2010

2010 is going to be a truly remarkable year. Don’t doubt it for a moment. And just in case, here is a short verse quoted in “Think and Grow Rich” by Napoleon Hill. Keep it in mind whatever you do this year.

“If you think you are beaten, you are,

If you think you dare not, you don’t

If you like to win, but you think you can’t,

It is almost certain you won’t.

If you think you’ll loose, you’re lost

For out of the world we find,

Success begins with a fellow’s will -

It’s all in the state of mind.

If you think you are outclassed, you are,

You’ve got to think high to rise,

You’ve got to be sure of yourself before

You can ever win a prize.

Life’s battles don’t always go

To the stronger or faster man,

But soon or late the man who wins

Is the man who thinks he can!”

2009 wrap-up.

This is it! 2009 is almost over. I remember I wondered this time last year, how the hell am I going to beat 2008!? After all, not every year one gets to meet Bill Clinton and Barack Obama, wins in a business plan contest and gets a job at Apple’s flagship retail store. How was 2009 then? Hit “Read more” for the highlights.

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Is marketing evil?

Often these days I hear people say that companies exploit us by introducing products that we don’t need, creating the culture of consumerism. It makes sense, but is it really so?

The definition of marketing is something along the lines of “identifying consumer needs and creating solutions to them in a profitable way”, the key word being “identifying”. You see, on the individual basis we don’t know as much as companies do. These companies commit huge resources to consumer research and so by default must know more than each of us does. With so much information at hand, they will be in a much better position to understand and see through our collective thoughts, while we have only our own heads, with their limited “processing power”. Caught up in the struggles of daily life, we simply have no time to analyse every single issue that comes in our way. What follows is that we often have a need but simply don’t realise that it’s there. Businesses on the other hand have the advantage of looking at us from the distance, in the sort of big picture way. It should then not come as a surprise that they know things before each of us does. And this is where all the confusion comes from: we don’t realise any of that, and so when companies bring out new products, it appears that they do it out of nowhere and then make us buy it.

Now, with that said, the real question is not whether we need those products, because we obviously do. The real question is, whether we really need to lead that sort of lifestyle that makes us want all those things. Hmmmm...... this is getting deeper and deeper!

Playing to Win

Last week at university we did the Markstrat Online simulation. It is a game in which you have to manage a company, competing with other students. While usually it is played from home, at Erasmus we had designated class time to play it. This made a very social experience and so I really enjoyed it.

Working in a good team is fun

It was so much fun to do this exercise. I liked the competitive thrill of it, as with each round we were eagerly waiting to find out the results, comparing them with others soon afterwards, and jumping straight to work to come out on top next time. I must say the whole experience wouldn’t be the same had it not been for the awesome group members I was lucky to work with. I thoroughly enjoyed interacting with them, and I know that one day they are really going to be some of the best in our field.

Best teammates ever: Jorien, Alex and Erik.

Three takeaway points

Three things I learnt from the simulation:

1. Teamwork, teamwork, teamwork. This is the most important element of success. If you cannot work together, you will work against one another.
2. Clarity, consistency and concentration. In business (and in life as well, actually) you have to have a clear vision, it will greatly help you with decision making, steering you in the right direction. Once you identified what is it that you want to do, stay with it, this is the only way to master it. Then, do not branch out too quickly, rather concentrate - remember that your resources are limited, so set off to achieve the second objective only when you do not have to significantly sacrifice the first one.
3. Watch out for competition. Never neglect the competition, keep your moves secret (be humble), outmaneuver them before they outmaneuver you, and mercilessly exploit their every mistakes and weaknesses.

So how did we do eventually? We won!!!! And what a joy it was to celebrate our first place in the industry with my teammates! It was a truly awesome experience!!!

Mac, Mac, Mac!

Just came across this quote by NVIDIA CEO Jen-Hsun Huang. I totally love the cockiness behind it and just had to share it:

Apple uses the best technology for their [computers]. Apple says to their customers: if you buy a computer from us you can be sure we have selected the best technology inside for you. That is their promise to consumers. Their promise to consumers isn't we've selected the best technology for you with the exception of what Intel allows us to use. That's not their promise. And that's why Apple uses the best technology where they want whenever they want. And that's why I'm all Apple! At home it's just Macs everywhere. It's NVIDIA's technology in all of them but I use Macs. My son has two Macs, my daughter has a Mac, there's an extra Mac just in case and my wife has a Mac. It's just Mac, Mac, Mac! Because I know it's got the best stuff inside.*

Aside of the cockiness, this is such a powerful statement about the Apple's marketing. What Mr. Huang is saying is that Apple simply provide the consumer with the best solution possible with no compromises made. Consequently, Apple simplify the decision making process for consumers by removing the issue of hardware from their considerations. This is so crucial because most consumers will not be proficient enough to make these considerations themselves. As a result, Apple provide consumers with what they really want - a computing platform tailored to their needs. Doing this naturally creates an impression that Apple respect their customers. And this is the approach to business that I respect the most.

Entrepreneurship of Life

Last Monday I went to the Entrepreneurship Seminar organised at my university and it was great. Really, it was so inspiring that I am still so energised it feels I could run a marathon!

A nice surprise

What happened then? Basically, a bunch of entrepreneurs showed up and each gave a little speech followed by a Q&A session. I didn’t expect much to be honest. Just a few businessmen with some bits and pieces of advice on how to succeed in the world of commerce. But to my surprise what I witnessed was an outpouring of enthusiasm, unbeatable spirits, and such tremendous passion that soon I was completely overwhelmed by what I was seeing and hearing. After just a few moments I was sitting there listening, fiercely writing things down, putting them out on Twitter and thinking about what questions to ask at the same time. Totally loved it.

Interviewing Rob Heilbron, co-founder of O’Neill

Live your life to the fullest 

While there was a multitude of things I learnt, the overall lesson was that to live life to the fullest you have to really go for it, try things out and constantly challenge yourself. Of course it is not always easy to do just that (humans are overwhelmingly creatures of habit), but perhaps the key to it all is not to be afraid of failure - “every failure brings you one step closer to success” - said Kevin Eyres, CEO of LinkedIn Europe. Once we accept failure as a natural part of life then it is not that big of a deal to fail anymore. In this context each failure can be a valuable lesson for the future. When you understand your mistakes, the next time you have an opportunity comes along, chances are you will not screw it up again.

With that said I feel much better equipped to drive through my fears now and to take the opportunities in life when they come along, to be the entrepreneur of my own life! Hope that after reading this, it will be similar for you as well!

Advanced Selling Strategies

Straight to the point

One million times I’ve seen ads proudly boasting about proven formulas and guaranteed results. So naturally, when I saw the cover page of the book Advanced Selling Strategies by Brian Tracy I was little sceptic when I read “The proven system of sales ideas, methods and techniques used by top salespeople everywhere” written on the front cover. But there was another thing that caught my attention, too — a perfect five star rating on Amazon! Interesting, I thought, and soon afterwards I was filling in my credit card details...

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A little update

July has been an amazing month. First and foremost, I got accepted to do a master’s programme in business administration at Rotterdam School of Management. I am very proud of this result because RSM is one of the best institutes of its kind in Europe. I booked my ticket just a few days ago and will be going back to The Netherlands on the 25th of August.

It is very sad to leave London. After almost four years here it feels like this is home. I am not sad though! Studying in Rotterdam will be yet another amazing experience: rich, colourful and full of flavour. I am especially excited about meeting my fellow students, working and having fun together. Something is telling me I will meet some very special people there.

⌘X ⌘C ⌘V

Today we got the new iPhone 3.0 firmware. The new features are really helpful, the phone's usability being improved substantially. My favourites are: the landscape keyboard, notes sync, and the spotlight search.

Now the update is here, it makes me wonder what will the next generation of the software look like? It seems that with every update the iPhone OS more and more resembles desktop operating systems. Well, time will tell.

In related news, we are launching the iPhone 3G the 'S' this Friday and I will be working on Regent Street. Wonder how crazy is it going to be? Should be fun anyway.

Apple brings copy and paste to the iPhone

In UNrelated news

Meanwhile, in unrelated news I'm preparing (or at least I wish I was) for the GMAT test. For those who don't know, it is a test to get onto an MBA programme. It is difficult, mainly because the questions are VERY tricky.

Why I am doing this? Yes, you guessed it, I am applying for an MBA! I chose Rotterdam School of Management, one of the most reputable business schools on the Continent and hope they will reciprocate and choose me. The GMAT is the final step in getting my application ready and so I am really looking forward to having it done. The requirement is a minimum of 600 out of 800 points, which seems reasonable, especially when looking at the requirements of some American schools - usually in high 700s! Hold your horses though, I have seen quite a bunch of really intelligent people getting it wrong for the first time. Anyway, the test is going to take place on Tuesday and then all will be clear; now, I'm going to sleep.

Exams are on, baby!

It’s finals time. My course at university is drawing to a close, and I must say it is tough. Had two exams already - Managing Business Organisations and Business Strategy - and, well, what can I say, we’ll see.

What’s left? Here is the list:

1. International Marketing - 29 April
2. Social Organisations of Organisations - 1 May
3. International Trade and Finance Law - 7 May
4. Marketing Communications - 11 May
5. Consumer Behaviour for Marketing - 12 May
6. Approaches to E-business - 14 May

When I first realised I am going to have 8 exams I was like ‘!@£$%^*’!!! Now, after having sat two most difficult ones I am trying to have fun with it, I mean this is my topic area after all. Well, we’ll see how it goes.

Favourite pastime: books

Meanwhile I finished the Warren Buffett book. I am a fan, that’s all I am going to say at this stage.

Now I’m reading 'Napoleon: The Path to Power' by an Australian author Philip Dwyer, one of the two books (along with De Oratore by Cicero) I didn’t manage to complete last summer (in large part courtesy to the massive Buffett biography). So far it is an amazing read. I mean Napoleon is such a fascinating character, you have to love him.

Napoleon: Path to Power
Philip Dwyer

Jogging along the Thames

What else? I haven't been to the gym for like a month now, in stead I started jogging along the Thames. I do that whenever I can and I must say it is way more relaxing and a fun thing to do than going to the gym. I miss Soho Gyms, though.

AMAZON: Napoleon: The Path to Power