philgo

Running, products and thoughts.

November 1, 2011

If it’s your company, then it’s your fault

If you’re a co-founder,  CEO or simply the boss of the company, everything that sucks about it or that fails is your fault.

Don’t even think of blaming the new guy, the young guy or the guy who left for a week in the Bahamas.

If one does not know what to do, is not qualified or hasn’t documented how to re-configure the message queue system, it’s because you weren’t there to make sure things were OK.

So next time you’re about to send an email to blame someone, forward it to yourself.

 

 

October 28, 2011

Stop listening. Just Build It.

Paris Ave. Stop Sign

I have a focus problem like most people who likes to build stuff. Therefore I am glad to be surrounded by people that get me back on track when I talk about nice-to-have or features that won’t really move the needle to get us where we want to go.

But I’ve stopped listening to anyone that do not believe in the product vision shared by my co-founder and myself. That do not believe what we envision can be built and disrupt things (no buzzword intended).

Every time you listen, you allow doubts to creep in. Useless. You have no time or energy for that.

Stop listening. Just Build It.

 

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October 20, 2011

#StealThisIdea : Todo List + Google Maps

I like optimization, especially when running errands during the weekend.

I always find myself figuring the best route to complete all tasks.

What do I want?

An app to …

  • Alert me when I am close to a business related to an item on my TODO (integration with YellowPages API?).
  • Integration with Google Maps so when I plan a route (by car, bike or transit), it chooses not the shortest path but the better usage of my commute and my trips to scratch off items from my TODO list.

NOTE: found that old (2007) post about something like that, but with antiquated technology and UX. Give me an iPhone/Android app.

October 18, 2011

2 choices, 1 rule

Choices

I don’t understand how the world got so screwed up when things are simple.

You have 2 choices:

  • Do what you really want
  • Spend you life thinking about what it could have been

There’s 1 rule:

  • Don’t do to someone else what you don’t want to be done to you

All problem comes from people making the wrong choice on step 1 or breaking THE rule.

September 17, 2011

Sean McBride, Founder of Amnesty International

I was just reading about the infamous Sabra and Shatila massacre (this horrendous event celebrated its birthday the day after 9/11,  but is much less talked about) and learned about a great man: Sean McBride, one of the founding figures of Amnesty International. He chaired on the 1982 independent commission that concluded that the Israeli authorities or forces were, directly or indirectly, responsible. The year after, an Israeli commission reached the same conclusion.

This ex-IRA leader received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1974.

Seán MacBride (26 January 1904 – 15 January 1988) was an Irish government minister[1] and prominent international politician as well as a Chief of Staff of the IRA.

Rising from a domestic Irish political career, he founded or participated in many international as well asnon-governmental organizations of the early 20th century, including the United Nations, the Council of Europe, and Amnesty International. He received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1974, the Lenin Peace Prizefor 1975–76, and the UNESCO Silver Medal for Service in 1980.

Read More on wikipedia.

 

September 8, 2011

Simple trick to find developers and designers on Twitter

I just wrote a short sourcing post on matchFWD. It’s a very simple trick I’ve been using to identify mostly developers and designers out of my network. It works for a much broader range of occupation but it’s probably particularly good for theses guys.

So picture this, what if every time you find a potential candidate on Twitter, you’d find an extra 5 or more? Sounds good right?

Read more.

July 26, 2011

Just start talking about it

Introvert

I’ve been working with software engineers for 13 years, more often than not as one of them.

They come in various shapes and types but often as slightly introverted people. Not always the most talkative.

They’re smart people, so if they have a problem, they will talk about it. But if not, they often just do their thing.

I am not a big fan of meetings in general. But I think it’s good to force your team to talk to other devs about exactly what they’re doing, just to get feedback. Maybe a co-worker

  • has solved that problem before
  • knows a great library to do it
  • will tell you it’s simply not worth going that route for X or Y.

So if the office space has been silent for too long and nobody is committing code, start talking. Ask to ignite conversations, don’t wait for them to ask for help.

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