I’m the Cloud Connect Launch Pad Chairperson, and the competition is coming to a head quite soon. I have multiple competing emotions when it comes down to the main event. Working towards a moment in time – only to have that time arrive upon you rather suddenly – has a way of snapping you into focus and scaring the crap out of you.
That being said, I’m really looking forward to presenting this contest on Wednesday. March 17, 2010 on the keynote stage at Cloud Connect down at the Santa Clara Convention Center.
The contest began on Twitter. All developers, large and small, were invited to enter their application. There was no entry fee. We opened our doors with a simple bar for entry – Tweeting to the Cloud Connect Launch Pad Twitter handle #cc_lp.
With the help of my Jurors, we vetted the submissions and narrowed them down to our favorite 8. We then asked the Cloud Connect community to vote on their favorite tool, and the Final Four earned their right to present on the main stage, as well as earn other cool prizes.
The last Launch Pad contest I chaired was at the Enterprise 2.0 Conference in San Francisco in November 2009. To prepare before getting up to present, I did push ups backstage with my buddy Justin to relieve some of the nervous tension that built up in my body. Hopefully it won’t come down to that this time…
And I’m bring the dino back.
Categories: Conferences
Tagged: Launch Pad, Cloud Connect, dino, push ups, contest, #ccevent
I’m usually pretty on the ball when it comes to other peoples’ birthdays. It’s a time to celebrate the day that someone you care about entered the world. I’m big on birthdays – I like to spoil the people I love. It’s almost as much for them as it is for me. I’m grateful to have them in my life as a positive influence.
While I do know my own birthday (October 5th for any of you who care to take note) I did miss my blog’s 2 year birthday. Happy Birthday Torn Paige!
My first post was written on February 11, 2008 – over two years ago now. Time has an eerie way of startling you. When you measure a child’s age, how long you’ve been in a relationship or had that same job — that thing that is always just there suddenly has a metric that can feel right on or completely disproportionate. 2 years has flown by.
To commemorate Torn Paige’s birthday, I want to celebrate my first post by reposting it here – the post is called Watch This Space:
I’m crumbling under the pressure of the first post. This is the big one. Where the stage is set. I need to define my voice and purpose so you’ll either read on or move on. *Gulp* Here goes:
In an effort to capture the technological evolution we are in the midst of, I want to document the surfacing trends that appear where business and technology collide. This change is crashing rather loudly into the enterprise from various angles. As the next generation of the workforce — my generation — begins to permeate the market, my older colleagues must rise to the occasion and evolve with them.
As a 25 year old woman in the web 2.0 space, I bridge the gap between the old and new ways business is conducted. I am part of the community building the next generation of the Internet. And I hope we don’t screw it up. I’m a witness to the socialization and democratization of the web. This cultural phenomenon is pretty exciting stuff, as it changes the way we interface, work and play.
The implications of a social web are left to be discovered, but as the enterprise strives towards agility, transparency and increased collaboration, my bet is that the early adopters will surge forward. Watch this space.
Happy birthday to meee (screeching, off-key voice)!
Categories: Blogging · Social Web
Tagged: 2 years, birthday, celebrate, torn paige, watch this space
My boss asked some of us sales folks to put together a story, a tale from the field, or a little preso to share with our fellow colleague at a recent Sales Summit.
Email is friggin’ annoying. It can really bury you and hinder your sales process. Unfortunately it’s the preferred method of communication for many of my clients in the business technology market.
My little contribution was this Ignite style preso entitled ‘How to Make Email Less Annoying: A Tiny Guide to Outlook Best Practices for Sales People.’
Spoiler alert: Like all good Ignite talks, there’s a picture of a cute cat in it (and a bald Britney Spears!). Enjoy!
Categories: Conferences · Corporate Culture
Tagged: annoying, Britney Spears, cat, email, Ignite, Outlook, sales
I’ve been asked to play around with a Lenovo IdeaPad S12 and give feedback as to whether this netbook would meet a sales person’s needs. I’ve had this little baby for a few weeks and I wrote a tidy list of how I feel about it, in case any of you out there are evaluating a netbook for your own use.
To sum up: I love it.
Pros
· Size & weight make it easy to carry to meetings, take notes electronically
· No issue connecting to the wireless network setup behind the firewall
· Full size keyboard, so no hand cramping (just like typing on any standard 15.4″ notebook)
· Changed resolution to make icons bigger – no issue with screen size as a result (12.1″ display)
· The charger is tiny; take up no space when travelling
· Built in video camera means I can Skype with clients; make better (read realer) client connections
Cons
· Resetting the resolution to create bigger icons/font on the netbook means the display on the monitor can look a bit distorted and Comic Sans-like. I hate Comic Sans!
· The Video cable has 2 screws to hold the cable firmly to the video port (for the monitor) but the netbook doesn’t have the feminine parts to bolt on; this means you have to be extra careful and not jostle the video cable.
· Mouse pad is tiny.
· Only 160 GBs on the netbook, so external desktop hard drive is recommended (especially for music and videos)
· Lots of stuff to plug in vs. docking station (mouse, speakers, keyboard, monitor, e tc.) which only leaves one spare USB port available
Breakin’ it down . . . some serious specs:
- Display: 12.1 WXGA (1280 X 800) LED 200 nit, 250g
- Processor: Intel Atom N270
- Graphics: Intel integrated GMA 950, Nvidia ION
- Memory: Up to 1GB DDR2 533 MHz
- Hard Drive: Up to 160 GB SATA (160, 250, 320)
- Battery Life: 3 hours with 3-cell, 6 hours with 6-cell
- Weight: 1.4kg with 3 cell, 1.55kg with 6 cell
- Dimensions: 292 X 216 X 22-28.9mm
- Connectivity: 10/100m Ethernet, Broadcom 578M, Intel WiFi Link 5150 1X2 AGN, Intel WiFi Link 5100 1X2 AGN, Non-Intel wireless b/g, Non-Intel wireless b/g/n, Bluetooth
- Other: 3 USB, 1 Expresscard slot (Intel and VIA platforms), 4-in-1 card reader, VGA, RJA45, HDMI
- Software: XP Home SP3 (32 bit)
Categories: Uncategorized
Tagged: comic sans, ideapad, lenovo, love, netbook
Just had the cool experience of being interviewed by Kaitlin Pike, the Web 2.0 Expo Community Manager. She asked some pointed questions about my Ignite presentation and I wanted to share an excerpt (my favorite part):
In response to her experience, Paige created “A New Way to Mug” for robbers to follow:
- State the other person’s behavior: “She has a laptop, and she’s just walking around with it.”
- State your emotional response: “That pisses me off. I want that laptop.”
- State choices to the other person as a result of your emotional response: “If you don’t give me that laptop I’m going to get violent.”
Although the example for these three steps involves muggers, Paige believes they should be applied much more broadly. “This can be used in any situation requiring negotiation,” she said.
For instance, imagine your boss gives you a deadline for a project you know needs more time. 1) State the other person’s behavior: “The boss has given me a deadline that isn’t realistic if we want a quality product.” 2) State how that makes you feel. “This makes me anxious.” 3) State choices to the other person as a result of your emotional response. “Boss, I am anxious this deadline as it stands will force us to cut back on important features. If you give me 4 more days I can deliver a much higher quality product.”
The important thing to remember, Paige said, is that the person cannot “make” you feel anything—your response to your boss could have been ambivalence; “It’s not my fault the product will suck. Oh well.”
Paige did not make the mugger feel angry—that was simply her response to Paige’s behavior. When in a negotiation or conflict, say things such as “While you were doing this, this is how I felt.” People aren’t mind readers, and if you want to resolve issues with them you need to be straightforward with your feelings and what you want out of the discussion.
Thanks Kaitlin, for not asking if you minded if you unzip your pants, and for making me sound smart 
Full interview can be found here.
Categories: Conferences
Tagged: Ignite, interview, pants, smart, web 2.0 expo
I’ve moved from anxiety to eager anticipation. My Ignite talk is coming up on Tuesday, and I’m feeling good about my presentation.
After much debate about what I wanted to say, I’m confident I’ve honed in on the right topic. But having a great idea doesn’t necessarily translate to good execution. Many drafts and conversations later, my process has evolved into something (I hope) the audience will find compelling, entertaining and still relates back to the evening’s Women Innovators theme.
The tile of my talk is ‘Dear Mugger, It Could Have Been Different.’
Bam!
True story: I was physically assaulted on October 13, 2008 whilst strolling home in the Mission here in SF, CA. A woman ran up behind me and started raining down on me with fists, pulling my hair out, punching me in the face – just generally kicking my ass. I had no idea what was going on. She did not at any point tell me that she was after my laptop (a conclusion I later drew post-attack), so I held on to my stuff out of sheer shock. Eventually she gave up and ran away.
She was pretty amateur. By all accounts, this mug was one epic fail. She did not succeed in taking my stuff. However, if she had just made a simple request of me, I would have gladly given up my IBM ThinkPad and the $8 in my wallet if the alternative was getting beat up. No brainer.
In telling this story and the subsequent conclusions I’ve drawn looking back on the attack, the intention of my Ignite talk is to illustrate that effective (in this case, verbal) communication is essential in getting what you want. This translates into business, friendships, romance , mugging – all relationships.
At the very least, it’s been a hugely cathartic experience for me in putting together this deck. Thanks Ignite
Practice might not always make perfct, but it definitely builds confidence. A big thank you to my clever, compassionate friends who allowed me sit them down with my .ppt and and show them my slides, continually asking them:
Is this boring?
Am I funny?
Do you get what I’m trying to say, with this one?
And all sorts of other annoying questions. Bring on Tuesday!
Categories: Conferences
Tagged: Dear Mugger, friends, Ignite, Mission, thanks, Women Innovators
I’ve been asked to participate in the first Ignite Bay Area | Women Innovators on December 8, 2010, and I’ve been racking my brain to come up a preso that scores the right mix of humor, insight and charm.
I really dig the Ignite format. 5 minutes. 20 slides. 15 seconds per slide. Their motto is ‘Enlighten us – but be quick.’
It’s tough to summon my powers of wit on command – but the clock is ticking.
I’ve been marinating on a few ideas – but I’m not sure I’ve found my home run. A couple topics percolating at the moment include:
- The History of Plaid: From Kilts to Hipsters
- Ms. Pac-Man – An Icon for Women’s Rights
- Successful Punchlines: How to Make Your Own Jokes
- Getting Mugged: How the Urban Landscape can Shift from Land of Opportunity to Fear & Loathing in San Francisco
- Lyrical Significance: What Makes Hip Hop Worth Listening To
The event is at the David Brower Center, which is three blocks from the Downtown Berkeley BART stop. Tickets are $5 until December 1, 2009, and the event’s charity partner is Hannah’s Socks, a non-profit focused on providing clothing to homeless shelters and domestic violence survivors. Bring down a pair of new socks to benefit adults and children in the Bay Area.
Come down and heckle me.
Categories: Uncategorized
Tagged: hipsters, Ignite Bay Area, jokes, ms. pac-man, mugged, Women Innovators
I am equal parts excited and nervous to be moderating the Enterprise 2.0 Launch Pad contest on November 4, 2009 at Enterprise 2.0 San Francisco.
This competition allows companies the opportunity to present their innovative application (either in development and about to launch, or recently launched). All entrants will receive visibility E2 Launch Pad site, and four finalists will be invited to present their applications live on the keynote stage to the Enterprise 2.0 Conference audience.
OurRound 1 Twitter pitch saw submissions from across the globe, explaining in 140 characters or less why they deserve to be considered. The E2 team whittled down the entrants to 8 quarter-finalists who are crafting 3 minute videos for the E2 community to vote upon. The winner receives not only the fame and the glory, but the chance to present live on the Enterprise 2.0 SF keynote stage.
Wishing I’d gone ahead and done that Toastmasters course right now. One month countdown to stage fright…
Categories: Conferences
Tagged: e2conf, e2conflp, Enterprise 2.0, Launch Pad, stage fright, start-ups
I’ve succumbed. I created a Twitter account.
Kicking, screaming, tweeting.11:31 AM Aug 5th from web
Paige Finkelman
I have justified not climbing on board the Twitter bandwagon in the past, but I can’t deny the value any longer. It’s been six days and thus far, I’ve discovered:
- Amplifying a message to my network and watching the viral validation RT wave that results is really gratifying.
- The peer-to-peer acknowledgement via RT and being followed is empowering.
- It’s so easy to connect with like minded people. They just appear.
- The six degrees of separation – especially in business – feel cut down to five. Maybe four.
Looking over this list, it sounds like Twitter is serving as a personal ego boost. A micro-boost. Folow me @peepf.
Categories: Blogging
Tagged: @peepf, bandwagon, ego, RT, Twitter
