Guest post round-up

February 8, 2010 Essays

I guest-post on other blogs fairly regularly, but it was pointed out to me recently that I don't usually share those with you!

So here's a selection of articles I've published elsewhere.

12 comments Read the full article →

Rude Q&A

February 1, 2010 Essays
Thumbnail image for Rude Q&A

You need more than a "devil's advocate," you need ruthless abuse.

Here's how to dole it out to yourself so that normal sales calls and company pitches seem easy by comparison.

13 comments Read the full article →

A Tradeshow Checklist, born of experience

January 25, 2010 How-To
Thumbnail image for A Tradeshow Checklist, born of experience

Tradeshows are a combination of high-level strategy and low-level minutiae, so a checklist comes in handy.

Here's a bunch of advice learned the hard way — through making mistakes and seeing what worked.

16 comments Read the full article →

Why I feel like a fraud

January 18, 2010 Essays
Thumbnail image for Why I feel like a fraud

I felt like a fraud during the early days of Smart Bear, and in many ways I still feel like one today.

It turns out this is a common phenomenon among entrepreneurs and others. If you have these emotions, this might provide some solace.

61 comments Read the full article →

A tour of my Wordpress plugins

January 15, 2010 How-To
Thumbnail image for A tour of my Wordpress plugins

I get asked all the time which Wordpress plugin I use for this thing or that.

Here's a complete list of how I've customized my blog, and why.

29 comments Read the full article →

Uncommon Interview: Bob Walsh, Digital Entrepreneur

January 11, 2010 Uncommon Interviews
Thumbnail image for Uncommon Interview: Bob Walsh, Digital Entrepreneur

Startup expert, mentor, and writer Bob Walsh talks about what's most important for success, the role of social media at a new startup, productivity for startup founders, and why his new tool for startup founders is useful.

17 comments Read the full article →

Painful, Surreal, and Surprisingly Effective: The Personal Checklist

January 4, 2010 How-To
Thumbnail image for Painful, Surreal, and Surprisingly Effective: The Personal Checklist

Tired of articles instructing you to break down large projects into smaller, more annoying and less interesting tasks?

The technique I'm about to tell you about is weird, and not in a good way. More like a painful, aggravating way. I know, I did it myself.

But it really does work. You'll measurably improve your productivity.

37 comments Read the full article →

Startup Therapy: Ten questions to ask yourself every month

December 21, 2009 How-To
Thumbnail image for Startup Therapy: Ten questions to ask yourself every month

Therapists don't tell you what to do. Rather, they ask probing questions that get you to discover for yourself what is true for you, your situation, and what you want.

Similarly, these ten questions will force you to make the important decisions about your business. Ask them of yourself every month instead of writing a useless business plan.

57 comments Read the full article →

Don't write a business plan

December 14, 2009 Essays
Thumbnail image for Don't write a business plan

As they say, businesses don't plan to fail, they fail to plan! Who could argue with such a clever turn of phrase?

Me. Business plans are always wrong, and they're not even very helpful when you're raising money.

72 comments Read the full article →

How I got 6000 RSS subscribers in 12 months

November 30, 2009 Essays
Thumbnail image for How I got 6000 RSS subscribers in 12 months

Is it repeatable?

Yes and no. Here's what I did; it's up to you to decide how much of it applies to you.

65 comments Read the full article →

Really give thanks this time

November 23, 2009 Essays
Thumbnail image for Really give thanks this time

On Thanksgiving we give thanks,
but to whom?

I guess it's nice to be reflective at least once a year. But what good is it, casting our thanks into the void?

So this year, let's give thanks to people.

9 comments Read the full article →

New empirical data for SEO and social media marketing strategies

November 9, 2009 How-To
Thumbnail image for New empirical data for SEO and social media marketing strategies

Strategies for social media and SEO are so...squishy.

Recently, however, I've come across several sources of empirical, experimentally-sound data sources that tell us how to be awesome at both SEO and social media.

19 comments Read the full article →