How to design a logo – a beginners course

I’ve had the opportunity to review a course this week on how to design a logo, Now, this isn’t a course where you just get showed how to create one in Illustrator, its a course where you get taught the tools to use to how to think up, sketch and then create the logo. There is also a link there where the first 50 people get the course for 50% off.. Go check out the video attached for details.

Using the right tools for the job

No this may sound blatantly obvious but what you have to ask yourself first is “Do I know what the right tools for the job are?”.

I have found in the past that this second question has never been asked or answered and so people have ploughed ahead with tools, adding plug-in’s and trying to make the tool to be the right tool. Certainly some of the tools I work with at the moment in my day job are in this category having plug-in on plug-in. That’s not to say that this final resulting tool doesn’t do the job, though in most cases it is missing one or two things it can’t do; and a little research before probably would have pulled up a better solution (I know this for one as I have used other tools in other roles that did what they wanted – but I was too late to this role to alter).

But another example of this is when creating an online product. So, you want to create a tool that is a cloud based product. What do you use to code it? At this point you have the Java guys saying Java, ASP guys saying ASP.net, PHP people…. and so on. But which is right? I once went for a job interview where a product was written in ASP (old VB) and it worked well but the founder said to me “if I were to write it now I would do it in Java”.

So, moral.. Before you undertake any work independent on what it is; identify all the tools and choose the best one for the job and not just choose your favorite.

Personally I am in this scenario now – just learning myself some PHP code and maybe Ruby to see what best fits. As a side note, anyone that wants to get involved in some joint business thinking please let me know. We could start a hangout 🙂

If anyone wants to share their experiences of right or wrong tools then please leave a comment ..

How popular do you need to be to get Google to reverse decisions? Lets try an experiment

This is something I have wondered about for some time… Little history; about 2 years ago I started a website and had adsense on it. Idea was for on website and to use on my youtube channel http://www.youtube.com/user/netroman28 to get a little cash together for buying review items, give aways and all that stuff. Anyhow, someone decided to click bomb and that was the end of that; 2 months it was up.. O well.

So that the history; and tale is that Google around 99% of time won’t reinstate from what I have heard (and my attempt to get reinstated). If fact it seems like that have a automated system that says nope..

So, this brings me to my thought. I wander how big your youtube or blogger channel would have to be to get them to reinstate your adsense. I mean, currently I have around 642 subscribers on youtube although not all seem active. I have some good videos and some not so good etc. But at 642 they won’t listen. Would you need to have 6000 followers (I have seen mention of people loosing adsense at this level). What about 10000+? 60000? 100000? How many subscribers or blog followers would you need?

I know this won’t happen but I would love to try an experiment. I would love to be in a position to test out how many subscribers or followers it would take? At which point would google listen?

So, if you want to help me carry out this experiment (and potentially get me in a position to do some more give aways to everyone in community) the go and sub and retweet, reblog, re-video blog, or whatever. Lets us see how many people it requires.. This could be your opportunity to be heard by google – saying; hey.. listen to us you big company you…

Of course I know this probably won’t happen.. 😦  but I can live in hope of you few that will take this cause, feel like being part of this experiment and maybe get word out. It only takes a few to start…

You know what I love about Thursday’s…

Not a lot really. Their kind of like a tease for Friday I always thin. A day when you wake up and think last day of work week and the realize its not… That said, if doing my own thing then that may not be the case – but it is at the moment.

Its not for not trying on doing own thing; there are so many things out there. But that is the problem, like with blogs and blogging – working for yourself you have to get seen.. And until then its rely on you good old 9-5.. Anyhow, enough of these negative thoughts, you can tell its been one of those days but only 2 more hours to go then its home time.. Away from the issues and problems of work and out to the home iss..  🙂

Now, home life is not an issue that was a joke. Although give me 12 more weeks till our 2nd child born (got girl and moment and this one is a boy) and I may change that through for a while. We were just lucky that my daughter potty trained herself more or less (we kind of put down and she used for a while and then went to toilet) and although only 3.5 years old she has done away with pull ups (even at night). So cost of nappies only multiplied by one..

Actually; seeing this is one of my more rare blogs talking about myself; our daughter shocked and surprised myself and my wife yesterday. She loves writing on her chalk board with her current favorite being to write her name and mum and dad. and she has no problem counting up to around 15 although on a dot to do knows 20’s, 30’s and 40’s. And she has no problem with simple additions like 2+3, 1+2, etc.. So you will understand why this shocked us.

She wrote 100 on the board and said daddy thats one hundred. She then proceeded to write 200, 300 … 900 and say them all.. We were saying well done, where did you learn that from as we never taught you, etc.. Then she wrote 1000 and that’s one thousand.. erm, ok.. 2000, 3000.. etc..

To think about 2 weeks ago I was only explaining to here that 2 and 0 together made 20 (twenty) and same with 30, 40, etc..  didn’t reach hundreds and thousands.. So, daughter of mine.. when your a millionaire don’t forget daddy 🙂

So; tomorrow is Friday and we have nothing lined up this week (last week we were down on coast as it was my 42’nd birthday). But that’s good as it may give me time to finish off my new website venture of http://www.technologist-hosting.co.uk . I am using TheHostingTool but have an error in the client section I can’t figure – although has no problem setting up the accounts. O and I need to go find somewhere to place add for our http://www.tekheads-computing.co.uk and http://www.bracknellcomputerrepairs.co.uk which is another venture… Websites, repairs, hostings, etc.. surely something has got to pay off   😉

Anyhow, enough random for today.. Probably be 6 months to the next random blog.. but who knows.

Is that a fist I see down there??

Just one of those random thoughts of the day. I was standing eating my lunch and looked out of the office widnows (we’re 6 floors up). I looked down at the sign of the estate we’re on and thought .. that looks like a first?  Am I bonkers?? Well you tell me as here is picture of said sign :

OK could also be a thumbs up (is that a point for a G+ share)? Or a robotic hand clenched as one big finger? Anyhow, that is my random thought of the day; as you can tell my day is such an exciting one today…

O well, one quite break from my daily stand-up presentation I am writing – how I can improve my scrum team as their stand-ups lack conviction..

Think I will have to start taking more photo’s for this blog and other sites as so much fun stuff around these days – it seems that people are having fun with their signs. Do you have a fun one to mention? Leave a comment about any funny sign you have seen…

When starting out you need multiple business opportunities

Many years ago now I said “I want my own business”. Infact; when I was about 21 I applied to the Princes Trust here in the UK and went along for an interview. What came out of that meeting was that I needed to put together a business model, plan, etc and that they helped with that – giving the info an knowledge.

As it was the idea I had, although was good at the time, would have not worked long term – especially with the Internet; but was my first delve into this idea.

What did come out of that through thinking about the idea was my realization that you need to have more than one business. Why so you may ask… Well, not all but many businesses are seasonal – lets take holiday lets for example.. During the winter there would be a considerable reduction in the bookings (although many hotels in UK fine). This can be seen in places such as Ayia Napa in Cyprus where most of the town shuts down (certainly the hotels I tried to book) from around November to February.

So, getting back to at hand.. Many businesses are seasonal. So if we take this as a fact we know that at certain times of the year we would not be making any money… bad bad bad. However, if we had, say, a second seasonal business THAT had its peak season during the slump in the other business season then we have money flow.

Now this could be expanded to do 4 or 5 (I always imagined 5 businesses myself) businesses depending on the seasonality of your ideas but you can get the idea. 

Now; when your business is large and having a great cashflow then having multiple businesses is not manageable so we’re talking starting out or small businesses in this mail. However, if you have a large business that is self contained and being managed by say .. a manager   then you as an individual may want that challenge of starting a second.

I am following my own advice to this end. Having recently started up TechnologistPR I have now also started up Technologist-Consultancy (although website is currently pending as only just registered – so currently going there won’t display anything).

So, as currently waiting for backlinks I have put in for TechnologistPR to become active I get to work on my second idea (and something I can honestly say I have a great experience in). Is this the end? Nope, there are more I have in my head but 2 at a time…

So, I refer you back to the title. If you want to start a business then do so; but at the same time think if there is any seasonality to it and if so start two.