In Chapter 13 of 18 in her 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, author and entrepreneur Nina Godiwalla answers "How Have Mentors Helped Motivate You to Do Your Best Work?" Godiwalla shares how she is shifting her focus from finding mentors to finding sponsors. She notes sponsors are different than mentors in that sponsors take specific action to advocate for you while mentors are more of an advice resource. Godiwalla shares how sponsorship can be used when applying to join a board of directors. Nina Godiwalla is an expert on diversity, leadership and women in the business world. She is CEO of Mindworks, which provides leadership, stress management, and diversity training to companies all over the world. She is also a bestselling author and public speaker. Godiwalla earned an MBA from Wharton, a MA from Dartmouth and a BBA from the University of Texas.
Fabian Pfortmüller on Learning Hospitality From His Parents
In Chapter 1 of 18 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, entrepreneur and community builder Fabian Pfortmüller answers "What Childhood Experiences Have Been Most Fundamental in Shaping Who You Are Today?" Pfortmüller shares how watching his parents treat their houseguests with hospitality and kindness has been a huge influence on how he treats other people, including Holstee customers and his own dinner party guests. Fabian Pfortmüller is co-founder of Holstee, a socially conscious online marketplace, and Sandbox Network, a global community for young entrepreneurial people. Pfortmüller graduated from Columbia University.
Fabian Pfortmüller on Building Emotional Customer Relationships
In Chapter 17 of 18 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, entrepreneur and community builder Fabian Pfortmüller answers "How Have You Learned to Build Stronger Emotional Connections With Your Customers?" Building an e-commerce company, Pfortmüller and his Holstee team connect with potential customers early to understand how they learned about the company and its products. They design a user interaction experience to engage potential visitors through the sales funnel to improve how they can connect the right product to the right customer at the right time. This approach highlights how the Holstee business sees itself less as a product vendor and more of a mindful living lifestyle branded community. Fabian Pfortmüller is co-founder of Holstee, a socially conscious online marketplace, and Sandbox Network, a global community for young entrepreneurial people. Pfortmüller graduated from Columbia University.
Newspaper Reporter Yoav Gonen on Building Storyfinding Job Skills
In Chapter 7 of 19 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, New York City reporter Yoav Gonen answers "What Skills Are You Using More as Your Career Advances?" Gonen shares how he is honing two types of job skills to find newsworthy stories. He first learns how to build better news source relationships and how to talk to news sources to obtain information the general public will value. Second, he hones his approach to story research and building online research skills. Yoav Gonen is a reporter and City Hall Bureau Chief for the New York Post daily newspaper. Previously he spent nearly six years covering the education beat for the New York Post. Gonen earned a B.A. in English from the University of Michigan and a Masters in Journalism from New York University.
Yoav Gonen on Gaining Job Responsibility in a Reporting Career
In Chapter 11 of 19 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, New York City reporter Yoav Gonen answers "How Are Your Responsibilities Changing As Your Career Evolves?" As he gains experience, Gonen shares how his bosses trust him more and give him more independence. The additional responsibility pushes Gonen to take more control of what and how beat reporting topics get covered and frees up his editors to focus on other pressing needs. Yoav Gonen is a reporter and City Hall Bureau Chief for the New York Post daily newspaper. Previously he spent nearly six years covering the education beat for the New York Post. Gonen earned a B.A. in English from the University of Michigan and a Masters in Journalism from New York University.
Yoav Gonen on How to Establish Trust When Building Relationships
In Chapter 12 of 19 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, New York City reporter Yoav Gonen answers "How Do You Establish Trust When Building Relationships?" A key part of Gonen's newspaper reporting job is building trust working with sources. To earn trust, Gonen tells potential sources that he must be trusting to do his job well. Letting sources down and going back on his word would hurt his reputation for fair reporting and jeopardize his job security and career. Yoav Gonen is a reporter and City Hall Bureau Chief for the New York Post daily newspaper. Previously he spent nearly six years covering the education beat for the New York Post. Gonen earned a B.A. in English from the University of Michigan and a Masters in Journalism from New York University.
Yoav Gonen on Managing Changing Relationships in News Reporting
In Chapter 13 of 19 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, New York City reporter Yoav Gonen answers "How Are You Learning to Work More Effectively With Different Personality Types?" In six years reporting on the "education beat", Gonen shares how turnover in the Department of Education - or DOE - has required him to adjust to working styles of new DOE employees. Working a job where communication is important, he finds relying too much on email over phone or face-to-face is not a good idea and is challenged by new DOE employees who prefer email over phone calls. Yoav Gonen is a reporter and City Hall Bureau Chief for the New York Post daily newspaper. Previously he spent nearly six years covering the education beat for the New York Post. Gonen earned a B.A. in English from the University of Michigan and a Masters in Journalism from New York University.
Yoav Gonen on How Personal Priorities Change With Age
In Chapter 19 of 19 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, New York City reporter Yoav Gonen answers "How Are Your Personal Priorities Changing as You Get Older?" As he gets older, Gonen finds he puts a greater priority spending doing the things he loves with those he loves the most, namely family and friends. With age, Gonen finds he has a better grasp of what he wants out of life and what relationships, including being an uncle, bring him joy. Yoav Gonen is a reporter and City Hall Bureau Chief for the New York Post daily newspaper. Previously he spent nearly six years covering the education beat for the New York Post. Gonen earned a B.A. in English from the University of Michigan and a Masters in Journalism from New York University.
Michael Margolis on How Storytelling Became an Essential Business Skill
In Chapter 6 of 17 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, educator and entrepreneur Michael Margolis answers "How is the Practice or Trend of Storytelling Changing?" He shares how storytelling as a business communication skill for innovators, marketers, entrepreneurs and change makers hit an inflection point in 2012. In 2012, storytelling suddenly became a top priority for corporate leaders and marketing executives. Margolis shares how multiple variable inputs contributed to this moment, all playing a role in the increasing humanization of business. Michael Margolis is founder and president of Get Storied, an education and publishing platform dedicated to teaching the world how to think in narrative. He earned a B.A. in Cultural Anthropology from Tufts University.
Michael Margolis on How to Find the Right Project at the Right Time
In Chapter 8 of 17 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, educator and entrepreneur Michael Margolis answers "How Do You Filter and Find the Right Project at the Right Time?" Running a fast growing storytelling business communication business, Margolis looks for client stories his team can believe in and invest in to tell a bigger story. This then requires Margolis and team to select companies who are willing and open partners in the transformational storytelling process. Michael Margolis is founder and president of Get Storied, an education and publishing platform dedicated to teaching the world how to think in narrative. He earned a B.A. in Cultural Anthropology from Tufts University.
Michael Margolis on Living Better by Deciding What Matters Most to You
In Chapter 13 of 17 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, educator and entrepreneur Michael Margolis answers "How Are Your Aspirations Changing as Your Experience Grows?" Margolis shares Lao Tzu wisdom on adding to your life by taking away or subtracting things. Margolis adopts this philosophy in his own life as he learns to say no, to set boundaries, to managing information technology streams and battle the oft competing priorities of serving others while taking care of your self. He shares what it is like to go through a process of finding what matters to you in life and how he is working his way through it. Michael Margolis is founder and president of Get Storied, an education and publishing platform dedicated to teaching the world how to think in narrative. He earned a B.A. in Cultural Anthropology from Tufts University.
Michael Margolis on Assessing Fit in Final Round Job Interviews
In Chapter 15 of 17 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, educator and entrepreneur Michael Margolis answers "How Do You Assess Fit When Interviewing Prospective Employees?" Margolis first asks whether he would like to spend time around the candidate. Secondly, he looks for curiosity, namely through the questions job candidates ask in the interview. He then looks for heart and how this translates into culture fit. Lastly, he looks to job skill competency, knowing his team has already covered much of this in earlier round interviews. Michael Margolis is founder and president of Get Storied, an education and publishing platform dedicated to teaching the world how to think in narrative. He earned a B.A. in Cultural Anthropology from Tufts University.
Tricia Regan on How to Establish Trust When Building Relationships
In Chapter 8 of 15 in her 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, filmmaker Tricia Regan answers "How Do You Establish Trust When Building Relationships?" Regan shares how she creates trustworthiness through her sincere desire to be a force of good in the world. She openly presents herself in this way so others can easily and readily understand her intentions. She notes what working in film has taught her about relationships where trust was both easy and difficult to establish. 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 Managing Growth as Company Nears 200 Employees
In Chapter 9 of 14 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, Moo.com CEO Richard Moross answers "In Growing Moo, What Have Been the Headcount Milestones Where Things Changed the Most?" Moross reflects on how staff level milestones evolved the look and feel of his company. He notes important early milestones - 10, 20, 50, 100 - and what nearing 200 employees means for his company. At a technical level, it means more hierarchy and structure. At a personal level, it means Moross recognizes the reality that a progressively large global business will lose some of the intimacy you have in a small local business. 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 Creative Benefits of Playing With Legos
In Chapter 1 of 14 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, creative director and brand marketer Doug Jaeger answers "What Childhood Experiences Have Been Most Fundamental in Shaping Who You Are Today?" Jaeger shares how playing with Legos shaped his creativity and imagination as a child as well as his relationship with his brother. To Jaeger, building Legos was less about following predefined set instructions and more about imagining something and building it with the blocks. 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.
Doug Jaeger on Turning One Project into a Multiyear Client Relationship
In Chapter 8 of 14 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, creative director and brand marketer Doug Jaeger answers "What Experiences This Past Year Have Most Influenced the Direction of Your Company?" Jaeger shares how having a client shift from a three-month project commitment to a multiyear commitment has affected his business. It creates a sense of validation in the creative work he and his team is doing and gives him confidence to invest more in business infrastructure and systems to manage small business growth. 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.
Doug Jaeger on How to Build Trust and Get Retainer Client Business
In Chapter 10 of 14 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, creative director and brand marketer Doug Jaeger answers "How Do You Establish Trust When Building Relationships?" Jaeger shares how consistency and reliability translate into trust and commitment. Building trust working with clients teaches Jaeger the importance of giving away ideas for free and also when to ask to get paid for your work. He shares how giving away ideas in ideation and brainstorming sessions has helped him add structure in how his company works with clients on a retainer consulting basis. 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 Getting Political Endorsements Running for Office
In Chapter 11 of 23 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, New York City Council Candidate Ken Biberaj answers "As a Candidate for Public Office, How Are You Going About Asking for Endorsements?" While campaigning, Biberaj regularly has voter groups representing the environment to union workers to political interests ask for meetings. He tries to meet everyone and, while an underdog, knows those relationships will matter over time if he is elected to serve his community. He also connects with influencers, including former New York Governor David Patterson, to get counsel, support, and, in some instances, an endorsement.
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.