I just read an interesting post titled “Too small to fail” by Seth Godin. Key points one could take from the post:

• Keep your accounting system clean and simple. More like the way baniyas run their shop i.e. tracking the cash flowing into the cashier’s drawer and the cash going out of it.
• Don’t have too many layers between the customer and the executive. This makes sure you retain more customers because the decision-maker is able to hear them first-hand.

To be sure, people who need certainty are unlikely to make good entrepreneurs. But such people are unlikely to do well in a host of other activities as well – in politics, or in command positions in a military service, or as the captain of an ocean liner. In all such pursuits decisions have to be made, and the essence of decision is uncertainty.
- Peter F. Drucker

Almost every tech blog worth it’s salt has been talking about Sequoia’s presentation (titled R.I.P. Good Times) to its portfolio companies and how every startup should look at it and take home the message. And so I had a look at it too. Frankly, I just don’t get the logic that runs through the presentation. I wouldn’t even want to link to something as illogical as that presentation. So while the tech blogs may have taken a fancy to it, am happy that I am not the only one who disagrees with what Sequoia had to say. Check out this presentation by ALTOS Ventures which takes a dig at Sequoia and puts a different (but rational) perspective to the downturn.

Another feast of links by Yash for those in the career fast lane:

1. Simply Superb advice from Robert Scoble on how to get attention when applying for a job. A great list of do’s and don’ts.
2. Mukul Kumar has 5 hacks for startup hiring in India. Must read for startups who are looking to hire and those looking to join startups.
3. How to tackle troublesome team members – from Harvard Business Reviews Ask the Coach Blog
4. Seth Godin has great advice for those who only focus on 1 single aspect of their career. He says don’t! Break it up into 16 boxes… (works equally well when marketing a product)
5. Maybe you can’t make money doing what you love – its worth a shot, Seth Godin (again) tells you how.
6. Mark Drapeau over at Mashabale tells us how to execute AGAINST your resume. And why everyone should and will use social tools to help their career.
7. This one is for the ladies, actually its for Opportunistic Businesswomen. The very appropriately titled SNOBS – an Australian Social Network for Opportunistic Businesswomen. Men everywhere, be afraid, be very afraid!

क्वालिटी तब होती है जब कस्टमर का कष्ट मर जाए. (लेकिन हमारे देश में कस्टमर उसको बोलते है जो कष्ट से मर जाए.)
- Prof S Chakraborty

SocialMention.com is a recently launched social media search engine. It searches user-generated content such as blogs, comments, bookmarks, events, news, videos, and microblogging services. It allows you to easily track what people are saying about you, your company, a new product, or any topic across the web’s social media landscape in real-time.

I recently introduced a quiz feature on workosaur.com. This has been done by populating business quiz questions on MightyQuiz.com and plugging the same on workosaur using a piece of code. As part of the quiz, I also have some promotional questions that inform users about my site. One user came down heavily on this tactic and criticized workosaur for exploiting such free marketing techniques and proclaimed that workosaur has no money to promote itself. Well, is it a crime to use marketing tactics which cost no money? I’d think it’s smart to leverage every free opportunity that one gets to market themselves. As for the proclamation that workosaur has no money, I accept that. But its by choice. I believe that when you have money, you stop innovating and start advertising. So as long as I can run the show without raising monies, I’d like to keep it that way.

I’d like to appeal to Shaadi.com, BharatMatrimony.com, JeevanSathi.com and SimplyMarry.com to introduce an Anti-dowry Badge which users can sport on their profile. I would also wish they ask their users to do it for the cause rather than promote it as a way to draw greater response to their profiles. November 26 is World Anti-dowry Day and I think they can build out this badge by then. Simultaneously, they must join hands and create an Anti-dowry Cause using the Causes app on Facebook and tie it to a relevant non-profit organization. If you work at one of these three companies or know someone working there and are reading this, please take the initiative to forward this appeal.

TED Talk by Chris Anderson (Wired): Technology’s Long Tail (Feb 2004)

And if you haven’t yet read the book, do check these links:
Wired article on The Long Tail (Oct 2004)
Chris Anderson’s Blog – The Long Tail