Messages from Brandon – Solving Citizen

Crypto Craze

With everyone getting their government stimulus check, there is plenty of cash out there to grab. People are throwing their money at everything. They are buying and putting it into real estate, collectibles, the stock market and a large group of people are putting into cryptocurrency. Why? What is this craze and what is driving it? Is it due exclusively to the government stimulus, or is there something else going on here? To answer that we need to rewind about 15 years…

Remember when Facebook came out and it was a newer more efficient way to socialize? You could chat and share pictures with loved ones across the country and you were able to create an online social profile to help define who you were to the rest of the world. Over the next few years Facebook got so popular and diverse in their services that companies and news organizations started using it. After a while Facebook started to make big impacts on the way we communicate, and was actually changing the way the media worked fundamentally. Fast forward to today and Facebook has fundamentally changed the way people get their news.

Now we can’t give Facebook all the credit. There were other social media companies who drove this change, but Facebook was the first to really force competition in that industry. Additionally Facebook is still trying to push on into other industries. They among others, such as Spacex are launching satellite constellations to try and decentralize the internet entirely. Although the media industry has drastically changed and will likely perpetuate its formation for decades to come, there are other industries out there that are changing due to new and advanced technology.

Peloton has made noticeable impacts to gym memberships, and Zoom has been instrumental in telling businesses how much office space they really need. Even now “Big Pharma” is having to change and adjust to the growing cannabis industry. These cannabis companies are getting so big and popular that they are even starting to be publicly traded. In fact the stock market has changed so much that it is barely recognizable from the on our parents used, and all fingers point to this change in trading as the next big industry to get a technological shake down.

Coinbase hit the market running yesterday. I have used this company to manage my various concurrency for years. In my opinion this will be the next Facebook. Not because it will change social media but because like Facebook, it will shake down it’s industry… the banking industry, and it will change everything we know about money. Now that is a bold statement I know, and i’m sure it wont necessarily be Coinbase that becomes king but they are for sure forcing the competition like Facebook did. Even my bank has sent me app notifications about trading crypto. If major banks are into crypto it is here to stay and they are fighting to stay relevant just like the media did with Facebook.

What’s next? I don’t know. All any of us can do is hang on to the wild ride to financial redefinition we are all about to embark on. Hopefully we all learned a lot about how dangerous these transitions are when it claimed the media. The world is still healing from that one. All we can do is speculate. Will it come for the pharmaceutical industry? There is plenty of movement with the decriminalization of drugs, and vaccines with the whole vaxer vs. antivaxer.

One industry that will eventually be given the technological shake down is government and business. Already Spacex has voiced it interest in becoming it’s own city. This is an ever growing topic for business such as the seasteading institute and even some new crypto companies. Nevada is considering allowing “smart cities” that would be able to be their own county. Las Vegas is already one of the world’s greatest cities because it allowed people to do what other states restricted. Imagine if they allowed companies to turn more of their useless desert into more of the world’s greatest attraction?

Its hard to imagine what technology will bring our future. Yes, there will be parts that are bad, but I think there will be good too. We just need to learn our lessons as each industry is shaken so we can keep the world intact for our children.

-Brandon

Jump on new technology before it gets the jump on you.

The bite of new technology can be unforgiving. Just ask the taxi driver union what they think about Uber. While the taxi drivers might grasp on to the little political outlets that exist to help their cause, it is inevitable that they will slowly go the way of black and white Television.

Technology is progress. Everything moves forward whether you believe it will or not. The people who say things like “what would anyone need a computer in their house for” are the ones who will likely become a victim of progress. Take project management for example: technology is drowning project managers, but as we move forward the tools project managers use are becoming more powerful and have more impact on their organization.

A while back I talked about the progress of Hollywood magic, and how technology is helping everyone to have such magic. That’s great for us, but bad for the TV studios. I also talked about satellites, and how they are becoming cheaper and more obtainable in the private sector. Again, good for us and bad for the cable companies.

Then you see Facebook and Google strongly compete to not only be the world’s biggest video streaming service but to change the industry’s control over the content. This competition is great for the consumer because it gives us an abundance of free resources. In fact it is providing opportunities that were unimaginable 5 years ago.

Consider the deal with ESPN and Google’s new media service, this is horrible news for the cable company and bad news for the sports industry. Why bad for the sports industry? In part because they are forced to settle. As a result sports are redefined by the masses and we get things like extreme ironing, and chess boxing, and some YouTube shows have moved on to get their own TV show. In addition to what Google has to offer, Facebook is right on Google’s heels with their own incentives. They are going to start putting ads in their video content and even give some back to the publisher!

Google and Facebook may have an advantage when it comes to the software and the services we use, but the devices will use are just as critical. Things like HDTV and computer animation have advanced so much that my 3-year-old won’t watch anything but. All the series I saved for years so I could pass on the joy to my children have been thwarted by high-definition. So what do we do against such aggressive progression?

We look ahead!

Where will media be in 5 years? We have already seen the google glasses and now there are 5 different brands on store shelves. Right now these devices can watch movies play games and watch 360 videos, but companies like Meta are developing real life applications for the technology. Real game changers that will change the tune of the naysayers when the size and function become a little more practical.

You know what is not really on store shelves? 360 cameras. Because YouTube is a long steady game the time to start making 360 content is here and now. For $200 bucks you can start making content that people will be searching for 6 months or a year from now.

Use the technology to your advantage and start early because it can crush you if you are not looking. However you can use it as a tool to help you build capital and with that, build the future we all dream of.

-Brandon

Will the dream of self driving cars be replaced by flying cars?

Have you seen the new commercial where the car drives itself? It’s so exciting to see the future unfold. I remember watching George Jetson fly around in his car thinking “that’s what my future is going to look like”, but as time ticks on, my future seems to look more like the matrix (or some other post apocalyptic movie) than the cartoon of my childhood past.

While I don’t see myself becoming a car battery in the distant future, I do think that things won’t be the way I always thought they would. Now keep in mind I am presenting you with my wild speculation, but hear me out. Self driving cars have much anticipation and analysts think that within a decade our economy will be hit hard by self driving automation, but I’m not seeing it come from automobiles.

Already we’re seeing homeowners insurance being reduced because of automation and the LA Times has mentioned that self driving cars could flip the auto insurance industry on its head. But that’s not all automation is doing. It’s also giving us software to help on a global scale. A farmer can deploy a drone that will fly over an area miles wide, run the images through an algorithm, and tell the farmer what course of action he must take. Throw that software into a network of drones like they did in the 2017 Super Bowl halftime show, and the sky is the limit!

Amazon has already invested in infrastructure for an air delivery system, including airplanes and even a company to develop their drone delivery service. In addition their ambitious projects are helping to develop regulation that will likely evolve and reshape the aviation industry.

Right now the closest I can get to my dream of flying around the skies like George Jetson is to jump in a helicopter and fly around, but such a dream would be too costly for the average person to achieve. Although they are coming out with automated systems for Helicopters, insurance prices are too high for the technology to make an impact on the aviation industry to favor the consumer. Also, we are a long way off before drones can carry people off into the sunset, but that’s not stopping companies like Ehang from trying.

Now back to my wild speculation. Automated driving systems will make a big impact on our economy and our future, but they will only last a short time. It will be like that 5 minutes you had a pager, and then the cell phone came out. When the line between helicopter and drone disappears, and insurance prices fall (which is a major reason for high aviation costs),we will see prices in aviation fall. Finaly we will see insurance liabilities transfer from the driver or pilot to the automated network provider. We will see the flying car become a reality.

So. Is it a far-fetched childhood dream to have a flying car? No. I may even see it in my lifetime.

-Brandon

Musical.ly killed the MTV reality star.

I remember the good old days when I used to have to get up and fix the rabbit-ear antennas on my television set. We had to turn the knob to change the channel until one day cable was affordable enough for us all to enjoy. Finally! We had a remote control to flip through a new fantastic library of channels. The infrastructure required for this to happen was under my radar, as well as many other customers who watched Hollywood unfold into this huge monstrosity.

Cable was a place where you could have a channel dedicated to an entire subject. You had news networks, sports networks, history, and SCI-FI. However cable television was fundamentally changed once audiences got their first taste of reality TV. Soon after Hollywood spun out of control when YouTube hit the scene and everyone could have a channel dedicated to themselves.

Although people will occasionally tune in to a do-it-yourself house remodel or pause mid-scroll to see that delicious meal pop out of the oven, the cable networks are quickly loosing their viewers to streaming services like YouTube. The infrastructure is again changing and unfolding into an even larger monster than the one before it. The infrastructure is simple enough, in fact Amazon even has a package that will enable you to bypass the cable network altogether. Really all one has to do is subscribe to a cable and phone network and they can watch anything they want. But what do they want to watch?

Us!

We are watching anyone and everyone. The truth is that most people have access to the technology that was once a fantasy far far away in Hollywood. We can build a channel or even a network online using YouTube or similar services. It is not uncommon for some shows to transition from YouTube to Netflix, or vice versa. The streaming services that Amazon, Netflix and YouTube are offering are seriously jeopardizing the cable networks. In addition, Facebook is going to start making it’s own original content to compete with Snapchat’s shows, and YouTube just announced that they’re going to start streaming ESPN sports which will be the final nail in the coffin of cable television if they don’t do something.

It is an amazing time to be alive and witness such power being wielded by the masses. It gives me gratification to see reality TV ridden channels like MTV sink because people are taking their music videos back through karaoke, in apps like Snapchat and musical.ly. Not to mention Spotify and SoundCloud are enabling any musician to grasp the power of the record industries. Also Amazon is going to roll out a next generation of Alexa with a TV screen on it.

Ultimately it warms my heart to realize that each individual has access to what was once unobtainable Hollywood magic. In my opinion people have little reason NOT to start something up themselves. If there can be a channel for everything, then people can have a channel for doing anything. So go build a studio with your smart phone, and see if you have what it takes to be a star. Who knows? I may just tune in.

-Brandon

Modern day Trading and Bartering

The term trading and bartering seems ancient. One might think of cavemen trading shells or Indians trading beaded jewelry but what some people don’t realize is that it’s very common today even with the biggest corporations. Take Facebook and Google for example. They offer what seems to be a free service, but actually they are just trading that service for information.

The idea is to create value for somebody else through a service or product. Then that value is traded for other value from another party. Through this basic concept of exchanges in the market, economies will thrive. In fact I have traded a service in this very blog post. In exchange for coverage of my blog I have promised another I would mention him in one of my blogs. I can’t think of a better blog post to mention him in then the one I could use him as an example. (Thanks Tim it’s nice to work with like-minded people)

I met Tim through a bartering service called Simbi. Simbi is a place where you can trade a product or service for another product or service. They also have their own credit system they use Called Simbi’s. The information on my website to the particular services I offer are here. I have had somebody come and clean my house, come and trim my dogs nails, and cut down some metal shelves for me and more, through services on Simbi. In exchange I have done things from critiquing resumes to helping people move.

Trading and bartering seems to be becoming more and more common as more people struggle trying to fill the holes in their finances. I have had family members who had their automobile professionally painted through an exchange of another service. Also people are starting to sell more and more items online through services like Craigslist or the Facebook market in addition to services like eBay.

I want to talk a little about the purchaser and vender relationship. Services like Simbi and The Facebook market bring an aspect to buying and selling things that is missing from our society today. Because we use money for an exchange of goods and services the transaction is impersonal. This is because it’s quick and there is rarely a long-term relationship developed between purchasers and vendors.

W. Edwards Deming (who I have talked about in the past) says this about purchasing:

“economists teach the world that competition in the marketplace gives everyone the best deal. This may have been so in the days gone by, when the baker had his customers, the Taylor his, the cheese-maker his, and so forth. In those days, it was fairly easy to make an intelligent purchase.

It is different today. The price tag is still easy to read, but an understanding of quality requires education.

The purchasing department must change its focus from lowest initial cost of material purchased to lowest total cost. This means education in purchasing. It is also necessary to learn that specifications of incoming materials do not tell the whole story about performance. What problems does the material and counter in production?”

If you plan on managing ANYTHING Out of the Crisis by Deming is a must read.

He also explains why it is so important to have a strong relationship between supplier buyer. He says it is important with continuing delivery of material. Although your vendor might have a higher price than their competitor, over time you will pay less. This is true even if you were to buy at the lowest cost from another vendor.

Ultimately, the greatest value of any transaction is the relationship between the two parties. The cooperation of the two will create long-term quality both will benefit from and become prosperous.

-Brandon

Rule your organization by defining your systems

There are many types of systems to dictate the way life is run. There are the judicial system, immune system, ecosystems, computer systems and many more.

While operating your business or start up it is important to start out by defining your business. What is your purpose, and why do you exist? The simplest way to go is to make a mission statement. No I know that sounds corny, but it is the simplest way to start measuring your business.

Again, it is important to define what it is you’re doing, and if you can’t define what you’re doing then you don’t know what you’re doing. Defining your Organization is the most important part of the business. It allows you to measure what you’re doing, and metrics allows you to control your business.

In addition to a project charter, you can use SIPOC diagrams, Process Flow diagrams, and Project Charters.

Process Flow Diagram

SIPOC Diagram

In a side note, I would like to thank you all for reading. I have been absent for the last month for vacation, illness and I have also been working on a big project I plan to roll out within the next 6 months or so. I wish I could tell you more but be patient because it’s going to be huge! Please keep sharing with your friends we we can continue this momentum and grow into a community that will make dedicated hard workers wealthy.
-Brandon

Putting tools in your cloud and getting ready for the Augmented Age

Jarvis_shield_interface It took people a while to understand what “the cloud” actually is. Some might still be trying to figure it out. I am, not because I’m unsure what it is, but because I’m trying to understand what it will become. We watch movies like Iron Man and we see Tony Sark work with holograms and talk to artificial intelligence. For now we see this as fantasy, but this concept is closer to reality then you might think.

Siri As the Augmented Age hits, there are tools you will need to have in place if you want to use augmented reality efficiently. The cloud is where you focus all these tools and build your foundation. But what cloud do you use? Apple, Gooogle, Amazon, and Microsoft already have cloud tools and services you can start building on. I personally am building a foundation with Google services, while my wife finds Amazon better suits her needs.

What are some of the tools you will use in the augmented age you might ask? Well think of Tony Stark and the things that he has. Probably the most efficient tool that he has is Jarvis. This tool is already available to us today! Apple has Siri, Google has the Google Home, and Amazon has the Echo. These devices are amazing but they are still in a primitive stage. All they can do is simple calculation, turn the lights on and off, read texts and stuff like that.

amazondash-jpg Amazon has an interesting tool called Dash-Buttons. They are a physical button you push to replenish supplies, however this is the type of tool that will transform once AR glasses hit the market. You will be able to stick them wherever you want like you can an emoji on Snapchat.

google glass AR glasses are the piece of the puzzle that are missing but they are almost here. Meta has been one of the front runners in developing this technology. The companies founder Merton Gribetz has even done a TED talk on the subject. The glasses are going to let you work like Tony Stark. You will finally be able to reduce the distractions of the internet and turn things around to let them enhance your life.

For the time being your smart phone is only a small window into the Augmented Age. For now all that is available are devices to put your mobile device over your face so you can see through the eyes of your phone. Keep a look out for the tools you need like the Microsoft Kinect, 360 cameras, or the Google Glasses and see how you can build them into your foundation. If you have your cloud ready by the time Augmented Reality gets here, you will have an advantage over everyone else trying to catch up.

-Brandon

Eliminating risk while Investing

Wall street and the 401k are things people usually think of when they think about investing. Boring. While there may be some things worth investing in like dividends or even index funds, there are a variety of things one can invest in to find success.

Warren Buffett is one of the richest men in the world, But even he understands that investing is more than just money. Increasing the value of your own human capital is the best way to start investing. Instead of binge watching the new Netflix series like so many of us are guilty of (yes, me too) you can delay that satisfaction and invest in learning skill that will pay off tenfold in the future.

You can spend money and time to get an education that few people have, or you can take a job with a lower wage that will give you a highly sought after skill. A wise person once said “There is a great place to go when you are broke….To Work!” It is important however to not spend more money than you make, and invest the money you have left in something you know about and understand.

If you’re like me and have other people who depend on you, it might be wise to invest in a little preparation. If you work far from home consider getting a get home bag if you’re in the city, or a go bag if you’re on the outskirts. It also wouldn’t be a bad idea to get some life insurance to eliminate the burden your family might have if something happened to you. Hopefully these are things you’ll never need, but when you need them, you NEED them.

The same thing applies with your property. Research the insurance policies on all property you own. Acquire any necessary capital, security, or arms to protect your investment. Also know when you’re going to get out before you ever get in on ANY investment. This will help you eliminate as much risk as possible.

If you own or are starting a business, know how to invest your time. Improve and control everything you do and pay attention to your return on investment. Calculate your Net Present Value your Internal Rate of Return and use a Payback Method to look at your cost benefit. Ultimately it may pay off more to invest in your own organization then to venture elsewhere.

The Consumer Price Index reveals that inflation hit 0.6% in the month of January. Inflation is a hidden tax on your dollars so it is important not to invest everything you have there. Whether you invest in money, stocks, gold, property or even your children, keep in mind that there is nothing more important to invest in than your most precious resource. Your time.

-Brandon

The thinning line between entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs

Everyone knows what an entrepreneur is, but lately there has been much conversation about the innovation of intrepreneurs. People like Bernie Sanders like to say that intrepreneurs are the backbone of America and while there may be some truth to this, it is both entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs working together who drive the economy. However the traditional role of the entrepreneur is changing and even merging with the intrapreneurs with the quickly approaching augmented age.

To get a clear understanding of what the difference between entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs is we need to first look at the difference between extrinsic and intrinsic people and their motivations. Extrinsic people (like entrepreneurs) are motivated by money, and the payoff they will receive for completing a task. Intrinsic people (like intrapreneurs) are more concerned with personal growth and being recognized for their efforts. traditionally you would have an intrinsic person manage continuous improvement or research and development projects while an extrinsic person would run an operation.

Being on the brink of the Augmented age is thinning the line between the entrepreneur and intrapreneur because of the abundance of new technology. Resources like social media marketing and setting up a storefront are easier and cheaper for the intrapreneur therefore eliminating risk traditionally only entrepreneurs would take on. Also new innovation is in abundance for a massive amount of entrepreneurs to capitalize on. The truth is that (because opposites attract) many couples are now capable of running a business from their home. All anyone needs to sell their creativity is create an online presence through social media marketing like Snapchat or Facebook, create an Etsy and BOOM, you have a business that can make money with little to no money invested.

Now couples may have an advantage by working as a team, but individuals are in a good position too. In the past many people have relied on a well formatted resume to get them a good job, but it doesn’t work like that anymore. If you want to land your ideal job, you have to build an online reputation in your field. I personally do this using WordPress and LinkedIn. It is necessary to build a network of references and publish articles to demonstrate your skills and abilities. Only then will you stand out among the sea of other candidates.

Snapchat is on the front of the augmented age giving creative intrapreneurs a place to grow and sell to an audience using a new social media format and new technology and slowly steeling customers from Facebook. Google is replacing Microsoft documents by offering their documents for free. This is an amazing resource for any entrepreneur who is looking to reduce their risk.

If you are looking to start up a business or just make yourself look professional there are many people out there who will help, myself included. This age is so fun to interact with that many people are giving value away, and if you look hard enough you might be able to find a passionate intrapreneur who will offer their services for free.

-Brandon

Defining the Truth

We hear many phrases today like “alternative facts” “bias media” or “false flag” and the more we hear that kind of noise the more it seems the truth is slipping from our grasp. The truth is tricky to define because it is literally different from person to person. So where do we look to define it? You compare it to a known standard.

History reveals that governments do a poor job of defining the truth for us. Laws are a great comfort zone for many people to define what is right and wrong, but just because something is legal doesn’t make it right. Oscar Schindler was somebody who frequently broke the law to do what we all know is right, but his society deemed wrong. That does not necessarily mean that laws are bad, there is a standard dictated by Natural Law. Natural Law was used by the founding fathers of the United States to shape the constitution. In fact Thomas Jefferson helped define the nonaggression principle.

The nonaggression principle or NAP was started by John Locke during the Age of Enlightenment. The NAP can essentially be defined as: don’t hurt people and don’t take their stuff. Even the United States constitution uses the NAP as a Standard to define the truth in their laws and morals.

Now let’s get the most value out of the truth and move from what we should do with it to what we can do with it. While running a business, there are many different universally excepted standards such as ISO or ASME.

Probably one of the most valuable tools you can use to analyze data and look at the facts is statistics. With statistics you use tools like Lean and Six Sigma. Six sigma was first used by Edward Deming. Collecting data and using facts to operate business quickly got him notice because it reshaped manufacturing. we moved from the industrial age to the information age.

Deming’s 14 points are used today in the most successful organizations around the world. The truth is a powerful tool that cannot be ignored when it is used properly. Whether you use it for politics or for business knowing the truth will separate you from your competitors and make you very successful in your ambitions. No matter what people think the truth is, we all know what the truth is we see it.

-Brandon

ISO