Connected, Collaborative, and Hyperinteractive Culture". The presentation was so clear and organized and very helpful for someone like myself who is not yet well versed in the Internet marketing lingo. Two thumbs up! I am looking forward to reading her book and see what other insight she has to offer.

I learned so much in Austin- all about social media, a little bit about Facebook, marketing, that guitar hero is the greatest game ever created, how to be a great blogger and the about secrets to networking. And on top of that, I left SXSW with two new loves: Twitter and  Postsecret. (Postsecret will totally change your outlook on everything- so unique.) All in all not a bad weekend.   

what i've learned so far at sxsw

So I knew before coming to SXSW that it was going to be an incredible learning experience, and only two days in I have learned a ton. I have been attending panels and discussion groups and learning from some of the most prominent people in the industry. Sure, I've learned the basics: how to attract and keep an audience, how the marketing landscape has changed, how to engage users in the sensory overloaded environment that is the Internet, and how to pitch bloggers (well, really how NOT to approach bloggers.)

However, I have also learned some other fascinating things.
1. If I ever design a convention center, the escalators will go to all floors, and not from the 1st straight to the 4th.
2. Guitar Hero is amazing and it is something that everyone should at least try once. It is a great distraction and a great way to meet people.
3. People love giving out business cards- it's almost like a game. "How many can I give out today?" For a lot of people these conventions are just places to network and not necessarily places to learn. And during my first two days here, part of me has come to believe that SXSW is more successful at connecting people than it is at teaching people- which isn't a bad thing.
4. Tech people are nice, in a very unassuming, unpretentious, genuine, "I actually care what you are working on" kind of way.  My kind of people. (Except for the Google man who thought the closer he spoke to the mic the more important he would sound.)
5. I am addicted to Twitter.

All in all, my weekend in Austin has been beautiful and a complete success. Tomorrow will only add to the already great weekend I've had. (Side note: Even though I have come down with a nasty cough, have a fever, and am 5 coughs away from losing my voice, I still think this weekend was amazing.)

More to come on my last day at SXSW....

I think I like Texas

I'm down in Texas for SXSW with Path 101 and I've only been here for about 7 hours but I have already met some great people. Best thing about Austin so far... there is an entire street of bars. A street of nothing but bars. Crazy. I also saw the Dizzy Rooster... anyone else watch Real World: Austin? Oh the good old days.

I am having a great time so far. I am looking forward to all of the panels tomorrow (or I guess later today) and am definately looking forward to meeting tons of new people. Everyone is so different and yet we all have so much in common- it's really quite amazing. I can't wait to post more about the panels.

No shirts. No shoes. No problems.

Stressed out is the only way to describe my current state of mind. It has become increasingly clear to me over the past week that I just take on too much, leaving little time for anything other the things I am committed to.  Classes/midterms + internship + part time job + rugby = a very busy and stressed out Danielle this week. But at least I have something to look forward to...namely SXSW this weekend and Acapulco next week!  I am excited to get out of my crazy routine for a couple weeks and have a little change of pace. Even though I am a total creature of habit and love a nice structured routine, sometimes a change really can do some good.

Where have all the pictures gone?

So I totally understand why companies check out potential job candidates on Facebook and other sites before hiring them. You can get a better feel for who someone is by looking at his or her interests and pictures and often learn more about a candidate than you would from a resume.  However,  Facebook was not designed to be a place for employers  to screen and stalk potential hires. It was meant to be a place where friends could share content and keep in touch with each other. It's getting very difficult to stay up to date with my friends' lives when they are removing all of their pictures in fear of a potential employer seeing a picture of them with a beer bottle.  Ok- detag the embarrassing, inappropriate pictures. Change your privacy settings. But do you really have to remove all of your pictures?

breathe. stretch. shake. let it go.

I know very few college students who have an internship, a part time job, a full class load, play a sport and have an active social life. I am proud to be one of those few and am usually (usually!) very impressed with my time management skills, but it often leaves me with very little time for anything else, including working out and other hobbies. I really enjoyed reading the tips that Greg Verdino mentioned when he was talking about workaholics. I love being busy and I often forget that I am 21 and sometimes need to relax a little. I can only imagine what it is going to be like when I graduate and (hopefully) find a job I am incredibly passionate about. If I can't motivate myself to find time to relax now, will I ever be able to? Thanks for the insight and advice.

my favorite facebook group

 I’ve been following apophenia’s posts about social networking technologies in the classroom and I am going to have to agree. With regard to Facebook, I think that it can be so valuable and completely alter the classroom environment.  One of my favorite classes in college has been one where the professor formed a Facebook group, and since the class was very open and conversational, we all utilized the discussion board constantly. It was a great way to share thoughts and bounce ideas off each other- not to mention the best way to get missed assignments or study buddies. Additionally, some students aren’t comfortable speaking up in class so writing on discussion boards really gives every student a chance to voice their opinion, no matter how timid they are. Blackboard, the service that Fordham encourages professors to use, has the same discussion board feature, but my experience with those boards is disappointing- they never seem to live up to that wonderful Facebook group. Facebook is something that students enjoy crawling through and hanging out on. Whenever I am logged onto Blackboard I feel like I’m doing homework and I can never really enjoy what I am reading or writing on the boards. I would guess I’m not alone. However, I used to look forward to reading my class’ discussion board on Facebook, because I felt like I was just hanging out with my classmates and professor on Facebook, when in fact I was doing homework and learning.  I have suggested it in classes since, only to be turned down.  Students and teachers alike don’t seem to be open to the idea of mixing education with personal profiles and often embarrassing photos.  To most students Facebook is a place where you can keep in touch with friends and generally be playful -a place to escape from classes and professors, and I think it is going to take some time before students are ready to let professors and their classmates, who aren’t necessarily their friends, into their Facebook lives.

Hello World.

Hey there everyone! My name is Danielle Collins and I am a senior at Fordham University and am studying Communications and Urban Studies. I am the marketing intern for Path 101 and am extremely excited about this internship, as it's an entirely new adventure for me. I will be working on the marketing team and will also handle some of the public relations tasks.

For the past year I was a Public Relations intern at a large New York City based NPO and after learning as much as possible, I felt that it was time for a change. I found PATH 101 online and was immediately drawn to the concept and mission. I genuinely feel as though every single college-aged person could benefit from Path 101, as well as established professionals who are looking for a change. Personally, I can't wait to use it! I feel that career advice is something that everyone needs and virtually nobody receives. Path 101 addresses this problem in such a unique and interactive way that I think it has the potential to be immensely popular and incredibly helpful.

The best career advice I ever received came to me from a yoga instructor, who relayed this Arnold Toynbee quote to me: “The supreme accomplishment is to blur the line between work and play.” As I graduate from college and begin my transition into the working world my goal is to develop a career path that I am passionate about and one that allows me to find genuine joy in my work and happiness in my life.

As online marketing is a completely new endeavor for me, I would love and greatly appreciate any advice, stories or insight that you have to offer.