Matt Curtis on Honing Travel Industry Career Aspirations

In Chapter 7 of 18 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, HomeAway government relations director Matt Curtis answers "How Are Your Aspirations Changing as Your Experience Grows?" Two years into leaving a public service job to work for HomeAway in the short-term rental travel industry, Curtis begins to see bigger picture potential for what it means to have a travel industry career. Matt Curtis is the director of government relations at HomeAway Inc. Previously he was communications director for Austin mayors Lee Leffingwell and Will Wynn. He earned his bachelor's degree in radio, television and film from the University of North Texas.

Courtney Spence on Fatherly Advice on Why to Work Every Day Doing What You Love

In Chapter 2 of 20 in her 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, social entrepreneur Courtney Spence answers "Where Has Your Family Been Most Supportive in Your Career Development?" From an early age, Spence is encouraged by her father to "find a way to make a living doing what you love." He encourages his daughter, saying "I don't want you to have a job but I want you to work every day of your life." This guides Spence from college into her social entrepreneurship nonprofit work. All the while her parents find moments and space to support their daughter's development.

Social entrepreneur and storyteller Courtney Spence founded 501c3 nonprofit Students of the World (SOW) to shine a light on progress and celebrate the world's problem solvers. She is building a movement of next-generation storytellers and creative activists through the SOW program The Creative Activist Network. Spence is a graduate of Duke University.

Transcript:

Erik Michielsen: Where has your family been most supportive in your career development?

Courtney Spence: Wow. They have been supportive throughout my entire career development. From the beginning, it was find a way to make a living, doing what you love to do, and my dad always said I don’t want you to have a job but I want you to work every day of your life. And it’s that different philosophy of I don’t go to my job that I have to, I go work hard because I want to. And, you know, it doesn’t mean that you enjoy what you do every day, all day, or even all month, but, you know, as long as you find your passion and are able to follow it, it just lifts you up and lifts those people around you. And so, I think that kind of started me off on that path when I was, you know, 16, 17, 18 through my early 20s, thinking about what I wanted to do.

Most recently, this has been a really wonderful year, but a year of a lot of challenges, a lot of ups and downs, a lot of new situations that I have not faced before as a leader in our organization, and some really hard times. And I think that, you know, it’s when the going gets tough, I get on the phone or I go to my parents’ backyard, and I’m lucky to have two really wonderful parents who are mentors and that who really are equally as passionate about my passion as I am. And so, I would say that while I would give them credit for putting me on the right path to following your passion, I think that knowing that I can turn to them in times of doubt, or crisis, or questioning what we’re doing, and being able to have that as like a sounding board, and a family is pretty amazing, actually, so.

Courtney Spence on How Children Ground You and Remind You Family Comes First

In Chapter 4 of 20 in her 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, social entrepreneur Courtney Spence answers "How Are Your Personal Experiences Shaping Your Professional Aspirations?" Newly engaged Spence shares how having her fiancee's 5-year old daughter has given her a more holistic perspective on life that puts family front and center. The experience allows her to take a step back and appreciate her family relationships and get a healthy separation from work. Social entrepreneur and storyteller Courtney Spence founded 501c3 nonprofit Students of the World (SOW) to shine a light on progress and celebrate the world's problem solvers. She is building a movement of next-generation storytellers and creative activists through the SOW program The Creative Activist Network. Spence is a graduate of Duke University.

Transcript:

Erik Michielsen: How are your personal experiences shaping your professional aspirations?

Courtney Spence: This last year has been one of a lot more personal experiences, I guess, I would say. I got engaged.

Erik Michielsen: Congratulations.

Courtney Spence: Thank you. I, you know, have now a wonderful 5-year-old child in my life that I love, and what it has done for me is it has grounded me in a way that makes me realize what’s really important. And, again, there’s a lot of theme my family for me right now, and, you know, the things that really matter are the ones that you love most. And so, when you go through difficult times in your career, in your company, they don’t seem as insurmountable as they might have seemed a few years ago, and I think that’s because I have, you know—with the kind of the blending of this new family of mine, I now understand so many more things about just life in general that I don’t think I could have seen or understood before, so it has been a pretty profound year for that.

Erik Michielsen: Tell me more about that.

Courtney Spence: Especially when there is a child that you love, this daughter that I love, I am fiercely protective of her, and I get scared sometimes, or I get, you know, inspired, or l laugh a lot more than I did before, I mean just the range of emotions that comes with that, and it comes with seeing the kind of stepping back and starting to see the generations of my family, and spending more time with my parents, and my siblings, and my cousins, and then my new family, There’s a lot of just real understanding of just what’s important, and you see it daily. You see it daily. And what it makes me wanna do is when I do go to work, or when I am working, or if I’m working Friday night on my computer, I wanna work faster, better, smarter, harder, because I wanna wake up Saturday morning, go to the park, and that’s just a new—that’s something that has been pretty new for me, so.

Courtney Spence on How Making Hard Decisions Can Strengthen Your Resolve

In Chapter 5 of 20 in her 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, social entrepreneur Courtney Spence answers "How Are Your Aspirations Changing As Your Experience Grows?" In the year since her last Capture Your Flag interview, Spence shares the challenge of making her work and her organization more lasting and sustainable and the resolve it has taken from her as a leader. Social entrepreneur and storyteller Courtney Spence founded 501c3 nonprofit Students of the World (SOW) to shine a light on progress and celebrate the world's problem solvers. She is building a movement of next-generation storytellers and creative activists through the SOW program The Creative Activist Network. Spence is a graduate of Duke University.

Transcript:

Erik Michielsen: How are your aspirations changing as your experience grows?

Courtney Spence:  So, this year, and lot has happened this last year. I feel like I keep referencing it as this year, but these are annual interviews, so that would make sense. But this year has been about, I think, wanting to create sustainability within my organization, and I think—and that is not for legacy reasons but for the reason that I really believe in what I’ve been building for the last 13 years. We’re starting to see true traction and enthusiasm and the possibility of making Students of the World, and our new endeavors have a much more of a lasting kind of global impact than we’ve ever been able to see or imagine before.

And having seen that and understanding where we’re going, it makes me very focused and concerned about the longevity of the organization, the health of the organization, the sustainability, you know, being able to provide benefits to employees, and being able to, you know, really, really put people in the right places and assemble a team that can weather the difficult times and the good times.

Like, for example, we had to go through a series of a few layoffs in August, and that was the hardest time I’ve ever experienced from a professional standpoint. And it was not something that was pretty, it was certainly the most stressful, sad time that I’ve experienced with Students of the World, but it was necessary to continue the work that we were doing. It was for the health of the organization and the mission. And, you know, having to kind of grow up and make some of those harder decisions in a role of leadership is difficult but it also strengthens, I think. It strengthened my resolve in what I’m doing and my role as a leader and, you know, as the executive in the company.

Why to Work With Business Partners Who Share Your Values

In Chapter 17 of 20 in her 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, social entrepreneur Courtney Spence answers "What Has Been Your Approach to Finding Business Partners Whose Mission and Values Align With Your Own?" Spence notes organizational success is highly predicated on working with individuals and organizations who share your mission and goals. She learns the power of mission-alignment participating in the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) annual meetings. She applies this approach to partner with Participant Media to create entertainment that inspires people to take action. Social entrepreneur and storyteller Courtney Spence founded 501c3 nonprofit Students of the World (SOW) to shine a light on progress and celebrate the world's problem solvers. She is building a movement of next-generation storytellers and creative activists through the SOW program The Creative Activist Network. Spence is a graduate of Duke University.

Audrey French on How to Know You Are Ready to Commit to Getting Married

In Chapter 15 of 18 in her 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, entrepreneur Audrey Parker French answers "How Do You Balance Experimentation and Commitment in the Projects That You Pursue?" French shares how she and her husband set expectations together when deciding if and when to get married. Setting clearly defined goals and taking incremental steps to reach them help them test the relationship before making the commitment in marriage. 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.

Audrey French on Creating Impact Doing Meaningful Volunteer Work

In Chapter 18 of 18 in her 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, entrepreneur Audrey Parker French answers "How Do You Make the Most of Your Volunteering Experience?" French talks about the social impact she is able to create by volunteering in Travis County, Texas as a court-appointed special advocate for non-profit CASA. There she works for abused and neglected children in the foster care system and helps them navigate the legal system. 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.

Hammans Stallings on How Role Model Father Inspires Work Ethic

In Chapter 2 of 19 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, innovation strategist Hammans Stallings answers "Where Did You Learn Your Work Ethic?"  Stallings watches how his father, a physician, works at his job.  He notes how his father orients to his work and how his father stayed connected to his work over time.  Stallings sees the sacrifices that come with a dedicated career and why mindfulness can be useful making that commitment. 

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 What You Need to Close a Real Estate Deal

In Chapter 13 of 18 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, real estate developer Brett Goldman answers "What Requirements Are Necessary for a Real Estate Deal to Happen?" When a buyer and seller enter a negotiation, there must first be a willingness to buy and a willingness to sell. This, Goldman notes, is not guaranteed when someone lists a property or someone inquires on a property. Goldman looks at seller incentives such as financial distress instances of foreclosure and bankruptcy to identify issues outside price that play into the deal. This opens new options to get more creative in putting together a deal.

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 Writing a Life Goals List to Guide Career

In Chapter 1 of 20 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, creative director and Manifold ad agency co-founder Jason Anello answers "What Role Has Reflection Played in Shaping Your Personal Growth?"  Anello always tries to slow down and reflect at different points in his life.  He shares an example from college, when he wrote a list of seven life goals and how he has worked toward achieving them in his life. 

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 Living a Work Hard Play Hard Life

In Chapter 4 of 20 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, creative director and Manifold ad agency co-founder Jason Anello answers "What Steps Are You Taking to Do What is Best for Your Family and Future?" Anello shares how he and his wife are both Type A personalities and are very comfortable with a "Go, Go, Go" lifestyle that puts career first today while leaving room for fun adventures along the way.

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 Building Long-Term Client Relationships

In Chapter 12 of 20 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, creative director and Manifold ad agency co-founder Jason Anello answers "How are Progressively Longer Term Relationships Changing How You Do Business?" Doing multiple ad campaigns and projects for clients such as Microsoft allow Anello and his team to better understand the client business, from its brand to its products to the client team personalities. The experiences create reference points Anello uses to deepen the Microsoft client relationships and build upon past projects with new creative projects.

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.

Mike Germano on Why Not to Outsource Software Development

In Chapter 12 of 20 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, Carrot Creative social media agency CEO Mike Germano answers "Why Does Your Company Choose to Keep Development In-House and Not Outsource It?"  Germano keeps his software development team in-house to maintain respect for the development process, to integrate the feedback more fully into the creative project process, and to maintain an innovation culture.  It comes at a cost; however, he finds the benefits outweigh the costs. 

Mike Germano is co-founder and CEO of DUMBO Brooklyn-based social media agency Carrot Creative.  Previously, Germano ran for and was elected to public office in Connecticut.  He is a graduate of Quinnipiac University. 

Mike Germano on How Long-Term Clients Help Business Scale

In Chapter 14 of 20 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, Carrot Creative social media agency CEO Mike Germano answers "How Are Progressively Longer-Term Client Relationships Changing How You Do Business?"  Germano notes how he learns to appreciate the possibilities that come with longer-term client relationship.  Over time, as client relationships become longer term and projects more strategic, Germano uses the increasing commitments to build company infrastructure to support business growth. 

Mike Germano is co-founder and CEO of DUMBO Brooklyn-based social media agency Carrot Creative.  Previously, Germano ran for and was elected to public office in Connecticut.  He is a graduate of Quinnipiac University. 

Mike Germano on Planning Family Goals at Age 30

In Chapter 20 of 20 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, Carrot Creative social media agency CEO Mike Germano answers "What Steps Are You Taking to Do What is Best For Your Family and Your Future?"  Germano talks about the work he is doing to be a more attentive husband and to take better care of his own health.  He notes how this will become increasingly important as he and his wife have children and start a family. 

Mike Germano is co-founder and CEO of DUMBO Brooklyn-based social media agency Carrot Creative.  Previously, Germano ran for and was elected to public office in Connecticut.  He is a graduate of Quinnipiac University.

Phil McKenzie on How to Better Manage Your Meeting Commitments

In Chapter 5 of 18 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, entrepreneur Phil McKenzie answers "How Are You Learning to Better Manage Your Time and Commitments?"  McKenzie learns to make meeting plans with a more restrictive start and stop times.  This helps him better focus on the conversation and allows him to have more meetings. 

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 Finding Freelance Writing Jobs to Make Ends Meet

In Chapter 14 of 17 in her 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, writer and healthy food advocate Cathy Erway answers "How Have You Found Jobs to Make Ends Meet and Pay the Bills as You Develop Your Career?"  As a freelance writer, Erway builds strong relationships with a few publications, namely the L Magazine, Edible Brooklyn and Grist.org.  The relationships provide her a steady stream of writing work that complement her work as a cooking teacher and restaurant cook. 

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.

Andrew Epstein on How to Be a Better Partner to Your Boss

In Chapter 7 of 23 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, charter school CFO Andrew Epstein answers "How Have You Learned to Be a Better Partner to Your Boss?"  As a CFO of a network of charter schools working with his boss, the CEO, Epstein focuses on being mission-aligned and being fully committed to the organizational vision.  He makes it a point of setting expectations early in the relationship - in the hiring phase - to make sure he and his CEO are on the same page. 

Andrew Epstein is CFO of the Ascend Learning Charter School Network.  Previously, Epstein was a finance executive at Democracy Prep Public Schools and an operations executive at Universal Music Group's Island Def Jam Records.  He is a former Teach for America corps member and middle-school science teacher.  He holds a BA from the University of Michigan and an MBA from Columbia Business School.