Posts related to people category

My Abstract Timeline

Vinay Patankar · 30 Jun, 2010 · People

#### Below is a little about my abstract life to date: At age 0 I... - Was born in Sydney, Australia At age 6 I... - Went to a boarding school in India at the base of the Himalayas At age 12 I... - Was taken around the world by my parents (thanks!) giving me the travel bug. Visited: USA, Canada, England, Scotland, France, Portugal, Singapore, Switzerland, Austria, Italy and India At age 13 I... - Got my first job (pamphlet delivery) - Started my first business (buying bulk candy from the supermarket in the morning and re-selling it at school) At age 14 I... - Was ‘recommended’ by my principal that I should leave school, half way through year 9 due to constant mischief and rebellious acts against authority - Got a job at the Pizza Hut Call Centre (I was too young to legally work but lied about my age) At age 15 I... - Went to TAFE (a community college of sorts) and completed my year 10 in 4 months - Worked in Data Entry, Desktop Support and whatever else I could find At age 16 I... - Became the youngest Australian to get their CCNA (Cisco Certified Network Associate) - Also became a Microsoft Certified Professional - Got my first real job in IT - Travelled to Hong Kong and Japan At age 17 I... - Returned to TAFE to complete my High School Certificate (HSC) At age 18 I: - Lost my job in IT as my company closed down - Worked in a bar, cafe and restaurant - Executed my first stock trade At age 19 I... - Graduated from TAFE with my HSC and a mark of 94.95 - Was accepted into a Bachelor of Commerce at Sydney University (top business degree in Australia) - Got a job as an Undergraduate Accountant in a Finance Company - Got a job as a part-time Mortgage Broker - Got a job as a part-time High School Tutor At age 21 I... - Quit my 3 part-time jobs - Got a full-time job as an IT Recruitment Consultant in a Public Firm, youngest consultant ever employed. - Switched to part-time Uni At age 23 I... - Made $140,000 for the financial year - Purchased my first property - Dropped out of University - Travelled to Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam At age 24 I... - Quit my job as a Recruitment Consultant - Set off to travel the world: Asia, North America, Europe and counting... - Started an e-commerce business - Started affiliate marketing - Started this blog At age 25 I... - Continued to travel... Mostly Canada and USA - Learned to Snowboard - Attended numerous conferences in the Internet Marketing Space - Grew my Internet Marketing Company - Sold my E-commerce Store At age 26 I... - Lived in the Dominican Republic for 8 months, learned to surf - Built my internet marketing company significantly revenues, profit, staff - Started Vitoto - Also traveled to the US, Thailand and Australia At age 27 I... - Moved to San Francisco to work on Vitoto where I currently am Well, that's all so far... Feel free to contact me regarding anything I have done or if you are doing something similar and want to network. I am always open! If this People topic resonated, continue with Abstract Education: The Khan Academy.

What Drives People? Money? Passion? Purpose?

Vinay Patankar · 16 Jun, 2010 · People

Great speech from Dan Pink on what drives people. Click here if you cant see the video. ## Dan Pink - Drive ## Takeaways: \- Money is a great driver for repetitive quantifiable activities - Money is not the best driver for creativity - People are more inclined to do things because of purpose, mastery and a sense of contribution It’s interesting to see how many of the successful companies like Google have integrated this work philosophy into their cultures. A strong follow-up in People is The Definitive Guide to LinkedIn Recommendations.

Working while Travelling: Distractions and the Zone

Vinay Patankar · 12 May, 2010 · People

I’m on the train out of Edinburgh, a very impressive city to say the least. The medieval town is blessed with exceptional geography making it the perfect location for a castle and line of defence. The history is deep and the streets so charming you can wander for hours and not get bored. I leave this historical town after an interesting morning, very relevant to my personality type which according to the Myers Briggs Type Indicator is ENTP. For those that don’t know, Myers Briggs is the oldest and most used personality type classification index available today. It was developed in WW2 and is used by the military, banks and universities to help determine if people are the right fit for certain tasks and positions. ENTP is the strategist personality type. One interesting characteristic of my personality type is we are innately disorganised. It’s not that we can’t be organised when needed, it’s just we tend to not be bothered. Instead of spending time organising stuff, we’d prefer to spend it doing stuff. We also have the ability to ignore mess. If something is messy but not directly affecting the task we’re trying to achieve, it won’t affect us emotionally. We don’t notice messy papers lying around our desk but if someone were to come with a bucket of tar and throw it all over our desk and chair that would affect us. When some travel, they travel on a strict itinerary – every stop booked, every sight planned and guide book in hand as they power through their destination of choice. I kinda do the opposite. Take today for example. I checked out of my hostel at 10am, spent two hours deciding where to go then jumped on a train at 13:06. I missed the bus to London due to a Windows 7 update so decided on Whitby – the home of Captain James Cook (the guy who found Australia). I felt like going somewhere that wasn’t so commercial and a little off the beaten path. I also wanted somewhere I could get some work done. Working while travelling is seriously hard, it’s hard for a number of reasons but I find the most difficult part is switching your mind between work and play. Everyone is having a good time talking about their adventures it’s difficult to get into the mindset of work. I think you’d be hard pressed to find a ‘digital nomad’ who is just as efficient on the move as when stationary. One of the downfalls of my ENTP personality type is I tend to get wrapped up in having fun. This leads to lots of fun and good times for all but also means some stupid shit happening from time to time, a pushing aside of other responsibilities and inevitable spending a little more cash. Like yesterday I was supposed to go on a highlands tour at 8am to see the Lochness and Scottish Highlands. I had my alarm set for 7am like a good boy, but after finding myself on a pub crawl, ending with me crawling back into bed at 5am, it didn’t happen... I had an awesome night probably more fun than I would have had on the tour but I lost my deposit and missed out on the experience of the highlands. This comes back to the working while travelling. It’s not that it’s hard to find a cafe and do some work. It’s hard to get into the mindset of “ok, its work time”. When travelling you find yourself with a few hours here or there. Yes you could pump out the work needed in those little breaks, but with constant interferences getting in the headspace to work is hard. There is a lot of talk going around the productivity blogsphere about single tasking, removing interferences and total immersion. These topics focus on how you are more efficient when focused on a single task without disruptions. The concept is if you are working on something, say writing and you get distracted from your task, it takes your mind about 15 minutes to get back into that state of focus. This is why multi-tasking is not advised. This happens if your wife knocks on the door and asks you what you want for dinner, an email pops up which you decide to reply to or you go on a pub crawl. Travel is full of distractions like this making it much harder to get into a zone of work. Even if you find yourself with a few hours free here or there. This is where I am jealous of the J’s (the polarity to P on the Myers Briggs). They have everything so ordered and planned. They will plan when things are going to happen and will be mentally prepared to execute them when the time comes. They may miss out on 5am Edinburgh benders and trip changes due to Windows 7 updates, but they probably get more work done and save money in the process. One of the key elements for me being productive is controlling my environment. Your environment can help to influence emotional state. And creating a productive, single task minded state (let’s call it a zone) will result in high levels of productivity. It also helps you to eliminate distractions and focus on a single task. There are 3 elements important to creating a productive zone: Physical Location: Put yourself in a location that is conducive to productivity. If you work in sales, working in a sales office with energy around you will help. Internet marketers: A quiet room with access to your computers. Fiction writer: maybe a writer’s cottage in Greece or the Elephant Cafe in Edinburgh (Harry Potter fans?). Physical Distractions: Set yourself a work schedule and let your distractions know about it. Tell the people in your life that this is your work time and you need it free and free means free. Let them know that a 2 minute disturbance equals more than that in lost productivity. Turn off your internet (or at least disable email if you need the net) for periods of creativity. Emotional Distractions: These are harder to control. If you could control these on tap, you wouldn’t need the other two above. A simple method to help control emotional distractions is to schedule them for later. Having a fight with a loved one? Got bills you need to sort through? Annoying neighbour keeps throwing rubbish in your yard? Make an entry into your calendar for things like this you need to do. Even an entry that says “emotional distractions” is enough. This helps if you find yourself thinking about them while trying to work. Instead you can say – its fine, I will think about it tomorrow at 10am in my allotted time. These are some basic tips to help keep you in a zone of productivity and manage any distractions that life my throw at you. I’m on my way to create myself a little zone for a few days. I hope you find yours. For another People angle, read A Simple Tip for Socialising while Travelling Solo (or How to Have Mind Blowing Nights Out when you’re on your Own).

Vinay Patankar

Vinay Patankar · 10 May, 2010 · People

Vinay Patankar is the founder of Process Street, and the author of Abstract Living. You can find out more about Process Street by visiting You can connect with Vinay Patankar on: Twitter or LinkedIn Related read in People: My Abstract Timeline.

The Currency of Social Value

Vinay Patankar · 25 Apr, 2010 · People

When we say the word currency most think of money, foreign exchange, ice grills or the $ sign in Ke$ha’s name. But currency is simply a medium of exchange. Coins, notes and plastic are just one form. Time, mobility and authority are a few other forms of currency. But today I want to talk about a currency called social value. Social value is an interesting concept – most people know it exists but few have quantified or qualified it. Social value is what gets you into a night club, it’s what lets you dodge a ticket with the police, it’s what attracts a large crowd to your party and it’s what gets you the girl. Social value is not only useful in social situations it also helps greatly in the world of business. ### What is Social Value? Social value can come in many forms and different people will value different forms. Below are a few: #### Offering Positive Emotions by Being: - Fun - Interesting - Engaging - Exciting - A good listener - Empathetic #### Offering Physical Stimulation by Having: - Contacts - Knowledge of interesting places - Knowledge of interesting activities #### Offering Vicarious Status Through: - Fame - Power - Education - Good looks - Belonging to a certain ‘class’ By now you probably agree that at least a few of these can bring influence at some level. But notice none of them are material? No yachts, platinum credit cards or diamond rings – things associated with the currency of money. ### So what do you do with social value? Social value can be traded like any other currency. It can be traded for different forms of social value, for time, money, authority etc... #### Examples: If you have certain contacts that can get you into a cool party, you could ‘trade’ access to that party for the time of someone who brings interest and humour to the night. Or if you have fame or power, you could trade that for time by having others complete menial tasks in exchange for ‘being in your presence’. ### How does that Help in Business? Social value is too big of a topic to break down in a single post but here are two examples of business use. #### Situation 1: You want someone’s time If you want someone’s time (a form of currency), you will need some form of currency to trade. Of course you could forcefully ‘take’ someone’s time by cornering them in a meeting room and chewing their ear off, but more than likely this won’t end productively. Money will work if you want to buy something and they are providing a good or service. Authority will also work but only with people who report into to you. But what if you are trying to sell something, gain advice or want free media exposure? Offering social value may be your only option. If you can display to the person you will be funny, interesting and a good listener who will implement the advice given - chances of booking that meeting are higher. #### Situation 2: You want someone’s money I want you to think like a middle manager in a Fortune 500 company. You have a $1 million pa budget, small change for a fortune 500. With your budget you need to purchase goods, say software and office supplies. Both software and office supplies can be obtained through many resellers, all selling the exact same product for very similar if not identical prices. So why would you choose one supplier over another? You’re not even spending your own money. The answer is: whoever gives the most social value The salesman who takes you out for drinks and shows you a good time. Who brings you to events and introduces you to new, useful contacts. The salesman who makes you laugh or always has the latest on your favourite sports team. That’s who you’ll buy from. ### So what do I do Now? Social value is something you should always have in mind. Are you taking more from an interaction than you’re giving? If so, you may be pissing someone off. If you call someone to ask for help understand you’re taking a currency off them (time) and be sure to try and give some form of currency back, either now or in the future. This will ensure a healthy relationship. ### What about Friends? Glad you asked. The currency ‘exchange’ changes greatly with close friends. Through spending time with someone and building shared experiences the exchange starts happening over longer periods of time, years instead of minutes. This is a good thing don’t worry. Please don’t stop doing favours for your friends because it’s not a fair trade. That being said, it’s still something to keep in mind. Large inequalities in currency exchange have been the downfall of many relationships. ### Pay it Forward I learned this term the other day from reading Colin Wrights book: Networking Awesomely. Paying it forward is offering value without seeking value in return. If you’re always out giving any form of value (including social), chances are you will receive some back somehow somewhere. Colin goes into depth on this subject talking about how to give value without seeking return but at the same time not being taken advantage of. This was a brief overview of social value. Social value is used in every relationship from romantic, family, friends & business. It’s used everyday by everybody. It’s not something that one should try and manipulate but understating its value (!) and being aware of how you interact with the world may come in useful down the line. Have you experienced the value of social value? ### Share! A strong follow-up in People is The Changing Social Fabric.

Networking Awesomely Review

Vinay Patankar · 22 Apr, 2010 · People

The other day I read a book by Colin Wright called Networking Awesomely. Colin lives a truly abstract lifestyle as a location independent professional, moving to a new country every 4 months as he runs his design studio remotely. The country he moves to is decided by the readers on his blog Exile Lifestyle. In this book, Colin talks about the lessons he has learned about networking and meeting new people as he travels the world. ### Review Networking Awesomely is a guide to networking in the new world. It encompasses old school networking strategies, new school technology and a touch of awesomeness. A book perfect for both newcomers and veterans alike Colin philosophises, deconstructs and simplifies networking from every angle. A strong message to rethink the boundaries between your lifestyle, friends, business colleagues and even sexual partners – this is a book not just on networking but on life. For the more experienced you will receive at the very least a number of handy tips to network in common (and some uncommon) situations plus a refresher on many of the important life lessons once learned. Colin incorporates lifestyle design, social dynamics, the concept of value, frames of reference and more to help build confidence, attractiveness and social skills – turning you into a natural networking machine. But don’t let the big words scare you as Networking Awesomely simplifies the lot making it an easy read for all. With stories, humour and a cheeky attitude it will be tough to put this down once you start. This book wont leave you dreaming about what could be either. Colin delivers many “do it now” tips including advice on fashion, social networking shortcuts, email scripts and business card design to get you networking awesomely right away. Another interesting aspect to the book is the input from other bloggers. Not only is this empirical evidence of Colin’s ability to network but gives extra spice to the material. You will hear from many new world networkers about their approach, thoughts and successes from networking. We all (should) know networking delivers exceptional value in all areas of life. A small investment to improve this skill is a no-brainer. It only takes one person to change your life. Buy it now! You can check out the book here. For another People angle, read Blogworld 2010 #bwe - My Review.

Overcoming Failure, Adversity & your Parents by Harry Potter Author

Vinay Patankar · 15 Apr, 2010 · People

### Takeaways: - You don't have to let your parents influence your direction in life "There is an expiration date on how long you can blame your parents for pushing you in the wrong direction" - Failure is OK - Think about all the positives in your life - The value of learning from your failures and experience against the value of learning from school - A reminder on how lucky we are to live in a democratic society - The importance of giving back ### Watch Video J.K. Rowling Speaks at Harvard Commencement from Harvard Magazine. For another People angle, read The Importance of Decisions (How a Single Decision Changed my Life).

The Definitive Guide to LinkedIn Recommendations

Vinay Patankar · 04 Mar, 2010 · People · Technology

LinkedIn is the biggest business social network in the world. It allows you to post up a snapshot of your career and connect with relevant professionals plus a whole bunch of other cool stuff. If you don’t have an account, you should get one today. There are many different ways LinkedIn can be used to further your business or career. This post focuses on recommendations. ### What are LinkedIn Recommendations? LinkedIn has a recommendation system that allows someone to send you a recommendation and have it displayed on your profile to the public world. This system is great and can be used in the same manner as either a reference check or a testimonial only better. The reason this system is better than traditional testimonials plastered over your website or a letter from a former boss is the reference is connected to that person’s profile. So whoever is interested in your recommendations can track them back instantly and see who recommended you and how respectable they are. Another great thing about LinkedIn recommendations (as with other benefits of LinkedIn) is that they will last your whole life. A little work now will go a long way later. ### What about Fake Recommendations? When I talk to people about LinkedIn recommendations, a constant response I get is “don’t people just make them up or get their buddies to recommend them? How valuable are they really?”. To this I answer, “yes, they probably do”. Here’s the catch. The recommendation system of LinkedIn reconciles itself. If I recommend you, it is displayed on my profile that I recommended you. If I’m trying to build my personal brand and you’re a total douche bag, I’m not going to recommend you. Yes, some people may get recommendations that are illegitimate, but you can usually sus them out. Here are some situations that may raise suspicion: \- 5 people in similar positions, all recommended by the other 4. \- Recommendations from people with inactive or incomplete profiles. \- All recommendations on the same or close dates If you have recommendations from over 20 people, most who work in respectable jobs and who have something to loose from a negative personal brand, chances are they are going to be legitimate recommendations. Even if all those 20 people are your friends, you still must be a decent person to have 20 respectable people like you enough as friends to recommend you. And in that alone I believe there is merit. Now if you can get recommendations from super valuable people, even better. How do you think traceable recommendations from Warren Buffet, Bill Gates and Donald Trump would look? P.S. If anybody knows them, tell them to hit me up! ### How do I Get People to Recommend Me? There are two key ways I have gotten recommendations. The first, is basically working with the buddy system I talked about above. These are people I had a good working relationship with at some point and asked them if we could swap recommendations. I knew I was good at my job, I also knew they were good at theirs so it was mutually beneficial to swap recommendations. A cheeky message of “write me a recommendation and ill write you one back” is easy to do and is win-win. But remember, you’re putting your personal brand on the line, so don’t ask people who you genuinely don’t think are good at whatever they do. The second way, and the more effective way is to ask someone for a recommendation as soon as you deliver some sort of value to them. For example, if you are a designer or freelancer and you deliver a good project to a client and they are happy with it, ask them for a recommendation. Make sure you do this straight after you deliver the work as it will still be fresh in their mind. For me, I was a head-hunter, so every time I placed someone in a job or found a client their perfect candidate, I would ask for a recommendation. You won’t get them every time you ask, but if you have done a good job, and they are happy, it’s not a big favour to ask. ### Here is the structure I use to build my connections and ask for recommendations. When I first interacted with someone new for work, whether on the phone, in person or via email I would send them an invitation to connect on LinkedIn. (Quick tip: you can send a message to someone with a free account by sending them an invitation with a short note attached. This saves you from having to pay to upgrade your account to send ‘inmails’ to people who you are not connected with) “Hi xxx It was great meeting you / speaking with you today. I would like to add you to my professional network on LinkedIn. Look forward to working with you in the future. Regards, Vinay” Keep it simple, and non-specific. But making sure you have everyone you’re working with on your network, the ones you do add value to are already there so asking for the recommendation down the line easier. Once you have delivered value of some sort, bring up a recommendation in a meeting. Here is an example of a conversation I’ve had after delivering value: XYZ: Vinay, I just want to say thanks for finding me this job. It’s working out really well. Me: No problems, XYZ, glad to hear you’re happy there. I want you to make sure you call me if there are any problems or if there is anything I can do to help. XYZ: Ok no problems, I will talk to you soon. Me: Oh, XYZ, there is one thing I thought of just before you go XYZ: Oh what’s that? Me: Well... I’ve done a pretty good job helping you out right? XYZ: Yes of course! Me: Well I was wondering if you could do me a small favour. It will only take a few minutes. XYZ: Sure Me: I was wondering if you could write me a recommendation on LinkedIn. We are already connected and it would really mean a lot. XYZ: Sure Vinay, no problems. Give me a few days and I will send one out. Give them 1-2 days to write the recommendation. If they haven’t done it after 2 days, go into your LinkedIn account, into recommendations and send them a “request for recommendation” message. A default template will come up, just use that. If they still don’t do it after a few days, you will need to use your judgement to decide how much you will chase them. If they are a super busy important high value person, probably best to give them a significant amount of time. Like I said, use your judgement. The “request for recommendation” message will stay highlighted in their account until they action it. I have had recommendations come through months after I sent the message, so it really is a case by case basis. ### So I have recommendations, now what? Recommendations are the most powerful tool LinkedIn has to offer if you chose to use your profile for sales pitches or as your central web profile. One you have obtained recommendations from respectable people, your profile becomes a powerful tool to give people a positive first impression of you. This is useful for job interviews, sales pitches basically any-time you meet a stranger you want to get something out of. As an example, I recently applied and was accepted to attend TEDxBKK. Unfortunately I couldn’t attend due to a last minute schedule change, but in the application process they asked for an online profile that would teach them something more about me. This was before I had my blog up and running so I used my LinkedIn profile. I’m almost certain this is what got me the invite to the oversubscribed event. So what are you waiting for? Recommend me for my recommendation to get recommendations! For another People angle, read Why LinkedIn is Awesome and you Need an Account Today!.

D-Day: The DTR Talk (Determine the Relationship)

Vinay Patankar · 17 Jan, 2010 · People

Being the typical, young, male, commitment-phobe I am, I’ve had a few of these conversations. Some went better than others. All were uncomfortable. If I only knew... Firstly I want to highlight I am no love doctor or dating coach, but relationships are an important factor of lifestyle design. More so for the location independent worker or globetrotter, as many people you meet won’t have your level of flexibility. ## New Love Ahh, new love, is there anything more exciting? The first few days, weeks or months after a chance encounter leads to meeting someone new and exciting. The first eye-gaze, the first joke, the first kiss, the first time you \[adult reference\]. Days filled with flirty text messages, stories, teasing and laughter. In the office it’s easy to spot. Cheeky grins and chuckles while typing an ‘important email’ - definitive signs of a flirty conversation. These days or weeks can become some of your fondest memories until... ## D-Day D-Day: the day of the Determine the Relationship (DTR) conversation. This is the talk where your potential partner drops a question like “what’s happening between us?”, “where this is going?” or “my friends have been asking me about my relationship status on Facebook?”. You know it’s coming, but you never know just quite when, where or how. Sometimes it’ll be as obvious as a smack in the face, sometimes as subtle as... something really subtle. Typically face-to-face, occasionally on the phone - I’ve even had one over txt (gen-y in action) but it is bound to come. Depending on how things are going so far and your situation in life, this conversation can be a huge weight off your chest or the uncomfortable moment you’ve been dreading. Either way, it’s an inevitable and important talk that will set foundations for the relationship and should not be overlooked. ## Strategy Every relationship is different. People need to look inside at what they feel and outside at their circumstance before making a decision, but there are a few things you can do to make things smoother. 1. Be Prepared. It’s going to happen sooner or later. Just knowing its coming will stop you being caught off guard. 2. Control the environment. Don’t let an argument or a fight spark the conversation. Try to avoid having it in public or when you might be interrupted (like in the morning before work). If the environment isn’t right, move it. Tell them you understand this is an important conversation but you don’t feel this is the right time and place. Set a new time and place, somewhere you won’t be distracted. 3. Be honest. Relationships are tricky. Sometimes you just don’t know. And deciding if you want to commit to someone is a massive decision. So if you don’t know where your head or your heart is, be honest. Talk through what you like and don’t like about the relationship. Talk through your life situation and the things that may be holding you back. If you’re not sure, say so. It’s unfair on the other person to be vague or deceptive because you need more time to figure things out. 4. Accept the outcome. Usually this conversation will finish with 1 of 3 outcomes. Either you move forward with your relationship, you continue as things are to reassess in the future or you part ways to look for greener pastures. Whatever the case, be mature and accept the outcome. Don’t have a hissy fit if it doesn’t work out like your dreams (her offering a no strings attached relationship and all her friends are invited / him proposing while doing the dishes and calling your mum). 5. Understand the outcome can change. Remember, whatever happens, you can usually change it. Sometimes, losing someone is the only way you realise how much you care for them (or how much they annoy you). Ever had a weird, funny or scary DTR talk? A strong follow-up in People is The Definitive Guide to LinkedIn Recommendations.