Matt Curtis on How to Find Common Ground in a Negotiation

In Chapter 17 of 20 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, Matt Curtis answers "What Role Do Negotiation Skills Play in Your Work?" Curtis shares how he negotiates often in his work and how being being a patient, friendly active listener helps him find common ground and win-win outcomes in negotiations. He finds this is especially true negotiating common ground working with government, given concessions are nearly always part of a negotiation.

Matt Curtis is the director of government relations at HomeAway Inc. Previously he was deputy to Austin mayors Lee Leffingwell and Will Wynn. He has represented the City of Austin at the U.S. Conference of Mayors and the National League of Cities. In 2011, Curtis joined the Harvard Kennedy School Urban Policy Advisory Board to work on national best practices facing American cities. He earned his bachelor's degree in radio, television and film from the University of North Texas. 

Matt Curtis on Why Transparency is Key to Collaboration Success

In Chapter 19 of 20 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, Matt Curtis answers "What Have You Found to Be the Keys to Creating Successful Project Collaborations?" Curtis finds the key to a successful project collaboration is being transparent. For Curtis, transparency opens a collaborative conversation or negotiation more directly toward moving forward with a solutions-focused outcome.

Matt Curtis is the director of government relations at HomeAway Inc. Previously he was deputy to Austin mayors Lee Leffingwell and Will Wynn. He has represented the City of Austin at the U.S. Conference of Mayors and the National League of Cities. In 2011, Curtis joined the Harvard Kennedy School Urban Policy Advisory Board to work on national best practices facing American cities. He earned his bachelor's degree in radio, television and film from the University of North Texas. 

Bijoy Goswami on How to Get Paid by Sharing What You Know for Free

In Chapter 12 of 17 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, community leader Bijoy Goswami answers "How is Your Business Model Evolving as You Gain Experience?" Goswami shares how his business model blends giving away knowledge for free with getting paid to help clients solve specific problems. As an author, speaker and teacher, Goswami uses different means to freely share knowledge and create value. Using Google search as a comparable he then looks for ways, specifically management consulting, to scope out work specific to individual customers.

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. 

Bijoy Goswami on How to Turn Constraints Into Opportunities

In Chapter 16 of 17 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, community leader Bijoy Goswami answers "How Are You Learning to Do More With Less?" Goswami shares how it is not about doing more with less but recognizing that doing more with more is a better way achieved by taking a different point of view on the situation. He references the bootstrap metaphor from the Baron Munchausen story where Munchausen pulls himself up by magical bootstraps to have himself and his horse from drowning in a swamp.

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. 

Audrey French on Why Not to Fear Confrontation

In Chapter 18 of 21 in her 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, new mother Audrey Parker French answers "What Has Experience Taught You About How to Better Manage Confrontation?" French shares how she has overcome a fear of confrontation by not taking emotional outbursts from others, especially anger, personally.

Audrey Parker French is a new mother living with her husband and son in Austin, Texas. Before leaving work to focus on family, French 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 graduated from Wake Forest University. 

Courtney Spence on How to Give More Thoughtful Feedback

In Chapter 9 of 20 in her 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, nonprofit CEO Courtney Spence answers "What Type of Feedback Do You Respond to Best?" Spence finds feedback is best - thoughtful, purposeful, actionable - when it does not come with an agenda or a bias not specific to the situation. She finds people love to give advice but that often translates into them talking about their experiences. Spence finds effective feedback is more about the recipient and than the person giving feedback.

Courtney Spence is founder and CEO of Students of the World, a nonprofit empowering a diverse network of student and emerging filmmakers to apply storytelling skills in purposeful work. She is also the Founder and CEO of CSpence group, a creative agency building millennial-focused content and programs for brands. Spence earned a BA from Duke University. 

Courtney Spence on Overcoming a Fear of Confrontation at Work

In Chapter 18 of 20 in her 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, nonprofit CEO Courtney Spence answers "What Has Experience Taught You About How to Better Manage Confrontation at Work?" Spence shares how avoiding confrontation is a problem she is working to solve as a leader. She notes how she has started to face confrontation as it has come up in her office, especially when she decided to relocate her organization from Austin to San Francisco.

Courtney Spence is founder and CEO of Students of the World, a nonprofit empowering a diverse network of student and emerging filmmakers to apply storytelling skills in purposeful work. She is also the Founder and CEO of CSpence group, a creative agency building millennial-focused content and programs for brands. Spence earned a BA from Duke University. 

Randall Metting on a Day in the Life of a Craft Spirits Marketing Manager

In Chapter 6 of 16 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, Randall Metting answers "On a Daily Basis, What Does It Mean to Contribute in the Work That You Do?" Metting shares a what a typical day looks like in his work as a craft spirits marketer working for a tequila brand. His work involves coordinating with company leadership and field distribution sales teams to manage a constant stream of partner requests, sales promotions, and event planning executions across the country.

Randall Metting is a brand development and marketing manager at Dulce Vida Spirits in Austin, Texas. Over 17 years, he has built brands in spirits, luxury real estate and lifestyle, music, and sports industries. He has been a radio personality at KGSR Radio and a marketer at a hyperlocal startup acquired by NBC Universal. Metting earned a BA in Advertising from the University of Florida and started his career at The Coca-Cola Company. 

Anatole Faykin on How to Work With People Who Do Not Think Like You

In Chapter 4 of 16 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, Internet entrepreneur Anatole Faykin answers "How Are You Learning to Work More Effectively With Different Personality Types?" Faykin shares how he has learned to listening to and observing others to understand how they perform best. He finds there are many ways to be successful and keeps an open mind to embrace these different approaches on a team.

Anatole Faykin is an Internet entrepreneur and digital marketer exploring new career options. A passionate world traveler and problem solver, Faykin plans to return to graduate school to earn a biosciences masters degree. Previously, Faykin has started multiple companies, including Tuanpin, a Shanghai startup he sold in 2011. He holds an MBA from NYU and a BS in computer science and biology from the California Institute of Technology.

Anatole Faykin on The Privilege and Pleasure of Giving Advice to Friends

In Chapter 5 of 16 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, Internet entrepreneur Anatole Faykin answers "How Have You Learned to Give Better Advice When People Ask You For Help?" Faykin shares how giving friends' advice is both a privilege and a pleasure. He notes that giving advice is tough, as often a friend is looking to have a listener and to vent rather to actively seek out feedback. Faykin works to discern those who want to vent from those who actually want advice and answers.

Anatole Faykin is an Internet entrepreneur and digital marketer exploring new career options. A passionate world traveler and problem solver, Faykin plans to return to graduate school to earn a biosciences masters degree. Previously, Faykin has started multiple companies, including Tuanpin, a Shanghai startup he sold in 2011. He holds an MBA from NYU and a BS in computer science and biology from the California Institute of Technology.

Anatole Faykin on Leaving a Cushy Corporate Job to Start a Company

In Chapter 8 of 16 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, Internet entrepreneur Anatole Faykin answers "What Do You Consider the Milestones to Be in Your Online Marketing Career?" Faykin shares his biggest moment: leaving a cushy, secure corporate marketing job to start a company. He shares how much he had to learn about online marketing going through a trial and error process while building a startup company in China. Over time, by testing online marketing campaigns on Google ads and Baidu ads, he finds success as an entrepreneur running his own business.

Anatole Faykin is an Internet entrepreneur and digital marketer exploring new career options. A passionate world traveler and problem solver, Faykin plans to return to graduate school to earn a biosciences masters degree. Previously, Faykin has started multiple companies, including Tuanpin, a Shanghai startup he sold in 2011. He holds an MBA from NYU and a BS in computer science and biology from the California Institute of Technology.

Anatole Faykin on Planning a Career Change into Biotechnology

In Chapter 15 of 16 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, Internet entrepreneur Anatole Faykin answers "When You Think About Where Life Sciences Has Gone in the Last 15-20 Years Since You Started as an Undergraduate, What Gets You Most Excited About Re-immersing Yourself in That Field?" Faykin shares that in the nearly 20 years since graduating college, the worlds of biosciences and technology have come together to create new ways to solve problems. Data sharing and analytics are breaking down silos between disciplines and creating new market opportunities. Faykin prepares himself for a career change from consumer internet to biotechnology by applying for entrepreneur-friendly graduate school bioscience programs.

Anatole Faykin is an Internet entrepreneur and digital marketer exploring new career options. A passionate world traveler and problem solver, Faykin plans to return to graduate school to earn a biosciences masters degree. Previously, Faykin has started multiple companies, including Tuanpin, a Shanghai startup he sold in 2011. He holds an MBA from NYU and a BS in computer science and biology from the California Institute of Technology.

Anatole Faykin on Studying Life Sciences to Refresh Business Career

In Chapter 16 of 16 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, Internet entrepreneur Anatole Faykin answers "How Do You Expect to Use a Life Sciences Master's Degree in Your Business Career?" As a serial entrepreneur who has started multiple businesses, Faykin goes to school first to pursue his passion for studying biosciences and life sciences. He notes that by re-immersing himself in the field of science after many years away he hopes to identify problems to solve by starting new companies to build products that address them.

Anatole Faykin is an Internet entrepreneur and digital marketer exploring new career options. A passionate world traveler and problem solver, Faykin plans to return to graduate school to earn a biosciences masters degree. Previously, Faykin has started multiple companies, including Tuanpin, a Shanghai startup he sold in 2011. He holds an MBA from NYU and a BS in computer science and biology from the California Institute of Technology.

Michael Olsen on Job Skills You Learn Studying Public Health

In Chapter 8 of 20 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, management consultant Michael Olsen answers "What Skills Did You Learn Studying Public Health That You Hope to Use in Your Career?" Studying in a dual degree business and public health masters program, Olsen shares how public health studies taught him to understand scientific evidence and use structure to improve problem solving. Additionally, he finds studying public health helps him better understand how he can make a difference in the world, in particular in developing regions. He sees firsthand how global health disease states such as child mortality, HIV and malaria are dropping and it inspires him to be part of that movement as a global health professional.

Michael Olsen is a management consultant at Accenture. Previous to Accenture, Olsen earned dual MBA and MPH degrees at Emory University in Atlanta. Olsen earned a BA in symbolic systems from Stanford University and spent the next five years founding an IT consulting company, Redwood Strategies. 

Michael Olsen on Using an Interdisciplinary Education in a Job

In Chapter 11 of 20 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, management consultant Michael Olsen answers "How Has Your Interdisciplinary Education Proven Valuable in Your Development?" Olsen shares how his interdisciplinary education gives him and others a fresh perspective when doing business and researching. He also finds that interdisciplinary learning has helped him apply different processes to solve problems and communicate more effectively.

Michael Olsen is a management consultant at Accenture. Previous to Accenture, Olsen earned dual MBA and MPH degrees at Emory University in Atlanta. Olsen earned a BA in symbolic systems from Stanford University and spent the next five years founding an IT consulting company, Redwood Strategies. 

Michael Olsen on How to Assess Communication Effectiveness

In Chapter 14 of 20 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, management consultant Michael Olsen answers "How Are You Learning to Communicate More Effectively?" Olsen shares his approach to testing his communication and persuasiveness, from trying alternative approaches to gathering data and assessing results. 

Michael Olsen is a management consultant at Accenture. Previous to Accenture, Olsen earned dual MBA and MPH degrees at Emory University in Atlanta. Olsen earned a BA in symbolic systems from Stanford University and spent the next five years founding an IT consulting company, Redwood Strategies. 

Rachel Lehmann-Haupt on Working at TED on the Future of Publishing

In Chapter 10 of 17 in her 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, author and small business owner Rachel Lehmann-Haupt answers "What Did Working at TED Books Teach You About the Future of Publishing?" Working at TED allows Lehmann-Haupt to witness firsthand the business model disruption happening in the publishing industry. As companies like TED build content and audience, they also build distribution capabilities that limit or eliminate needs for big publishing house relationships to distribute content, physically or digitally.

Rachel Lehmann-Haupt is a writer, editor and multimedia content strategist. She is the owner of StoryMade, a storytelling studio that creates new media content solutions for businesses. Previously, she was a founding editor and multimedia producer at TED Books, designing TED Talk content for tablet computers. She is the author of "In Her Own Sweet Time", published in 2009. Lehmann-Haupt earned a BA from Kenyon College and a Masters in Journalism from UC-Berkeley. 

How Management Consulting Teaches Problem Solving

In Chapter 12 of 23 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, business strategist Bryan Law answers "How Has Your Management Consulting Experience Helped You Be a More Strategic Thinker?" Working as a management consultant teaches Law how to be a better problem solver by training him to best organize and structure client problems. Helping clients organize their thinking allows Law and his management consulting project team to break down difficult problems, better organize information and help clients make critical decisions.

Bryan Law is a Principal in the Global Business Strategy Group at Google and a board member at Angola University. Previously, he was a manager at Monitor, management consulting firm. He has worked in consulting roles at Watson Wyatt and Mercer. He earned an MBA from the Northwestern University Kellogg School of Business and a BA from Georgetown University.