Tricia Regan on Finding the Right Fit Interviewing for Film and TV Jobs

In Chapter 10 of 15 in her 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, filmmaker and television producer Tricia Regan answers "How Do You Assess Fit When Interviewing for New Film or Television Projects?" For television jobs, Regan looks for opportunities that pay well and complement her documentary filmmaking projects. In finding fit making documentary films, Regan makes a point to have some connection to the subject matter, especially given the economic benefits are less certain in documentary film work than in TV. Tricia Regan is an Emmy Award-winning filmmaker known for writing, directing and producing documentary films, including the Emmy-winning "Autism: The Musical". She also has worked extensively in non-fiction television for A&E, ABC, FOX, Lifetime, MTV Networks and NBC. Regan earned a bachelors from Binghamton University and masters from New York University. 

Richard Moross on How to Give Better Advice When Asked for Help

In Chapter 13 of 14 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, Moo.com CEO Richard Moross answers "How Have You Learned to Give Better Advice When People Ask You For Help?" As a member of Young Presidents Organization, or YPO, Moross learns advice giving is less about answering and opining and more about providing support and even granting permission for the requesting party to make a more well-informed decision. Richard Moross is founder and CEO of award-winning online print business Moo.com. He is a member of Young Presidents Organization (YPO) and a board member at Ladbrokes PLC. Before Moo.com, Moross was a strategist at design firm Imagination. He graduated from the University of Sussex.

Doug Jaeger on the Give and Take of Creative Project Work Attribution

In Chapter 12 of 14 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, creative director and brand marketer Doug Jaeger answers "What Steps Are You Taking to Get and to Give Credit for the Work That You Do?" An experienced advertising executive now making brand films about companies and their futures, Jaeger shares his perspective on giving credit and taking credit for client project work. He shares when it is and is not appropriate to get attribution for the work you do on a creative project collaboration. Doug Jaeger is co-founder and creative director at JaegerSloan Inc. where he focuses on brand and experimental marketing for clients such as Squarespace, Samsung and PwC. He is an adjunct professor at New York's School of Visual Arts (SVA) and co-curator of JnrlStr. He graduated from Syracuse University.

Ken Biberaj on How Life Experiences Change Your Aspirations

In Chapter 5 of 23 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, New York City Council Candidate Ken Biberaj answers "How Are Your Aspirations Changing As Your Experience Grows?" Biberaj finds assessing each of his aspirations in a vacuum helps him with goal setting. Personally, as a new father, he is putting a priority on spending more time at home to be the best father he can be. Professionally, he tries to understand what is in his control and what is not and to focus his efforts on what he can do to make a difference in his community.

Ken Biberaj is currently a 2013 Democratic Candidate for City Council in New York City. He is also a public relations executive for the Russian Tea Room restaurant at One Fifty Fifty Seven Corporation, a family business focused on real estate development, investment sales and retail leasing. Previously Biberaj was Florida Research Director for the Kerry-Edwards for President Campaign. Biberaj holds a JD from New York Law School, a Masters in Public Policy (MPP) from Harvard University Kennedy School of Government, and a BA in Political Science from American University. 

Slava Rubin on How an Executive Coach Helps Him Be a Better CEO

In Chapter 5 of 15 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, Indiegogo CEO Slava Rubin answers "What Skills Are You Working on Right Now to Become Better at Your Job?" Rubin shares how working with an executive coach helps him be a better CEO by improving his decision making, listening, and management skills. He shares how the executive coaching relationship complements what he learns from his cofounders, board of directors, and investors. Slava Rubin is CEO and co-founder of Indiegogo, the world's largest crowdfunding platform. Indiegogo empowers anyone, anywhere, anytime to raise funds for any idea—creative, cause-related or entrepreneurial. Prior to Indiegogo, Rubin worked as a management consultant. He earned his BSE degree from The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania.

Transcript: 

Erik Michielsen: What skills are you working on right now to become better at your job?

Slava Rubin: Definitely around how to lead, how to make decisions, how to listen, and how to focus on people.

Erik Michielsen: Where do you get that direction? Do you have a board of directors now?

Slava Rubin: We do have a board of directors. We’ve had a board of directors since we closed the seed round 2 years ago.

Erik Michielsen: And how do you receive guidance from the board of directors and how does that compare and contrast from the guidance that you receive from, say your co-founders?

Slava Rubin: Typically, in the board meeting, it is a little bit more functional for us, where we’re discussing “What are the challenges? What are the opportunities? How do the numbers look? What are we focusing on the next quarter or what do we do for the last quarter?” But I am in touch with the board and the other investors and advisors a lot throughout them, 3 months between board meetings, plus we’re constantly in touch as executive senior management of the team, and I also have an executive coach. So these are just things where we pull together different feedback, and listening, and keep on trying to improve.

Erik Michielsen: What have you found most helpful in the executive coaching relationship?

Slava Rubin: An executive coach is helpful from the standpoint of everybody has a little bit of bias sometimes in their relationship with you, so it’s hard to be completely open and be able to really have complete feedback as part of the process because an investor has their bias, a co-founder has their own bias, an employee has their own bias, so it’s good to speak to somebody who is a professional, who is just constantly speaking to your type of similar individuals. For me, the situation is founder or CEO, and being able to parallel that, to explain, “Hey, this is what I’ve seen. Are there people going through a similar situation? Maybe this is what you’re going through, and maybe have you thought about this?” So it’s helpful.

Clara Soh on How to Work Smarter and Perform Under Pressure

In Chapter 15 of 20 in her 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, health economist Clara Soh answers "What Does It Mean to Perform Under Pressure in the Work That You Do?" An avid rock climber, Soh approaches challenges mindfully and deliberately. In her health care policy work, she learns to manage pressure by looking for context when making decisions in high stakes situations. Clara Soh is a health economist and Senior Director of Policy and Research at a pharmaceutical trade organization in Washington, DC. Previously, Soh held senior roles at Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Research (KPCHR) and Health Policy Research Northwest (HPRN). Soh earned her Masters of Public Administration (MPA) in Policy Analysis and Healthcare Public Finance from the NYU Wagner School and a BS in Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry from Yale University.

James McCormick on How to Be More Confident Doing Your Job

In Chapter 16 of 21 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, legal search and consulting firm executive James McCormick answers "What Role Does Confidence Play in the Work That You Do?" In his executive recruiting work placing law professionals, McCormick shares where and when confidence is most important. This involves understanding what you know and what you do not know when helping clients or candidates find or fill jobs. 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. 

Leslie Kerner on Ways to Better Manage and Motivate Teams

In Chapter 19 of 21 in her 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, education software company executive Leslie Kerner answers "How Are You Learning to Better Manage and Motivate Teams?" Kerner shares the importance of better structuring goals so that each team member clearly understands how he or she can contribute to achieving them. She finds this hugely helpful motivating teams. Kerner notes making it a priority to get to know team members in and out of work helps her manage better by understanding the best way to encourage and support them.

Leslie Kerner is Senior Vice President and General Manager for the Professional Services group at Amplify, a software and services company innovating K-12 education. She is responsible for building and managing training, professional development and consulting services for schools. Previously, Kerner worked as a management consultant at Deloitte & Touche. Kerner earned an MBA from the Duke University and a BA from Northwestern University.

Chris Hinkle on How Working in Silicon Valley is Different Than Working in New York

In Chapter 3 of 10 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, software engineer Chris Hinkle answers "How Has Working in Silicon Valley Reshaped What You Think is Possible in Your Career?" Relocating from New York City to Silicon Valley, Hinkle cuts past the "get rich quick" entrepreneur scene and finds a passionate generation of innovators working to make the world a better place. This contrasts with the more media industry-driven tech scene he experienced in New York City. Chris Hinkle is a senior software engineer working at Evernote in Silicon Valley. Previously, Hinkle worked at New York City digital agencies HUGE and R/GA in creative director and software engineering roles designing products and developing Internet mobile applications and websites.

Chris Hinkle on Finding Organic Ways to Lead and Motivate Teams

In Chapter 10 of 10 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, software engineer Chris Hinkle answers "How Are You Learning to Better Manage and Motivate Teams?" Hinkle shares that while he does from time to time need to instill motivation and be a leader, he finds he is more comfortable crafting work collaboratively with teams and less interested managing teams. By creating great work together with his teams, Hinkle finds the career advice and motivational aspects occur naturally in the process. Chris Hinkle is a senior software engineer working at Evernote in Silicon Valley. Previously, Hinkle worked at New York City digital agencies HUGE and R/GA in creative director and software engineering roles designing products and developing Internet mobile applications and websites.

Courtney Spence on Performing Under Pressure and Facing Fear

In Chapter 9 of 20 in her 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, social entrepreneur Courtney Spence answers "What Does It Mean to Perform Under Pressure in the Work That You Do?" For Spence, performing under pressure starts with believing in the mission for the work that you do. Believing in her mission is fundamental and mission confidence will enable performance even in the face of adversity or fear. If the performance pressure is more personal, then she finds it needs to be addressed quickly or it will hinder her performance. 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.

How to Reduce Stress and Improve Nonprofit Fundraising Success

In Chapter 20 of 20 in her 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, social entrepreneur Courtney Spence answers "What Steps are You Taking to Make Fundraising a Less Stressful Part of Your Job?" Fundraising for her nonprofit causes Spence a lot of stress and she looks for ways to reduce that stress in her work. She decides hiring a development director who loves to do fundraising will reduce her stress, allow her to focus on other parts of the business, and boost fundraising success. 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.

Bijoy Goswami on Living a More Present Life

In Chapter 15 of 19 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, leadership philosopher Bijoy Goswami answers "How Are Your Personal Experiences Shaping Your Professional Aspirations?" Goswami notes how his personal and professional worlds are collapsing into one and references author and Jungian analyst Robert A. Johnson's work "Transformation" as a way of describing how he shows up in a world with no distinctions.

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.

Hammans Stallings on Gaining Leadership Job Responsibility

In Chapter 18 of 19 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, innovation strategist Hammans Stallings answers "How Are Your Job Responsibilities Changing as Your Career Evolves?" As Stallings gains experience, he finds himself carrying more responsibility. This process allows him to think differently about what it means for him to contribute, namely it becomes more about framing how others can contribute and how he can set expectations and motivate his team.

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.

Cathy Erway on How to Create Relationship Trust

In Chapter 3 of 17 in her 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, writer and healthy food advocate Cathy Erway answers "How Do You Establish Trust When Building Relationships?"  Erway believes it comes with time and comes with testing, particularly in high stress environments.  Going through an intense period can teach you whether or not you can trust another person and how you can trust that person. 

Cathy Erway is 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.

Kyung B. Yoon on How to Inspire and Motivate Non-Profit Teams

In Chapter 9 of 17 in her 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, non-profit executive Kyung B. Yoon answers "How Are You Learning to Better Manage and Motivate Teams?"  Yoon notes that creating social impact normally takes priority with both non-profit employees and volunteers.  She learns to motivate staff not with financial compensation but rather with achieving a social mission by working toward common goals. 

Kyung B. Yoon is the executive director of the Korean American Community Foundation (KACF) in New York City.  An award-winning journalist and documentary film producer, Yoon earned an MA in International Relations from Johns Hopkins University and a BA in History and Political Science at Wellesley College.

Jullien Gordon on Why to Set New Year's Intentions and Not Goals

In Chapter 8 of 21 in his 2012 Capture Your Flag interview, business coach Jullien Gordon answers "How Are You Helping Others Plan, Commit to, and Achieve New Year's Goals?"  Gordon shares how he helps people set their intentions by putting out his annual "New Year Guide."  He focuses not on the outcome or goal but the intention or the underlying initiative behind that goal or outcome.  Jullien Gordon is a high performance coach and consultant to organizations, individuals and teams who want to increase employee performance, motivation, engagement and retention.  He earned a BA from UCLA, an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business, and a Masters of Education from Stanford University.

Transcript:

Erik Michielsen: How are you helping others plan, commit to, and achieve New Year’s Resolution goals?

Jullien Gordon: So as you know, every year I put out the New Year Guide which is a tool to help people set their intentions. I have shifted my beliefs in a lot of ways from setting goals to really setting intentions. And the difference is that with a goal, a goal is usually connected to some sort of outcome. And while it’s okay to have a desired outcome, an intention is more about what’s behind the desired outcome. So for instance, a lot of people will set weight loss goals this year. “I wanna lose 30 pounds.” That’s the goal, right? And that’s connected to a certain outcome. If they don’t achieve that outcome, they feel that they failed.

Whereas an intention is I wanna be healthier. And one of the goals connected to being healthier may be to lose 30 pounds. And so I’m focused on helping people get clear on their intention, and then also knowing that when you do have a desired outcome that we don’t always control the outcomes as human beings. I can do everything that Shaun T tells me to do and P90X and still not get a body that looks like his, right? But if I’m connected to the outcome then I feel like I failed. But what I can control, the only thing that’s in our control is our effort. What I can tell Shaun T is that I showed up every single day for 90 days. And I did what I was supposed to. And that may not have gotten me to that kind of physique, but it may have gotten me somewhere along the direction of where I ultimately wanted to be.

And so, one, getting clear on the distinction between goals and intentions, and really focusing on intentions and making sure the intention is right which is your why behind the goal, and then also being clear about the distinction between effort and outcome and knowing that you only have full control over the effort, we don’t have full control over the outcome. And when you start with your why and make sure that the why is big enough, you know, Viktor Frankl says a man who knows his why can bear almost any how. And what I found is that when I’m clear on my intention or my why behind something, the how tends to manifest itself. When I look back at my goals from last year, I accomplished a lot of them in ways that I didn’t even anticipate it. They happen in their own way. But that’s because the intention was strong and they manifested themselves, they didn’t manifest themselves the way I thought they would but they manifested themselves nonetheless. And so really making those distinctions clear.

Simon Sinek on When Your Idea is Worth Turning Into a Book

In Chapter 16 of 16 in his 2012 Capture Your Flag interview, author and public speaker Simon Sinek answers "How Do You Take Collections of Ideas and Turn Them Into Books?"  Sinek focuses less on the collection of ideas and more on how to take an idea, attack a problem and do so by taking your readers on a journey.  Simon Sinek teaches leaders and organizations how to inspire people.  His goal is to "inspire people to do the things that inspire them" and help others find fulfillment in their work.  Sinek is the author of "Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action".  He works regularly with the United States Military, United States Congress, and many organizations, agencies and entrepreneurs.  Sinek is an adjunct professor at Columbia University and an adjunct staff member at the think tank RAND Corporation.  Sinek earned a BA in Cultural Anthropology from Brandeis University.

Transcript

Erik Michielsen:  How do you take collections of ideas and turn them into books?

Simon Sinek:  Considering that most books are probably only have enough content in them to be sort of articles, you know, to take a collection of ideas and turn them into a book, you know, an idea to be a book has to be able to advance. In other words, it has to start somewhere and go somewhere. Right? And I think a lot of books that are written have an idea that’s—it may be a really good idea but the whole book is simply case studies that prove the same idea, over and over and over again, right? And a book like in a work of fiction is a story. It has a beginning, it has a middle, and it has an end. You know, there’s a sort of an Aristotelian story arc, you know, where there’s some sort of here’s the world there is something is introduced that makes everything go wrong, you know there’s some sort of resolution and then here’s the—here’s how it looks. There’s conflict, right? So I think a collection of ideas that belong in a book, it addresses a very real problem. Here’s the way the world is. There’s a serious problem with this. Here’s the introduction of something that can help us and here’s what we could do to advance that. And there’s an arc. There’s something that holds your interest throughout the whole thing as opposed to just pick a page, start anywhere, and it’s more of the same. You should feel like you’ve missed the beginning if you start in the middle, you know? So yeah, I mean, a collection of ideas, I wouldn’t call it a collection of ideas, I’d call it, you know, a journey. That—and it doesn’t even have to be a complete journey, it has to be a journey. It has to start somewhere, and it has to go somewhere, even if it’s not a final destination.