Mark Graham on Asking for Advice Before Your First Baby is Born

In Chapter 1 of 15 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, media executive Mark Graham answers "How Did You Go About Seeking Advice as You Prepared for Parenthood?" Graham shares how he found a friend, Conrad Doucette, who had become a father only months before Graham and his wife were to have their baby. This gives Graham a chance to ask a lot of questions to a friend going through a similar experience at the same time. He gets advice to enjoy time alone with his newborn baby in the recovery room and build a bond with his child.

Mark Graham is currently a managing editor at MTV Networks. Previously Graham worked in editing and writing roles at New York Magazine and Gawker Media. He graduated from the University of Michigan with a B.A. in English.  

Mark Graham on Making Child Care Choices After Maternity Leave Ends

In Chapter 4 of 15 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, media executive Mark Graham answers "What Have Been Your Challenges Starting a Family in a Dual-Income Household?" As he and his wife return to work after having a baby, Graham notes the importance of having short-term and long-term goal planning conversations with his spouse. This includes meeting with a financial planner to think through child care considerations and what is the best balance as he and his wife pursue their professional ambitions.

Mark Graham is currently a managing editor at MTV Networks. Previously Graham worked in editing and writing roles at New York Magazine and Gawker Media. He graduated from the University of Michigan with a B.A. in English. 

Mark Graham on Learning Social Media Platform Data Analytics Skills

In Chapter 9 of 15 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, media executive Mark Graham answers "What Skills Are You Working on Right Now to Become Better at Your Job?" Graham shares how he is learning more about data analytics that track digital media consumption and sharing across different social media platforms such as Vine, Instagram, Facebook and Twitter. He sees media consumption rapidly changing in that content is mainly consumed off the main sites - in this case VH1 and MTV - and sees the need to invest tiem in understanding the marketing analytics behind tracking behavior off site.

Mark Graham is currently a managing editor at MTV Networks. Previously Graham worked in editing and writing roles at New York Magazine and Gawker Media. He graduated from the University of Michigan with a B.A. in English. 

Conrad Doucette on Getting Advice on Becoming a First Time Parent

In Chapter 2 of 17 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, musician and digital strategist Conrad Doucette answers "How Did You Go About Seeking Advice as You Prepared for Parenthood?" Doucette shares his approach getting parenting insight from friends before becoming a first-time dad. This includes both observing friends' behaviors as well as asking questions and learning there is no "dumb question."

Conrad Doucette is a Brooklyn musician and the drummer for the band Takka Takka. 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.

Conrad Doucette on 3 Things to Know Before Becoming a Dad

In Chapter 5 of 17 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, musician and digital strategist Conrad Doucette answers "What Are Three Things You Wish You Knew Before Becoming a Dad?" Doucette shares what he learned in the first weeks of fatherhood and gives advice to expecting dads. First, he learns not to be so worried in the first few days after the baby comes home. Second he learns that a baby and its belongings take up a lot more space than you would think. Third he learns how much he loves being a dad and how it has made him kinder and more present in his life.

Conrad Doucette is a Brooklyn musician and the drummer for the band Takka Takka. 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. 

Simon Sinek on Training Your Mind to Perform Under Pressure

In Chapter 14 of 23 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, author and public speaker Simon Sinek answers "What Does It Mean to Perform Under Pressure in the Work That You Do?" Sinek notes how performing under pressure is the same for him as it is for anyone else - meeting deadlines, hitting financial goals, etc. Olympic athletes teach him how it is possible to interpret stimuli that pressure brings as excitement and not nervousness. This positive interpretation of pressure helps Sinek embrace the moment as a public speaker and be at his best on stage. Simon Sinek teaches leaders and organizations how to inspire people. Sinek is the author of two books, "Leaders Eat Last: Why Some Teams Come Together and Others Don't" and "Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action". He is a public speaker, an adjunct professor at Columbia University and a Brandeis University graduate.

Idan Cohen on What Gets Easier and What Gets Harder

In Chapter 2 of 13 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, technology entrepreneur Idan Cohen answers "What is Getting Easier and What is Getting Harder in Your Life?" Cohen shares how it is easier to figure out his priorities, especially now that he is married and settling down. It finds having a life companion gives him a greater purpose to how he wants to live his life. He finds it harder to combine multiple parts of his life to achieve life goals and figure out what he plans to accomplish in the coming decades.

Idan Cohen is a technology entrepreneur and product management leader at Samsung Electronics. He co-founded Boxee, which was acquired by Samsung in early 2013. 

Transcript: 

Erik Michielsen: What is getting easier and what is getting harder in your life?

Idan Cohen: What's getting a little easier for me is figuring out my priorities. So I think that, like, suddenly being married and thinking of a family and in some way like, settling down a little bit, then it gives me a better understanding of kind of my priorities in terms of-- it's not only personal goals. Like, it's not only self-fulfillment. Suddenly there is a bigger picture in this. I think Christina is a huge difference. That kind of dedicates a new priority and time that I want to spend with her and the time that I want to think of what we'll-- like, our lives are going to look like together, not necessarily each one in his own path. But it's also getting harder to figure out how do you combine all of these things and then still kind of achieving, you know, those life goals that you want and figuring out what you're going to do in the next 20, 30, 40 years. 

Idan Cohen on Making Decisions and Moving On With Your Life

In Chapter 3 of 13 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, technology entrepreneur Idan Cohen answers "What Role Has Reflection Played in Shaping Your Personal Growth?" Cohen shares how he does not find reflection useful. He prefers to think about the present decision he needs to make and use patience and deliberation to ensure he chooses the best path forward possible. Idan Cohen is a technology entrepreneur and product management leader at Samsung Electronics. He co-founded Boxee, which was acquired by Samsung in early 2013. 

Transcript: 

Erik Michielsen: What role has reflection played in shaping your personal growth?

Idan Cohen: I obviously spend time thinking about things, but I don't think too much about, like, just the path that I take. You know, you can plan that so many things, but eventually they just have a habit of happening-- not always the way you want it. So in a way, why plan that much? So in a way, why reflect that much?

Erik Michielsen: Have you always been that way?

Idan Cohen: Yeah. Yeah. So it troubles me, you know, and, yeah, I definitely do reflect, but I just don't do anything with that. It doesn't really affect my decisions most of the time. 

Erik Michielsen: Tell me more about that.

Idan Cohen: I know that I am a very bad decision maker when it comes to my own life. Like, it's just hard for me to make decisions even on a day-to-day. I contemplate on everything quite a lot. It can drive other people a little crazy sometimes, and it can drive me crazy sometimes. But having said that, I just-- whenever there's something that I need to choose, I tend to just linger with the decision, and eventually, the decision kind of happens on its own. And it's usually-- it was always for the best. So I'm not-- I don't stress about it. I stress about making the decision. I don't stress about what the outcome is.

Lauren Serota on How to Be Confident Without Being Stubborn

In Chapter 12 of 21 in her 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, creative director and educator Lauren Serota answers "What Role Does Confidence Play in the Work That You Do?" As a creative leader working in design, Serota learns the importance of having a defensible, researched point of view to give her confidence at work. She notes the difference between this kind of confidence and more emotional displays that can be read as arrogance or stubbornness.

Lauren Serota works as an associate creative director at frog design. She is also a teacher at the Austin Center for Design (AC4D). Serota earned a bachelor's degree in industrial design from the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD). 

Nina Godiwalla on Learning Work Ethic From Asian Immigrant Parents

In Chapter 2 of 18 in her 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, author and entrepreneur Nina Godiwalla answers "Where Did You Learn Your Work Ethic?" Godiwalla notes how her parents had a tireless work ethic and always put the needs of children and family before their own. Their behavior sets a role model example that teaches young Godiwalla that with hard work she can achieve anything. This helps prepare her for the hundred-hour work weeks of in her first Wall Street job. 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.

Erik Michielsen: Where did you learn your work ethic?

Nina Godiwalla: Oh, I think from having immigrant parents, there is definitely a work ethic. There is a tireless work ethic from my parents, and it’s also selfless, life was never about my parents, it was all, always, about their children, and I don’t know if that’s being Asian, immigrant, or maybe a little bit of both, but everything—I can’t—you know when I was writing my book about Wall Street and my family, I had to go back and think about it. I could not remember a time where my parents would buy something for themselves. I still—I mean I still can’t think of a time where my mom had said, “Oh, you know what? I need to go buy this for myself,” or my father, ever. If they got a piece of clothing or something, it was for Father’s Day or for Mother’s Day, but, in general, everything was for their children. There was always an opportunity to do something else for their children, and I think that they had that mentality with work. They would work, work, work, either at their traditional jobs or doing something for us, and I think that was a huge part of it.

On top of it, I started off, when I went into Wall Street where the culture was you work day and night, you work day and night, and I think that kind of preparation, being with my family, was the perfect preparation for pulling off a hundred-hour workweeks on Wall Street. And there were a lot of things that I—pros and cons about my—starting your first job on Wall Street in this kind of environment where it’s work, work, work, and one of them, by far, was getting that very strong work ethic so early on because every job to me afterwards has been kind of I can do this. This is no brainer, I can do this pretty easily, so I think those two things were definitely huge.

Fabian Pfortmüller on Managing Millennial Employee Expectations

In Chapter 6 of 18 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, entrepreneur and community builder Fabian Pfortmüller answers "How Are You Learning to Better Cultivate and Develop Millennial-Generation Talent?" As a millennial managing millennials, Pfortmüller learns ways to understand his employee feelings via feedback loops. This helps him stay connected to his team, maintain a balance of job independence and structure, and better manage millennial employee expectations and set clear job goals. 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 Making a Plan to Manage Company Growth

In Chapter 18 of 18 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, entrepreneur and community builder Fabian Pfortmüller answers "What Procedures and Processes are You Putting in Place to Manage Company Growth?" At Holstee, Pfortmüller and his leadership team adopt a transparent management style of sharing P&L information with the employee team. Additionally, Holstee holds monthly meetings to engage employees in quarterly strategy planning for the upcoming quarter. Structure is also found in a more rigorous budgeting process that helps the company understand its successes and shortcomings. 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.

Yoav Gonen on Two Ways to Test and Validate Your Career Choices

In Chapter 5 of 19 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, New York City reporter Yoav Gonen answers "At This Moment in Your Life, Where Are You Seeking Advice and Coaching?" Gonen gains career planning insights from co-workers leaving their newspaper reporting jobs to change careers. He also reaches out to writers he admires for career advice. In both instances, he finds validation in his work and learns to better appreciate what he does for a living. Shortly after this interview, Gonen was promoted from education reporter to New York City Hall Bureau Chief for the New York Post daily newspaper. Gonen earned a B.A. in English from the University of Michigan and a Masters in Journalism from New York University.

Yoav Gonen on Adapting When Things Go Differently Than Planned

In Chapter 16 of 19 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, New York City reporter Yoav Gonen answers "How Have You Learned to Adapt When Things Have Not Worked Out as Planned?" Gonen shares how having a Plan B backup plan in place is very useful writing newspaper stories. In his education beat reporter job role, storylines shift and given deadline nature of work, Gonen uses a backup plan to make sure he has something for his editors even if the main story does not work out. Personally, Gonen shares how having a backup plan in place has been a bit more difficult, from not having an apartment purchase work out on time to having a prolonged recovery from an injury. He works on focusing efforts on things more in his control to manage life uncertainties. 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 Using Structure Frameworks to Grow a Business

In Chapter 17 of 17 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, educator and entrepreneur Michael Margolis answers "What Procedures and Processes Are You Putting in Place to Manage Company Growth?" Margolis builds a business operations strategy around a four element model. Water is used to create regular meetings to gauge employee emotion and to get feedback. Fire is addresses problems and projects. Earth focuses on operations procedures, namely recruiting, retention, and routines. Lastly, air addresses the future. 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.

Ken Biberaj on Getting Parenting Advice Before Becoming a Dad

In Chapter 3 of 23 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, New York City Council Candidate Ken Biberaj answers "How Did You Go About Getting Advice as You Prepared for Parenthood?" Biberaj notes his policy was to ask everybody for advice. He focuses much of his inquiry asking his parents and wife's parents. As a new parent, Biberaj learns how physical it can be to care for a newborn baby. 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. 

Ken Biberaj on Learning the Campaign Finance Part of Politics

In Chapter 8 of 23 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, New York City Council Candidate Ken Biberaj answers "What Did Raising Money for the Primary Election Teach You About Campaign Finance?" Biberaj learns how New York City creates a grassroots campaign finance system via its matching program. This creates spending limits and also helps make every contribution count. He compares this to what he saw working the Kerry-Edwards presidential campaign and how 527 independent expenditures, for example, change the dynamics of an election and its influencers.

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.

Ken Biberaj on How to Motivate a Team of Campaign Volunteers

In Chapter 19 of 23 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, New York City Council Candidate Ken Biberaj answers "How Are You Learning to Better Manage and Motivate Teams?" Biberaj finds managing campaign volunteers requires a different approach than managing employees. He learns to give interns and volunteers greater responsibility and holds them accountable for the results. 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.