10 Ways to Change the World Through Social Media

Max Gladwell is a friend from StumbleUpon.He has written a few amazing articles and we have shared many a website.

This is Open Source content - means people can modify add value and spread the info in their own blogs.Good content is hard to find and even more difficult to create.

This is a guest post from Max Gladwell.

Our children will inherit a world profoundly changed by the combination of technology and humanity that is social media. They’ll take for granted that their voices can be heard and that a social movement can be launched from their laptop. They’ll take for granted that they are connected and interconnected with hundreds of millions of people at any given moment. And they’ll take for granted that a black man is or was President of the United States.

What’s most profound is that these represent parts of a greater whole. They represent a shift in power from centralized institutions and organizations to the People they represent. It is the evolution of democracy by way of technology, and we are all better for it.

Please note this is not a top-10 list, nor are these listed in any particular order. It’s also incomplete. So we ask that you add to this conversation in the comments. If you’d like to Retweet this post or take the conversation to Twitter or FriendFeed, please use the hashtag #10Ways.

1. Take Social Actions: The nonprofit organization http://www.SocialActions.com aggregates “opportunities to make a difference from over 50 online platforms” through its unique API. It recently held the Change the Web Challenge contest in order to inspire the most innovative applications for that API. The Social Actions Interactive Map won the $5,000 first prize. The result is a virtual tour of the world through the lens of social action. “People are volunteering, donating, signing petitions, making loans and doing other social actions as we speak — all over the world. To capture the context of the where, this project uses sophisticated techniques to extract location information from full text paragraphs.” You can also join the Social Actions Community, which is powered by Ning…which now boasts more than one million individual social networks.

2. Twitter with a Purpose: This list could be exclusive to http://www.Twitter.com

. The micro-blogging sensation was featured on our first two lists (a three-tweet), and it’s certain to be a fixture. From http://Tweetsgiving.org, the virtual Thanksgiving feast, to the http://Twestival.com, which organized 202 off-line events around the world to benefit charity: water, it’s become the de facto tool for organizing and taking action. Tweet Congress won the SXSW activism award, and celebrity Tweeps Ashton Kutcher and Kevin Rose Tweeted their two million followers about ending malaria. Max Gladwell recently initiated the #EcoMonday follow meme as a way to connect and organize the Green Twittersphere.

3. Visit White House 2.0: Inside of its first 100 days, the Obama administration has managed to set the historic benchmark for government transparency and accountability. The President’s virtual town hall meeting used WhiteHouse.gov to crowdsource questions from his 300 million constituents, complete with voting to determine the ones he’d have to answer. All told, 97,937 people submitted 103,978 questions and cast 1,782,650 votes. The White House continues to raise the bar with its official Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter channels. In so doing President Obama is not just setting the standard for state and local government in the U.S. He’s establishing the world standard. The Obama administration is spreading democracy not by force but through example. Because you don’t have to be an American citizen to be a friend or follower of White House 2.0.

4. Claim your Zumbox: What happens when all mail can be sent and delivered online to any street address in a paperless form? That’s the big question for http://www.Zumbox.com, which has created an online mail system with a digital mailbox for every U.S. street address. And while the answer to that question remains to be seen, it promises to be as liberating as it is disruptive. A key quality for Zumbox is that it’s closed system much like that of Facebook, only instead of true identity it’s true address. This will enable people to better connect with their communities including their neighbors, local businesses, and the mayor’s office. The primary agent of change, though, might not be that this uses street addresses but that it enables direct and potentially viral feedback, which is a virtue that e-mail and the USPS do not offer. The first methods are to request exclusive paperless delivery and to block a sender, but others are certain to evolve such as real-time commenting and ways to share mail with friends, family, and colleagues. Welcome to Mail 2.0. (Disclosure: Zumbox is a client of Rob Reed, the founder of Max Gladwell.)

5. Host a Social Media Event: This is the year of the social media event. No meaningful gathering of people is complete without an interactive online audience, especially when it’s so easy and cost effective to pull off. Essential tools include a broadband connection, laptop, video camera, projector, and screen. Add people and a purpose, such as entrepreneurship. Promote it through social media channels, and you have a social media event. A recent example in the green world is the Evolution of Green, which was hosted by http://www.CreativeCitizen.com, a green wiki community. It celebrated the launch of a new Web property, http://www.EcoMattersdaily.com, while also establishing a new Twitter tag. By posing the question, “How can we go from green hype to green habit?” and including the #GreenQ hashtag, it sparked a conversation between attendees and the Twittersphere in real time. Thus was born a new mechanism for getting answers to green questions via Twitter.

6. Travel the World: More than anyone else, Tim O’Reilly knows the potential for social media to change the world. In his opening keynote at this year’s Web 2.0 Expo, he called for a new ethic in which we do more with less and create more value than we capture. This provided the context for http://www.SalaamGarage.com founder Amanda Koster, whose presentation followed O’Reilly’s. The idea is that social media has enabled each of us to have an audience. Whether through Twitter, Flickr, YouTube, or a personal blog, each of us can have influence and reach. What’s more, it can be used for good. SalaamGarage coordinates trips for citizen journalists (that means you) to places like India and Vietnam in conjunction with non-government organizations like Seattle-based http://www.PeaceTreesVietnam.org

. The destination is the story, as these humanitarian journalists report on the people they meet and discoveries they make. Their words, images, and video are posted to the social web to gain exposure and because these stories just need to be told.

7. Build It on Drupal: You may not have noticed, but the open-source Drupal content management system (CMS) has quickly become the dominant player on the social web. While we still prefer WordPress as a strict blogging application, Drupal has emerged as the go-to platform for building scalable, community-driven Web sites. It powers Recovery.gov, a key part of President Obama’s commitment to transparency and accountability. http://www.PopRule.com uses it as a social news platform for politics. And Drupal will soon become the platform for http://www.Causecast.org, a site where “media, philanthropy, social networking, entertainment and education converge to serve a greater purpose.” This is especially significant because Causecast CEO Ryan Scott is transitioning the site off of Ruby on Rails because Drupal has proved more efficient, user friendly, and cost effective. (Disclosure: Max Gladwell founder Rob Reed is co-founder of PopRule.)

8. Green Your iPhone: Looking for an organic diner within biking distance that has a three-star green rating? There’s a app for that. It’s called 3rd Whale, and you can download it for free. (Except that the star rating is actually a whale rating.) Complete with Facebook Connect, this iPhone app locates green products and businesses in 30 major North American cities. It uses the iPhone’s dial function to select a category (food), sub-category (restaurants), and distance (walking, biking, or driving). In Santa Monica, this might give you Swingers diner for its selection of veggie and vegan fare. You could then get directions from your current location using the iPhone’s built-in Google map, rate your experience on the three-whale scale, and write up a quick review. 3rd Whale recently released a new feature that integrates green-living tips, which can show how much energy or waste you’ll save by taking a given action.

9. Unite the World Through Video: Matt’s dancing around the world video inspired many to tears. Today, more than 20 million people have viewed his YouTube masterpiece, where he performs a kooky dance with the citizens of planet earth. The most recent example of this approach is Playing for Change, which connects the world through song. The project started in Santa Monica with a street performance of the classic Stand By Me and expanded to New Orleans, New Mexico, France, Brazil, Italy, Venezuela, South Africa, Spain, and The Netherlands. The project was superbly executed via social media, complete with a YouTube channel, MySpace, Facebook, and Blog. It’s received tremendous mainstream media exposure and also benefits a foundation of the same name.

10. Rate a Company: The conversation about corporate social responsibility (CSR) takes place across the social web on blogs, Twitter, and YouTube, but a central hub for this information and opinion is still to be determined. http://www.SocialYell.com seeks to address this by building an online community around the CSR conversation, where users can submit reviews of companies together with nonprofit organizations and even public figures like Michelle Obama. The major topics are the Environment, Health, Social Equity, Consumer Advocacy, and Charity. The reviews are voted and commented on by the community in a Reddit-like fashion with both up (Yell) and down (shhh) voting. The site is relatively new and still gaining traction, but there’s no question that a resource like this is needed to shine a bright light on CSR and and other related issues.

11. Publish a collective, simultaneous blog post on a universal topic: As Nigel Tufnel might say, this list goes to eleven. Let the #10Ways conversation begin…

Final note: This is Max Gladwell’s third list of “10 Ways to Change the World Through Social Media.” The first was posted a year ago today on Sustainablog.org, and the sequel followed five months later. If a single headline can capture the Max Gladwell raison d’etre, this is it.

There are many more ways to change the world - one must start somewhere - I am in my own way trying and spreading awareness - let us all do more - what ever we can to make the change.

One laptop per child

I met Mr Satish Jha from One laptop per child project yesterday - a very interesting person who is committed to development of children and schools globally - what OLPC is looking for is large orders from schools and state governments in India and abroad.The OLPC is a laptop that encourages children to learn on their own.It is amazing one can really do a lot more with the device other than just promote literacy.For more details visit http://www.laptop.org

Solenza.co.nz

A great solar roofing tile firm from NZ - I just came across the firm while surfing it is http://www.solenza.co.nz

Follow me on twitter

Yes finally I too have begun using twitter - those of you who are interested can follow me on http://twitter.com/parvez1
Have fun friends - keep tweeting!

Artificial Brains

http://www.adaptiveai.com/ - yes I have even read about this firm too - it is truly interesting, throw in the power of cheap bandwidth and an army of developers - makes a lot more sense now-yes this is possible and feasible - see http://www.80legs.com !

Short Task

I have joined http://www.shorttask.com and will be doing simple stuff to earn money - do visit and join.

How good employees add value

This post is about executives that “get it”. I think the critical skills that differentiate better executives from the rest are:

1. Business acumen. They have a true understanding of the company, its business, the products and the industry it operates. Too many executives don’t even know the products their company sells and at what price or margin.
2. Analytical mindset. They think in numbers not emotions. They leverage data to make decisions and measure their business proactively.
3. Accountability. They are will to make hard, critical decisions independently and will to put their proverbial “ass on the line”. Accountability also means they have a favorable reputation within the organization and can garner support throughout.
4. They know what they don’t know. This really means they know the right questions to ask and surround themselves with smart people, experts and knowledge.
   
5. They really know about where to find relevant information and present the same at the first instance to the relevant decision makers.
6. They know how to use relevant tech,the internet for sourcing,selling (goods and services) and positioning the firm locally and globally.
7. They are not afraid to innovate and know about who potential customers for a new offering might be.In other words they communicate the business value and tech benefits.
   
8. They have the best interest of the firm in mind at all times.

Many times these people also help by :
Encouraging less vocal employees speak up. Banish the “suck it up” message that pollutes many organizational cultures. This is not a call to Whiners, but a request for frank, adult-to-adult conversation about what you do as an employer that makes people want to stay and do their best, and what makes people polish up their resume.
Thank employees for speaking up. Do this both when it happens and later in a public forum. Share examples in your team and organization-wide meetings of how employee feedback is being used to make your organization a better place to work. This both communicates that management values employee input and it also energizes people, because they hear proof that they can make a difference, they do matter.
Don’t devolve into an arrogant “It’s an employer’s market they’re lucky to have a job” mentality. While you may have the upper hand in terms of people being security-conscious right now, remember the ROAD Warrior phenomenon. Even if people don’t leave, poor management and organizational practices significantly reduce the performance of those who stay. In this economy — or any economy for that matter — can you afford 15, 20, or 30% less productivity than your workforce is capable of?
Help your managers help you. Since an employee’s supervisor plays the most significant role in that employee’s performance and level of engagement, according to Gallup’s research as well as other studies, make sure your managers know how to do the things that lead to maximum performance and engagement. Make sure they also have the skills to engage employees in “crucial conversations” and foster honest, open dialogue.
Involve your employees in making improvements. Doing this helps you in three ways:

• First, it taps into the human need to matter, to make a difference. Believing that your input matters and that you can make a difference are huge drivers of employee engagement.
  
• Second, involving employees in making improvements fosters an adult/adult relationship with management, rather than a “kids-complain-to-mom-and-dad” dynamic created when employees are encouraged to speak up about what’s bothering them, and management’s job is to come up with solutions.
  
• Third, engaging employees in finding solutions is a powerful antidote to the feeling of helplessness and lack of control many people feel during these difficult times.Solving problems and generating creative solutions triggers the biochemistry and emotions of confidence and success, which puts employees in a more productive frame of mind to face the big challenges ahead.

How many of your employees are really good and why - how can a firm or organization get better inputs and work done by such people and is your firm really fair to all employees.Some people may want to leave because a firm is not really doing enough for society or any other pet cause dear to them!

The interesting website I visit is below

http://marketing-jobs.theladders.com

Finding jobs - even in hard times

People get promoted-leaving behind a vacancy
People retire - result is a vacancy
People quit - resulting in a vacancy
People get fired - result is a vacancy

Now find that job vacated for you or create your own job!Find a mission in life and work to realize a vision-a mission can be helping people get access to safe drinking water and the long term vision for your firm providing services and/or sales of water filters will be to go IPO or sell out to Brita or PUR or a Dow or a firm that makes water filters-think about it.

http://www.WorkTree.com - Job search engine with browsable categories including government jobs and Fortune 1000 companies
http://www.SimplyHired.com - Millions of jobs harvested from numerous sources.
http://www.artypapers.com/jobpile/ - Aggregates from numerous jobs boards to let you search them all at once.
http://www.jobcentral.com/ - from the Direct Employers Association, claims that 70% of their jobs are not posted anywhere else, and it's a possibility. Direct Employers is a group of employers who combined their efforts to create their own job site.
http://www.Zyoin.com serves as "online Recruitment Marketplace" which enables huge pool of "qualified" recruiters and referrals to work on job requirements of Corporate.

Energy and Water

It has been a really long time since I made any entries here - my projects,retail sales activities, plastics and electronics, green and clean biz opportunity tracking and constant surfing on the internet in search of new websites and articles is keeping me occupied - my attention is turned to water and energy these days and am happy to inform that yes there are plenty of stories,blogs, software,projects, their impacts and interesting applications of the above described on the net - it is practically impossible to keep track - mine is a feeble attempt.
I hope I will become more active from now on and actually start making some money from Blogging-will definitely do more from now.The websites that caught my fancy are:

1. http://www.tfot.info
2. http://www.willowstick.com

Till next time.

Eid Mubarak and Haj Mubarak

Wish all of you a great Eid ul Azha and a great Haj - do remember me in your prayers and help all people succeed.

Jinfo,Adsensetop and Shoemoney

All the 3 websites work and help pay the bills.The questions are always the same more or less:

1. Am I enriching people or not with my blog-yes/no
2. Is my information of use to (a) the masses (b) individuals (c) companies (d) associations and lastly (e) Nonprofits.
   
3. What am I doing to become more green

The websites are:

1. http://www.jinfo.com/
2. http://www.adsensetop.com/
3. http://www.shoemoney.com/

Now I hope this gives real examples of how blogs are working - I did not believe it myself but when I saw the image of the check from Adsensetop it is difficult to beat the same.So yes I too will be more active in the blogosphere from now on and yes do keep returning for stuff you will not necessarily find elsewhere - remember the info here can be used and those who want more can always email me. { email: ahmedparvez(at)yahoo(dot)com}

Some simple stuff - it works

1. Keep thinking positive - be optimistic about being able to deliver-the chances are you will deliver and once the first client is pierced- the assignment is done - you will realize - this can be repeated.
2. Add value to whatever you are doing - Share information genuinely with companies you want to partner with and complement their businesses by being creative.For example talk about saving money by using tech more efficiently.Even today this works when the returns are clearly identified.
3. Accept you will have to keep finding new clients - With the same clients even you will get bored as the opportunity to learn will be minimal
4. Build models even if the model is 1+1=2 show the model to clients - simplicity in decision making helps out
   
5. Never accept defeat - Having a next to impossible goal sometimes really motivates to do what was once thought impossible - the best examples are Russia sending a dog into space and US sending man to the moon.
6. Think green,think clean and use tech better save the world-be rational about the same.
7. Ignore Naysayers - There will be negative people always - listen to them and improve if possible or plain and simple avoid them-even better will be use a favorite solution of mine,I stood where I am - the world beneath me rotated-it also means learn to carry the masses along with you.
8. Always think about minimizing expenses-to the society and to yourself.Raising voices in public forums work many a time.
9. Be open to getting help - there are people who need help - you could be one and may not know it so find your partner-a person who actually show the real situation to you-a person who will give you a dose of reality-In other words find your mentors-financial,technical and down to earth people.
10. Keep your family and friends in the loop - it helps to share your dreams and aspirations.
11. Do some not for profit work too-it works!
12. Join a supportive network like your school's alumni association or a local business chambers of commerce-what ever.
13. Pray - it helps you remain sane (this is my opinion only-I also pray to Allah - the Almighty for help)
    
14. Read motivational quotes - if they can do it so can we!
    

Transfer data securely reduce pollution and save trees

The companies mentioned below will actually help you do the same!


1. www.accellion.com - reports that some of its customers are using the virtual appliance to transfer more than 2 terabytes of data per month.Accellion figure that one terabyte of data transferred with its technology is equivalent to 50,000 trees that were made into paper and printed, or 2,000 compact disks filled with data and shipped overnight.
2. www.xign.com - A JP Morgan company - this company is absolutely serious about reducing pollution and it handles invoicing for about 50 very large companies (like Verizon Wireless), representing about 55,000 trading partners, according to executives for the financial services firm. Executives for JPMorgan Xign figure that about 80 percent of all invoices are paper-based. The company offers a two-fold proposition to its customers: the chance to save some trees AND a very real reduction in invoice processing costs of about 60 percent, since invoices can be handled more quickly, they say.

US jobs for US citizens and a few global jobs

I am going to help a few US citizens and a very few global residents help get find IT jobs.For more details please me with your resumes and please note everyone will not get the jobs so no point in complaining and cribbing with me.Bangalore techies also will be assisted in getting jobs in Bangalore/India depending on my being able to find the right jobs and companies.

This is for people with experience of 3-10 years in the IT,Environment (Cleantech) and tech sector and as I know a few VCs and CEOs so please note I am taking a few huge risks.

Let me see what I get for this experiment - I am going to try out for a month maximum so hurry and send the resumes to ahmedparvez (at) yahoo (dot) com

more interesting news from Bangalore

I am promoting an industrial project called Plastics Udyog Nagar (Plastics technology industrial cluster) in Bangalore.I can help out a few good companies who are in the plastics or allied sector and promise to support local industry get some land at a slightly concessional rate.Only for serious people with great project ideas with complete business plans.

I am going to review the plans myself along with plastic industry professionals and recommend the same to the principals who are behind the project.

I am monitoring this blog and this offer is for a very limited time only-the sooner your plans are in the better - email me at the earliest - ahmedparvez@yahoo.com - yes I check my email and mark your email with PWS in the subject.

PickyDomains

www.pickydomains.com - A cool idea and a niche business opportunity - think about it all visitors to this blog - sorry folks for not have blogged for long - I was too stupid not to blog especially since I started getting a few quality visitors - the kind who add value and give back to business and society - well no need to despair - I am back and want your support once again.In my defense I am saying I did not shut down this blog - that is just too easy and will free up some of my time. Yes I am busy trying to promote some great ideas in Cleantech for India and that has kept me busy - I need to earn too and do more work.

Long time

Been a long time since I have blogged.Have made a few good friends thanks to Mobile Monday Bangalore, www.proto.in and Bootstrap Bangalore.Will do it (blog) more often now.

looking forward to helping my blog readers and entrepreneurs raise money

I hope some of you - visitors to this blog actually approach me for Angel/VC funding - I have plans to start a very small Angel/VC fund along with a couple of co-investors from industry - with people who have established businesses and a sound reputation in industry.

Been a long time

By the way I attended www.proto.in in IIT Chennai visit the site for getting the profiles of some of the most exciting startups from India. Basically I had fun and got some great work done there and made a few very exciting new friends.

I am also trying to get some work done with a Bangalore based co. called Floraison - their URL is www.floraison.in so do visit the websites by typing the addresses in your browser window.Find solutions to exciting problems that already exist in the world.What was not possible 25 -30 years ago is possible today and by and large some costs are indeed dropping and things are just a little more affordable.

Let us make the best of what we have and grow and give opportunities for growth too and yes givers really gain !

Gaping Void and MouthShut

I should have blogged about www.gapingvoid.com and www.mouthshut.com a long time ago.Both sites are interesting to read updated quite frequently and the stuff makes sense to me and as some of you are aware MouthShut is a consumers products comparison website and GapingVoid is a website for the slightly creative minded people - this said all people are creative and want to get ahead doing the right things - the 2 websites are doing some things right and yes their readership is growing - even I refer to them from time to time these days and yes some of the ideas and product reviews are indeed good.
So go ahead and check the websites by simply typing the above mentioned URLs in your browsers address bar and see things differently.

What to look for in leaders

Leadership consists of a set of skills that can be identified and learned. It’s true that some people have a greater aptitude for leadership but all of us can be leaders and can build our leadership skills.Leadership should be encouraged at every level of the organization (with a few flexible rules of behavior to prevent conflict and confusion).

Leaders are almost always:

1. Challenging the existing processes within organization and society in general.
2. Such people are inspiring and create a shared vision of success
   
3. Lead by example and provide frameworks for friends.
4. Accept mistakes quickly and rectify (or atleast try to rectify) the same almost immediately.
5. Appreciate the ingenuity in children,older and younger people.
6. Look for stuff that can be verified or create benchmarks.
7. Are always hoping for the best to come from the worst situation.
8. Praying for the best for every person.
9. Are open to new ideas and ways of looking at things in general.
10. Never discriminating in nature (discriminating by gender,race,creed or color) and treat according to the merit of the idea/case.
    
11. Encouraging everyone to do their best from the heart.

Lastly they smile and spread cheer to among their colleagues,within the company and in the surrounding communities.

More than 22000 entries

Just want all to know that today or yesterday I have crossed 22000 entries in my Stumble Upon page - some of you may be aware of the same - for those who are not aware check out

http://parvez.stumbleupon.com

Cut and paste the address in your browser's address bar.I have managed to put up 1100 entries in

http://del.icio.us/parvez1

Again do the same for this also and get the benefits.

Supercomputing for stocks

Some of you who know me do realize that I try to save time and money for people and companies in general.Keeping the same in mind here I am posting about a company 0called Gstock.It is into supercomputing for stocks and shares.Ordinarily it takes about 1-3 hours or so to do routine technical analysis of stocks and shares in most countries - now compound the same with have many stock exchanges in which you can put your and then try to bet on companies you think that will deliver - it takes time - what if this could be done faster ?

The answer is www.gstock.com - 1 website for the maximum benefit.The cost of use of the service absolutely free!.Now what re you waiting for friends.

Agloco

I read about this new company somewhere on the internet - I am giving the same a shot and as you my bloggers know I surf a lot and spread a lot of info around most of it being useful to someone or the other I am giving www.agloco.com also a shot. For all of you here who want to sign up do use my referral no. which is below and spread the word.

www.agloco.com/r/BBBB8475

To constantly learn about more new stuff and interesting new websites (some could be old also-I do not rule out the possibility) keep coming to this blog.By the way I want to say that www.orkut.com does work and yes I am finally making a few decent contacts from the platform Orkut provides.One has to be patient for getting the best results and one has to smart and sincere or else nothing really works out.

All the best and keep in mind my request.

Atlantis Computing Home

This post is about an interesting company my good friend is working in and trust me the team behind the company is real smart - to quote from the company's vision,values and mission statement "What does it take to make computing cheap, reliable and abundant for the next billion people? This is the question that excites us at Atlantis."

The Atlantis computing platform allows you to transform any Windows,Unix,Linux or Solaris application into a hosted webservice. Read the rest on the website mentioned below.
www.atlantiscomputing.com

Congrats to www.Jotspot.com to on getting acquired by Google Inc. !

A tribute to TiE Bangalore

I have been a TiE Bangalore member for sometime now - to me TiE Stands for

T - Truly, Technology,Talent,Trust, Thinking, Try, Take,
I - Innovative, Ideas, Inspiration, Information, Inventive, Individual, Initiatives,
E - Encouragement, Enterprise, Entrepreneurs, Equality, Ecosystems, Effort, Educate

I have in my own tried to do all the above in some way or other and TiE Bangalore perhaps has benefited from my membership after all and I too have gained inspiration and have been enriched individually from being a TiE Bangalore member.

It is important to find a mentor who is able to guide and help you make true progress as an individual and it does not matter if you learn or teach other people - you end up benefiting only.Age does not really matter - the quality,scalability and merit of idea and the process of building a company and team and then replicating the process are the most important in my opinion - mistakes have to be avoided and learnt from,all emotions put aside,the numbers should justify and show promises,pie should large and growing,aim has to be among the top 5, the pace has to be scorching hot - yet the planning has to be sound and there have to be backups (the what if it fails?), relevant partnerships have to be formed and sustained, setbacks have to be overcome, unfair advantages need to be created, talented people have to be found, understood and encouraged, ..., this is endless and will go on and on and on,.....,on.

I can say the same for the other non profit institutions I am a member of and the fact is there are plenty of opportunities to learn and teach and get enriched in the bargain and yes win win situations have to be created for both/all sides - it is not easy yet the effort is there and better results are actually being seen even in many developing countries.

Will sign off for the time being - the link is www.tiebangalore.org - till next time!

Imagination Cubed,VentureWiki and VentureWoods

Below is a great website from GE Inc.

www.imaginationcubed.com

It lets you express yourself through drawing and convert the ideas into products - whats more it is backed by GE Inc. , think about it and do the needful.Apart from this do check out www.venturewiki.com and www.venturewoods.org - the websites are helpful to people who are starting out on their own.
The fact is most entrepreneurs are in the startup woods - this could be some much needed direction that all want.

Comments from website visitors

Yes I have gotten positive feedback for a few ideas presented here for your information blog readers - I want comments to be posted directly to my email address and they better really inspire me to do more here you know after all it is not very easy to sell ideas,concepts,imagination, vision,growth,get real savings, find new business opportunities and spread positive news in general with all people to make a difference - yes it is a lonely path and sometimes it is that single line of encouragement that does the trick.

Think about what a person can do and take responsibility for the same - once people know you are responsible you have the power to change the world with your ideas - I promised myself I am going to try and do something about the power industry in India and I am actually going to do something for a 1000 MW col-fired thermal power plant in AP,India.Learn whatever you can identify the technology to be used to make a real difference to the bottomline of your client and get in touch with the tech providers - approach the buyer identified and then prove yourself literally.The earning will follow and yes a difference will be created in due course of time.

The websites for today are:

1. http://www.dailytech.com/
2. http://www.jobwerx.com/
3. http://www.medgadget.com/

Hope these actually help out.So long for now.

Jhanki and Watts going on?

I came across 2 websites today - one is www.jhanki.com a general website about news that is interesting to Indians and people orinally from India.The website is full of gen info on India and then I found an alternative energy blog - yes I too am working on coal to energy,Alternative energy and related infrastructure work - I am always on the lookout for stuff that realy cuts costs.The link is www.wattsgoing.com . More links later - when I do more for myself and yes I am going to go for TiE ISB Connect in ISB,Hyderabad got some work there too andI look forward to hearing and meeting entrepreneurs and doing more work.Till then - keep surfing and have fun.

Use Influence

Just try and use authoritarian ways of managing people at work and see what reaction you get.
Today, unlike the past, the "do-what-I-say-or-else" approach will not work.Try it - you could be surprised with the result.

That doesn't mean to say that you can't get people to do what you want. It's just that you have to use less force and more influencing.

"Remember the fable by Aesop in which the North wind and the sun had a contest to see who could get a traveler to take off his coat first. The wind blew with all his might but the traveler just held his coat tighter. The sun then shone with all his might until the traveler grew too warm and had to take it off.The sun used influence not force.

Blogs are making big bucks today and influencing in a very subtle manner - want examples see

GigaOm,AlwaysOn-Network,Drudge Report,HuffingtonPost,engadget,textually.org,TechCrunch etc. Blogs are growing and growing and growing only and have become real easy & cheap to maintain too.This blog itself is quite old and is getting some traffic too - even if it is one visitor in a lifetime - that visitor will take action after reading the stories and seeing websites mentioned here.

That is all for now.Till next time.

A couple of landmarks (strictly personal)

I just want to submit here that I have posted more than 1000 articles that have been saved in the page http://del.icio.us/parvez1 and yes I have thumbsupped more than a 20,000 articles and pages I liked on http://parvez.stumbleupon.com and more than 5000 unique visitors have seen my pages on the above 2 websites and on the personal front I have been able to find a few great friends in India and abroad.I have been able to strike a few business deals too online.All you need to do is meet more people and talk about what you want after explaining the need to a client and without wasting time conclude a transaction.I have been able to empower a few rural entrepreneurs and given them a new source of income through the sale of an idea to the enablers of the deal and all of it was done through the internet and yes I am writing about it here to just inform it is possible and a real difference can be made and yes there is real money online.I am also glad some info on the above mentioned collections has been really used to make real some info has been used to make living a little easier through the medical and health related info there,a little info has made lives easier for NGOs and teachers in general and some business decisions have been made by firms that have resulted in business gains.Who says the Net does not work!,it not only works it rocks!

A post on self esteem

self esteem

Self-esteem reflects whether a person loves, accepts, and believes in who they are. The simplest way to raise a person's self-esteem is to improve that person's way of thinking and add reason to the same. This is easy, thereasons have to be right and should appeal to the person and/or group self-esteem will grow by adopting these thinking patterns:

1. Rediscover and reaffirm your personal strengths: Sometimes you have to take a new inventory on what you like about your looks, smile, body, sexiness, health, personality, and character strengths. For areas you don't feel real positive about, try to be more accepting of those unique features (example: nose or ears).Still if you want go ahead and change your appearance - people have become black and white too.Be yourself and natural - it works for most of us.
   
2. Figure out the hidden strengths in your so-called weaknesses: There is always a positive in every negative if you look hard enough. For instance, you may think of yourself as stubborn, but the flipside is that you're also persistent and dependable.You might waste your time surfing the net - it is quite possible you could come up with the next big idea - you need to find your guru,friends,philosophers and guides online.
   
3. Make a long list of your personal breakthroughs: Think of times when you did something that you thought that never could do but managed to pull off successfully. These breakthroughs can generate an authentic source of never-ending pride in you. (Example: speaking up at a meeting,winning a prize in school,sourcing an important component,writing a novel etc.)
4. Negative comparisons: These are best avoided. Human beings can amplify or reduce their value by contrasting themselves either positively or negatively with others. The most common trait of persons who have developed low self-esteem are to diminish themselves by contrasting how they don't measure up to others.As long as you are doing positive things and earning the bread and growing personally and professionally ignore comparisons.
   
5. Stop the critic inside of you: Some people have a nasty habit of putting themselves down often. They say damaging things to themselves like, "I'm always late. Why am I such a flake?" or "There I go again, stupid!" Get in the new habit of catching yourself saying critical things about yourself and learn to silence your inner critic.Be positive and accept that a person makes mistakes - a person who does not make mistakes is not really taking enough risks.It is better to do what you have always loved than be called a wimp or sissy forever.
   
6. Blaming yourself for mistakes in the past: Some things are only minimally in your control, but people who develop low self-esteem take the full blame for the resulting negative outcomes. Instead, learn to honor your efforts and give proper credit for things that you have done well.Like in the previous post accet that all make mistakes - have you tried to correct your own mistakes (think about it) - the ones in your control.A corrected mistake is a sureshot way to end the blame game!
   
7. Have more compassion for yourself: Realize the adversity of life can make you a stronger and more understanding person. The pain that you have suffered in the past can help you relate to a wider array of people. Your suffering makes you more human if you choose to channel it that way.How many other people have you helped besides yourself?
   
8. Be your own cheerleader: The energy and enthusiasm of a cheerleader is necessary in order to make the radical emotional changes required to raise your self-esteem. Use this analogy to illustrate how you talk to yourself, handle adversity, and summon up the courage to pursue your interests. Being your own cheerleader isn't silly, it's smart and contagious.Of course you have to cheer yourself - be your own cheerleader - it is not difficult - stop being indifferent and care for yourself too for a change and do it one thing at a time - say a pat on the back for doing a good thing a day.
9. Learn something new: Do you like being bored - you might other people do not - it is important to learn something new everytime and keep yourself occupied.
10. Teach others : Find what they want first and then pass on what you know to the people it is important that you be interesting enough to the people you want something from or else if you do not care who does?Think about it!
    

The Bottom Line: High self-esteem is attractive and low self-esteem is not. You really want to attract, get, keep,become successful,be able to contribute and enjoy love and acceptance,then it is very important to maintain a high level of self-esteem to keep oneself interested and occupied - the alternative is be boring,stupid, cynical,uncared for,pitied upon,cranky,always whining and complaining - the former is any day better than the latter in my opinion.

There is not a single person on earth who has not made mistakes - have we learnt from our mistakes or not and if yes what are we doing to change for the better ?

Thanks for reading - I know for sure this post will bring greater change and make people more compassionate,less indifferent and more positive.

Conserve laptop battery life

To all who have laptops - please conserve power and get the max for your power literally.Yahoo advisor actually tells us what we can do and hey the stuff works.Well I am all for conservation of power and if the advantage is there to be had let us all make the best.Do follow the link below and use the tips well.

http://tech.yahoo.com/blogs/raskin/703

Blog Ban

At last I can post on my blog again! Being unable to blog was hurting emotionally and one has to be allowed to communicate - long live the net and blogs.I just hope and pray these things never happen again and the culprits are caught - both the people who did wrong things using the blogs and the people who acted stupidly by banning most if not all blogs.

Ziki.com : Parvez AHMED

My ziki website is http://ziki.com/people/parvez1 - so pay a visit friends.

Got a break from a Tech company

As of now I got a break from a great US tech company and have started my own company called M/s Technoclean Solutions and Services.Along with a great friend and partner and with the help of a few really good friends I have been able to start and am a representative for a few niche services and products.Yes both hi tech and low tech and at the same time the products and services Technoclean provides helps companies become more efficient,use existing resources better,use the web better and save energy,time and money.

I have been able to help 3 students in my place in Jayanagar 1st block in Bangalore and things are looking up for the company.Still lots of work has to be done and I am looking for clients so contact me in case your company is looking for eco-friendly solutions.

More than 5000 visitors

My StumbleUpon webpage has been viewed by more than 5000 people and by and large most have really benefited from the reviews I posted on SU.In fact I am happy to say that some lives have become easier in the bargain - more useful info has been shared and time has been saved for many a person - these are real gains.What also has been proved is that the consumer web is influencing the growth of the internet itself - has validated the fact that people want to be free and fair to each other and all like to read and learn from quality information.

I am going to take classes for fresh graduates and for people with limited experience in Bangalore I am interested in teaching fresh graduates (any stream) on:

1) how to use the internet for finding relevant information.
2) selected topics on starting a company.
3) opportunities - how to find the same and create the same.
4) finding a job online and basics of recruitment.
5) a brief overview of the IT,tech and non IT sectors
6) brief introduction to blogging,wiki,social software and
their applications.
7) a brief overview of CDM (clean development mechanism).
8) introduction to VC,Angel funding and other sources of capital.

Apart from this my colleague will give an overview of computer networking and security.

I look forward to teaching a maximum of 10 fresh graduates only initially. The teaching will be on a whiteboard or on a notebook - even individual requests will be considered.

Only those who are sincerely interested in learning email:
ahmedparvez (at) yahoo (dot) com

The teaching will be for 4-5 hours only and relevant additional information will be provided on demand.

MR-MarketResearch website

http://www.marketresearchworld.net/index.php - I found a nice website on Market Research.The latest update is I have finally started my own company and am doing biz with co's in Bangalore and am representing a few of the most exciting firms abroad.To be more specific I am looking into Biodiesel, e-waste, infrastructure,water and thermal related solutions for India. Growth prospects are really exciting and I have a partner too and yes I still look at Incense and perfume related news too.Have been busy working and attending functions on behalf of my company and am also promoting www.bdetec.com . The company is owned by a good friend.

Got busy

Got quite a lot of things to do from now - I am looking for a place and apparently I will find an address soon in Jayanagar,Bangalore.Terms and conditions are quite ok and the opportunity to grow is there-have been helped out by my good friend from www.cyclebrand.com and I am busy finding good projects to do using www.cos.com and am reading up more and more on motivation, technology, software,entrepreneurship and innovation and am always on the look out for cool stuff and things .

I signed for www.jot.com as an affiliate-I think JotSpot is an awesome company and will start to explode now as more and more people are using wiki and cutting costs and expanding their personal reach.So long for now and I hope I am still relevant.

Thoughts and Ideas empower

Been a really long time since I posted - I want to write stuff that is original,free from bias and yet it should contribute to the development of the society and the world.I try to create awareness about what can be achieved through thoughts and ideas - they need not necessarily be mine.The ideas I want to tell should be free and should be empwoering to an individual websurfer.

If a doctor sees this blog - take a look the medicine related stories,here if a telecom prof sees this blog - telecom related entries should be checked and all should be able to use and spread the information - it really works.Here I will urge surfers to see other websites in which I have posted comments and shared ideas and saved articles.

1. http://parvez.stumbleupon.com
2. http://del.icio.us/parvez1
3. http://ziki.com/people/parvez1

Yes www.ziki.com is my latest fad right now - this I am sure will not overtake my blogging or stumbling or del.icio.us activities - however I will devote more time for this also - have seen a few interesting people on Ziki.

Keep checking this blog out - who knows it will actually help out at times.

ClimateBiz and RecycleBank

ClimateBiz is best described in their own words "An easy-to-understand overview of the world of business and climate change, including how to get started -- and what to do after that. Whether you are a beginner or an industry leader, this is a good place to start."

I really feel the abnormal changes I saw in the rains in India - first the Tsunami in South Asia (South India particularily) followed by the incessant rains in Mumbai and then more rainds in Bangalore - all I feel are a result of Climate change and GLobal Warming and yes the 3 Apr 2006 issue of the Managzine Time too has reported results from which say what exactly is happening why and has written about how India and China can make a difference to the Global Warming and the climate.

The links for today are :

1. www.climatebiz.com
2. www.recyclebank.com
   

I have always been passionate about recycling and converting whatever waste that can be used into useful products.RecycleBank provides communities with a cost effective and environmentally conscious solutions to the rising cost of waste collection.

Let us all protect the climate and encourage recycling wherever we are and live frugally-I am trying it and am happy to share my experiences and helpful sites I come across.What are you doing my visitors?

A note over here - in case these links above do not work in your browser then please just type the link in a new window of explorer or firefox or whatever browser you use.
The above websites worked and the same holds for my previous posted links too and perhaps a few among them may not work or may have become obsolete.

just testing

I want to see if I am able to post now - I have not been able to post for sometime of late.

Found a really cool tool

I want to write about www.gabbly.com a really cool tool that allows you to form opinions on websites and the products and/or services companies and organizations provide.I think it can be used for instant gratification for consumer experiences.It will also enable real time collaboration when like minded communities are formed and actual problems are discussed among smart individuals and so are their solutions.It will help make lives easier for many in sales - the website has to reach critical mass among users.
Sorry for not posting for so long - did not come across anything exciting like Gabbly.Go ahead and become chatterboxes and influencers - you have the power !

50 Web 2.0 companies

Services/software oriented towards businesses including advertising, hosting, etc

• 1. 24sevenoffice : web based crm/erp solution
  2. 2ndSite : online invoicing; timesheets; support ticketing
  3. 411metro : directory assistance
  4. Agatra : secure password saving service
  5. Avvenu : secure remote access to computers
  6. Blinksale : online invoicing
  7. CentralDesktop : instant workspaces for teams and workgroups
  8. Civil Netizen : personal file transfer program
  9. DomainsBot : domain name search
  10. Ekklesia : content management system for churches
  11. Elevator Pitch : business ideas elevator pitch sharing
  12. EvolvePoint : rss feed management
  13. Expression Engine : content management system in php/mysql
  14. eyeOS : web based desktop system
  15. Grokker : enterprise search management
  16. GrokThis : ruby / zope / plone / mono hosting
  17. Judy's Book : localized reviews on services
  18. Kanoodle : targeted sponsored links
  19. Licketyship : same day delivery of office supplies; beta
  20. LinkLike : link exchange with balanced click-thru rates
  21. Lopico : user input localized business directory
  22. Mayomi : mind mapping
  23. Mozy : remote secure backup software
  24. Nooked : rss feed management
  25. Nuvvo : learning management system
  26. Pando : online file transfer
  27. Podtrac : advertising network for podcasts
  28. PushCRM : small business management solutions
  29. RailsAppHosting : rails hosting service
  30. RateItAll : social reviewing of products and services
  31. Side Job Track : independent contractor job management
  32. Socialtext : enterprise wiki solutions (Ross Mayfield)
  33. SpotRunner : television advertising management
  34. Sproutit : hosted email management
  35. Tag Directory : advertising tag directory
  36. Tagyu : tag suggestion service
  37. TextDrive : ruby on rails hosting
  38. TheAdCloud : localized tagged classified advertising
  39. TikTrac : timesheet management software
  40. TimeTracker : online time tracker
  41. TinyMCE : javascript html wysiwyg editor
  42. Veetro : small business management solutions
  43. VisualComplexity : visualization of complex networks
  44. Wikicompany : business listings directory
  45. wuraweb : local yellow pages
  46. Yellowikis : business listings directory
  47. Zingee : social file sharing service
  48. Zipingo : social local business recommendation service
  49. Zoho CRM : hosted crm solution
  50. ZoomTags : tag-based advertising affiliate network
      

This post intends to make up for my lack of blogging for some time now and use the web better is my request to all people who come to this website.Use IT to make the world a better place for people you know and do not know too as every good deed done rewards in ways that one is not even able to imagine.
I know it is tried by me,tested and found true.I am not going to elaborate - rather you great folks discover it for yourself.

A post on Plastics

People litter - plastics do not create the nuisance we see in developing countries.

A phrase that has been engraved in my heart from a theme out of a plastics exhibition many years ago is still raw. Plastics have become an inevitable part of our daily lives. Sustainable development of mankind rests on economic growth, social progress and protection of our environment and natural resources. There is little chance of protecting the environment without a greater sense of mutual responsibility.

For development and looking into the future, one should move away from the emotional view that governs and blinds environmental groups.

One should base decisions on facts, which are the unbiased and impartial science.
For example, plastic packaging is such a topic that people mistakenly believe that there is some other natural material better for the environment.People are wrong. Plastic bags are lighter and create up to 60-80 per cent less waste by volume than paper bags.

1. Lighter bags mean less transportation costs, which means less use of natural resources and, lesser pollution due to less vehicles.
2. Biodegradable plastic films exist - PLA is there and is eco friendly in nature and degrades into Carbon Dioxide and Water.It is costly and faces several export restrictions to developing countries.
   

Plastics allow highly efficient manufacturing processes (up to more than 99 per cent efficiency) that increase productivity by 20 to 30 per cent and reduce capital expenditures compared to other material and the advantage goes on.There is hardly any waste due to use of plastics by many industries in various sectors like FMCG,Construction,Automobiles,Space,Power,IT, etc.

Problems arise due to dumping of used materials by many developed countries,E-waste is the best example here and victims of e-waste dumping are China and India and SE Asian countries.See www.BAN.org and read all about the ewaste problems.More is going to come next as many consumer electronic items will become obsolete thanks to TV over IP!

It is important to think about all those steps in a product's life cycle-not just what happens when a product's useful life is over-to get a true picture of its environmental performance.

During their life cycle, plastic bags require about one-third less energy to make than paper bags/cloth bags (even human stitching consumes energy).

Paper bags use high amounts of wood, petroleum, and coal. A single paper bag uses the energy equivalent of 550 KJ of wood as feedstock. It also uses 500 KJ of petroleum and 350 KJ of coal for process energy. The total amount of energy used by a single paper bag is 1,680 KJ.

Fifty-three billion-kilowatt hours of electricity is saved annually by improvements in major appliance energy efficiency made possible by plastic applications. Without the benefits provided by plastics insulation, these appliances would use up to 30 per cent more energy.

Plastic bottles are 14 times lighter than glass, give a 48 per cent fuel saving in transport over glass and require less energy for production than glass.

Plastics have moulded the modern world and transformed the quality of life. There is no human activity where plastics do not play a key role, from clothing to shelter, from transportation to communication and from entertainment to healthcare. We truly live in a 'Plastics age'. Our daily lives would be very much poorer without these benign and environment friendly materials. Nature has produced 'plastic' like materials for centuries. Silk and cellulose are examples of natural polymers.

India ranks eighth in the world with per capita consumption of 4.1kg of plastic.The world average is around 20 kg.Growing population and consumption in India has put severe pressure on our natural resources and fragile ecosystems. The material needs of our population are growing and plastics offer a cost-effective, environment friendly solution. The long life and desirability of plastics, which have made them a material of choice for many applications is seemingly seen a disadvantage when it comes to disposal. However, when handled properly, plastics do little damage to the environment.

Plastics have the advantage that they can be easily reprocessed and recycled. We should use it to our advantage to convert it into various other end products like road construction, insulation panels and other products. Environmental groups will always be there and I respect their concerns as long as it is based on facts and not on emotional grounds. Preserving the environment is a matter of fact and not emotion. Facts not fiction help to save our environment.

Plastics in agriculture - Agriculture is a driver of growth for the plastics industry as there are many applications of plastics in agriculture :

1. Pipes
2. Drip irrigation
3. Hay Bale wraps
4. Low tunnels
5. High Tunnels
6. Row Covers
7. Silage Bags
8. Yes - Totally biodegradable PLA will be grown in India too one day.
   

One cannot imagine food storage without plastic today - simply put plastics have saved many a food item from going waste.

Plastics usher progress who will be able to imagine a world without computers and the internet today-only plastics,computers and electronics have made Internet,IT and Telecom what it is today!

There are any number of advantages of using plastics today - one cannot imagine toffees without plastic film or waking up and getting dressed without plastic - count for yourself how many plastic items one touches every day and then ask - what am I doing to help the industry solve problems?

Be the change you want to see in the world and help all make the world a better place and use plastics responsibly.I am a Plastics Engineer myself and in a way am sick of this plastics bashing I hear from time to time and most of it is false.

8 Blunders in the world

"Seven Blunders of the World"
1. Wealth without work
2. Pleasure without conscience
3. Knowledge without character
4. Commerce without morality
5. Science without humanity
6. Worship without sacrifice
7. Politics without principle
—Mahatma Gandhi
The 8th Blunder-this is my addition
8.Speaking with an intention to influence and actually harm people.

I am proud that Mohandas Karamchand gandhi is from India !

Del.icio.us

I have started to use http://del.icio.us better.I have put up a page on the website and mor people are visitng the same too and are checking out what I read and getting valuable insights.I have been unable to post here as I have become occupied for some time now in starting my own venture and in posting to http://del.icio.us/parvez1 - to all who are interested in what I read do visit my page and make the best use of the information.

Will keep you readers informed about whatever I am doing so do keep visiting this blog whenever you are able to and want to.

Shopify,Atiki and Newsvine

I am really impressed by the companies www.shopify.com, www.atiki.com and www.newsvine.com .

I am posting more on www.newsvine.com nowadays and the URL's name is
http://parvezthewebsurfer.newsvine.com - I think the service is awesome and the stories in Newsvine too are great.

Atiki gives great results and I use it a lot.That is all for now-one day I hope to write a book using www.lulu.com - by then this blog will have adequate material and any number of links.

Been a long time since I posted on this however do keep following my Stumble Upon posts-it is easier to rate articles using Stumble Upon (www.stumbleupon.com) than keep posting here as a lot of thought is needed for blogging-it is real tough to come up with original ideas and convert the ideas into a viable business proposition.

Think about it and try to make best use of what is there-always remain hungry for more and keep on innovating for people.Who knows one day you will be helped out in return.Good things return in mysterious ways.

one of the websites I keep seeing often is http://del.icio.us/iftf

A comment

Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.A note to myself is never underestimate the value of any gesture that is positive and spreads cheer.The least I will do is smile and spread hope and cheer.

May the Almighty help me and everybody else do the same.

This Blog is 1 year and 5 months old now

Come to think of it - this blog is 1 year and 5 months old now and people are steadily referring to this blog for information on whatever I write about!

A simple website today is featured www.preople.com - I have claimed my name Parvez Ahmed on it with due apologies to people who have similar names.Being the first to become someone is also a first-this just goes to show a thought matters and followed by swift execution to get customers a business or movement is started.It is simple ego that made me do it - so what - one (the ordinarywebsurfer) should know about you - only then will you get known among anybody worth knowing!

I am a fan of www.gizmodo.com - cool gadgets are profiled in the same.A good source of business and tech leadership info explained in simple english and a critical source for business people who understand business and not tech is www.cio.com - I am reading many articles from CIO and rating the same too so that people assess for themselves - the stuff I read and what type of a person I am.Today it is nice to know a lot of information that will come in handy to people and the fact that one can say refer to my blog to know more is a cool statement to make.

Job websites & people

3 websites caught my eye today and they promise a lot for candidates and headhunters-I think these websites should be must looking up for the job hunting business.
www.recruiting.com
www.simplyhired.com
www.jobster.com
Recruiting.com gives the overall picture for headhunters and SimplyHired get candidates the job they really need.It is a sad thing that most offerings are US centric only however with more jobs coming to India and China I expect the same to change.

Companies there will keep key technologies or something like that in their own countries - they will find out that entrepreneurs are the same everytime and everywhere - they create newer and more compelling opportunities for the parent countries to look at-a great example is www.skype.com - who thought it would become so huge and sell out to www.eBay.com !
Fact is people have a way to judge the performance and good qualities of companies and countries too today - many good people walk out to make amends if they do not like the companies they are in today and some just start their own as they are simply fed up with the society they live in - we must do more to keep good people wherever we are.

MelissaData and Software Selling

Today 2 websites caught my interest and I think the sites will help sales and give a foundation for trustworthy data.

I am talking of www.melissadata.com and www.upload.com - both are great websites and will be used more and better in my opinion.The question is am I going to use the information better or not.

One needs to be careful and create and grab opportunities that come as a result of knowing where to search on the net and how to create and then commoditize the same next.The money will follow soon.Amazon's (www.amazon.com) "giving away the store feature" is just great and gives a way to measure.

Persistent Systems

Another company that has caught my eye is www.persistentsys.com - I will literally call the company persistent as it is always innovating and a very creative company.It has won numerous awards nationally and recognition globally.Really good at databases and does outsourcing work too for clients.
Founded in 1990, Persistent develops software products for its customers, which include many startups and some Fortune 500 companies. The firm has recently added maintenance and services to its product offerings.
Be persistent and keep on innovating,make mistakes,acknowledge what the firm does not know, outsource whatever you can and minimize risks by concentrating on core competencies,spread risk around many customers or get a big customer and keep that customer satisfied and always post testimonials - that will give confidence to potential clients.The company makes a wonderful case study as a sartup.I am sure it will find its way to textbooks of top B schools worldwide real soon.Persistent innovation focus makes makes the difference.Build products that customers will actually pay for and innovative services around the same-that is the secret to becoming successful.!Now you have it-be Persistent!

Squidoo

Sometime ago I found a company called www.squidoo.com and signed up to be a beta tester-I really like the results and well now that the company has opened up to the general public I am blogging about the same.The idea is a great one and as my readers you will find the site wonderful so sign up and start squidooing and use this as your competitive advantage.It is another that will differentiate you my readers from the ordinary surfers on the net.Get more business and remain excited and hungry all the time.Continuously grow by innovating and making the best from innovations.

Founders Frustrations Blog

http://founderresearch.blogspot.com/ - A blog by a professor of entrepreneurial management from Harvard Business School.A must reference site to find out how founders deal with problems and some ideas on how they can be solved are presented there.

A six sigma blog

See www.treqna.com an awesome 6 sigma blog.

Smile,attitude and sales

I ask people what percentage of their day they think they smile. Most people think they smile more than half their day. Most people smile no more than 5% of their day. See your workplace and calculate the average - it will be more or less near this figure.How sad is that? That's only 48 minutes per day. Max will be about an hour a day!

When do you think most people use those precious minutes of smiling? When they ask for the business? When they get their first cup of coffee? When they go home?
Look around your office. I'll bet most people aren't smiling.

Why is there such a difference between people's perception of the amount of time they smile and the reality? As soon as we start discussing smiling, almost everyone starts smiling. As with so many things, people need to be reminded.

What you say to yourself and others has a huge impact on how people perceive you. The average person has more than 1000 random thoughts per day. Sadly, more than half are negative.

Doubt it? What were the first words out of your mouth when the alarm clock went off this morning? If you're like most people, we probably can't print them. What did you think about next -- the traffic, your meetings, the to-do list, the tasks at hand,the meetings with clients ahead,the boss,whatever,... ? So many negative thoughts, and you hadn't even made it to the shower yet.

Negative thoughts produce negative attitudes, negative actions and poor performance.
Increasing your enthusiasm and positive outlook will raise your productivity, your spirits and the spirits of those around you.

Be positive and cheer up people around you from the time you get up and see what a difference it makes - make your own coffee and inspire your family members pet your cat or dog ,hold your spouse or child or someone you care for and smile.The link below will make you smile.

http://www.itsalestraining.com/

Remember - the advise is good and can be modified and used for Non IT sales too and one has to be patient and open to new ideas and listening to customers,friends and well wishers.Go and get the deals.Some things take that little longer - to make the time period short,

1. be prepared while meeting a potential client.
2. ask for references and give references when requested.
3. show figures and important targets met.

Be not hard on yourself and people around you - appreciate enthusiasm shown by youth and seniors alike and guide when neded or accept help if needed.Attitude always makes a difference.

Smile - it spreads hope and cheer.

Lots of search engines

I came across the website below-it is full of search engines and being pasionate about searching and finding stuff of interest I will add here that please know what you are searching for and know when to stop looking at the crazy results.

http://www.philb.com/engines.htm

Most searches may just end up wasting time.Go to a person or co that is good at finding information on the net and save some time for all.Maybe your result can be had in different ways that you may never think about.Consider the fact below and remember your goal is the number 10.A statement like

5+5=10 is what most people accept in general - however 10 can be arrived in any number of ways like 10=3+7 or 10=50-40 or any other combination of numbers.The result has to be 10 -it does not matter what method you use to reach the desired conclusion.

The object here is not to throw people off track but to get them to think that there are other ways to get the job done.The easiest way - entrust it to an expert - think of using ask a librarian service being offered by many universities in the world today - most good ones are free!.

Looks to good to be true!

An offer looks too good to be true right!

Know what to do next before you get ripped off?

See www.LooksTooGoodToBeTrue.com and find out about the offer.There is a way out and it is be careful and in case you get conned be not afraid to ask for help.People are good and many help out so giving up is not an option.

Atiki,Textually and thesmsguide

I really like www.atiki.com and www.thesmsguide.com - the info is relevant and reaches an audience very quickly.

Atiki allows you to specify search words.This tests your brains and creativity and one gets results from websites and sources not even imagined.The SMS guide keeps you updated about what is happening as a result of the usage of the mobile internet.

Another website on the mobile internet that is really very good is http://textually.org - I have been using this too for a very long time and it is worth the time you spend on it. See these websites yourselves.

SJCE in the news

My former engineering college has made it to the news in India.Students of Sri Jayachamarajendra College of Engineering (SJCE - website: www.sjce.ac.in) won't have to run around the campus to check attendance, timetable, mess and exam fees, semester or internal assessment marks anymore.

All they need to do is just insert a 'smart card' into card readers on touch screen kiosks and they will get all the information they need. The College is planning to introduce 'e-purse' where the administrative block and bank will be networked through the LAN (local area network). With a view to ensure discipline among teaching and non-teaching staff, the management has also installed radio frequency identifier to keep track on them.

"We have already received 27 cards so far, which will be issued to the non-working staff, who will flash it on the identifier. We can easily check their attendance", our present principal has informed.

The cards will also contain residential addresses, contact numbers and blood groups of students.

Smart cards will be used for many purposes. Students can also pay mess bills, exam fees and others.

This is the first time such stuff is being tried out in India.It is really nice to read and learn more about such things.The other links for today are www.simpy.com and www.scienceblog.com -I am trying these out.The sites are great full of info that I think is awesome.Keeps me updated on whats going on.

A small time saving tip

Save time by hitting the return key instead of clicking on "search"

The website for today is www.inorder.org - I am figuring out how to use it better.

Next Billion

www.nextbillion.net is an awesome website from www.wri.org - I keep checking stories from these 2 websites-some are really good ideas and ideas can be used to benefit all including oneself.Try it.