Why You Need to Go to Code Retreat

​The best advice I've ever gotten about learning to code was when my friend Collin Schaafsma told me bluntly "Get out of your basement." My learning had plateaued as an individual learning Ruby on Rails from tutorials, books, and banging my head against the wall. It was time to code with others. I signed up for Code Retreat and have been recommending it ever since as the most concentrated learning I've had in a single day.

The first Code Retreat I went to almost melted my brain. I had never written any Ruby outside of the Rails framework, let alone written anything in another language (unless BASIC or Logo from 30 years ago counts). The last time I went, I left with my brain overflowing again. It was drinking from the firehose in its most extreme form. On both occasions it took a day or two to catch my breath. When I did, I was a much stronger programmer.

Code Retreat gives you the opportunity to focus 100% of your time on honing your craft away from the usual distractions and pressures of a work day. You'll pair with people of different skill levels, different language preferences, and most importantly, different approaches to problem solving. It will open your mind in a way that coding in your usual environment can never do.

If you're hesitant to go because you feel like your skills aren't up to snuff, get over it. Today. Every developer had shit for skills in the beginning and frankly, many still do. If you're curious what skill level I went into the first Code Retreat with, feel free to take a look at the code for Get Shit Done, my first complete web app. I've made the repository publicly viewable to remind me and others that we all write shitty code. If you show enthusiasm for learning, you'll be welcomed with open arms at Code Retreat.

My friends at Scrib are hosting the next Code Retreat in Boulder coming up on December 8, 2012. The only investment you need to make is a day of your time. Make sure you grab a seat by registering for Code Retreat on Eventbrite. You won't regret it.

Don't Get Sucked into the New Year's Black Hole

The holiday season is right around the corner. For me it will include travel, family, shopping, and all the other typical holiday craziness. What it won't include is something I've been guilty of in past years - losing momentum at work.

It's especially hard to stay focused on work that needs to be done when end of year business planning is layered on top of holiday planning. We spend so much time looking forward during this time of the year that today can get lost in the shuffle.

No New Year's resolutions for me. It's a November resolution: get shit done.

Granola

I make some pretty damned tasty granola. That's a fact.

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While I love sharing it, I don't always have the motivation to make it. For those of you who want more but can't talk me into making another batch, here's my recipe, which is adapted from Cook's Illustrated.

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees. Combine in a large bowl:

• 1 cup almond slivers
• 1/2 cup pumpkin seeds
• 1/2 cup sunflower seeds
• 3 cups rolled oats (I prefer "quick" oats for its finer texture)

Warm up (15 seconds in a microwave will do the trick):

• 1/4 cup maple syrup (my duty as a New Englander is to insist on the real stuff)
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/3 cup canola oil

Stir the wet mixture into the oatmeal mixture until everything's coated thoroughly. Transfer to a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper or aluminum foil and bake.

After 20 minutes or so, you should start checking on the color every few minutes. Give it a stir each time before you put it back in the oven to brown things evenly. Remove it from the oven when the granola is a shade lighter than the final color you want.

While the granola is still warm, sprinkle on:

• a pinch of kosher salt
• 1 cup craisins

Break it up into bite sized chunks and you're ready to go.

An Easy Step Towards Building a Personal Brand

​I chose virtuallybing as my online identity to be consistent across the dozens of web services I use. While I'm not a fan of the term personal brand, it's essentially what I've created over the course of the last couple of years, and it's served me well. You should do the same if your online presence is important to you.

As many things are, virtuallybing was born out of necessity. While you may think my given name is unique, it isn't. When I signed up for Twitter I ran into another Bing Chou, a tennis instructor in Toronto, who had already taken the handle @bingchou. I soon found out that the domain bingchou.com was taken as well and that there are several Bing Chous on Facebook and LinkedIn. My parents lied to me when they told me I'm one of a kind.

I chose virtuallybing after seeing it was available as a username across web services and grabbed virtuallybing.com right away. I've been able to sign up for new accounts for a couple of years now using Bing Chou when my real name is required and virtuallybing when it's not. Being able to use virtuallybing consistently across web services, especially social media services, has gone a long way in helping others remember who I am.

I'd recommend you find a username you can use consistently as well. If you're working hard to network or build your reputation in the startup community, it will go a long way to have a name that people will recognize as they come across your stuff online. Especially for the Michael Smiths and Bing Chous of the world.

Leave Your Credentials at the Door

redentials are a powerful thing. So much so that they can get in the way. The next time you participate in a group discussion, try asking everybody to leave their credentials at the door before getting started. It'll make for a more open and meaningful conversation.

Each month I ask a group of 20 or so businesspeople to get together for House of Genius. The purpose of the event is to give three entrepreneurs an opportunity to ask for help on a particular problem that each is facing.

The idea is to tap into the group's collective genius after a short presentation by the entrepreneur. A critical ingredient in the House of Genius secret sauce is to limit introductions to first names with no discussions about job titles or experience until the very end of the evening.

"The process and approach worked brilliantly – I thought the amount and type of feedback the three presenters got was at the high end of the spectrum for any other group feedback session I’ve ever been involved in."

Brad Feld on a recent House of Genius event, Great Events - House of Genius

By maintaining an element of anonymity we're able to minimize preconceived notions about who knows what. It's a completely different dynamic than traditional meetings beginning with "name, rank, serial number" type of introductions that create a set of expectations before the conversation has even begun.

We also ask that participants avoid qualifying their comments with things like "In my experience with this..." or "I don't know much about this, but...". These types of comments are a different but equally powerful form of credentials.

The next time you're planning to gather a group for a feedback session ask everybody to leave their credentials at the door. You'll find that the discussion gets moving quickly and includes more creativity and honesty than traditional meetings.

Note: House of Genius was born in Boulder but is now in Austin, Singapore, New York City, San Francisco, Santa Monica, Albuquerque, Seattle, Denver, and Reno. More locations are in the works. Let me know if you want an invitation to a House of Genius session here in Boulder or elsewhere.

Metaphorically Pissing My Pants

"I do it too, you know. Metaphorically piss my pants sometimes in the face of opportunity. Though I'm trying to stop doing that."

Sebastian Marshall, Ikigai

I'm trying to stop doing that too. Overcoming fear in the face of opportunity is the difference between being an entrepreneur and wantrepreneur.

The Two Minute Rule

I experiment with productivity techniques and tools a fair amount because I'm always wanting to squeeze more into my day without sacrificing sanity time. The most productive of them all? The two minute rule.

It's very simple: if a task will take two minutes or less to complete, just do it on the spot, even if other pressing tasks are at hand. It's one less thing to track, one less thing to worry about, and one less thing that may hold up another task down the road.

I was introduced to David Allen's two minute rule in his best seller Getting Things Done and have had great results. While I've struggled to implement the rest of his system consistently, I've managed to use the two minute rule on a daily basis with no problem for several years now. It's stupidly simple, which is perfect for me.

Spending two minutes to make a problem go away gives me instant gratification and helps clear my head of loose ends I have to think about all the time.

Often times it's the small things that make me worry the most, so checking them off the list is a beautiful thing. In actuality, they never even have to be put on the list in the first place because they're handled on the spot.

Give it a try. Fight the instinct to put it on a list. If it takes two minutes or less, just Get Shit Done.

Simple

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I finally got around to signing up for a new bank account with Simple. A few days later my debit card arrived. It didn't show up glued to a flimsy sheet of paper in the typical boring envelope. It's looking like Simple plans to remind me regularly that they aren't like every other bank. And that's a good thing.

Take Back the Movies

On Saturday afternoon I spent a few hours volunteering for Take Back the Movies, a grassroots effort to respond to the July 20 mass shooting at an Aurora, CO movie theater. It was a small but important effort.

I received an email from Jason Cole a day after the shootings letting me know that he planned to spread a little light in the community by giving people a night at the movies. Not just a few people, but theaters full of them.

He asked me and many others to round up volunteers and donations. On Saturday over 50 volunteers gave out 1,300 tickets at five theaters in Aurora and adjoining cities, all fueled by donations from community businesses and individuals (9NEWS video).

"We're spreading some light in the dark! On July 20, one man crept into a darkened movie theater in Aurora and turned a night of fun into something terrible. He took something from our community, so tonight we're giving it back. We want to give you the gift of a night at the movies. This isn't a fundraiser, it isn't a protest. It's your community's gift to you.Go, enjoy, and after the movie, go spread some light in return."

The note given along with free movie tickets explaining Take Back the Movies

​I managed to give away tickets to over 30 pleasantly surprised people at the Regal Continental Stadium 10 & RPX in Denver. There were a lot of smiles. I feel confident that many of those people will find a way to pay it forward.

I got a lot of satisfaction in exchange for just an afternoon of my time. In the grand scheme of things it was a small effort on my part, but it was something that will have a ripple effect for the rest of the community. Thank you Jason and the team you put together for making this all happen.

Brainpower and Give-a-Shit

I've been surrounding myself with smart, caring people for most of my life. It wasn't a conscious effort at first, but after meeting a few people with that rare combination of brainpower and give-a-shit, I now go out of my way to do more of it. I recommend that you do too.

There's something really special about working with somebody with lots of brainpower and give-a-shit rolled into a single package. Feeling like no challenge is too large is a powerful thing. Feeling like you can talk openly about problems that you see so that they can be fixed is equally powerful.

I've already been a part of Quick Left and the MBA program at Babson College, where the concentration of people with ridiculous amounts of brainpower and give-a-shit is through the roof.

Sometimes I feel guilty about how lucky I am to be in this position, to be excited about the work that I do. When I think about it in detail, as I do now in writing this, I remind myself that I had a hand in creating my luck. I want more of it.

Think about doing it for yourself if you aren't already. Anything is possible when you surround yourself with people who have brainpower and give-a-shit.

I'm Moving You to Bcc

Lately I've found myself involved in a lot of email introductions, both as an initiator and a recipient. If somebody is nice enough to make an email introduction for you, return the favor by cutting her loose with "I'm moving you to Bcc."

I see tweets from people about struggling to get to inbox zero just about every day. Some even declare email bankruptcy when their inbox is a lost cause. With that in mind, minimizing the email load for somebody who just made an introduction for you is a nice courtesy.

So let's say I introduce you to Zoe because you have a common interest in volunteering in the Boulder startup community. It'd be great if your reply looked something like this:

Thanks for the introduction Bing - I'm moving you to Bcc.

Zoe,

I'm glad to hear that we've got a mutual interest in doing some good for the community. Let's grab coffee. Are you free some time next week?

A nice way to say thanks before cutting me loose from the rest of the email thread.​

You get a chance to say thanks and I see that the conversation has begun, which is all I really want. The fact that you've excluded me from the rest of the thread is great (assuming, of course, that you've actually moved me to Bcc). I don't want or need to be a part of the continued conversation.

Consider using "I'm moving you to Bcc" as one way to change our reply all culture. We've got enough email in our lives as it is, don't you think?

Entrepreneurs, Wantrepreneurs, and Businessmen

More often than not I hear the term entrepreneur applied incorrectly. I'm pretty particular about its use, so I thought I'd make the distinction between entrepreneurs, wantrepreneurs, and businessmen.

Businessman != Entrepreneur

Being a businessman doesn't make a person an entrepreneur, even if the person is a founder. Entrepreneurs are characterized by very specific behavior:

• They see opportunity in uncertainty.
• They constantly look for a better way.
• They minimize risk.
• They take action.

The fact is, most businessmen aren't entrepreneurs. It's not a title, role, or set of responsibilities that makes an entrepreneur, it's behavior.

Introducing yourself as an entrepreneur? You're a wantrepreneur.

While applying the term entrepreneur to a businessman is often inappropriate, applying the term to yourself isalways inappropriate. The person who introduces himself as "a laid back guy" is never actually laid back.

The person who introduces himself as an entrepreneur? I apply the label wantrepreneur to that guy.

The person who introduces himself to the world as an Entrepreneur on LinkedIn? I apply the label Wantrepreneur to That Guy.

Please don't be a Wantrepreneur. Work on acting like an entrepreneur instead - the world could use more of them.