Cathy Erway on Making a Difference by Networking Food Professionals

In Chapter 14 of 20 in her 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, author and food writer Cathy Erway answers "What Skills Are You Using More As Your Career Advances?" Erway finds advancing in her writing career - both in advertising copywriting and food journalism - has allowed her to build stronger networking skills that become more and more useful over time. She shares how getting to know people in the food movement has allowed her to be more helpful making connections and leveraging the breadth and depth of her Rolodex to help others.

Cathy Erway is an author, food writer, freelance copywriter, radio show host and teacher focused on healthy food advocacy. Her second book, "The Food of Taiwan: Recipes From the Beautiful Island" is a cookbook featuring Taiwanese recipes ranging from homestyle dishes to street food favorites. Her first book, "The Art of Eating In" developed from her blog "Not Eating Out in New York".  Erway earned a BA in creative writing from Emerson College. 

Phil McKenzie on How to Do More With Less When Starting a Business

In Chapter 11 of 20 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, entrepreneur Phil McKenzie answers "How Are You Learning to Do More With Less?" McKenzie reflects back on when he started his business and how he tried to be everywhere at once. Over time, he learns to cut out unnecessary steps and streamline his process planning and producing a global event series. While resources grow, he is able to apply these efficiency lessons with his team and be more resourceful as budgets, teams and projects grow.

Philip L. McKenzie is the Founder of Influencer Conference, a global content platform that brings together tastemakers in the arts, entrepreneurship, philanthropy and technology to discuss influencer culture. Previously, he led an influencer marketing agency and was an equities trader at Goldman, Sachs & Co. He earned an MBA from Duke University and a BBA from Howard University.

Jullien Gordon on Adapting Teaching for a Flipped Classroom Setting

In Chapter 17 of 19 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, business coach and public speaker Jullien Gordon answers "How Are You Becoming a Better Teacher?" Understanding teaching starts by asking the right questions and creating a safe place for learners, Gordon probes deeper to find better ways to hold students accountable. He finds flipping the classroom, providing exercises in advance of the class to focus class time on discussion, hugely beneficial to teaching success. He applies this approach, learned from Khan Academy, to improve how he designs his annual New Year goal setting event.

Jullien Gordon is a business coach and consultant to organizations, individuals and teams who want to increase performance, motivation, engagement and retention. Gordon is also a public speaker on career planning for colleges, conferences, and corporations. He earned a BA from UCLA and MBA and M. Ed degrees from Stanford University. 

Hammans Stallings on Finding Ways to Improve as a Teacher

In Chapter 3 of 19 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, strategist and management consultant Hammans Stallings answers "How Are You Becoming a Better Teacher?" Stallings finds ways to improve his teaching skills by studying cognitive science and finding ways to communicate an idea that is complex and potentially new to an audience or a learner. He builds on this by finding ways to continuously practice and improve upon his storytelling and listening.

Hammans Stallings is a Principal Strategist at frog design. Previously Stallings worked in strategy at Dell and investment banking at Stephens. He earned an MBA from the Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management, a MS in Technology Commercialization from the University of Texas and a BA in Economics and Psychology from the University of Virginia.

Hammans Stallings on Building Storytelling Skills in a Strategy Job

In Chapter 8 of 19 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, strategist and management consultant Hammans Stallings answers "What Skills Are You Using More as Your Career Advances?" Stallings finds that he currently is focusing more on storytelling skills and less on analytics in his strategist work at frog design. The storytelling helps him improve group-based critical thinking needed to visualize a client problem to formulate a strategy.

Hammans Stallings is a Principal Strategist at frog design. Previously Stallings worked in strategy at Dell and investment banking at Stephens. He earned an MBA from the Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management, a MS in Technology Commercialization from the University of Texas and a BA in Economics and Psychology from the University of Virginia.

Hammans Stallings on How to Make Rejection an Ally Not an Enemy

In Chapter 10 of 19 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, strategist and management consultant Hammans Stallings answers "How Are You Learning Better Ways to Handle Rejection?" Stallings accepts that rejection is part of learning and embraces the process of being rejected. Working in innovation, Stallings finds rejection a normal occurance that is part of risk-taking, failure, learning and development. He notes that working on ethnography studies in people's homes teaches him that skills learned handling rejection are transferable to managing expectations in relationships too.

Hammans Stallings is a Principal Strategist at frog design. Previously Stallings worked in strategy at Dell and investment banking at Stephens. He earned an MBA from the Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management, a MS in Technology Commercialization from the University of Texas and a BA in Economics and Psychology from the University of Virginia.

Matt Curtis on Building Leadership Skills in a Director-Level Job Role

In Chapter 15 of 20 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, Matt Curtis answers "What Leadership Skills are Becoming More Relevant to You As Your Career Progresses?" Curtis shares that in his director-level role, the two leadership skills that stand out are 1) embracing the experience learning from failures and mistakes and 2) the importance of being encouraging and positive independent of team size.

Matt Curtis is the director of government relations at HomeAway Inc. Previously he was deputy to Austin mayors Lee Leffingwell and Will Wynn. He has represented the City of Austin at the U.S. Conference of Mayors and the National League of Cities. In 2011, Curtis joined the Harvard Kennedy School Urban Policy Advisory Board to work on national best practices facing American cities. He earned his bachelor's degree in radio, television and film from the University of North Texas. 

Bijoy Goswami on How to Get Paid by Sharing What You Know for Free

In Chapter 12 of 17 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, community leader Bijoy Goswami answers "How is Your Business Model Evolving as You Gain Experience?" Goswami shares how his business model blends giving away knowledge for free with getting paid to help clients solve specific problems. As an author, speaker and teacher, Goswami uses different means to freely share knowledge and create value. Using Google search as a comparable he then looks for ways, specifically management consulting, to scope out work specific to individual customers.

Bijoy Goswami is a writer, teacher, and community leader based in Austin, Texas. He develops learning models to help individuals, organizations and communities live more meaningfully. Previously, he co-founded Aviri Software after working at Trilogy Software. Goswami graduated from Stanford University. 

Randall Metting on Improving Focus at Work to Get Better at Your Job

In Chapter 16 of 16 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, Randall Metting answers "What Skills Are You Working on Right Now to Get Better at Your Job?" Working as a marketing manager, Metting finds sharpening focus is job skill he is working on right now. For him it comes down to taking a pause to reflect and not rush through job to job. He finds taking extra time to slow down and think through his work makes him more productive and improves the quality of his work.

Randall Metting is a brand development and marketing manager at Dulce Vida Spirits in Austin, Texas. Over 17 years, he has built brands in spirits, luxury real estate and lifestyle, music, and sports industries. He has been a radio personality at KGSR Radio and a marketer at a hyperlocal startup acquired by NBC Universal. Metting earned a BA in Advertising from the University of Florida and started his career at The Coca-Cola Company. 

Hattie Elliot on Learning Financial Planning Skills for Small Business

In Chapter 13 of 15 in her 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, entrepreneur Hattie Elliot answers "What Skills are You Working on Right Now to Become Better at Your Job?" Elliot shares that after many years focusing on event planning and outsourcing financial planning, she now is spending more time learning budgeting and financial planning to better manage her small business finances. This helps her stay organized, maintain bottom line visibility on company performance, and be a better steward of investor financing she has received.

Hattie Grace Elliot is the founder and CEO of The Grace List, a social networking company that creates destination events and experiences to forge lasting personal and professional connections across its young professional members. Elliot graduated from the University of Cape Town in South Africa, where she studied economics, philosophy, and politics.

Matt Ruby on Learning to Act in a Comedy Web Series

In Chapter 6 of 19 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, standup comedian and Vooza founder Matt Ruby answers "How Have You Approached the Process of Becoming an Actor and Acting in a Comedy Series?" Ruby shares how he has transitioned from performing on stage as a standup to acting on film for a web series. After taking Meisner acting classes, Ruby learns by doing and working through the process of acting in Vooza webisodes. He finds acting on camera more nuanced than performing on stage in front of audiences and adjusts his approach accordingly.

Matt Ruby is a standup comedian based in New York City. He also founded Vooza, on online comic strip web series that makes fun of tech startup culture. As an actor, director, writer and producer, Ruby leads the creative direction for the team. Before his comedy career, Matt was employee #1 at 37Signals. He graduated from Northwestern University. 

Matt Ruby on Two Ways to Improve Comedy Screenwriting Skills

In Chapter 9 of 19 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, standup comedian and Vooza founder Matt Ruby answers "What Skills Are You Working on Right Now to Become Better at Your Job?" Ruby shares two ways he is improving as a comedy screenwriter. First, he finds it helpful to invite feedback and give ownership to his creative team of writers and actors. The added ownership gives his team an opportunity to personalize the characters and scripts to their strengths. Second, Ruby works on building better narrative arcs to improve story flow and structure. Working on short-form web videos averaging three minutes, he finds that structure makes the storyline more interesting and the characters more compelling.

Matt Ruby is a standup comedian based in New York City. He also founded Vooza, on online comic strip web series that makes fun of tech startup culture. As an actor, director, writer and producer, Ruby leads the creative direction for the team. Before his comedy career, Matt was employee #1 at 37Signals. He graduated from Northwestern University. 

Matt Ruby on Learning the Nuances of Filmmaking and Scriptwriting

In Chapter 10 of 19 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, standup comedian and Vooza founder Matt Ruby answers "What Experiences in the Past Year Have Most Influenced the Direction of Your Work?" Producing the Vooza web series, Ruby finds it educational learning from experience creating webisodes and evolving the tone when writing new segments. As an established standup comedian now working in a screen format, he also learns nuances of presenting comedy in a video medium and the filmmaking styles, such as cross-cutting, used to do this well.

Matt Ruby is a standup comedian based in New York City. He also founded Vooza, on online comic strip web series that makes fun of tech startup culture. As an actor, director, writer and producer, Ruby leads the creative direction for the team. Before his comedy career, Matt was employee #1 at 37Signals. He graduated from Northwestern University. 

Anatole Faykin on What Gets Easier and What Gets Harder

In Chapter 2 of 16 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, Internet entrepreneur Anatole Faykin answers "What is Getting Easier and What is Getting Harder in Your Life?" Faykin shares how over time he is learning to better understand himself and be more accepting of himself. He finds it harder to engage with corporate recruiters as his career path has been anything but traditional.

Anatole Faykin is an Internet entrepreneur and digital marketer exploring new career options. A passionate world traveler and problem solver, Faykin plans to return to graduate school to earn a biosciences masters degree. Previously, Faykin has started multiple companies, including Tuanpin, a Shanghai startup he sold in 2011. He holds an MBA from NYU and a BS in computer science and biology from the California Institute of Technology.

Anatole Faykin on Career Benefits of Writing College Application Essays

In Chapter 7 of 16 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, Internet entrepreneur Anatole Faykin answers "What Skills Are You Working on Right Now to Become Better at Your Job?" Faykin shares how writing graduate school application essays has helped him think more deeply about his career goals and why he is choosing a specific school and a specific field of study at a specific point in his life. He finds this introspective writing process transferable to a business career where asking similar questions can help him grasp bigger picture ideas and potential outcomes.

Anatole Faykin is an Internet entrepreneur and digital marketer exploring new career options. A passionate world traveler and problem solver, Faykin plans to return to graduate school to earn a biosciences masters degree. Previously, Faykin has started multiple companies, including Tuanpin, a Shanghai startup he sold in 2011. He holds an MBA from NYU and a BS in computer science and biology from the California Institute of Technology.

Anatole Faykin on Leaving a Job to Pursue a Bioscience Masters Degree

In Chapter 10 of 16 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, Internet entrepreneur Anatole Faykin answers "What Experiences in the Past Year Have Most Influenced the Direction of Your Work?" After working many years in technology startups and Internet marketing consulting, Faykin looks to do something that more closely aligns with his passions. He revisits his childhood passion for life sciences and decides to return to graduate school and earn a biosciences masters degree.

Anatole Faykin is an Internet entrepreneur and digital marketer exploring new career options. A passionate world traveler and problem solver, Faykin plans to return to graduate school to earn a biosciences masters degree. Previously, Faykin has started multiple companies, including Tuanpin, a Shanghai startup he sold in 2011. He holds an MBA from NYU and a BS in computer science and biology from the California Institute of Technology.

Anatole Faykin on How Academic and On-The-Job Learning Compare

In Chapter 11 of 16 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, Internet entrepreneur Anatole Faykin answers "How Does Learning in an Academic Setting Compare and Contrast With Learning on the Job?" Faykin shares how on-the-job learning focuses more on achieving incremental steps rather than thinking big about how things work. He contrasts this practical learning with the freedom of an an academic environment, where thinking is less about making money and more about giving yourself space to think more deeply on subjects.

Anatole Faykin is an Internet entrepreneur and digital marketer exploring new career options. A passionate world traveler and problem solver, Faykin plans to return to graduate school to earn a biosciences masters degree. Previously, Faykin has started multiple companies, including Tuanpin, a Shanghai startup he sold in 2011. He holds an MBA from NYU and a BS in computer science and biology from the California Institute of Technology.

Anatole Faykin on Giving Yourself Permission to Pursue Your Passion

In Chapter 12 of 16 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, Internet entrepreneur Anatole Faykin answers "What Informed Your Decision to Return to School and Pursue a Bioscience Masters Degree?" Mid-career, Faykin rethinks his career trajectory in entrepreneurship and online marketing and revisits his childhood passion for science. He rethinks his career and chooses to pursue a graduate degree in biosciences to do what has always felt natural and made him feel happiest, learning life science and studying biology.

Anatole Faykin is an Internet entrepreneur and digital marketer exploring new career options. A passionate world traveler and problem solver, Faykin plans to return to graduate school to earn a biosciences masters degree. Previously, Faykin has started multiple companies, including Tuanpin, a Shanghai startup he sold in 2011. He holds an MBA from NYU and a BS in computer science and biology from the California Institute of Technology.