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Sleepless – a Rock Musical
In December of 2012 I wrote my first rock musical based on a compilation of songs on Spotify at that time. This is my 2nd rock musical, which like the first jukebox takes place over a period of 24 hours (here’s the Spotify link to listen):

[Act I]
1. Sleepless by Cazzette – The scene begins on the dancefloor right after the woman the he’s been dating has decided she needs more space. He’s forced to spend the night on her floor remembering when she used to sleep next to him.
2. All the Way by Time Flies – In the morning he wakes up and decides he’ll be alright and she’ll come back to him someday, but resolves that next time he loves someone, he’ll love them all the way.
3. The Man by Aloe Blacc – Before he leaves she offers to keep it a secret on Facebook for a while, but he tells her she can tell everybody because he’s “the man”, which he begins singing into the streets.
4. Summer by Calvin Harris – Once away from her his heart turns to lament as he remembers the first time he met her, last summer. Then he remembers the lies she told and how she acts so innocent now.
5. Can’t Hold Us by Macklemore – After running into his friend who convinces him to go out with him. His friend tells him, “This is the moment and tonight is the night. Learn from that failure, gain humility and keep marching”.
6. All of Me by John Legend – That night he meets a girl with a smart mouth and a beautiful mind. He can’t figure her out, but he sticks with her through her range in mood swings and decides to give her all of him, but she doesn’t know this yet.
7. Fallingforyou by The 1975 – The night is ending and she begins singing to him, “If you don’t want me around…” while secretly singing, “I think I’m falling, I’m falling for you,” and then he says, “I don’t want to be your friend.”
[Act II]
1. Midnight City by M83 – Together they are waiting for a car to come pick them up and while they wait, they look out over the city’s skyline. “The city is my church,” she says as she stares at the neon signs and sparkling twilight.
2. Kids by MGMT – Off in the distance a car’s horn begins to honk. It’s his older brother. He stops, opens the door, the music is blaring. He recollects to her what it was like for them growing up and urges him to, “Control yourself.”
3. Shake it Off by Taylor Swift – Before they get to her house, she urges him to “shake it off” saying that people always think the worst of her. She shares how her ex-boyfriend came around with his new girlfriend, but quickly stops.
4. Burn the Pages by Sia – He quickly realizes he may be moving too fast and as they reach her house to drop him off, she stops him and lets him know that, “Don’t worry, I’m here by your side. Yesterday is gone and you will be okay.”
5. Riptide by Vance Joy – “Lady, I wanna be your left hand man. I love you when you’re singing that song and I got a lump in my throat, ’cause you’re singing the words wrong. I just wanna to know if you’re gonna stay.”
6. Rather Be by Clean Bandit – “If you gave me a chance I would take it. It’s a shot in the dark but I’ll make it. Know with all of your heart, you can’t shake me. When I am with you, there’s no place I’d rather be.”
7. Welcome to the Black Parade by My Chemical Romance – He grabs her hand and as they walk together he begins telling her a story about how when he was a young boy his father took him into the city. He said:
“Son when you grow up, would you be the saviour of the broken, the beaten and the damned? Will you defeat them, your demons, and all the non-believers, the plans that they have made? Because one day I’ll leave you, a phantom to lead you in the summer, to join The Black Parade.”

Then he turns to her and says, “I’m just a man, I’m not a hero. Just a boy, who had to sing this song.”
May 17, 2014
What Do You Want?
Do you ever feel like you don’t have enough time or money to accomplish your goals? It’s something I hear a lot from the business owners I consult with. It typically goes something like this:

I’d like more sales, but I don’t have the time or money required to acquire new customers.

The first two questions I normally ask in response is:
1. If you had more sales, would your current processes be able to handle the work load?
2. Is there anything you can stop doing or pause temporarily to give you margins in time or money?
Intention Sets Direction

Not being about to “see the forest for the tree” is a very real phenomenon and it’s how outside mentors, coaches, and consultants can offer real value to business owners who seek out their services, but they have to want to change.

Take a moment to think back on the choices you’ve made in your life. Was there ever a time that you really wanted something? I’d venture to bet that you actually achieved it. Things you want you usually end up getting over time.

Conversely, has there ever been anything someone has told you you should be doing, but you didn’t really want to do? There’s a high chance that you never ended up doing it or never did it very well.

Limiting Beliefs

Unfortunately, the problems usually have nothing to do with the ability to make time or spend money, but in the mindset of the business owner and the perception of his or her own business operations.

Many times the way the business owner thinks about themselves or their business is the very thing blocking the business from achieving it’s stated goals. They are literally “their own worst enemy.”

It’s hard for some people to understand that their business problems may be emotional, but that doesn’t mean it’s not true. So what can a business owner do when they feel overwhelmed, stuck, or worse: self-sabotaging?
- Ask what fears, doubts, and negative beliefs are they holding onto that they can release
- State the worst case scenario; will anyone die? get dismembered?
- Who to forgive? Others? Yourself?
- What thoughts are they thinking? Are they useful?
- What to stop, start, or change
It could be that what the business owner really wants is a counselor to listen to their problems and that they have no intention of changing anything about their business. It’s important that they realize that, too.

One way to define success is “where you are right now”. There is a tendency to always want to grow, but if you are already busy, then ask yourself why you want more. More money or time to do more may not be what you actually want.
May 17, 2014
Silver Beach

It was unusual for only two of us to be at the lodge at any one time, and strictly speaking, it was not allowed, but that’s the predicament Denise and I found ourselves in that weekend.

The year was 1999 and gas was high at $2 a gallon. We were both working at Michiana Christian Summer camp and while I lived there full time, she was only there during the day.

I worked in maintenance, which meant that I not only had to clean the cafeteria/gym and bathrooms 3 times a day, I had to fix whatever broke, and do all of the landscaping work.

Denise worked in the office on a computer. It was air conditioned. I would see her when I went into the office to take out the trash and vacuum the carpet. She was always nice to see.

We would all eat together in the staff area of the cafeteria. Some days I’d pour my water on her head just for fun. It was fun. At night she’d run the concession stand near the pool.

That Saturday morning I asked her if she wanted to go to the beach. To my surprise, she said, “Yes”. We drove up from Niles to St. Joseph, Michigan where US 31 ends, and Lake Michigan begins.

There was a bend in the road near Berrien Spring where Denise made a cross sign on her chest as we passed. Her friend had died there the year before. She wanted to stop to test drive a new vehicle.

I helped her look at the SUV she had been eyeing and then we continued on to Silver Beach. When we got there I realized I didn’t have any swimming trunks so we went to a shop there on the beach.

I picked out a green pair of swimming trunks and asked Denise what she thought. She didn’t care. I asked her if she was going to swim. She was not. She sat on the beach while I plunged into the water.

On the way back to the car a train came. I asked her if I ran to get on the train if she would go with me. She said she would. I didn’t run.

We stopped at McDonalds on the way back to camp, but she wouldn’t let me buy her lunch. “It wasn’t a date,” she said. And I knew that.

May 16, 2014
Microsoft SQL Primary Keys

I’m in the process of learning SQL and in so doing have started learning Microsoft SQL using Microsoft’s SQL Management Studio. It’s a free program that’s used to open, manage, and edit Microsoft SQL databases stored on a server running Microsoft SQL (quick note: SQL is a database language used to store data in tables that can be accessed from programs or websites).

When you first load the program (I’m running SQL Server 2005, which is not free), if you haven’t already opened a database, it will prompt you to connect to one. If or once connected to a database, it will appear in the left menu.

The places you’ll be working in the most are under the “Database” folder: Tables, Views, and Programmability > Stored Procedures. For this post I will be focusing on Tables and specifically, creating Primary Keys.

Table Best Practices

To create a table, right-click on the Tables folder and select “New Table”. SQL will automatically append a “.dbo” to the front of the table name, but to keep things clear later on, add your own “tbl” or something similar to the beginning of a table name.

Once you have created a table, create a new column to use as a primary key, then change the type to INT for integer. This will create a way to identify rows that are unique to the table, which allows all sorts of other functions to work correctly later on.

May 16, 2014
Business Thinker and Rational Architect

I just took a new career finder test at Shobia after reading about it on Hacker News. I had my wife take it first as a control. She got “Business Interactor”, which means she may, “like interacting with other people, especially when it is in a professional work setting like in a company,” and she probably wants, “a job where you’re talking to people in order to make things happen. You might enjoy being a business development associate or political campaign manager.”

When I took it I got, “Business Thinker,” which means I, “like work dealing with companies and financial topics that involve thinking and coming up with ideas. You want to deal with questions like how a company can become more efficient. Careers you might enjoy include business consulting or being a corporate attorney.” Well they were almost right. They asked for feedback so I told them, “I wouldn’t like to be a corporate attorney”.

Back in January I took the DiSC Personality Profile. The feedback it gave was very long, but in short, I’m an “SC” (Submission and Compliance), which means I’m analytical, systematic, even-tempered, and patient. I “show steadiness and consistency, and I tend to be conscientious and reliable. Overall I probably want to be known as someone people can count on. Compared to others, I have more patience for routine projects. Most likely, I plan ahead, allowing enough time to complete my responsibilities at the pace I prefer.”

That’s also true. Nice job, tests! Ready for one more? Back in 2010 I took the Keirsey Temperament Sorter and found I was an ENTJ (The Executive), but after taking it today I found I was a INTP (Rational Architect – I’ve always wanted to be an architect!). The primary difference between the two is the movement from thinking “extroverted” to thinking “introverted” and from “judging” to “perceiving”. If this interests you, see my other online career tests and what I found out about myself.

May 11, 2014
The Content Carousel

What’s the hook gonna be?

When I was in college I used to wish I could be the guy who made up the headlines for the local newspaper. I had no idea how much it paid, but I was sure that everyone at the newspaper wanted that job and it was incredibly hard to get. Little did I know that within a few years everyone would be running their own “newspapers” via their blogs, social networks, and podcasts – all of which require writing great headlines.

While Copyblogger says to always write the headline first, I find that when I’m writing the post, I don’t always know what it’s going to be about until I’m done. However, when I’m asking other people to write posts for me, I write the title first so they write about what I want them to. For this post I just copied and pasted a title I had used for the subject of an email (which is another area where the right “headline” matters a lot).

Email as a marketing tool

Email is one of the newest forms of networking, which has always been an important aspect of business development. Modern tools like social media have made connecting easier than ever before, but that hasn’t reduced the value of email, nor has it meant that writing emails is easy. The art of creating powerful emails and subject lines is still a fine skill.

It may seem like you’re just going around and around The Content Carousel. Some days you’re up and some days you’re down. When you get done, you’re right back where you’ve started. The more you get content out, the more you have to make. And then it’s Publisher’s Clearinghouse Day and the barcode scanner breaks. Okay, maybe it’s not that bad, but is there an end?

April 22, 2014
Things Change

After making fun of his mom (like kids in 6th grade do) he stood up, pushed me, and we both ended up in the principal’s office. That summer Joey Harless stole his dad’s car, wrecked it, and killed himself with his dad’s gun.

My sophomore year of high school Molly Gibson dug her fingers into my arm after she found me looking at the brush she’d left outside the pool locker room. Driving home one night our senior year she was hit by another car and died.

On August 11th, 2011, I took this picture of my daughter Magdalena in front of the Hardee’s in Tipton that had been there 20 years:

A month later, it was torn down and a Casey’s General Store was being built there. This is what it looked like in December of 2011 (with Carmina and Samuel):

That same day (August 11, 2011) I took this picture of a window in a home in Tipton:

By April 21, 2012 it looked like this:

On January 7th, 2012, I took this picture of my son, Samuel in front of a building at the corner of Main and Dearborn in Tipton, IN:

The next month (February) the building was demolished:

In the summer of 2012 I walked through some woods behind Starbucks on Old Meridian in Carmel by Meijer:

The next time I drive by, bulldozers have tore everything down to bare ground and they were putting in a new apartment complex.

One night when I was running the paper route in 2010 I took a picture of an old farm house in the middle of a corn field. The next morning (around 3 AM) a semi-tractor trailer had wrecked right in front of the old house – police cars were everywhere.

Last fall (2013) I was driving on 96th Street in Indianapolis across from HH Gregg headquarters and thought, “I should take a picture of that scenic, tree covered drive,” but I didn’t stop. The next time I drove by, the trees had been bulldozed to put in a parking lot.

I learned from my mistake. When I saw this house along US 31 in Westfield I pulled over and took this picture.

The next time I drove by it was gone.

I walk on a strip of grass in Greenfield, Indiana for the first time, the next month they pave over it with a brand new sidewalk. I update a customer’s website copyright date as a courtesy, only to find out hours later they are closing their business. I think of a coworker I haven’t thought of in a while and email my boss about him – he gets fired hours later.

None of these things are related. Things change. People die. Old buildings get torn down. Businesses close and people get fired. That’s life. Sometimes you’re there to document it one last time before it goes. Sometimes you get to have a visceral interaction with someone before they go so you remember them longer. I still think about Joey and Molly sometimes.

I wish there was a way to know you’re in the good ole’ days before you’ve actually left them.” -Andy Bernard

Epilogue

Being that Joey Harless died before the World Wide Web (<1993) and that he was a minor at the time, I couldn't find any information about him online, but you can donate to Molly Gibson's memorial, Pooh Bears for Molly. It still makes me sad to this day. Whenever I have a life event I think about Molly. At first it was the senior prom. Then it was graduation. Then it was going to college. Then getting married, graduating college, and having children. She is missed and still thought of. As the father of a daughter getting ready to be Joey’s age I can’t imagine losing her and I can’t imagine what it would be like for his parents – or Molly’s parents – and I hope I never have to find out. All we can do is love the people we’re with while we’re with them and pray for the best.

April 21, 2014
Market Sophistication Levels

Market Sophistication Levels are about selling differently based on competition level and the degree of public sophistication about your product and market. They are based on a book called Breakthrough Advertising by a copywriter named Eugene Schwartz. Vishen Lakhiani popularized it in his video (below).

Market Sophistication has 5 levels. To get people to buy or use your product, you need to get a gauge of what level of sophistication your market is at. You do this by looking at the messaging your competitors are using, like PPC ads, home pages, TV commercials, radio commercials, and landing pages.

Market Sophistication Level 1

You are just introducing a new thing to the world. There is no need to differentiate your solution. The public is unaware of anything close to your product because it is a radically new invention. You simply lead with the declaration that your product exists (ie. “The World’s First Car vs. A Mechanical Horse”)

Market Sophistication Level 2

Once you have competitors, your job is to outbid them by making outstanding claims about how your product or service is different and better. They are aware of several of your competitor’s products, then emphasize the most powerful benefits of your product (ie. “The Fastest, Safest Car Ever Created”)

Market Sophistication Level 3

They’ve seen many competitor products, then emphasize the mechanism that makes your product unique from the others (ie. “The New Engine That Makes X The Best Car In The World” Emphasize different sections of your marketing copy to best capture their interest and desire in your product or service.

Market Sophistication Level 4

Keep elaborating the features, not the product. Focus on the mechanism behind the product or service. They’ve already seen several competitor products that use your same mechanism, then emphasize the most powerful benefits of your mechanism (ie. “The Quietest Engine Luxury Can Buy”).

Market Sophistication Level 5

Finally everyone has a new feature and the audience becomes jaded of all of the advertising and are familiar with all of your competitors’ claims. Instead, emphasize identification with your prospect. (ie. “The Only Luxury Car Exclusively Driven By The World’s Best Business Leaders”).

Marketing Strategy for Great Marketing Plans

When you’re doing initial market research into how to market your product or business, it can pay to start off figuring out your market sophistication level before making your marketing strategy or marketing plans. But it’s not only about products or services – any page from a job posting to an About page to a Contact page can be optimized using market sophistication levels. “To sell is human“, and you should always be closing.

April 18, 2014
The Top 5 Best USB Backup Power Sources for Your Mobile Devices
Having an iPhone, Android smart phone, ebook reader like a Kindle, or other type of mobile devices can make you more efficient, more in tune with your friends and family, and keep you up to date. But what happens when you are running low on power for your device and you aren’t able to charge it? USB Batteries are external battery packs and chargers that will power and recharge your devices anywhere without access to an electrical outlet.

They 4 key things to look for in a mobile device battery pack are:
- Power – How much power do they store?
- Size – Will it fit in the space you have for it (in a bag, attached to device, etc)
- Connections – Will it connect and power your device? How can you recharge it?
- Durability – These things will travel with you and need to be durable
Based on these criteria, here are our top five USB battery chargers for your mobile devices:

5 – First up is the Splash Intense 5400mAh External USB Battery Pack. This small unit weighs in at providing 5400 mAh of power which is going to be several recharges for today’s smartphones. This unit has two output USB ports to charge two devices at once which is a great feature when you need it. The battery pack also comes with a wealth of charging tips for many popular phones and includes the standard USB options to power things like Blackberries, Kindles, Nooks, and other e-reader mobile devices. This unit recharges via your USB port on your computer and lets you know instantly what the current charge is via blue L.E.D.s on the front of the unit. This is great to be able to know before that upcoming trip if you need to top the battery pack off. This is easy to use, has a large power capacity, and is a stylish unit to carry around with the many connection tips that are included making it a great buy.

4 – Next on our list is the Energizer XP2000 Universal Rechargeable Power Pack. This tiny unit has lots of things going for it. Weighing it at only 2.4 ounces, this certainly isn’t going to weigh you down. It packs 2000 mAh of backup power which isn’t a ton but enough to get a full recharge on most devices except for tablet computers like the iPad or iPad2. This unit is recharged via usb and comes with six cell phone tips including Apple (iPhone, iPad, iPod), LG, Samsung, Balckberry/HTC/Motorola (Mini USB), Micro USB and Nokia. A very cool program that Energizer is rolling out is the Free Tips for Life program which enables you to instantly qualify for two FREE phone charging tips per year for the life of your product. This is a great add-on to ensure the USB battery pack is useful for years to come. The XP2000 also comes pre-charged and holds its charged for up to a full year utilizing Energizer’s great low-discharge battery technology. This is a great solution to get and put away for occasional or emergency use without having to worry that it has lost it’s charge while sitting unused.

3 – Coming in at number three is a versatile power charger: the ReVIVE Series Rapid GoCharge 2000mAH External Battery Pack featuring two USB charging ports, a handy visual battery meter, four (4!) ways to charge including AC, DC – Car Charging, Micro USB, and mini USB. It even comes with a built-in L.E.D. flashlight! This is a great unit for those who need an occasional extra boost to their iPhone, iPad, Kindle, or other mobile device and aren’t sure if they are going to be outdoors, in a car, or by a computer when they need it. The trade off for this type of flexibility and extra options is the amount of power the battery pack stores. This will provide one good recharge for a phone or e-reader and then pretty much be ready to be recharged itself. This is great to get topped off or provide an all-in-one emergency solution for backup battery power. Considering it’s price (under $30), it’s a great solution and is top-rated for light power needs users.

2 – Our runner-up for the best backup power source is the New Trent iCruiser IMP1000 11000mAh External Battery Pack and Charger. This black piano finished device is not a small unit but packs a huge punch! This is the heavyweight when it comes to backup power. The IMP 1000 will get you an extra 50 hours of iPhone 4 charge – that can get you through an entire vacation without needing to recharge! At 11000 mAh of power, this device can store over 7 times the battery capacity that a typical android smartphone can deliver. Coming with a handy drawstring bag so you can keep the battery pack and it’s many connection options together is another nice touch. For travelers who can go quite a while without a reliable power source for their phones, e-readers, or GPS units, this is the way to go!

1 – Coming in at number one is the superb New Trent iDual-Port External USB Battery Pack and Charger. This is a sleek and small (think deck of cards) pack with two usb ports to charge two devices at the same time. Now charging your phone and your GPS at the same time is easy to do. This unit has tons of power (5000mAh to be exact and has enough juice to charge an iPhone 4 three times over! Then, when it’s time to recharge the battery pack, simply plug it in to your USB port on your computer, and it’s ready to go. This unit is very affordable for the power and features it provides which is why it ranks at #1 on our list here at USB-Battery.net.
April 17, 2014