The Blogy Blog of Nate Guy

I hope everyone is having a great day so far, and while I am at it, I hope you’re having a great year so far. Mine has been pretty good and I am planning on keeping it that way.

So far this year I moved to the New York area and I am working in Manhattan at ScrollMotion developing iPad apps. I have a little bit of a commute and ride the train into Penn Station every day. This gives me a good chance to catch up on news and think about a lot of things. So I thought I would share a random thought or two.

Being in the tech industry and being passionate about it I tend to think about it a lot. I have been thinking about how much the innovation of mobile based products and services are revolutionizing different industries. It blows my mind when I think of my first cell phone. It was huge and was good for making calls only. Now I am sitting here writing this on a train on my iPhone. Phones now a days have more technology in them than the space shuttle did that carried Mr. Armstrong and his team to the moon. It is mind boggling.

It makes me excited to think of what the future of tech and more specifically the mobile space is going to be.

Apps come out every day that change how we interact with one another and how we interact with industry as a whole. I can check my balance on my bank account, buy a new computer, watch a movie, and send my parents an email and or greeting card all from my phone while riding a train. The crazy part is that this is just the beginning. it makes one think, what is next? What new app is going to change the game next and what are we going to do with it? I have a few thoughts on this but that will be for another post.

I just wanted to get a few thoughts out there and I hope everyone has a great day.

-Nate

As 2011 is drawing to a close I can’t help but to think back on this year and wonder where it went. This past year seemed to fly by and it was a good year that was full of changes. It feels like New Years Eve was just last week. It is crazy to think how this year has flown by. I quit a good job, started my own business, made some good friends, learned a lot, and grew up a bit. I am looking forward to 2012 now. 

2012 starts in just 12 hours. This is going to be a big year. I am believing for a lot this year as well. As of the 1st I will no longer be living in VA for starters. I am moving to NYC and going to be working in Times Square for at least 6 months. That is the first big change of the new year. I will be eating a lot better and getting back into shape. (I want to be back in Hockey shape by next fall. I miss playing sports) Hopefully I will find a good girlfriend, and I would love to be more generous this year. 

Here’s to you 2011. I enjoyed ya while you where here, and I will miss you a little bit. But hello 2012. I welcome you and your changes you are bringing. May you be an amazing year full of big things and blessings.

Yesterday was a sad day. The world said goodbye to one of the most innovative and brilliant leaders the world has seen in a while, Steve Jobs. He will be greatly missed.
Ever since using a Mac for the first time I was sold and knew I was using something amazing. Steve jobs left an amazing legacy not only on the products he created but more so with the company he helped found. He was a tech visionary as well as an amazing business visionary.
I know there are plenty of amazing posts out there about Steve so I won’t go to crazy here. I just want to say that he will be missed and he left an amazing legacy. Thank you for everything you have done. Rest In Peace. 

A quick catch up on everything that has been going on since August. I quit my job and am now working with a start up in VA Beach. I am also working on a few projects that I am super excited about! Ok, that being said, I find it so interesting that when you work for yourself or with a startup, where the “restraints” are not as tight, how creative you can be. 

Working in a corporate atmosphere you have restraints that you have to stay in. Your work has to fit in the box that is pre-determined by the corporation you work for. But when you are your own boss, or work for a place that wants to experiment and explore possibilities, your creative level increases. Maybe it is just me, but I have found myself being more creative this past month. I just find it interesting and awesome so I thought I would share. Hope everyone is having a great day! 

I am sitting at the office today doing some work and listening to the Foundation videos by Kevin Rose. Amazing stuff by the way! I highly recommend that you check it out. But the more and more I watch these videos and do some research on some things, I have a few questions that keep popping up in my head. So I figured if I get them out of my mind and into words somewhere, I can figure out the answers somehow. So here we go. 

How can you start something that you don’t have much, if any, experience in and make it profitable? 

What is the right direction to run with this?

What happens if it doesn’t work?

People will ask what is my plan b, but why does it feel that if I have a plan B, I won’t put everything I have because somehow, deep down, that means I don’t think it will fully work.

Why should I do this?

I know those are very open ended questions. They do relate to specific things, but it is helpful to just get them out there. I have found just writing something out to get it out of my head and onto paper or the screen helps me process things. Don’t know if this helps you, but I recommend you try it if you haven’t. Hope everyone’s day is great.

I try not to complain unless I am talking to someone who can do something to improve the situation or unless I plan on doing something about the situation. Sometimes though, things just have to be said. So if this seems like a rant or me just complaining, I am sorry, and you may be right to an extent. So here we go.

I work at a company where “WE don’t throw people under the bus,” “WE are all a team and no one is less than the other.” I have yet to see that though. I am not a famous leader or businessman, but I understand leadership principles and have leadership experience. If you put something out there, you need to stand by it. If you make a mistake, you need to accept the fact that you made a mistake and not throw it off on your team to make yourself look good. That is nothing but insecurity and immaturity. 

First, failure is not a bad thing. It is how we learn. The light build wasn’t built on the first try. It took over 9,000 tries. When asked why he did not give up, Thomas Edison said I now know 9,000 ways how to not make a light build work. And if I am not mistaken (which is totally possible) it took him roughly 10,000 tries before he perfected the lightbulb. Did Edison blame his team? No, he took credit for his failures equally with his success. If you mess up it is not the end of the world, admit it and try again. Life secret number 547, you WILL mess up at some point in life. 

If you want to be a leader you have to have people following you. If you constantly lie to make yourself better and your team look bad, you will not have a team for long. Take the blame for your teams mistakes. You are the leader, it falls on you either way. You can only pull the wool over your leaders eyes for so long. You WILL be found out at some point. This is one thing I guarantee will happen. Don’t believe me? Awesome, let me know when it sneaks up on you, I will gladly tell you I told you so. :) 

When you constantly take full credit for your team’s work and pass blame for your mistakes to them, you will lose all respect of your team. Your team will start to shrink and when you no longer have a team, you are not a leader. You can’t lead when no one if following. It then becomes you just wondering around by yourself. 

Yes I am speaking from experience in a current situation I am in. Yes I plan on doing something about it and talking to the people who can do something about it. Yes, I am trying to get it off my chest too. But bottom line, take credit for your own mistakes. Don’t constantly pass blame on people who where not even in the office when you messed up. It makes you look like a better person and someone who is more trustworthy. Backstabbing will get you only so far. You will be exposed for who you really are at some point. If you don’t know how to do something, like your job, maybe you should do something else. It is not a bad thing to admit you are wrong and can’t do the 100th thing you have been asked to do. It is ok if someone else, who is qualified, does it. 

If you are still reading this, awesome. If not, awesome. I feel better. Now time to say this to the right people. Yes, this may be considered immature, it is what it is. I am not trying to hide that. It is a way to vent a little before I actually go and put what I say into action. And yes, I am also talking to myself as a reminder of what not to do in leadership.