An Open Letter to Paul Ryan

Category : Political Science & Economics
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Representative Ryan,

I’m a 25 year old technology entrepreneur originally from Milwaukee, WI.  I went to school at the University of Wisconsin and have stayed in Madison after graduating in 2009 to start another web business.

I’ve followed your career with interest since I first heard about you sometime during high school.  I’ve always been impressed with your views on the economy and your willingness to propose solutions to issues that other politicians have been unwilling to take on.  This is exactly what we need from our politicians.

It was great see you take on some of the political third rails of our budget process when you released your Roadmap for America.  While I don’t agree with everything in your new budget proposal, I’m extremely happy to see you proposing real solutions to the huge problems we face as a country.

I’m writing today to tell you to keep up the good work, but I also want to implore you to not fall into the trap of veering right on the social issues and falling into the religious right.  I talk to business people all the time who would love to support you and your ideas and view you as one of the only competent politicians in the United States today, but if you start talking the talk of the religious right, you’ll lose much of this support.  Don’t get co-opted like the Tea Party did.

I’m not telling you to change what you believe in.  I believe that our fiscal problems are the single biggest threat to the United States and believe that if nothing is done, we’ll turn into a third world country, complete with huge inflation, income inequality and a huge underclass of unemployed people.

I don’t know what you believe on abortion, gay marriage, don’t ask don’t tell, drug legalization, creationism or any of the other religious right issues and honestly I don’t care.  Just focus on the economic issues and you’ll likely have my support, along with a huge amount of business people who want to support you.

Simply saying, “I don’t support abortion and gay marriage, but the biggest problem facing the United States is our budget deficit, national debt and the economy.  I want to fix these huge problems first before we talk about these other important issues,” will give you huge credibility and I think it’s what the country needs.  While I will disagree with you on most of those issues, I’m willing to overlook it if you don’t veer extremely right and make it a focal point of your platform.  Please don’t fall into the trap John McCain fell into in the last presidential election.

Please continue to focus on economic issues and continue to represent Wisconsin well, especially tonight when you give the response to President Obama.

An Empire Eaten From Within

Category : Political Science & Economics
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In a recent edition of the Economist, Ariana Huffington claims we face a stark choice as Americans.  We can continue going down our current path and turn into a third world country, a shell of our former selves, or Americans can demand more from their leaders and start to take the lead in their own lives to restore the US back to previous heights.

The US is already starting to resemble a third world country in many ways:  The gap between the rich and the poor is growing toward South American levels.  City and state governments are making decisions to cut school teachers and school days, turning off street lights and deciding to let some roads return to nature.

Our infrastructure is beginning to crumble and we’re developing an underclass of unskilled, unemployable people in addition to the abundance of service jobs like nannies, maids, restaurant workers and farm work that are being filled on one side by over educated workers and on the other illegal immigrants.  Our deficits are some of the highest per capita in the world and our national debt is the biggest in the history of the world.  All the while, we demand more.

The rich want to pay lower taxes, but still get the benefits of the state.  Bankers want to be able to play in their casino and if they screw up, they cry to be bailed out from the public coffers.  Public unions want to retire in their 50s or early 60s with a full pension and health care, while contributing hardly anything toward these benefits while they are still working.  Republicans want to keep spending huge amounts on the military and continue to spend on bases in 75% of the world.  Democrats want to spend more on transfer payments, regulation and social programs and nobody is willing to compromise.

Economist say that people are “motivated by self interest,” but I think we’ve crossed the line from self-interest to plain old selfishness.  Most Americans want theirs and don’t seem to care about the rest of the country.  They think (and sometimes say), “as long as I get mine, fuck the rest.”

America’s rich are starting to realize that they don’t really need us anymore.  They can live the good life in the United States while producing and selling their products in developing markets around the world.

I’ve written extensively about how Americans have lived the good life off of debt, but it seems like the rest of the world is starting to see through our profligacy.  People want to continue to live in McMansions with the latest cars and electronic toys and spend outrageous amounts of money on the military, health care and social security, without feeling any of the pain of actually paying the bills.

I haven’t really proposed any solutions, mostly because I don’t really see any that have a chance of working.  It will take a huge change in America’s mindset.  I don’t generally subscribe to the “great leader” theory of change, but they do come around every once in awhile.  Ghandi, Martin Luther King , Nelson Mandela and others have inspired huge, national movements that changed the world, but most change comes from within, from smaller movements.

I think the only way we will see the change necessary to save America from it’s current trajectory is a leader or a movement that is willing to tell it like it is.  Americans need to be told:

  • Manufacturing jobs are not coming back
  • Americans need to be able to compete with people in the rest of the world, so you need to try in school.  A college degree with no skills does not cut it anymore.
  • Our standard of living is going to fall, we need to downsize our lives
  • We ALL need to make sacrifices and many of these sacrifices will be painful.
  • You can’t always get what you want.  If you’re demanding 100% of your agenda, you’re being selfish and damaging the country.  Even if you’re demanding 75% you’re still probably doing it.

We need to paint people who are being selfish (not self interested) as the selfish people they are.  Public unions can’t continue to live like they have.  Bankers cannot continue to speculate and gamble with our money.  The military will have to be scaled back and bases will have to be closed.  We’ll have to examine legalizing marijuana and releasing non-violent offenders.  We’ll have to look at privatizing portions of social security.  We’ll have to demand that Americans take personal responsibility and get in shape (economically and physically).  This will lower health care costs for us all.  We’ll need to back off the ledge of our 24 hour, soundbite, black vs. white “news” cycle and go back to actually solving problems.

We need to create a common sense movement to tell our leaders they are on the wrong track.  It’s not a Republican/Democrat issue.  It’s a systemic problem.  The current crop in both parties are part of the problem.

We need to turn inward and take a long look at ourselves and start to take responsibility.  We have the government (and the media) we deserve.  It’s a selfish government, catering to the needs of special interests, rather than the greater good.  We need to demand that our government tackles the big problems, not the politically expedient ones.  If we don’t, we’ll continue down the path we’re on.  Nobody will do it for us.  It’s on us.

If we don’t, we’ll end up an empire eaten from within.  And it will be our fault.

Do you agree?

How to Talk to Media and Get Quoted in the Press

Category : Entrepreneurship, Top
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The first time I was interviewed in the media, I think I was about 19 and was incredibly excited, but also nervous.  Over the 30 minute interview with my local newspaper, I talked a ton and thought it went really well.  When the article came out, I wasn’t even quoted and only got a short mention.

The next interview I did with another newspaper, they quoted me, but took some of the quotes out of context and tried to pin me into a corner on one aspect of my business.  Over the next three years, I got better at talking to the media and giving public presentations, culminating in a 20 minute presentation to a congressional committee (PDF) and a TV news segment about my website.

Fast-forward six years.  My business partner Jesse and I have been interviewed 100s of times for major newspapers and blogs including the NY Times, Mashable, the Financial Times, TechCrunch and have appeared live on Fox Business News, two local TV stations and multiple radio shows including NPR San Francisco.  Now we both get prime coverage, tons of quotes and compliments on how well we handle speaking to the press.

So what went wrong in 2005? And how have Jesse and I gotten to the point where we’re completely comfortable in any media situation that comes our way?

In 2005, I talked quickly, rambled and didn’t really practice ahead of time.  I gave up too much information just because the reporter asked.  I talked about too many things, but not one super interesting stat.  In short, I made the journalist’s job hard.

Over the course of 2005-2008, I got better speaking to the media with practice.  In 2009, just before we were launching Entrustet at South By Southwest, we hired a PR firm called Shift Communications to help us out with our launch for our first few weeks.  They did a good job helping us get in the news, but to me, their real value with in their prep work.

Shift interviewed Jesse and me and then told us which parts to keep and which parts sucked.  They listened in on our first interviews and then helped us with “after action reports.” After each call, Shift employees told us how we could have said something better, the parts the journalist really liked and the parts we should drop for future interviews.  After a few weeks, Jesse and I were clearly getting better.  By the time our contract with Shift was up, we were pretty good.

Over the next few months, we honed our interview style on our own.  Here’s 19 tips for giving interviews so that your quotes get used and you don’t say something you regret:

Before the Interview

 

1.     Practice.  Write down 3-4 key points that you want to get across and practice saying them concisely.  Practice on your friends, family, in the mirror, random victims in the coffee shops/bars.  Try reaching out to small blogs and pitch them your story.  If you make a mistake or are nervous, only a small audience will notice.

2.     Get 1 go-to stat.  Ours is three Facebook users die every single minute and Facebook doesn’t know who they are or what they wanted done with their accounts.  With ExchangeHut, it was we facilitated ticket transfers for 10% of the student section during homecoming games. Our Facebook stat has been used in the NY Times, Atlantic, TechCrunch and many more.

3.     Get Feeback. Find someone outside your company who will agree to listen to your first few interviews while you are giving them who can provide feedback after the interview is done.

4.     Make a plan. Decide if there is anything you absolutely don’t want to discuss and go over your 3 main points you’ve been practicing.

During the Interview

 

5.     Relax. The interviewer wants to get your story.

6.     Ask how much time you have. At the beginning, ask the reporter if he has a hard stop, which is asking if the reporter must stop at a certain time. If you only have a short window, don’t chitchat, just get right to the point.

7.     Talk slowly. Reporters are taking notes, so talk slowly.  If you’re live, talking slowly makes you sound relaxed, smart and personable, even if you’re not.

8.     Don’t ramble.  Try not to speak for more than 30-60 seconds at a time.

9.     Answer directly. Don’t use business buzzwords and don’t speak too technically.

10. Don’t feel like you need to answer every question. If you don’t want to answer a question, don’t.  Develop a line to sidestep the question.  Say, “we’d rather keep that stat private.” Or “we’re a private company and we don’t disclose those figures.”

11. Don’t fill silence. In non-live interviews, silence is ok. The interviewer is gathering her thoughts or taking notes.  They don’t want to hear your nervous verbal diarrhea.

12. Let the interviewer finish. Even if you know what the question is going to be.  Nothing pisses off a journalist more and it makes you sound like an asshole.

13. Don’t sell.  Inform. Nobody likes a salesman.  Being a salesman is the quickest way to piss off a reporter, who will not include your quotes.  Be yourself.

14. If you don’t know, admit it. Don’t make something up.  The correct response is “That’s a great question we hadn’t though of yet.  I’ll research it and let you know the answer when we find out.”

 

After the Interview

 

15. Say Thanks. Send a thank you email telling the reporter that they should feel free to contact you if they have any follow up questions or need anything clarified.  Include your phone/email.

16. Follow up with facts. If there is anything to add to the story, email the reporter before the article is published.  For example, Oklahoma just passed a law that allows executors access to online accounts of dead people.  I emailed a link to any reporters who were still working on our story and might benefit from it.

17. Respond to comments/Twitter. When the article is published, make sure to respond to comments and interact on Twitter.

18. Do an after action report with your friend who listened to the interview.  Be honest and demand honesty from your friend.  If they don’t provide honest feedback, you’ll never get better.

19. Be honest with yourself and learn from each interview.  Take your friend’s feedback and incorporate it into your next interview.

Do you have any tips or strategies you use to make sure you get quoted?  Do you disagree with any of my tips?  What would you add to my list?

Photo Credit: Jon S.

My (Late) Year End Review

Category : Personal Thoughts
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In January 2010, I had just closed out a decade, but was still living in college housing in my home state.  Entrustet was in an alpha version and our informational site was live. By the end of the year, I had moved out of college housing (with a rabies shot issue) and then the country entirely and Entrustet is recognized as the market leader in our industry.  I now live in Santiago, Chile.

New Friends in Chile

2010 was my first full year out of college and I think I made the most of it.   We launched Entrustet in beta in March and Jesse announced our launch by giving a talk at South by Southwest.  Since then, we’ve been featured in over 100 media outlets and blogs, including the New York Times, Mashable, TechCrunch, BBC, Financial Times and many others.  We’ve seen our niche change from a strange curiosity into a real industry.

Press Photo for Entrustet

On a personal level, I continued to travel, knocking two continents off my bucket list.  In June and July, I traveled to South Africa for the World Cup with two of my best friends Andy and Katie.  I’ll never forget Landon Donovan’s last second goal against Algeria to put the US through to the knockout stages.  I even got on tv in the bedlam following the game.  Katie got to ride a police horse to a bar.  I’ll also never forget our safari.  Seeing African animals in the wild is an unbelievable experience.  I know I’ll be back to Africa sometime this decade.

In November, I moved to Santiago, Chile with Jesse as part of the Start-Up Chile program.  I’d always wanted to live in a Spanish speaking country, but wasn’t able to study abroad because of ExchangeHut.  So far, Chile has been great and I’m excited to travel to other South American countries in 2011.  My Spanish is getting better, but it’s still not very good.  I can’t wait to continue practicing in 2011.

When I got back from the World Cup, I got to serve as best man in one of my best friends’ wedding.  I’ll never forget seeing them walk down the aisle and out of the Church as a married couple and then giving their toast at their reception later that night.

In Madison, Capital Entrepreneurs had an amazing year.  Member companies have done some awesome things.  I helped cofound the Forward Technology Conference and will never forget the keynote speech by Fred Foster. CE and Forward have already surpassed my expectations and I’m hoping to see CE continue to lead the Madison Startup Scene.  We were even featured in TechCrunch and ReadWriteWeb as an up and coming startup hub.

It was a great badger football season, culminating in the Rose Bowl.  Although we lost, it was still amazing to see the sun set over the snowcapped San Gabriels on New Years Day.

I’ve continued to write my blog and somehow it’s actually starting to gain some traction.  I’ve been lucky enough to write for other website in 2010 and hope it continues in 2011.  I grudgingly started using Twitter and created a Tumblog, but locked down my Facebook account.  I still was able to read, but not as much as I’d like.  I even switched to a Kindle and I can’t imagine buying a paper book again, although it sucks to have to turn off my Kindle during takeoff and landing on airplanes.

I’ve been extremely fortunate to continue to stay in touch with my college friends and luckily we’ve been able to continue our yearly “friendsgiving” Thanksgiving feasts and I got to see my friend Beata who’s been living in London, Thailand and Australia since graduation.  I’ve gotten to meet amazing friends in the Madison startup scene, along with new friends in South America.

I’m thankful for my health and that of my family and friends.  I’m thankful for the perspective that working in the digital death industry has given me.  2010 was an amazing year and a year of change.  If the first week of 2011 is a precursor to the rest of 2011, I can’t wait to see what’s going to happen!

My Favorite Posts of 2010