Develpreneur: Become a Better Developer and Entrepreneur

We start the next set of interviews with a discussion about technology in higher ed with Jeff Dillon.  He has spent his career in this area of focus and has a wealth of ideas.  These are applicable to multiple verticals as you will find during our conversation.  Of course, if you are in the world of higher ed, you will likely find his site invaluable. Simple Beginnings The path Jeff has followed d...

We take a break from our interviews and a wealth of recommendations to review how to apply these.  There is a technical fit and organizational fit for solutions of all types .  It is critical that you know how these may fit your specific situation. Technical Fit The idea of technical fit is possibly the easiest to see from the outside.  There are specific requisites in the solution that must match...

The last part of our interview episodes with Krishna Mohan dive into how he helps companies grow.  The primary concept is planning for growth.  However, we also need to ensure we give the changes time to be effective.  Krishna often sees this as an annual approach and that fits well with budgets, resources, and incorporates seasonal differences where they occur. Planning For Growth The first part...

We continue our discussion with Krishna Mohan with a focus on the question, "are you ready for growth".  Everyone wants to grow their business.  However, not everyone is truly ready to pay the price in focus and effort to do so.  There are risks and investments required.  We start there and then move into the concepts of working in your business as opposed to on your business. Are You Ready For Gr...

This episode starts a discussion with Krishna Mohan.  We start with some of his background and a journey from specific experiences to building general solutions.  This is a story about converting your unique experience and approach into something that is a fit for others that they may not have found otherwise. A Typical Start There is a lot of Krishna's background that can be glossed over and seem...

This episode offers a side trip during the interviews season and focuses on meaningful discussions.  We have mentioned difficult discussions.  However, the important ones are the ones that teach us and provide experience without having to experience failure.  We can find them anywhere and just need to go into them with an intent to go deeper. Meaningful Discussions - Start With Tell Me Your Story...

Here is a bonus episode in our interview with Sam McNeill.  They provide a memorable marketing sort of tool known as insta-hit.  He mentioned this during the interview, and it is impressive to see it in action.  That gives us an excellent launching pad for talking about ways to stick in the mind of your customers. Use What You Have For Memorable Marketing There is definitely a link from the insta-...

We wrap up the main part of the conversation with Sam McNeill as we mention difficult conversations.  That is a perfect start for his stories about building a team and maintaining high morale. Next, we discuss roles and cross-training in the wild without getting into the academic terms and suggestions.  Take notes as this is a valuable conversation. Difficult Conversations Sam mentions the book ab...

We continue our multi-part series of interviews with Sam McNeill with a look at when things go wrong and an examination of leaders.  There are times that we go a little off the rails and times where things go completely awry.  The way you respond can help keep the former from stumbling into the latter. When Things Go Wrong, And They Will Sam has a history of being the "guy with the microphone."  T...

We continue our interview with Sam with a deeper dive into enthusiasm.  He describes how his love of his job helps him to win customers.  However, that is just the beginning.  He then goes into some excellent examples of how professionalism leads to customer success.  There is more to winning over customers than simply getting that sale.  He walks us through how to ensure each customer is satisfie...

We start our next series of interviews with an example of what happens when you love your job.  Sam McNeill is highly successful and entertaining because of the energy he brings.  You will see that as we go through a discussion of his background, his challenges, and becoming a key part of the success of a company he loves, SongDivision . A Natural Talent Sam is one of those people that is born wit...

We jump into a discussion about repetition as key to your brand success.  However, the next topic of style stages is just as critical.  Then, we touch on several nuggets and suggestions to wrap up our interview with DP.  He provides a few challenges and valuable insight to leave you with plenty of food for thought. Style Stages A key concept for this episode is the idea of style stages.  There are...

This episode starts right away with a continuation of the niche brands discussion.  We then move to DP's thoughts on social media and using those tools.  He even moves into examples of live-streaming and ways to use these tools no matter your strengths. Niche Brands - Livestream Anything DP dropped a couple of examples that are highly niche right out of the gate. First, he talks about Trezy, who u...

We dig into the ways to build a non-fiction brand in episode two.  The focus is on brand first principles and sticking to truth in building upon it.  DP starts with his "a-ha" moment that took years to develop.  Then he weaves a series of points to help us build a brand, personal or otherwise. Write Some Stuff The non-fiction idea started with a simple statement, "write some stuff."  He was workin...

We continue our interviews with the first part of our discussion with the author of nonfiction brands - DP Knudten.  His book sparked my interest, and now we get to sit down and talk to him.  We cover a lot about brands, both personal and corporate.  Thus, you will have a better grasp of these concepts after listening to him. NonFiction Brands - Sell To The Right Audience A common misconception of...

We wrap up the interview with Dale L. Roberts sharing his professional publishing secret.  He tells us to get started and be consistent.  However, he shows us that a love of our work is always key to success.  We need the drive to be successful, and the more we love our work, the more that comes naturally to us. Professional Publishing Secret - Burn The Boats Hunger is an excellent motivator for a...

An interview of a  self-publishing expert is not complete without a discussion of "publish wide."  That refers to the many platforms available to publish your book.  It includes traditional print books, audiobooks, and e-books.  Therefore, the conversation with Dale L. Roberts continues to look at how we can grow to reach people.  We learn it does not matter how they prefer to consume their conten...

We continue our discussion with Dale L. Roberts with a discussion around how to define your audience.  That is an important step in any product.  Books and written content are no different.  We continue the discussion with getting that book written and your first steps in self-publishing. Define Your Audience There are some guides that refer to your ideal audience as your avatar.  This vehicle sho...

.This episode starts a new multi-part set of interviews with Dale L. Roberts.  He is a guru of self-publishing with dozens of books to his name.  The focus is how to get started, platforms you can use, and how to find success in this far-ranging discussion.  Our first episode provides background on Dale and getting started. A Self-Publishing Firehose Start with a focus.  There is a lot to learn ab...

This bonus episode for our Tim Stratton interview digs deeper into finding a mentor. First, we look at what makes a good mentor relationship.  This is a situation where all parties need to contribute to the goals and receive benefits.  Thus, the focus is on the relationship itself and what to look for when you desire a mentor. Finding A Mentor Organically There is an industry out there of people t...

The last part of the series in the Tim Stratton interview goes into how he got here and touches on mentor relationships.  While we stick to the specifics, there are some valuable generalizations to take away from it.  We saved the best for last as we wrap up our time with Tim. Mentor Relationships Change We briefly dropped the idea that Timothy has had multiple mentors throughout his life.  It is...

This episode of our interview with Timothy Stratton delves into experiences and how to be a better manager.  We compare notes on what has worked for us and traits of those we seek to emulate.  While the focus is on developer managers, there are many general suggestions as well. The Better Manager Summary There are many traits of a good manager .  We hit on the more generalized of these in our disc...

We continue our discussion with Timothy Stratton with a dive into continuing education and how to keep up in the fast-moving world.  There are always job responsibilities to address that keep our time at a premium.  We talk about finding ways to stay up-to-date and the cost of this career path. The Cost of Continuing Education Let's start with the bad news.  There are only so many hours in the day...

Part two of our series of interviews with Timothy Stratton looks at his early years.  He started with a focus on higher education.  That worked well for him, but not directly because of his studies.  We explore how the journey taught him more than the academic focus. A Little Background Timothy is a software development manager at XSolis with a strong development background.  He has a master's deg...

We start the next interview with an introduction to Timothy Stratton.  He is an experienced developer moving into a role as a manager.  This episode focuses on starting a new project and how to ramp up to new technologies. A Little Background Timothy is a software development manager at XSolis with a strong development background.  He has a master's degree and a love for learning.  We will cover t...