Audrey French on Making a Business to Teaching Job Transition

In Chapter 17 of 18 in her 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, entrepreneur Audrey Parker French answers "How Are You Learning to Work More Effectively With Different Personality Types?" French shares her experience going from managing an energy efficiency and utility consulting business to teaching choir to a roomful of 6- and 7-year old children. Interacting with kids is something she finds new and, ultimately, exciting and rewarding. Audrey Parker French is an entrepreneur who co-founded CLEAResult, an energy management consulting firm she helped grow to #144 on the 2010 Inc. 500 list of fastest-growing private companies and then sell to General Catalyst Partners. She currently volunteers as a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) and teaches children's choir. She graduated from Wake Forest University and lives with her husband in Austin, Texas.

Bijoy Goswami on How Boarding School Influences Early Development

In Chapter 1 of 19 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, leadership philosopher Bijoy Goswami answers "What Childhood Experiences Have Been Most Fundamental to Shaping Who You Are Today?" In his childhood, frequent moves teach Goswami to be open-minded about context and not to assume the way he sees things is the way others see things. He highlights his 6th grade Catholic boarding school experience at Montfort in Tamil Nadu, India where he learns routine and structure in a very regimented setting. 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.

Why to Work With People Who Think Differently Than You

In Chapter 9 of 19 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, innovation strategist Hammans Stallings answers "How Are You Learning to Work More Effectively With Different Personality Types?" Stallings seeks out different personality types at work because they help him learn new subjects, new problem solving approaches and new ways of thinking.

Hammans Stallings is a Senior Strategist at frog design. Previously he 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.

How Nonlinear Thinking Facilitates Innovative Problem Solving

In Chapter 13 of 19 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, innovation strategist Hammans Stallings answers "How Are You Developing an Innovation Process to Help How You Solve Problems?" Stallings notes the non-linear and interdisciplinary inquiry or thinking that comes with producing innovation often is at odds with how organizations are structured. These silos block potential cross-fertilization that comes with approaching problems with resources and tools - ethnography studies, case studies, etc. - that may not be readily available in any one business or organizational unit.

Hammans Stallings is a Senior Strategist at frog design. Previously he 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.

Brett Goldman on Making the Most of Living in New York City

In Chapter 7 of 18 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, real estate developer Brett Goldman answers "How Do You Make the Most of Living in the City?" Beyond walking around appreciating the architecture and buildings, Goldman soaks up city life by finding things that interest him culturally and expose him to new things. To do this, he makes it a weekly habit of reading about what is happening and making plans to see ballet performances, visit museums, and more fully embrace New York City.

Brett Goldman is a Real Estate Acquisitions Director at Triangle Equities in New York City.  He holds a BA in General Studies from the University of Michigan and a Masters in Real Estate Development from the Columbia University Graduate School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation.

Jason Anello on How Parents Support Creative Career Choices

In Chapter 2 of 20 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, creative director and Manifold ad agency co-founder Jason Anello answers "Where Has Your Family Been Most Supportive in Your Career Development?"  Anello shares how his parents have found ways to give him independence and encouragement even in times when they did not quite understand his decisions.  He notes how his father, a union man working a blue collar job as an auto mechanic, needed to accept an advertising career path was more fluid and less stable. 

Jason Anello is a founding partner and creative director at Manifold Partners, an award-winning creative advertising agency.  Previously, Anello worked in creative leadership roles at Yahoo!, Ogilvy & Mather, and Digitas.  A passionate foodie and traveler, he runs the Forking Tasty food blog and supper club series.  He earned a BFA from University at Albany.

Jason Anello on How to Work With Different Personality Types

In Chapter 17 of 20 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, creative director and Manifold ad agency co-founder Jason Anello answers "How Are You Learning to Work More Effectively With Different Personality Types?"  Working in advertising, Anello learns to be observant and adaptable when meeting different types of people in and out of work. He finds ways to get along with others, including client relationships where there is tension and a need to be accepting of views that he may not share.

Jason Anello is a founding partner and creative director at Manifold Partners, an award-winning creative advertising agency.  Previously, Anello worked in creative leadership roles at Yahoo!, Ogilvy & Mather, and Digitas. A passionate foodie and traveler, he runs the Forking Tasty food blog and supper club series.  He earned a BFA from University at Albany.

Phil McKenzie on How to Find Speakers for Your Next Event

In Chapter 13 of 18 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, entrepreneur Phil McKenzie answers "What Steps Do You Take to Source Conference Speakers and Curate Conference Panels?"  McKenzie finds he and his team are able to find speakers and curate panels and keynote ideas first through curiosity.  By identifying what is important across different communities they are able to find inspirational sources and then look for previously unseen connections between these sources. 

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

Cathy Erway on the Benefits of Having Supportive Parents

In Chapter 1 of 17 in her 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, writer and healthy food advocate Cathy Erway answers "Where Has Your Family Been Most Supportive in Your Career Development?"  Raised in a strict home and taught to be studious and diligent, Erway finds her parents support style transitions from "iron-fisted parents" to more of a peer support.  They push Erway to learn from trying new things, teaching her a work ethic in the process. 

Cathy Erway is a Brooklyn-based author, part-time cook, freelance writer, radio host and teacher focused on healthy food advocacy.  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.

Cathy Erway on Embracing Technology in a Food Writing Career

In Chapter 13 of 17 in her 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, writer and healthy food advocate Cathy Erway answers "What New Challenges Are You Facing in Your Food and Writing Career?" Erway notes new challenges come with keeping up with and figuring out how to embrace new technology.  She sees opportunities in using technology to make sustainable and local eating more approachable.  She also notes the challenge she faces trying to keep up with new digital publishing tools and figure out where to invest her time. 

Cathy Erway is a Brooklyn-based author, part-time cook, freelance writer, radio host and teacher focused on healthy food advocacy.  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.

Cathy Erway on Improving Cooking Skills by Teaching Classes

In Chapter 16 of 17 in her 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, writer and healthy food advocate Cathy Erway answers "How Has Teaching Cooking Classes Helped You Become a Better Cook?"  Erway shares how feedback she receives teaching cooking classes helps her learn different perspectives from her students.  She shares an example from learning from students about using different forms of a spice in your cooking. 

Cathy Erway is a Brooklyn-based author, part-time cook, freelance writer, radio host and teacher focused on healthy food advocacy.  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.

Hattie Elliot on Behavioral Traits For Entrepreneur Success

In Chapter 15 of 19 in her 2012 Capture Your Flag interview, female entrepreneur Hattie Grace Elliot answers "How Do You Balance Experimentation and Commitment in the Projects That You Pursue?"  Elliot notes that to be a successful entrepreneur one must be stubborn - almost delusional - yet open-minded enough to be flexible and try out new options or let old ones go at the right time. 

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.

Transcript: 

Erik Michielsen: How do you balance experimentation and commitment in the projects that you pursue?

Hattie Elliot: Balancing experimentation and commitment is a balance within itself, it’s—I, by no means, am perfect at it at this point, I think though that whether it is, for instance, we’re re-tweaking the Grace List offering at the moment, and I’ve kind of had to roll with the punches, if you’re gonna be a successful entrepreneur, you have to be partly really stubborn and steadfast, like when you think something’s gonna fail, you kind of, again, have to be partly delusional and partly brilliant, and just partly stupidly, like blindly stubborn to just stick things out, but then there’s also moments when you have to realize you have to wave a white flag and call a spade a spade, and realize that something’s not working, and that’s really part of I think experimentation, really being open to what’s working and not working in the business, and experimenting, maybe with new things that could be beneficial, whether it’s new employees, or something that a lot of entrepreneurs, including myself, struggle with, trusting someone and allocating them, like letting go of some of the responsibilities, and having a business is an experiment, like it’s a work in progress, I wish, you know, it’s not for people who thrive off of stability, it’s not—I mean, ultimately, you strive for that, but the journey along the way is never that. It’s full of—there’s plenty of glorious potholes, bumps, meteorites, like everything you can imagine, like a cow thrown in there through a tornado, whatever crazy images that your head conjures up, like that is the story of the journey to being an entrepreneur but it’s always laughable and like, you know, what can you do but laugh? It’s kind of hilarious, like there’s never a dull moment. 

However, you know, it’s really important not to have ego, it’s important to, you know, know when to stay strong, and when to, you know, to stand your ground, and you know, when to own something, even when you kind of have to fake it before you make it, like those moments, and also when there’s moments that you have to let something go, you know, where you just have to let it go, and—it sounds simple but it just—let it go. Because we hold onto so much, you know, with our businesses. We thought that, you know, the business is gonna go this way and this was our goal, or, we were really, you know, gung ho on the name of this new product, but guess what? Consumers aren’t being perceptive to it, so maybe we have to, you know, reevaluate it. 

So it’s—it’s, you know, making things less personal, and a lot of that just hap—you know, experimenting as part of that process, but it’s really what ultimately I believe really leads to success. Something just sticks, you know what I mean? When you trying out a bunch of different options within your company, if you didn’t experiment, you would never know that. 

Adam Carter on Finding Life Advice in Unexpected Places

In Chapter 11 of 13 in his 2012 Capture Your Flag interview, micro-philanthropist Adam Carter answers "At This Point in Your Life, Where are You Seeking Advice and Coaching?"  Carter finds good advice in a network of friends pursuing different field of work and study.  He finds the best advice often comes from the most unexpected places.  For example, in his micro-philanthropy work, Carter finds inspiration meeting and learning from local heroes in places such as the shanty towns of Rio. 

Adam Carter is a micro-philanthropist currently living in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.  He is the founder of the Cause and Affect Foundation which raises small amounts of financing to provide direct-to-source project funding for individuals and communities in need across the globe.  To date, Carter has traveled to over 80 countries.  He earned an MA in International Development from George Washington University and a BA in Cultural Anthropology from the University of Michigan.

Transcript: 

Erik Michielsen: At this point in your life where are you seeking advice and coaching?

Adam Carter: Luckily, I have a network, a lot of friends that are involved in various fields, fields of study, fields of work, and I’ve found that sometimes some of the most insightful information comes from the most unlikely of places. So I always try to keep myself open to those friends that I—sometimes friends that I really respect that have climbed up in whatever field that they’re involved in, but, at the same time, I’ve found that sometimes it comes from the people on the street, the people that you would never assume would be those to be giving advice, and in my philanthropy work, I’ve become so inspired by some of these local heroes that I’ve been working with, or just some of the people that I have come into contact with through these projects. The 85-year-old woman in Rio, in the shantytowns in Rio, We can see her living conditions are horrible. They’re sub-humane, so “we’re going to fix the roof. We’re going to get you a new mattress. What else do you want?” She’s like, “no, that’s great.” And we’re like, “okay, how about a new fan, you know, to get—“ she’s like, “well, that one still works fine.” “Okay, well, how about—“ and just that humility. Someone finally shows up at her doorstep to help her and she has the humility to say, “No, that’s great. That’s all I really need.” I mean, that’s incredible. We’re used to hearing about people that just want to take, take, take. So, I mean, sometimes it’s—as I said, people you would never expect to learn something from. You’re not even seeking advice, and all of a sudden you get this life lesson thrown at you. So that’s been one really rewarding aspect of receiving advice.

Ken Rona: How to Delegate Responsibility and Empower Employees

In Chapter 8 of 15 in his 2012 Capture Your Flag interview, digital media executive Ken Rona answers "What Has Been Most Challenging About Handing Off Responsibility to Others?"  Rona describes himself as an "aggressive delegator."  Learning from working at McKinsey management consulting, Rona carries an "assume benevolence" approach to giving trust to others and empowering employees. 

Ken Rona is a Vice President at Turner Broadcasting, where he leads teams across advertising sales, big data software development and business strategy.  Rona earned a BA and MA in Political Science from Stony Brook University and a PhD in Behavioral Economics from Duke University. 

Transcript: 

Erik Michielsen: What has been most challenging about handing off responsibility to others?

Ken Rona: I gotta say I am ruthless about it. I am ruthless. I do not find that challenging one bit. I assume that people are gonna do a good job of it. So I think there are people who manage folks who say, well, I don’t trust you so I’m going to—I’m gonna keep—I’m gonna keep this, right. Keep the task, I’m going to keep responsibility, I’m gonna manage it very closely. That’s not my style at all. I actually am aggressive. I describe it literally as I’m an aggressive delegator. And what I’ve found is that when you trust people, and that’s my MO, right, is that I trust people. My first reflex, right, in these situations is to trust that people are going to do the right thing. 

And that comes from McKinsey. It comes from—there was this notion of assumed benevolence. Assume that people are good. And that’s—don’t make up a twisted story of why they’re messing with you. Just assume like something happened or, you know, why didn’t they get back to me? Because their kid was sick. Right? Not because they’re trying to make you look bad. I found that to be true. So one of the things I do when I take over a team and I’d say that I’ve done this 3 or 4 times where I’ll take over a team and they maybe hadn’t been the most highest performing team, the first thing I do is just empower them. And in almost every case people don’t wanna disappoint. They appreciate the opportunity and, you know, it takes sometimes a little while for them to say, oh, you mean I don’t have to check with you? But I like that, I mean that—I like that I go “no, why would you? This is something you’re perfectly capable of making a decision on.” Part of my strategy for delegation is I only delegate things that people can fail on. So I try to be really careful about that. 

It’s something I learned from—Actually l learned this from Donald Trump, I learned this from watching The Apprentice. So the story on The Apprentice is when Donald Trump shows up, if you’re the project manager of the show, you know, of that day. You show up to his limo, you open the door, “Hello, Mr. Trump, welcome.” And you escort him to wherever he needs to be. That’s an important thing that needs to happen. You can’t delegate it, in that show. So what I’ve learned is that—that’s how I think about these things. There are some things that the CEO makes a request, you know, I’m paying a lot of attention. The chief research officer makes a request, I’m paying a lot of attention. Some parts of the company who are looking to make a big decision, really important decision for the company, I’m paying a lot of attention. What I want is for the staff to be in a place where if they fail, it’s safe. That I can kind of take the blame, or that I can remediate it. I can throw another person at it. I can take them away from—Like you know whatever I gotta do to help them fix it, that’s what I wanna be in a position to do. What I don’t want them to be in a position is that where something had to go to, you know, someone very senior or something very visible and it was a spectacular flame out and I wasn’t involved. If I’m involved, then it’s my responsibility. Oh, I’m sorry. If I’m involved, it’s my responsibility. I mean it’s my responsibility anyway, but like, I can get in front of it. 

So what I try to do is construct environments where it’s safe for them to fail and I actually have some people, I call them trusted hands, where there are some people who, you know, if I’m super busy, and I can’t do something that should be delegated, I will—or you know, that I’m a little uncomfortable about delegating, I will put—I will give it to one of these folks. And they will—I probably have 3 or 4 of them floating around, that can handle very complicated things that have very high emotional intelligence, very high, you know, IQ, and that I just trust that they’re gonna deal with things the right way and I of course make myself available, but I’m not worried about them—I try to like—other people, I’m willing to tolerate failure in a safe way because that helps them grow. 

Anatole Faykin on Founding and Selling an Internet Startup

In Chapter 6 of 12 in his 2012 Capture Your Flag interview, entrepreneur Anatole Faykin answers "What Were the Main Learning Points From Starting and Selling a Company?"  He talks about the massive amount of uncertainty starting and growing a company and managing the adverse climate that comes with that.  He notes how Internet startups operate in a fluid, fast changing market that requires quick adaptation to changing market conditions.  Faykin shares how a fast changing environment requires short term, incremental goals along with being open-minded for change and new opportunities.  Anatole Faykin is an entrepreneur currently working on a new startup as part of the Startup Chile incubator program in Santiago, Chile.  Previously, Faykin founded Tuanpin, a Shanghai, China-based daily deals site he grew to 25 employees and sold in the fall of 2011. He has worked for British Telecom in London, Intel in Shanghai, American Express in New York, and Oracle in San Francisco as well as several startups. He holds an MBA from the NYU Stern School of Business and a BS in computer science and biology from the California Institute of Technology.

What Performing With Bob Weir Teaches Musician Conrad Doucette

In Chapter 18 of 19 in his 2012 Capture Your Flag interview, musician Conrad Doucette answers "What Did Bob Weir Teach You When You Played With Him Earlier This Year?"  Doucette gets to play with Bob Weir of the Grateful Dead in early 2012.  Bob Weir shows Doucette how he directs a band and puts an improvisational structure in place.  Weir gives Doucette and his bandmates lessons on how listening can feed improvisational music moments.  Additionally, learns Bob Weir is as much a master musician as he thought but also that he is as human as anyone else playing in the band. 

Conrad Doucette is a Brooklyn musician and the drummer for Takka Takka, which released its 3rd studio album, AM Landscapes, in late 2012.  He has performed with Bob Weir of the Grateful Dead, The National, Alina Simone, and many other leading acts.  When not performing music, Doucette is the communications and brand director at music licensing and publishing startup Jingle Punks.  Doucette earned a BA in History from the University of Michigan.

Matt Ruby on How Family Supports Creative Career Aspirations

In Chapter 2 of 19 in his 2012 Capture Your Flag interview, standup comedian Matt Ruby answers "Where Has Your Family Been Most Supportive in Your Career Development?"  Ruby found support in his Mom, an artist and arts supporter, who encouraged him to perform.  He also finds family comfort with leaving each other alone a positive in fostering his imagination and creativity.  Matt Ruby is a standup comedian and comedy writer based in New York City.  He produces a video comic strip at Vooza.com, co-produces the weekly show "Hot Soup", co-hosts the monthly show "We're All Friends Here", and writes a comedy blog "Sandpaper Suit".  Ruby graduated from Northwestern University. 

Garren Katz on How to Talk About a Career Change Decision

In Chapter 3 of 15 in his 2012 Capture Your Flag interview, business and personal coach Garren Katz answers "How Did You Set Expectations With Others and Yourself Making a Career Change?"  Katz notes how he was uncertain how to talk about his experiences and intentions going through the process.  Over time, Katz gets more clear on his journey and goals and in turn is better able to answer questions about why he did what he did. 

Garren Katz is a business and personal coach based in State College, PA and advises his national client base on small business management, entrepreneurship, relationships, and personal finances.  He is also an active angel investor in several business ventures.  He earned his BA from Western Michigan University.