Josh Anstey’s Blog

I read an article today on the Ninemsn Money Website called, ‘Are you addicted to your Blackberry?’

The article definitely criticises society’s addiction to what has been termed a ‘CrackBerry’. It lists the many ways that the BlackBerry addiction has ‘interfered’ and changed our lives.

The BlackBerry is just one of the many pieces of technology that we are now fortunate enough to have that enhance our ‘Connected’ lives. They have allowed us to take that step forward in being always connected.

Now don’t get me wrong, I agree that if it gets to the stage that you are interrupting social arrangements, meals and discussions to respond to your email, or any of the other definitions of why you would be addicted in the article, then you have taken it a bit far.

But look at the benefits. Productivity has increased allowing business to be conducted away from the office, people can find information on the go, search for directions when they are lost, and are freer if anything to go out, because they don’t have to sit at their computer all day waiting for that one email that requires an immediate response.

I think rather than criticizing the huge amount of people that are using BlackBerry’s and the amount of time spent on them, we should be encouraging people to embrace the technology. All too often we hear of people complain that Generation Y and young children spend too much time sitting in front of the computer. Enabling mobile devices with internet connection removes this desire to sit in front of the computer all day long. It encourages people to leave the screen and head outside, go for a walk and socialise with others.

The article is very interesting, and has lots of information for both points of view, but I think we all know that the technology is here to stay and will continue to improve.

So if you are addicted to your BlackBerry, make sure you try control it in some ways and set your self some rules or boundaries such as:
• Don’t respond to emails during conversations with people or at meals unless it is necessary or urgent
• Draw a line between what is family & friends time and what is BlackBerry time
• Every once and a while, leave it at home when you go out.

Remember, if you didn’t have it people would have to wait for you to get home to your computer to respond to an email, so just because you have a BlackBerry, doesn’t mean you have to get to that email straight away.

I am 100% in favour of BlackBerry’s and think they are a really great invention. But like anything else, remember to use them in moderation.

If you have a BlackBerry, let us know your thoughts on this. It would be great to hear your opinion on whether or not you are addicted to your BlackBerry.

Related post: iPhone or BlackBerry?

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TechCrunch has announced the details for this years conference, titled, ‘TechCrunch50’.

TechCrunch50 will be from the 8th-10th September 2008 in San Francisco, California, USA.

The conference is going to be a 3 day conference with the launch of 50 new start-ups.

The opportunity that this conference presents for start-up businesses, and those trying to secure venture capital is just incredible.

Entrepreneurs, if you have an idea, are getting a business off the ground, or are keen to see what is going to be the next big thing, don’t miss out.

Are you going to be there? Planning to travel for the conference? Let me know. It would be great to hear for you.

I hope I can make it to the conference. Will see what the coming months have in store.

For more information, check out the TechCrunch post.

Hello fellow Entrepreneurs,

For anyone that has not yet heard of Earth Hour, Earth Hour is an international event occurring tonight from 8:00pm-9:00pm in your local time, with the aim of promoting the reduction of electricity use and carbon emissions and raising the level of awareness for our environment.

This year, Earth Hour has turned into a global event, with my cities getting on board behind the initiative. Iconic landmarks are going to have their lights turned off to promote Earth Hour, including the Sydney Harbour Bridge, The Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco and the Sydney Opera House.

For more information, see these websites:
Earthhour2008.com
Earthhour.org

This is an opportunity for Entrepreneurs to take a different look at their ventures, their start-ups, and businesses, and join a global movement to make a difference. I know most entrepreneurs are environmentally aware and socially responsible, and donating to many charities. This is a chance for everyone to get behind the same cause.

I hope you all get behind this great initiative.

Feel free to reply to this post with any stories you have about earth hour, or other ways that your business has taken that step forward in helping the environment, community or has been socially proactive and responsible.

The entrepreneur community is a very strong and devoted community, determined to do what is best, so I look forward to reading about what you have done.

Have a great weekend, and on behalf of the hundreds of millions of people joining in Earth Hour this year, Thank you!

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Yes that is right. There are lessons to be learned from stand up comedians.

Before we learn the lessons, let me explain to you the pre-text of this post.

Last week I went to see a stand up comedy show by the great Australian comic Wil Anderson.

Wil has a new show called beWILdered and it is absolutely hilarious. I recommend you check it out. Anyway, at the show it got me thinking about how there are a few things to learn from stand up comedians that entrepreneurs can put into practice.

Stand up comedians are entrepreneurs themselves. They are a perfect example of someone going at it alone, giving it their best shot, getting up in front of a crowd and saying ‘here is what I have to offer; what do you think about it?’

Sometimes this is successful; they are received well and have an audience filled with laughter for the whole show. Sometimes it is not successful, and there is an awkward silence of unfunny jokes, and an unresponsive quiet audience. Regardless of the results, you can bet your dollar the stand up comedians are standing back up on stage the next night giving it another one of their best shots.

Lesson #1 from stand up comedians: Always give it a go. Don’t be afraid to stand up there, be counted and put your ideas out into the open. And more importantly, if at first you don’t succeed, don’t be disheartened, be persistent, confident and get out there and do it again.

Comedians want you to laugh, have a good time, enjoy the show and then go home and tell all your friends and family to come see the show. Stand up comedians spend a lot of time getting to know their audiences, relating to their audiences, and bringing their audiences on the ‘comedic journey’ with them. They want it to be your experience. Why? Well aside from the fact that it makes you enjoy the show a whole lot more, it also means there is a higher chance of you going home and spreading the word about the show. What is this called? This is the great important marketing skill of Word of Mouth.

Lesson #2 from stand up comedians: Relate to your audience so that they are enjoying your product or service. Word of Mouth is the most powerful marketing tool that you can use. There is a much higher chance of someone using your product or service if a friend or family member has recommended it. Never forget the importance of getting your customers, clients or users to promote your product. Make sure they enjoy their experience with your company. For starting entrepreneurs, this is the most cost effective way to kick-start your business.

I hope you are able to put these lessons learned from stand up comedians into practice.

By the way, I really do recommend seeing Wil Andersons show beWILdered – you are guaranteed to have a great night.

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The famous Forbes Magazine has released its ‘Billionaire List’. The list shows the tables have turned and there have been some surprising changes.

After 13 years, Bill Gates, Founder of Microsoft, is no longer the world’s richest man. Investor Warren Buffet has overtaken Bill Gates with a net worth of $62.0 Billion. He is closely followed by the Mexican telecom businessman Carlos Slim Helu with a net worth of $60.0 Billion.

Bill Gates comes in third with a net worth of $58.0 Billion.

Mark Zuckerberg, founder of Facebook, entered the list with a net worth of $1.5 Billion and is also the worlds youngest ever billionaire. Now that is quite an achievement.

Click here to see the full list

Click here to read more about the list on the Forbes website

I am sure this list provides a lot of motivation and inspiration to all the entrepreneurs out there.

It would be great to hear your thoughts on the list. Feel free to leave a comment and let us know what you think.

Have a great entrepreneurial day!

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Entrepreneurs love to get their hands on anything and everything when starting businesses. There comes a stage in this process, when entrepreneurs must learn to delegate. There is often a lot of resistance to this, with entrepreneurs finding it hard to let go of their ‘baby’.

Resistance often includes, ‘I don’t trust anyone else to do it’, ‘I can do it better than anyone else’, ‘I am the only person who has the vision to complete this task’, ‘I don’t know what to delegate’, ‘I can do it quicker’, ‘It’s too expensive to hire someone else’. This is hard for entrepreneurs, but is extremely necessary when businesses start to grow.

Delegation is the handing over of authority and tasks to someone else, and believe it or not, can be quite a simple and trouble free process if done correctly.

Here are a few pointers in how to delegate.

Decide what to delegate
Firstly, you need to decide what you need to and can do, and what you need to and can delegate. I call these your ‘need to list’ and your ‘can do list’. I use the words need and can here carefully. Make a list of everything that needs to be done. Next, work out what are your strengths and weaknesses. Then work out what you specifically need to do, which is your ‘need to list’. This list may include areas that are currently confidential, or focus on the broader strategy and growth of the business. Your ‘can do list’, are things that you don’t necessarily need to do, but you have time to do and are interested in being actively involved in them. Don’t use this list as an excuse not to delegate. This should be a very short list of two or three items or activities.

Work out what you need to delegate. These are things that need to be done, but don’t have to be done by you. They can be more day-to-day operations that can be overseen by someone you hire. Other things that you can delegate, may not be vital to the overall day-to-day operations of the business, but are activities which can be done by someone else over a period of time.

Delegation roadmap
Create a roadmap or plan once you have decided what you are going to delegate. This includes detailed descriptions and roles for each activity or task that you are going to delegate. The aim of this is so that the person you delegate to, will have a good understanding of what their role is, what needs to be done, and what needs to be achieved by this. While you are obviously going to be able to explain it at the beginning, make sure this roadmap and plan is detailed enough, so that you are not being called every five minutes to confirm something.

Hiring the best people
The next step is hiring the best people for you to delegate to. Make sure these people are able to share your vision, excitement and insight that you as an entrepreneur feel. It is also important that they are suited to the job tasks that you are going to delegate to them; Administrative? Marketing? Operations management? Accounts and finance? Development? Make sure the person satisfies all your requirements and you do thorough background checks before employing them. Hire someone that will complement your skills, and will make up for the areas that you feel are weaker. This is a great stepping stone to a strong business relationship and future success.

Accountability & Responsibility
In your roadmap for delegation, set out goals for the tasks and activities. Make sure the person you delegate to understand the outcomes required from their responsibility and that they are accountable to the success of these tasks. This added pressure and accountability will increase the likelihood of a good job being done. These expectations need to be clearly communicated so that there is no confusion.

Check up & Provide Feedback
Randomly check up on how everything is going. This does not have to be hourly, or even daily. Checking up to make sure the tasks are under control will make the person you delegate to feel the need to succeed in his tasks, and will settle your entrepreneurial resistance to delegation if you had any. These can be randomly dropping past their office, or scheduling meetings to review the work up to a certain point. It is also important to constantly provide feedback, so that they know how they are going with everything. This will also give you an opportunity to give your opinion and thoughts on the progress.

Reward
While not necessary, rewarding employees for good work after delegating to them, can be really great for their self-esteem, moral and motivation. This can range from a voucher, bottle of wine, or parking space, to a bonus, salary raise, or additional time off.

Remember, you are delegating so that you can focus on the overall greater strategy and development of your business. Always keep that in mind.

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That’s right. I am back in Sydney and ready to roll.

It has been some time since my last post, as I have been travelling for the last 2 months. The break was great and for an entrepreneur, travelling really opens your eyes and presents opportunities.

Over time I will discuss some of the trip and ideas more, and there will still be my frequent posts and normal.

I look forward to hearing from you all, and to a great year of blogging and working together!

If you have requests or ideas of what you want to read, and areas that we can cover and learn, feel free to let me know.

It’s great to be back!

Have a great entrepreneurial day.

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I have been in San Francisco, USA now for 3 days, and as an entrepreneur, this city has got my mind working in overtime. Touring San Francisco up and down 24/7 has been incredible, and at the same time, I feel like I am in an entrepeneurs paradise.

In my opinion, this entrepreneurs paradise also known as San Francisco should be tagged: “San Francisco - creating your future”

Why?

• There are must millions of people and this points to one topic - consumerism. I would be interested to know the amount of money spent in one day in a city like this. From the number of people who live here, to the number of tourists, there is just opportunity, opportunity and opportunity.
• As I walk through the city, I am amazed at the massive billboards that are covered in advertisements from massive mulitnational corporation companies that have become household names. The exposure to your target market is incredible.
• The land of opportunity - it has been said that America is the land of opportunity, and I think that saying is correct. Walking around San Francisco gives entrepeneurs so much inspiration and motivation. So if you have an idea, give it a go.

Tomorrow I will hopefully head out to Palo Alto, Mountain View and Silicon Valley. These areas have become famous and epitomise opportunity and success for many internet entrepeneurs and Web 2.0 start-ups. I am very excited to check out these areas.

As I mentioned in a previous post, I will be blogging throughout my travels, and relating experiences to my specialised entrepeneur, marketing, Web 2.0 and networking topics. Travelling should bring some new inspiration, insight and ideas into my blog.

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Have a great entrepeneurial day and I hope you are as excited about these upcoming blog posts as I am.

Remember the main lesson from this blog post about San Francisco and all the opportunity - “Just give it a go!”

Hello fellow entrepreneurs,

I am going to be travelling for the next 2 months. So if you don’t see a new post here for a few days, it’s because I have not had a chance to get to a computer in wherever I am. But rest assured, there will still be some great posts over the next little while.

Here are some reasons why travelling is great for all entrepreneurs:

• Exposed to different cultures
• Identify opportunities in foreign markets and countries
• Learn about other ways of doing business
• Meet people (other entrepreneurs, business partners, clients) in person
• Ability to bring your world experience into your business and entrepreneurial world

I am really excited for my trip, and look forward to writing some great posts along the way that will cover the different entrepreneur, marketing, networking, and web 2.0 experiences that I have along the way.

For those interested in where I am travelling, I will be in the USA (San Francisco, Los Angeles, Las Vegas), Mexico (Cancun, Playa del Carmen, Isle Majures, Oaxaca, Mexico City) and Canada (Montreal, Toronto).

If you have any suggestions of places to check out while I am in any of these amazing cities, reply to this post and let me know. If you would like to meet up, send me a message.

I look forward to bringing some great travelling experiences to my blog.

Make sure you don’t miss out on anything during my travels. Josh Anstey’s blog is going to bring the world to the entrepreneur. Make sure you have subscribed to my blog.

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It is no good to talk about ideas that you are never ever going to do. You can have a brilliant business idea, you can have a million marketing ideas, initiatives and goals, but essentially you have nothing if you do not take action.

On ‘The SmallFuel Marketing Blog’ I read a post called, ‘The First Priority of Small Business Marketing.’

It is spot on and straight to the point. There is no point talking about something and not acting on it. Look at all the successful businesses around you, all your mentors and hero’s in anything and everything. Entrepreneurs, movie stars and sportsman.

How did they get to where they are?

They took action. They had an idea, a thought, a dream and a goal, and they took action to achieve it.

As a small business, it is often hard to get the ball rolling. Often challenging to actually kick something off and take the initiate to make it happen. But when you do, you will see the difference and reap the benefit.

For Small Business, the marketing priority needs to be to take action and get it done, give it go.

Give it a try. Think of one thing you have on your ‘wish list’ that you have wanted to do but never get around to it. Take action!

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