sacha chua :: living an awesome life
Entries Tagged as 'sketches'
Decision review: Logitech H800 wireless headset
This is my Logitech H800 wireless headset. I bought it so that I could try dictating to my computer using Dragon NaturallySpeaking 11.5. The wireless headset that came in the NaturallySpeaking box never quite fit on my ear. It was always falling off. The Logitech H800 fits me well, and the voice recognition software has no problems with it.
The headset turned out to be pretty handy for other things as well. Bluetooth support meant that I could pair the headset with my phone. I started listening to classical music when working on my computer. I listened to podcasts while I tidied up the kitchen, watered the garden, or went for a long walk.
The headset charges using a micro-USB cable, and can be charged while in use. This is great, because I always forgot to charge my previous headset in time for me to use it. We use micro-USBs for so many other devices, so we always have cables handy. The downside? Between listening to music over Bluetooth and using my phone’s GPS to track exercise, I need to remember to charge my phone at every opportunity I get.
The Logitech H800 headset comes with a mini receiver that’s small enough to stay plugged into a laptop all the time. Unfortunately, it’s not a Logitech unifying receiver. Now I have two of those slim-profile Logitech receivers plugged into my laptop (mouse and headset). That leaves one USB port for flash drives, charging, and other things I want to plug in. I haven’t gotten into the habit of carrying around a powered USB hub, but I’m close to it!
Decision: Better than I expected, although FutureShop sold the headset for quite a bit more than the Amazon US price. I picked it up at FutureShop because I wanted to test the fit before getting it, and it worked out fine.
This is part of my Visual Metaphors series. I’m drawing these to help expand my visual vocabulary for drawing sketchnotes. It’s a good way to exercise. Any suggestions?
Click on the image for a larger version or contact me for a high-res version (2608x1600px). Feel free to share this under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 licence.
Lots of great research released under Creative Commons. Yay Jeremiah Owyang and Altimeter!
Quick notes for searching, more later: Social business hierarchy of needs: Foundation –> Safety –> Formation –> Enablement –> Enlightenment
If you like this, you might also like:
- my notes from the previous Third Tuesday Toronto talk (Engagio)
- more sketchnotes from meetups and books
- the Third Tuesday Toronto meetup group
- other cool sketchnotes around the Web
Enjoy!
Here’s the text from the image to make it easier to search for:
Jeremiah Owyang
Third Tuesday Toronto: May 14, 2012
Sketchnotes: Sacha Chua (@sachac): LivingAnAwesomeLife.com
untrained employees
advanced companies prepare internally first
~180 accounts for average enterprise
-only 25% active
Social media mostly separate from rest of site/db
Frequency of social media crises
-exposure to poor customer experience
-poor influencer relations
-violation of ethical guidelines rogue employees
Social sanitation
Reinforcing bad behavior
We’re teaching them to yell at their friends.
Constantly getting ahead of themselves.
Advanced companies
Social business hierarchy of needs
5 Englightenment
4 Enablement Empowerment scaling
3 Formation asset inventory Center of Excellence
2 Safety Team workflow Crisis prep
1 Foundation Policy
Education required
social media & communities
Holistic
Real-time
Predictive
Predict what customers are going to do
Integrate into databases, etc.
Build better products
Tap employees
self-serve hubs Chatteratti (EZE help, compensation) bit.ly/Altimeter Social
strategic internal communications tactic
Governance
Policy
Guidelines
Training
important for scaling
10.8%
Decentralized centralized
41% Hub and spoke
sometimes on their behalf
18%
Dandelion
COE empowers business units
1.4%
Holistic
Safe & consistent
(Best Buy, Zappos)
I do customer support
Team Aug. 11
1.5 social strategist 3 comm manager soc media manager 1 analyst 1.5 dev
content strategist, emerging role
-editorials, ex. journalists, comm agencies…
Education
-Executives
-Strategists/Business units
-all employees
Access
-Tools
-Everyone has access & must be trained
Listening centre
some involving business unit centres
triage
-good
-bad
-ugly
FireBell simulation of social media crisis
Most crises: Friday afternoon
Q&A: #3TYYZ
-Analysis? CRM, Omniture (Adobe), SAS, Eloqua… A number of different directions. System integrators.
-Adobe Social. Very bullish, if they can act like a small company. Paid, earned, owned media
Also watch Lithium Technologies & bazaarvoice (300% ROI for ratings). New ad units, IBM social metrics.
-Soc media correlations? Social loyalty (people are loyal to each other), gamifications.
C-suite: Novelty, fear, potential for new business models.
any data company stands to gain early in the space, lots of experimentations
-Social software: Combrian explosion. Lots of duplicate companies, VCs investing in clones
Best-in-class will probably connect with each other.
-Startup? Yes, but you can go through steps faster. Our research focuses on enterprise, but can still help.
-Soc media agencies? Ads right now. May need to restructure. Everything starts with earned.
-Disclosure? Vendors unlikely. Agencies making tech-agnostic methodologies.
-Facebook fans? Loose affinity. Facebook wants people to pay.
-Product is info? Utility, etc. Go up a level: Lifestyle, workstyle. G8, IBM.
Get clients to tell stories. See banks for examples. Orsten in.
Chris Guillebeau’s new book The $100 Startup was released just yesterday. Here are my notes! Click on the image to view a larger version. 
The book is packed with clear, practical advice and backed by concrete, diverse stories from successful microbusinesses around the world. It’s not a very deep book (don’t look here for step-by-step instructions, thorough analyses of case studies, or hand-holding through the business startup process), but it’s an enjoyable read. I’ll probably find myself referring to it a lot for inspiration and ideas. If you like this book, you’ll probably also like The Lean Startup (see my notes). Enjoy! Check out more sketchnotes or read about my ongoing experiments in business. I’d love to hear from you! Here’s the text from the image to make it easier to search for: THE $100 STARTUP Chris Guillebeau What you love to do What people will pay for passion + skill + usefulness = success benefits features Ex: happiness widgets Expand your opportunities by reusing your skills in different ares. Most people want simplicity. Don’t give them unneeded details. Some businesses are easier to start. consulting information products You don’t have to be an expert yet! Action Planning Don’t wait for perfection. Start and learn along the way. Invest time into growing your business. Learn how to offer, hustle, launch… “Franchise yourself” -partner -outsource -spin off a different biz scale up You don’t have to build a huge business. Make one that’s the right size for you. Where to find opportunities -marketplace inefficiency -new tech or opportunity -changing space -spin-off or side projects Decision-making matrix Impact Effort Profit Vision Idea Idea Market before manufacturing Test your idea Failsafe: offer refunds FAQ: objection-squasher 25 cents Make your first sale ASAP. Great confidence builder. Other useful parts: 1-page business plan 39-step launch checklist 1-page promotion plan + web resources Like this? Check out my other notes @ LivingAnAwesomeLife.com! -Sacha Chua Twitter: @sachac
Sketchnotes: Red Rocket Coffee, Toronto Public Library Small Business Network meetup
Click on the image for a large version. Want an even better version for printing out? Contact me. Feel free to reuse or share this image under the Creative Commons Attribution license.
We heard from Pamela MacDonald, Liako Dertilis, and Billy Dertilis of Red Rocket Coffee at today’s Small Business Network meetup at the Toronto Reference Library. They shared hard-won lessons from building a coffee shop business that now has three locations.
The small business network meetup at the Toronto Reference Library happens on the second Tuesday of every month. You can view my sketchnotes from past meetups:
- The Shy Entrepreneur (me) – April 2012
- Sal Sloan of Fetching! – March 2012
- Kristina Chau of notyouraverageparty – February 2012
View more sketchnotes, read my notes about business, or browse around my blog!
Here’s the text from the image to make it easier to search for:
redrocketcoffee.com
RED ROCKET COFFEE
Pamela MacDonald Liako Dertilis Billy Dertilis
Small Business Network Meetup
Toronto Reference Library
May 8, 2012
Notes by Sacha Chua, @sachac, LivingAnAwesomeLife.com
Make sure you have enough money to live for a year.
You always have to be “on”, even at the grocery store.
Be adaptable, but watch out for over-adapting. You can’t please everybody.
Book recommendations:
-Setting the table: the transforming power of hospitality in business
-The little black book of entrepreneurship
Be prepared to wear a lot of hats.
Take care of yourself. Give yourself time to recharge.
Soft opening: work out kinks
The smartest thing an entrepreneur can do is learn when to let go.
#1: Good relationships
clients suppliers neighbours…
Hire a Lawyer. Any kind of contract, any kind of lease
Organization is important!
Suppliers etc. make mistakes, bill you twice…
Reassess success.
Had to buy out partner. Have partnership agreement!
Dedicate time to schmooze.
Customers can become suppliers!
Building relationships with people who understand
Trust your instincts.
Build a team you can delegate to.
Knowing WHO to ask & WHEN
Made up recipes
Passion!
We don’t micromanage. We’re very very careful about hiring, and we let them run the show. We let the store develop its own personality.
self-employment benefits