Internet woes January 10, 2009
Posted by townsend51 in domain, elephant collective, internet, rimple, rimple.org.1 comment so far
The internet is a crazy, crazy place; and never more so than when you’re trying to get a decent domain name! Squatters have made the problem even worse, as evidenced by browsing to a lot of taken domains, which stare back at you with ads and not a lot else. I hope someone intervenes some time soon, before I have to use some bizarre alpha numeric jumble like werh394834.com. In the end it wasn’t possible to get the .com domain, but I had to relent, otherwise I would’ve ended up with a really crappy name.
So after all that I ended up with rimple.org and rimple.co.uk.
Its a site to help entrepreneurs, designers and engineers meet other talented individuals who want to start a company, or get help in an existing venture.
As usual this is an elephant-collective project.
Peace out.
Elephant Collective November 2, 2008
Posted by townsend51 in blog, elephant collective, wordpress.add a comment
Elephant Collective has a blog on WordPress. We’ll be moving it over to our servers in the next couple of weeks, and we’ll jazz it up a bit. In the mean time, enjoy!
Push it out to gain some perspective October 27, 2008
Posted by townsend51 in collaboration, elephant collective, entrepreneurship, ideas, networks, perspective.add a comment
Are ideas the currency of the 21st century? I don’t think so. You see, an idea is worth nothing; at least, not until somebody’s done something with that idea. A trap that people can easily fall in to is becoming too precious about their ideas, and not telling anybody else about them. It may sound counter intuitive, but this is the worst possible thing that a person can do.
If I think about an idea for too long it becomes stagnant. An idea needs air, and it needs to meet other people. Otherwise your handsome prince will turn in to a gruesome ogre. It’s quite possible that your idea contains a kernel of promise, but it takes skill to tease it out. Almost every idea I’ve ever worked on has gone through countless iterations before its ‘complete’. This is because those eureka moments where it appears as if an idea has popped in to your head fully formed, often don’t stand up to scrutiny. The best thing to do is talk to somebody as quickly as possible; whether it’s your partner, your Mum, or a man on the street, it doesn’t matter. By talking to someone you’ll soon gauge whether or not it’s a good idea. But a word of warning: men are often much more enthusiastic about ideas than women, so listen to women; they’re much more sensible beings!
Once you’ve decided that your idea is a fantastic one, make sure that you don’t closet it up again as you work on it. It’s possible to get too close to an idea, and to get too concerned about the minutiae when it’s the ‘big picture’ that really matters. What’s needed is perspective! I rarely, if ever, work on an idea solely by myself, and there are a few less-than-obvious reasons for me doing this. Firstly, the day-to-day feedback is invaluable. Secondly, it’s not possible to know everything. And lastly, it’s a great relief to send off a finished drawing/piece of code/model/whatever at the end of the day. It allows your brain to rest, and when you come back to it, you’ll be able to be more subjective about its positives and negatives. It also provides distinction to your working life. If you’re working on the same idea for months at a time, being able to send it away for others to look at provides mile stones to work to, where otherwise, you could be going further and further down the rabbit hole into the unknown.
Where does the rabbit hole lead? I’m not sure, but by getting advice you’ll be much more likely to reach a better place at the end of it.
A final word about competitors; Microsoft, Apple et al will not steal your idea! These massive companies have lengthy development pipelines, and by the time they’ve noticed your idea, and responded to it, you’ll be two years ahead of the game and gaining market share by the day.
Good luck with your idea, and don’t forget: ‘Get some perspective!’
Dan is a founding member of Elephant Collective; a group of impassioned designers, engineers and entrepreneurs who work together to turn ideas into reality. See our website for contact details.
Portfolio Workers October 14, 2008
Posted by townsend51 in elephant collective, entrepreneurship, portfolio worker.add a comment
I visited the Royal College of Art last week, and picked up a research leaflet which contained the intriguing term ‘portfolio worker’. I hadn’t heard the expression before, but I quickly realised that I wanted to be one.
A portfolio worker is someone who’s income is derived from a variety of sources, such as consultancy work, teaching, and personal business interests. This arguably leads to a more fulfilling life, whereby the person has greater variety, and a more homogeneous work-life blend. The downside is that money comes in fits and starts, and can often give rise to the popular saying “I’m having cash-flow problems.”
It may seem at first that this sort of lifestyle is only suited to young, happy-go-lucky singletons for whom the inconsistent income is not too much of a problem. However, it is equally well suited to those with dependants, and people nearing retirement age.
For instance, a mother with young children at home could take on short term contractual work to supplement her income. The benefit of this is the increased visibility that it gives her amongst the business community for when she returns to work. And all that’s required to set up as a portfolio worker is a laptop, an internet connection, and a propensity for self-promotion.
But if it’s so easy, why isn’t everyone a portfolio worker? Firstly, it won’t suit everyone. Once people are used to a salary, and the trappings of a regular income, they won’t be willing to give it up. But the main problem for prospective portfolio workers is obscurity.
Even though the internet is a fantastic way to publicise oneself, there are so many people out there doing the same thing that you can often be drowned out. And the prospect of setting up a website can be daunting, or cost prohibitive for some people. So what can they do to increase their visibility?
The best way is the old fashioned way. Ring up old contacts, and get the word out there. Present the main strength that you have: your flexibility. And when looking for new contacts, don’t be afraid to pound the streets promoting your services. People are a lot more responsive to someone calling in person that receiving an email. And if you do a good job for these people then they’re likely to recommend you to other people in the community. Just don’t get bogged down with social networks. Look outside, and consider the people who are already in your geographical network.
The challenge is breaking the old habits and the old routines, and making time for the things that matter. What you’ll find is a balanced portfolio of work which guarantees a fixed income, and work which is more forward looking and concept based. The beauty of this is a returning to old values, where each person is only as good as their next idea. And in times of financial turbulence, and economic uncertainty, ideas are the best currency that a person has.
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I’m part of a group of inventors and entrepreneurs called the Elephant Collective, who whole heartedly believe in this new way of doing business. We don’t have any office space, and we don’t have any fixed costs, but me manage to make innovative products. We’re always on the look out for talented, driven individuals to partner with, no matter what their background. You can find contact details on our website, or alternatively, follow Elephant Collective on Twitter. Thanks.
