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ANZ Innovyz Start Accelerator

What's better than being asked to go to Australia for a week to mentor a bunch of start up entrepreneurs?  Getting selected to actually BE one of the start up entrepreneurs!

The ANZ Innovyz Start Accelerator, which is part of the Global Accelerator Network and "Championed by TechStars" has selected ten companies to meet up in Adelaide, Australia.  They will receive mentoring and support, and hopefully they will all grow into successful, job-producing, successful, cool companies. 

Most of the companies are from Australia, but one, Cipher This, is from right here in Boulder, Colorado.  I'm so excited to be participating as a mentor, and I thank Jana Matthews and all the other mentors who have made this possible.

Congratulations, and I can't wait to meet you in person this summer!

The 10 companies selected to participate in the 2012 ANZ Innovyz Start accelerator program include:

1. Adelaide Baby Bargains:Free online marketplace for preloved baby & children’s goods, Adelaide, AU
2. Be Intent:Online HR solution that measures mindset, staff engagement, optimizes people performance and delivers measurable productivity improvements, Auckland, NZ
3. Captioning Studio: Speech to text, video search, web based captioning & subtitling, and tools for those who are deaf and hard of hearing, Adelaide, AU
4. Cipher This: Software that automates the creation and integration of puzzles into any author's original content, Boulder, Colorado, USA
5. ConfPlus: Mobile service to facilitate registering, scheduling, networking, and communicating at conferences, Madison, Wisconsin, USA and Beijing & Shenyang, China.
6. Credit Key: A web ‘transaction brokerage’ service that vastly reduces the amount of time between the issue and payment of invoices, Adelaide, AU
7. iStudent: recruitment of international students with on-line search and enrollment, Sydney, AU
8. LEAPIN:Cloud-based Property Management System featuring 'smartphone room check-in' and a 'complete web check-in system for the accommodation industry', Adelaide, AU
9. www.mysupervisoronline.com: On-line resource, support and networking site to assist Honours, Masters and PhD students, Brisbane, AU
10. P2P Agri: Farm business management decision software, Adelaide, AU

Braingate - turning thought into action

In the early days of Gold Systems, I joked that someday CTI would stand for "Computer Telepathy Integration" and we would just think about what we want to do on the computer and it would happen.  That was almost 21 years ago, and over the last five years I've been seeing signs that this will actually happen in my lifetime.  Or rather is happening.

The latest example was reported in the May 16, 2012 article by Benedict Carey in the New York Times Science section.  (You can try this link if you are registered on the site)  The article talks about the first published demonstration about how people with brain injuries have been able to control a prosthetic arm.  In other words, they can no longer control their own arms, but they are able to control a robotic arm, just by thinking about it.  This has been reported in Nature, and can be found here.

This technology is in the lab today, and requires "a tiny sensor about the size of a baby aspirin" to be injected just below the skull.  I've got to think a wireless sensor will come along at some point, and I hope that it will find its way into the real world quickly.

This photo says it all, which the New York Times credited to braingate2.org.  Be sure and check out the BrainGate website for more information about the technology and photos of the amazing team who is making this dream a reality. 

 

Gold Systems is Growing

Q1 has been a great quarter for Gold Systems, and we're hiring again.  If you are a software project manager, or a .NET engineer, check out the job postings at http://www.goldsys.com/careers 

(Note to recruiters. We have several great relationships with recruiters already, so only contact us if you have a specific person who would be a great fit for one of our jobs. Thanks!)

Speed up Comcast internet 3x for almost free

Dear Comcast Customer,

We are constantly working to serve you better, which is why we want to remind you that you have been leasing a cable modem from us for $5 a month for almost five years.  We're so embarrassed by that, given that the modem only costs us about thirty bucks wholesale, so we quit charging you a while back, but really, you've paid way more than the modem is worth and it is terribly obsolete now.  We suppose it is a credit to us that it works well enough that you haven't gone to another provider, but do yourself a favor and buy a new modem already.

Sincerely,

Comcast

OK, I in made that letter up, but it's the letter I wish Comcast had sent me.  When I switched from DSL to Cable, I just wanted it to work, so I let Comcast lease me a modem.  I figured I would get the service working and then in 6 or 8 months I would buy my own device, ending the lease payment.  I got busy, and to be fair, it worked fine and I rarely thought about it.  When I did think about it, I imagined the hassle it would be to buy the new modem, install it and then get the old lease charge removed from my bill.  It turns out, Comcast really does make it easy.

If you have been leasing a modem, or you have a modem more than a few years old, you might be able to buy a new modem and in the process, significantly increase your internet speeds.  I increased my download speed by 3X for no extra money, except for the price of the new modem.  Here's how to do it.

Go to Amazon.com or your favorite store and buy this modem.

http://www.amazon.com/Motorola-SB6121-SURFboard-DOCSIS-Cable/dp/B004XC6GJ0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1330549413&sr=8-1

It's a Motorola SURFboard eXtreme Cable Modem Model S86121

(Note to readers of the future.  This was written 2-29-2012.  Check to see if there is an even faster modem available in your time.  And drop me a note, I love to hear from people from the future.)

Before you disconnect the old modem, make sure you have your Comcast account number.  You'll need it later, so if you do electronic billing, go online now while the old modem is working and get your account number.

You are going to need to plug the new modem into power, move your cable connection from the old modem to the new modem, and then you want to run the included ethernet cable directly from the new modem to the computer you want to use to configure it.  Don't worry, when we're done, you can plug the modem into the ethernet cable going to your home network, but for now we need a direct connection to a computer.

After everything is connected, open up a browser on the computer.  You'll be redirected to a Comcast page where you can change your service to the new modem.  If you aren't getting any page, use the included instructions to interpret the lights on the new modem.  You didn't forget to plug it in or attach your cable from the old modem did you?  Be patient, the new modem may need a few minutes to connect.

Next you will be prompted to enter your home telephone number and your Comcast account number.  Just follow the prompts, hitting next.  Here's the tough part - be patient.  It really may take a while for everything to work.  Maybe 2 or 3 minutes, but it will seem longer and you may think you have done something wrong.  Be patient.

If everything worked, you should be able to go to your favorite web page.  Do that to make sure you have a good connection before you start trying to connect the modem to your home network.

Now unplug the new modem from your computer, and connect it to the ethernet cable going to your home network that the old modem was connected to.  Don't forget to plug your computer back into the home network too.  Now you really need to be patient.  I was sure something was wrong and ripped everything back apart, but no, it just needs some time to reconnect to Comcast and for your home network to recognize the new modem.  If you must, cycle the power on your modem and network device, but for me after about 5 minutes it all started working.

Once the new modem was in place and working, I went to speedtest.net and rechecked my speed.  I was very happy to see that I was getting three times faster download speeds - I went from 9.72 Mbps to 36.01 Mbps.  The modem cost me $82.19 at Amazon.com so I figure that's a great deal.

All that was left was to return the old modem and get the lease payment removed from my bill.  I called Comcast (the first time I actually talked to a person) and they directed me to take it to my local Comcast service center which was just a few miles away.  I walked in a half hour before closing time to find an empty room with four people ready to help me.  One of the guys scanned the bar code on my old modem, printed a receipt and that was that.

I have to say, this was a LOT easier than I expected.  I thought sure I would have problems, have to call a technician, and then wait all day for them to show up, but that wasn't the case at all.  Thanks Comcast for making this easy, and I'm loving my new higher speed internet.

 

 

8 Qualities of Remarkable Employees

Mike Gellman (@MGellman) at SpireMedia tweeted recently about an Inc. Magazine article, "8 Qualities of Remarkable Employees" by Jeff Hadan. I can always count on Mike to notice the interesting articles.  It's a good list, and I'll add one more at the end.

1. They ignore job descriptions
2. They're eccentric
3. But they know when to dial it back
4. They publicly praise
5. And they privately complain
6. They speak when others won't
7. They like to prove others wrong
8. They're always fiddling

And I'll add one more . . .

    9.  They fit the values of the organization.  Not the fake values that some companies put up on the wall to impress customers or to "motivate" the staff, but the real values that are core to how the company operates.  (As I was writing this, out of the corner of my eye, I thought I saw Jim Collins, author of Built to Last.  Not in person, but on my other monitor where I had the Inc. article up.  When I looked, he was gone, which was kind of strange since it is his idea of Core Values that I'm referring to in number 9.  Turns out I wasn't seeing things, but rather Inc. has a rotator on their website of different Inc. covers, and he had rotated through.)

 

Check out the full article and details on each of the items here.

Nine Unusual High-Performance Traits

My good friend, mentor and coach, Dr. TC North has been writing columns for ColoradoBiz magazine for the past year. His columns consistently place in the top-five most popular columns and his latest one is the best yet.  TC writes about nine traits that he sees in high performance athletes and business leaders. 

1. Willingness to fail
2. Motivation driven by excitement not by fear
3. Obsessive focus
4. Respect
5. Alignment
6. Positive accountability
7. Shared values
8. No whining, complaining or excuses
9. Meet or exceed

Check out the article to see his take on these nine traits.  You can also subscribe to TC's newsletter where you'll get his weekly EnCourageMent email.  TC coaches elite athletes, top sales people and CEOs. He's been a great help to me and I recommend him highly.

Gold Systems is hiring

With just a couple of days left in 2011, I have to say I think that 2012 is going to be a great year.  At Gold Systems we have a new product, Vonetix 7 Voice, and business is really starting to take off.  We beat our sales goals for Q4 by a wide margin, and we're going into Q1 with a LOT of opportunity.  To say I'm thankful would be an understatement.  2011 was challenging and I'm hugely grateful to everyone who helped us end the year on an upswing.

Now we're looking for some great people to join our engineering group.  We're mainly looking for .NET and IVR people, but check out our job postings at the Gold Systems website and if it looks interesting, shoot us an email.

To all my friends and business associates - have a Happy New Year and I hope to see you in 2012!

Terry

Running a Marathon is NOT like running a business

Many years ago I got the idea that running a business was like running a marathon. Or better yet a series of marathons, with the occasional sprints as needed.  Well, last Sunday I ran my first marathon and I have to say it was EASY compared to running a business.

There are some similarities, and some really big differences and I've learned something about myself, which was the point of running the marathon in the first place.

Here are some of the similarities of running a marathon and running a business.

Both require a certain amount of preparation and planning before starting.  If you don't plan, you have a very high chance of failing to finish, and you'll likely be miserable from the very start.  There are a lot of people who have ran marathons in Boulder, and I talked to quite a few during my training so I didn't have any big surprises while running.  Thanks Herb, Brad, Jim, David and everyone else who encouraged me to do this.

When Jim and I started Gold Systems twenty years ago, I only knew a couple of entrepreneurs, so we made a lot of rookie mistakes that we could have avoided if I had known more entrepreneurs at the beginning.  If you are thinking about running a marathon or starting a business, find others who have done it who are willing to give you the important tips that you won't find or notice in the books. 

It helps to know what to expect.  It was easier to learn about what I was in for with the marathon than it was for the business.  Having people give you advice is great, but it also really helps to hear what it is going to feel like once you are in the race or working in the business.  For instance, I was not prepared to think about my business every waking moment, which I did for many years.  I had no idea it was going to be so consuming.  Had someone told me that it was normal early on, I think it would have been easier.  I've learned to give my brain a break, but the business is still there ready to jump to the forefront of my thoughts anytime day or night, but now I know it is normal. 

Have fun.  One of the best pieces of advice about the marathon was to "enjoy the run."  Whenever I started to feel bad, I reminded myself that this was supposed to be fun, and somehow that helped push the pain away.  Come to think of it, I'm finding that works in business too. In business some entrepreneurs seem to brag about how miserable they are, and how much they sacrifice for the business.   I've been that guy, but If you find you're having a lot more bad times than good times, it means something is probably wrong and an adjustment needs to be made.  I'm a much better leader when I'm having fun, and I'm a much better runner when I'm having fun. 

Pain is temporary.  Until last Sunday, I had never ran more than 20 miles, but I was confident that whatever pain and soreness I would have right after the race would be gone in a few days, and it was.  I've had more painful days while being an entrepreneur than I experienced with the marathon, but I still sometimes forget that the next day, the next week, the next month, it will be better.  I like to say that lessons will be repeated until learned, but hopefully the next time I have a painful day I can remember that I just need to get through it and then things will be better. 

Now for a couple of big differences between running a marathon and running a business.

Focus.  Phylis pointed out to me that to run a marathon, you pretty much just focus on finishing, but in business it can be very, very hard to focus.  In business I've come to terms with the idea that there are more things to do than there are hours in the day.  It's my job to figure out which things I should get done and which should get passed on to others, or simply left undone.  There are always more good ideas and opportunities to consider than time and resources allow, so I think it is much harder to focus in business than it is to just keep putting one foot in front of the other until the marathon finish line is crossed. 

The Finish Line.  Cindy pointed out that in business there is no finish line, or if there is, you don't usually know where it is.  That's an amusing thought to me.  Consider a race where everyone lines up not knowing how long the course is, or whether it will be hot or cold, hilly or flat.  Then somewhere along the way, someone yells, "finish line in 1 mile!" and everyone starts sprinting.  Then the runners hear, "just kidding, keep running."  In business I've seen entrepreneurs quit because they got tired of the race, or they thought that they somehow had entered the wrong race. 

So there you have it.  Running a business is a little like running a marathon, but running a business is in my opinion a lot harder and I think even more rewarding.  Stay focused, keep putting one foot in front of the other, be prepared to change when the race changes, and above all, enjoy the race as much as you can.  

 

Update 10-21-2011.  The marathon is done, I'm completely recovered and ready to go again.  I'm getting up early and jumping on the treadmill and I'm looking forward to the weekend for a long run outside.  Thanks to everyone for the comments!  Greg put a link to another post into his comment about running and entrepreneurship, and it is really worth checking out.  Here it is:  http://blog.finette.com/post/11370209405/never-walk-a-talk-about-entrepreneurship-and-running

 

Update 10-28-2011.  Soon after I posted this, I received a very nice email from Miguel Chang who lives in Taiwan and has a website called Sportsnote.com.  Miguel asked if he could translate my blog post into Chinese, and of course I was happy to have him do it.  Here is a link to this post at Sportsnote.com   Thank you Miguel!    

 

Carmin Turco is playing in Boulder Tuesday night

  

Carmin Turco is an entrepreneur, and I met him when TechStars selected him and his partner Sebastian Replanski as one of the very first companies that they brought to Boulder in 2007.  I soon learned that Carmin was also a musician, and a very good one at that, with tours and CDs in his background.  We became good friends and now he's making a quick trip through Boulder this week, and he's got a gig where you can hear him play.

Carmin will be playing at the Rock N Soul Cafe Tuesday August 16th at 7:30 PM.  The Rock N Soul is a nice little venue with lots of live music, located at 5290 Arapahoe in Boulder.

I'll be there, and I hope you can make it too. 

 

Using Microsoft UCMA in the post-PBX world

Continuing to guest blog for Tom Cross on http://crosstalk-techtionary.blogspot.com/, below is my second installment:

IVR Affordable Solutions Using UCMA - Affordable UCMA in the Post-PBX World Part 2

So what is UCMA and why should you care? According to Microsoft , it is "a managed-code platform that developers use to build applications that provide access to and control over Microsoft Enhanced Presence information, instant messaging, telephone and video calls, and audio/video conferencing."

Given that you are reading this newsletter, you might actually know what that means, but I'm going to try to make it just a little more clear for everyone else. UCMA is software, written by Microsoft, that other software developers use to create their own applications that interact with Lync in some way. Most software today is built on other pieces of software, provided by Microsoft or other vendors. We talked about reusable code for years, and now we have it.

UCMA stands for Unified Communications Managed API. It's one of those great acronyms that actually contains another acronym, in this case API, which stands for Application Programming Interface.

Let's say I want to write a simple help desk application. Maybe I have agents in different locations, but they all are using Lync, and I want to know if we ever get into a situation where there are fewer than five agents available to take a call. (Or an email, or IM, it doesn't really matter.) Using the UCMA API, I can write software that tells Lync that I want to know whenever an agent is available. The API is really just a way for my code to talk Microsoft's code. They worry about the mechanics of communicating with Lync, while I code up the business logic. I write code that keeps track of how many agents are available and how I want to notify a supervisor if we run out of agents. Microsoft's code handles everything else behind the scenes.

Just about anything that can be done by a user of Lync, can also be done by software using UCMA. Just as a user can make a phone call or an IM, so can my software application, courtesy of UCMA. Sometimes you'll hear people mention the UCMA SDK. That's just packaging around UCMA that makes it easy for a software engineer to access the API from their development environment.

UCMA isn't just for building simple applications; in fact it can be used to build completely new products. At Gold Systems, we've built the first UC-Enabled IVR that works with both Microsoft Tellme in the cloud as well as on premises with, or without, Microsoft Lync. UCMA includes a speech engine, a text-to-speech engine, as well as all the telephony capabilities we needed to build our product, Vonetix 7 Voice. For us, this means that we can sell a product that is much more capable than the legacy IVR products on the market today, and we can sell it at less than half the price because we do not need to pay expensive speech engine licenses to a third party.

For our customers, that means that they now have an IVR option that was designed to work with their Lync environment. For our customer's customers, it means we can create applications that are more "personable" and that are more satisfying to use than the traditional legacy IVR.

Other ISVs are exploring what can be done with UCMA too, and I believe that this will be what makes Lync successful. Microsoft will continue to build out the core product, and companies like Gold Systems will build around the edges creating new products that just can't be created with the old PBXs that I started my career working on.

Ultimately UCMA is about making Lync even more capable, more affordable and extending it in ways that fit the desires of the customers who buy it. Try calling up your PBX vendor and telling them you don't like the way they designed call routing. And not only that, but you want your own software developer to have access to their code so that you can just get in there and do it right. You can do that with Lync, thanks to UCMA.