How Reading Passion Shapes Learning Style - Hammans Stallings

In Chapter 8 of 22 in his 2012 Capture Your Flag interview, innovation strategist Hammans Stallings answers "Where Did Your Passion for Reading Originate?"  Stallings shares how he read for escape during summer camp as a kid.  As he grew up, he learned to read to get into the minds of people he would not necessarily have the chance to meet.  He finds great value in gaining insight into the thought process of those he reads about.  This is Hammans Stallings' Year 2 CYF interview.  Stallings is currently a Senior Strategist at frog design.  Previously he worked in business 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 McCombs School of Business and a BA in Economics and Psychology from the University of Virginia.

How to Make Learning a Lifetime Pursuit - Hammans Stallings

In Chapter 9 of 22 in his 2012 Capture Your Flag interview, innovation strategist Hammans Stallings answers "What is Your Approach to Lifelong Learning?"  Stallings notes how he chooses to work in areas where new problems constantly appear.  This forces him to constantly learn new things so he is better prepared to resolve problems.  He references his work applying behavioral psychology for retail consumers to business model design.  This is Hammans Stallings' Year 2 CYF interview.  Stallings is currently a Senior Strategist at frog design.  Previously he worked in business 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 McCombs School of Business and a BA in Economics and Psychology from the University of Virginia. 

Idan Cohen on How the Army Teaches High Tech Job Skills

In Chapter 10 of 19 in his 2012 Capture Your Flag interview, Boxee co-founder and head of product Idan Cohen answers "How Has Your Military Training Been Most Useful in Developing Your Career?"  Cohen shares how he is recruited into the Israeli Army to help build reconnaissance satellites.  He learns physics and programming working with a senior team and, after transitioning into intelligence, learns life skills by managing teams. 

This is Idan Cohen's Year 1 Capture Your Flag interview.  Cohen is co-founder and head of product at Boxee Inc, an online video software company.  Previous to Boxee, Cohen held telecom software innovation and developer roles at Comverse.  He was a Captain in the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) and graduated from Tel Aviv University with a Bachelors of Science degree in Geophysics and Art.

Transcript: 

Erik Michielsen: How has your military training been most useful in developing your career?

Idan Cohen:  First of all, it was very important part of my career today because I went into the army and I was recruited to this very small group of kids, extremely smart and extremely weird, everyone else were smart, I was the only—I was probably the odd guy out. It was 6 girls and 2 guys, 2 boys and we were actually building the reconnaissance satellite, the Israeli Army’s reconnaissance satellite, which was just amazing like up to that point, there were engineers probably in their 40’s and 50’s, some of them from the Russian military industry and some of them actually were in NASA before and they were the ones building that satellite and then they decided that—actually maybe 18-year-olds with the right, you know, with the right guidance can do that as well, at least they can write code where needed and, you know, they can be guided into it. 

And they took us and for 6 months they taught us physics, which up to that point I didn’t know anything about physics, I didn’t learn that in high school, and they taught us how to write code, and we were writing kind of code for the satellite itself and code for the ground station. 

And that was extremely interesting, just being in this—in the company of these 40 and 50-year-olds, which were building something huge. And we were just these—a group of 8 and then the next generation was another 8 so we’re kind of 15 kids—it was really 15 kids with about 50—with about a group of 50 50-year-olds, all working on the same thing which was this huge thing that was costing millions and was going to go out in space. It was extremely interesting and for me that definitely got me into software much more ‘cause I had a few years in high school where I wasn’t really writing any code. And it was suddenly brought me back to an interest in actually creating software and how that can be—how can that bring me to create important things. 

And then later I went and I was an officer and I had another 2 years where I was actually doing much more of kind of like intelligence work which was also very interesting because it will suddenly being in charge of other people for the first time, so as a 20-year-old managing, you know, 10 or 15 other 18-year-olds and being their commander and taking care of their needs, and I think that there’s something—the most important thing about the army in Israel which is very different—it’s not—I’m not sure if I would like my kids to go there, or it will be a choice that they could make, but I think that what makes it so important in our people who come out of Israel, in our education and upbringing compared to people for instance who go to college, is just you get a lot of responsibility, as an 18-year-old, it’s not about, you know, someone’s paying for your college, and you can choose if you wanna study or you wanna drink your way through it, here it’s just—yes, you have to do that, but there’s a lot of responsibility with it, and if you’ll take that seriously, you can actually also maybe get, you know, some—you can get some skills and you can get experience, and it can help you for life. And I think that makes it very interesting, so that’s kind of what I came out with, like skills and experience for life.

How to Choose a College Major You Can Use All Your Life

In Chapter 11 of 19 in his 2012 Capture Your Flag interview, Boxee co-founder and head of product Idan Cohen answers "How Did You Choose What to Study at College and How Has It Remained Relevant as You Have Gotten Older?"  Cohen references his time at Tel Aviv University and his shift in studies from computer science (CS) to physics and art history.  He takes a physics class and loves it.  As the math gets more complex, Cohen complements the physics classes with art, photography, music and architecture classes.  He finds apprenticeship or on the job learning the best ways to learn techical skills and recommends using the college experience to build useful day to day life skills and tools. 

This is Idan Cohen's Year 1 Capture Your Flag interview.  Cohen is co-founder and head of product at Boxee Inc, an online video software company.  Previous to Boxee, Cohen held telecom software innovation and developer roles at Comverse.  He was a Captain in the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) and graduated from Tel Aviv University with a Bachelors of Science degree in Geophysics and Art.

Transcript: 

Erik Michielsen: How did you choose what to study at college and how has it remained relevant as you’ve gotten older?

Idan Cohen: So I chose to study physics and art history, and I got there in a pretty weird way, because I started off—I started off studying—I did one semester in CS, in Computer Science, and I just—I already knew how to program and it was a lot of math, and it was just like very theoretical programming, and I was just not interested and disengaged, and then I said, okay, I’ll switch to—I actually did a semester in chemistry, and I said, okay, this is also interesting but then I saw that actually what’s interesting for me is physics, then I did a semester in physics and I said, this is great. I enjoy it. It’s a little bit of like a manual for universe, you suddenly understand how things work, from very big things to very small things, to just this thing moving on the table and friction between the table and whatever, and gravity, I loved it. 

But I needed something a little bit more for the soul and as I saw the math getting more complex, I took art history in addition, and that was great because suddenly I was in the university, I was going to these very, you know, technical theoretical math and physics classes but then going and studying about art and photography and music and architecture, and it was awesome. 

Looking back at it, then I think it’s all just tools for life, and I think that that’s what most people should look at when they’re going to college, if you are going to go to college, I believe a lot in just apprenticeship, you know, a little bit like, we—like the path that I took, I mean going for instance into the army then having someone to learn from, how to code, or how to, you know, whatever we did there just—but someone that works with you, so you don’t need all of the theoretical knowledge but someone will help you get into it, and I really believe in that, just learning on the job. 

And on the other hand, there’s very few real professions that you can come out of academia with, so, you know, if you wanna be a medical doctor, probably you need to go there, although, as well, by the way, they learn a lot of theory and then they learn a lot on the job. If you wanna be an accountant or a lawyer, probably you need to go there ‘cause there’s a lot of theoretical material that you should learn. But then there’s so many things that just have nothing to do with sitting in class and studying. 

So if you are going to go there, just make sure you’re gonna study something that is very broad, very shallow, but is gonna give you tools—thinking tools that you can apply later in life. So from, you know, just understanding history or how things were made, and why, and being able to appreciate a work of art or, you know, physics, and just even though I probably forgot a lot of what I studied, and just being able to look at things and understand better how the—you know, what they’re made out of, and how exactly they function, I think that’s great, it’s just—it’s really useful day-to-day tools, and I wish that people would focus more about that. 

I think that when they go to college, they are so obsessed with what they’re gonna do in life, and we’re so privileged compared to our parents for instance, that probably we’re gonna—every 10 years, we’re gonna change what we’re doing, like there’s something about today’s environment that just allows us to do that, so don’t focus on that, just focus on what theoretical knowledge you can obtain now that will serve you through life, and not necessarily through the next 10 years.

Courtney Spence on How Travel Creates Cathartic Moments

In Chapter 5 of 19 in her 2012 Capture Your Flag interview, non-profit executive Courtney Spence answers "What Have You Found Most Rewarding About Traveling to New Places?"  Spence notes how the art and journey of traveling has helped her find breakthrough moments in her life.  She notes the trips need not be exotic; rather, it is about the experiences that make a trip and resulting positive and inspirational impact they have in her life.  Courtney Spence returns to CYF for her Year 3 interview.  As Founder and Executive Director, Spence leads non-profit Students of the World to empower college students to use film, photography, and journalism to tell stories of global issues and the organizations working to address them.  Spence graduated with a BA in History from Duke University.

Transcript:

Erik Michielsen: What have you found most rewarding about traveling to new places?

Courtney Spence: I think new places prompts new ideas. Big landscapes prompt big ideas. I think there is so much to the art and the journey of traveling. Even if it’s being in an airport or flying in an airplane or being in a train or driving a car, I think that it’s not about the destination, as much as it is about the actual journey itself. And I’ve realized that I’m fortunate that I’ve always loved the journey. I actually love flying. I, you know, couldn’t help that I’m really short and so the little spaces I can fit into easily, but I really do enjoy that process of meeting new people and seeing things I hadn’t seen before and really have, particularly in the last 6 months, recognized the need – when you’re trying to think of new things, or you’re trying to go through a breakthrough or you’re up against a wall and you just – you’re in a rut or you need something big to shift, you’ve gotta move yourself out of the location that you’ve been in and the locations quite frankly that you’re familiar with to really breakthrough effectively. At least that’s what I need.

So, I’ve seen it happen and I’ve been able to sort of reflect on the moments where we have gone through breakthroughs with Students of the World, which are also breakthroughs for me personally. They’ve really come from going to new places. And, you know, places like Chesapeake Bay or Norfolk, Virginia, I mean they’re very – it doesn’t have to be exotic necessarily, it just has to be new. So I’ve learned a lot about that, and particularly recently, so.

Courtney Spence on How to Increase Alumni Community Engagement

In Chapter 10 of 19 in her 2012 Capture Your Flag interview, non-profit executive Courtney Spence answers "What Steps Are You Taking to Create a More Engaged Alumni Community?"  Spence details how her organization is creating in-person programs to bring her alumni together and strengthen the kinship and bonds across graduating years.  Courtney Spence returns to CYF for her Year 3 interview.  As Founder and Executive Director, Spence leads non-profit Students of the World to empower college students to use film, photography, and journalism to tell stories of global issues and the organizations working to address them.  Spence graduated with a BA in History from Duke University.

Transcript:

Erik Michielsen: What steps are you taking to create a more engaged alumni community?

Courtney Spence: So we’ve had about 300 alumni go through the program to date. And this last August we held our first Students of the World summit and we called it “re-engaged for good”. And it was really targeted at our alumni, we invited past partners and speakers, and thought leaders in the realm of, you know, film and communications and development. But we really focused on bringing together our core alumni. And it was the first time that we’d ever physically brought together our community into a space. And in a day and age where you have, you know, the ability to do Brady Bunch video, you know, calls through Skype or Google, you have all of these ways to connect with people virtually, I think what I realized in August was you can never – we will never be able to replace what happens when you bring people together in person. And there is such a need for that. And it’s – it needs to be done well and for the right purpose.

So when we brought our alumni together, whether it was listening to great speakers or having margaritas, I just got to see our alumni interact in ways that they had never have been able to interact before and the hugs and the tears and the enthusiasm that came out of that weekend was – It blew me away. And I recognize that, you know, whether or not they participated in Students of the World 12 years ago and went to Russia or they were in Tanzania last year, there’s a common experience that has been had and there’s a common thread for a majority of our alumni that make me realize that they need to know each other. They need that encouragement of that community. And we are the only ones that can provide that.

So we’ve really focused on building out an alumni board. We had a founding year of an alumni board that we selected and then this last year we actually accepted applications and we have a really great kind of diverse group of individuals that are committed to really bringing our alumni community together. And, you know, these are people that are wonderful, wonderful individuals that if I have to go war, I wanna go to war with them. And it’s really up to us to bring them together. So it’s been a big focus for us and one that I’m really excited to see grow over the next couple of years.

Taking a Career Break to Do Things You Love

In Chapter 13 of 15 in her 2012 Capture Your Flag interview, entrepreneur Audrey Parker French answers "How Are You Learning to Apply Your Passions in New Ways?"  French shares how taking time away from work has given her more time and energy to devote to her passions.  She creates time for singing in choir and physical activity while embracing married life. 

Audrey Parker French returns to CYF for her Year 3 interview after a one-year sabbatical from work and getting married.  She co-founded CLEAResult, an energy management consulting firm.  In 2010, CLEAResult ranked #144 in the Inc. 500 list of fastest-growing private companies.  In late 2010, CLEAResult was sold to General Catalyst Partners.  She graduated from Wake Forest University. 

Transcript: 

Erik Michielsen: How are you learning to apply your passions in new ways?

Audrey Parker French: Well, it’s kind of coming naturally, I found that I’ve had time to rejoin a choir, I’ve been a singer all my life in my spare time, and I really just – it’s kind of a natural thing. 

I’ve had the time and I’ve wanted to get back into that and I have more time and energy to devote to it than I did before, so it’s actually having an even more fulfilling impact on my life than it did before when I was trying to wedge it in between a work day and you know, work business travel and all sorts of projects, I can actually have time for singing. I can have time for a healthier exercise routine. Physical health is one of my passions and before it was not something that I allowed or made the time – really made the time to do. And again, that was my choice but to have the time for those things, to have the time with family, to have the time to go spend that – spend time outside.

My husband and I both really love the outdoors and we can just go and just sit somewhere and enjoy the beauty of the outdoors. I’ve always loved nature and it’s something that I’ve gotten to enjoy more now that I’ve had more time.

I also realized that for about the 5 or 6 years that I’ve been working so hard, I pretty much missed all the movies and pop culture happenings that had been going on in the world, and so my husband’s had fun kind of saying, “Well, let me show you this movie that you probably never heard of.” Because it came out in 2008 or whatever and it’s true, I’ve gotten caught up on movies and things that have happened, you know, in the world that I just – I didn’t have time for before.

How to Apply Business Passion in Law Career - James McCormick

In Chapter 11 of 18 in his 2012 Capture Your Flag interview, legal career advisor James McCormick answers "What Do You Enjoy Most About What You Do?"  McCormick shares how he has learned to appreciate working on the business side of the practice of law and helping law firms, corporations, and financial institutions solve talent problems through his network of relationships.  James McCormick is a Partner at Empire Search Partners in New York City.  Previously, he practiced law as an employee benefits and executive compensation attorney for Proskauer Rose and Jones Day.  He earned a JD at Tulane Law School and a BA in History at the University of Michigan. 

How Family Relationships Change With Age - Mike Germano

In Chapter 7 of 19 in his 2012 Capture Your Flag interview, social media ad agency CEO Mike Germano answers "How Are Your Family Relationships Changing as You Get Older?"  After many years where his family did not understand his entrepreneurial journey founding his company, the family learns to respect Germano and his co-founders for following their social media passion.  Mike Germano is co-founder and CEO of DUMBO, Brooklyn based social media advertising agency Carrot Creative.  Previously, Germano ran for and was elected to public office in Connecticut.  He is a graduate of Quinnipiac University. 

How Hands On Work Enlightens Creative Career - Jason Anello

In Chapter 7 of 20 in his 2012 interview, creative director Jason Anello answers "How Has Hands On Experience Changing What You Believe is Possible in What You Create?"  Through his life and career, Anello finds success leads into management and, as a result, removal from hands on work.  He shares how he has created a career where he can maintain the hands on work that drives his passion to create things which unleash an audience pleasing experience.  Jason Anello is a founding partner and creative director at marketing services agency Manifold Partners.  He is also the co-founder of the Forking Tasty Brooklyn supper club.  Previously, Anello held creative leadership roles at Yahoo! and Ogilvy & Mather.  He graduated from the University at Albany. 

Learning Cooking Skills Staging in Restaurant Kitchens

In Chapter 5 of 16 in her 2012 interview, author and food writer Cathy Erway answers "How Did You Decide to Stage in California Restaurant Kitchens and What Did the Experience Teach You?"  Erway finds it highly educational immersing herself in kitchens, be they restaurants or supper clubs.  She takes a trip to California, where she stages, or interns, at several restaurant kitchens, including Tartine Bakery and Chez Panisse. 

“I like the idea of being silent and being told what to do and just doing something manually for a long time. I think that’s a good intern at a restaurant—just listen, just zone out and like listen to everything that’s going on. ”

— Cathy Erway

Cathy Erway is an author and food writer living in Brooklyn.  Her first book, "The Art of Eating In" developed from her blog "Not Eating Out in New York".  She earned a BA in creative writing from Emerson College.

Transcript: 

Erik Michielsen:  How do you decide to stage in California restaurant kitchens, and what did the experiences teach you?

Cathy Erway:  Oh, man, I love staging, so I just love butting into kitchens, no matter if it's a real restaurant or a supper club production of some sort, or my friend's dinner party. So I was in San Francisco for a month and I really wanted to stage at Tartine Bakery. And they were doing some renovations. They were like, "Yeah, come back tomorrow." "Okay, yeah, I'll come back to tomorrow." I was like, "Shoot."

So I went around town asking to stage other places, and in one case, it was actually like a no-brainer. I was sitting at a bar, having a beer, and then somebody walked in wearing a chef's coat and sat down and like drank a beer in like 5 seconds and then got up and was about to leave to go back to cook. And I was like, "Oh, what restaurant?" He's like, "Oh, this place in SoMa district and," you know, he described it, and I was like, "Can I come cook sometime?" He's like, "Yeah, sure." And it was great. And then I made some friends or I had some friends in the area, who very graciously -- I think that it's a small world or in the food scenes, I don't know, but he knew everybody. So he hooked me up with a stage opportunity at Chez Panisse, which was pretty amazing. Loved it.

Erik Michielsen:  What did you learn?

Cathy Erway:  Well, I feel like I have a good sense of the differences of California cuisine and New York cuisine. They use so many herbs, it's insane. Like going into their walk-in, there's like a whole walk-in just for herbs. And there's like drawers of like every single kind of herb. Chervil? Who uses chervil in New York City? I don't know of too many. But they all have this. And sometimes salads are just like simply a pile of beautifully fluffy fresh herbs. And I mean, they're lucky they can grow it anywhere. It's temperate. They have it all year round, you know, kind of spoiled, right? But, yeah, I mean, that's -- and that's naturally what they cook with, you know, all these--you know, sometimes wild fennel because it grows everywhere, we used that -- and oh, Chez Panisse, there was a great dish where they pounded the wild fennel in this mortar and pestle.

Chez Panisse is really into using archaic instruments too. At one point, we were pounding roasted red peppers with the mortar and pestle and I was like, "Why aren't we using a food processor?" But that's -- you know... It's all about doing things by hand.

Erik Michielsen:  And what questions did you ask?

Cathy Erway:  Aside from "Why don't we use a food processor?"  I don't -- I didn't really want to ask too many questions. I like the idea of being silent and being told what to do and just doing something manually for a long time. I think that's a good intern at a restaurant--just listen, just zone out and like listen to everything that's going on. 

How Photography Passion Plays into Creative Career - Doug Jaeger

In Chapter 11 of 17 in his 2012 interview, entrepreneur Doug Jaeger answers "What Role Does Photography Play in Your Life?"  Jaeger shares how a childhood passion progressively has developed into an income earning resource.  He shares examples how he is learning both on the job and in daily life as he captures his world on film and shares the experiences with family and friends.  Doug Jaeger is the co-founder of JaegerSloan, a multimedia design services firm in New York City.  His street front office doubles as the JS55 Gallery. Jaeger is also an adjunct professor at the School of Visual Arts (SVA).  He graduated from Syracuse University.

How Art Projects Become Creative Careers - Doug Jaeger

In Chapter 17 of 17 in his 2012 interview, entrepreneur Doug Jaeger answers "How Can Art Projects Lead to Creative Careers?"  By teaching students and running a gallery, Jaeger pushes young creative talent to turn art passion projects into commercial, money making efforts.  He shares how changing tools, from Etsy and Tumblr to Square, are helping lower barriers to entry for young creative talent.  Doug Jaeger is the co-founder of JaegerSloan, a multimedia design services firm in New York City.  His street front office doubles as the JS55 Gallery. Jaeger is also an adjunct professor at the School of Visual Arts (SVA).  He graduated from Syracuse University.

How to Break Out of a Comfort Zone - Yoav Gonen

In Chapter 4 of 11 in his 2011 interview, education reporter Yoav Gonen answers "Where is Your Comfort Zone and What Do You Do to Break Free of Living in It?"  Gonen finds it is easy to fall into a routine of coming home after a long work day and doing nothing.  He realizes the importance of pushing himself to get out and do things and how setting a schedule helps him do this.  Yoav Gonen is the education reporter for the New York Post newspaper in New York City.  He earned a Masters of Journalism degree from New York University and a BA in English from the University of Michigan.

How to Prioritize Your Passions - Phil McKenzie

In Chapter 9 of 21 in his 2011 interview, Phil McKenzie answers "How are Your Personal Priorities Changing as You Get Older?"  McKenzie notes how he has learned to prioritize his personal passions and bring them into his professional life.  This allows Phil to find enrichment traveling the world, learning from new people.  McKenzie is the founder of Influencer Conference, an international event series bringing together tastemakers across the arts, entrepreneurship, philanthropy and technology.  He is also managing partner of influencer marketing agency FREE DMC.  Previously he worked in Domestic Equity Trading at Goldman, Sachs, & Co.  He earned his BA from Howard University and MBA from Duke University. 

What It Means to Be a Leader - Phil McKenzie

In Chapter 17 of 21 in his 2011 interview, Phil McKenzie answers "What Does It Mean to Be a Leader in What You Do?"  McKenzie finds people follow him based on passion, honesty, and openness.  Additionally, he notes passion breeds conviction to a cause and allows you to find the right people to follow you.  McKenzie is the founder of Influencer Conference, an international event series bringing together tastemakers across the arts, entrepreneurship, philanthropy and technology.  He is also managing partner of influencer marketing agency FREE DMC.  Previously he worked in Domestic Equity Trading at Goldman, Sachs, & Co.  He earned his BA from Howard University and MBA from Duke University. 

How to Build and Scale a Food Passion Business - Julie Hession

In Chapter 1 of 21 in her 2011 Capture Your Flag interview, food entrepreneur Julie Hession answers "To What Do You Aspire?"  Hession highlights how she is taking progressive steps to connect her passion for food to a food business career.  She highlights how incremental steps, from launching a specialty food store to creating a food product line to doing food writing are giving her a well-rounded skillset to refine and scale her food business.  Julie Hession is the founder of Julie Anne's All Natural Granola Company.  Passionate about food since childhood, Hession has developed her career by food blogging, cooking contests, and starting fine food companies.  Hession earned an MBA in Marketing from Duke University and a BA from UNLV. 

How Parents Influence Career Aspirations - Julie Hession

In Chapter 5 of 21 in her 2011 Capture Your Flag interview, food entrepreneur Julie Hession answers "What Role Has Your Family Played in Shaping Your Career Aspirations?"  Hession notes how her parents balanced plenty of support with strict academic expectations in school.  This teaches Julie and her brother work ethic.  Her father pushes Julie to follow her passion in figuring out career options.  As her food career shapes, she finds motivation in her parents' continual support.  Julie Hession is the founder of Julie Anne's All Natural Granola Company.  Passionate about food since childhood, Hession has developed her career by food blogging, cooking contests, and starting fine food companies.  Hession earned an MBA in Marketing from Duke University and a BA from UNLV.