Gary Haran

Low Barriers Are A Good Thing

2010-04-23T00:00:00-04:00

Low Barriers Are A Good Thing

High turnover rate only hurts employers marginally. In some ways it might drive innovation.

One of the employees at Mahalo quit and Jason Calacanis decided to insult this person in the form of free advice.

Free advice for entitled Gen Y trophy kids: if you spend 12 months at a company over and over you look like a flake.
Jason Calacanis

What if this very freedom that Calacanis is stigmatizing is the reason why it was so easy for him to build a startup?

Imagine a country where you get to interact with ~~hundreds of people throughout your career~~ only 14 people.

Imagine if the person ~~with the most talent~~ with seniority gets the promotion.

Imagine if banks provided incentives to ~~get a better paying job~~ stay at your job for years to access a mortgage.

That’s France for you. I’ve worked there and it can get ugly.

If turnover rates are too low it might be that unmotivated people stick around. It might mean that new ideas are seldom shared with your team. It might mean that really talented people won’t come to work for you.

More personal freedom can hurt employers in the short term but it creates the kind of environment where startups flourish.

Jason you of all people shouldn’t spit on that. You’ve benefited from it.

What Is Your Dream Job?

2010-04-22T00:00:00-04:00

What Is Your Dream Job?

If we know what our dream job looks like we can start making it a goal. Write it down and you’ll have more chances to see it through.

I feel so privileged to work in the era of the web. The internet has been such a liberating force and I believe that it’s just the beginning. Some old dinosaurs are dying and making place for the new. I want to be that new.

In the past 6 months I’ve lost my job, co-founded a startup, sold it and joined another startup to work in the world of wines. In 6 months I’ve gone through more jobs than my father did in his entire lifetime.

When you get to experience multiple different workplaces you get to discover things you didn’t think were possible. At StandoutJobs we used group chat as an integral part of our workflow and played video games daily during lunch breaks. This team worked better together than any other team I’ve worked with in my life.

I think anyone on that team will have a hard time settling with old school type work. We’d feel less productive and most likely less happy.

I’ve written down what my ideal job should bring me and shared it with friends and family. I actually went one step further. I made the promise that if I complained about my job I will leave it.

My ideal job is one where I would learn transferable skills, be challenged by the experience and change the old ways of doing things. I will run away from artificial ceilings and red tape because I’m too lucky to live today with a passion for the web.

What’s your ideal job?

The Ultimate Guide To Getting Nowhere In Life

2010-04-18T00:00:00-04:00

The Ultimate Guide To Getting Nowhere In Life

The best way to never getting anything done is to limit your finances and your options in such a way that you are a slave to the situation you put yourself in.

1) Get an easy 9 to 5 job

First ensure that overtime is not paid and there are no stock options. It’s best if you learn absolutely nothing new at all at this job or if learning something is part of your job it’s best if it is non-transferable skills. This will ensure that no other employers see any value in your experience.

2) Live from pay cheque to pay cheque

If you lived a little below your means you could afford to put some money aside. That’s dangerous because it can lead to ideas and goals beyond the ones you accomplished already. Invest instead in lottery tickets because when you win you’ll be able to pay off your credit cards easily.

3) Don’t Have any “Hell-Yeah Money”

Hell-yeah money is a financial cushion that saves you from borrowing at the bank when your car breaks down. It’s 3-6 months of living expenses in an accessible high interest rate account.

It’s best if you do not strive to get such a fund for yourself. If you want a big screen TV and it happens to have 500$ pricing error at your favourite store you should instead pay for it with your credit card and pay it off for the next 12 years. That way you’ll feel really connected to your TV.

4) Live Vicariously From Your Couch

That’s what TV was created for. Consume TV shows about people doing the things you want to be doing. Reading takes too long anyways. The best thing about vicarious living from your couch is that you don’t really have to learn anything for real! You just get the benefit of seeing the best parts!

If you do the opposite of this guide you are in grave danger of having options. Options to leave your job for one you don’t hate. Options to start your business. Options to take a vacation right after getting laid off. Options to reach out and grab your passion by the horns.

5 Actions That Made Me Happier

2010-04-04T00:00:00-04:00

5 Actions That Made Me Happier

Happiness is not universally quantifiable but money is. At some point in my life I raced towards money because I could measure it. When I noticed it wasn’t making me happier I set out to make happiness my main goal. Here is a list of actions I took.

1. Reduced Commute Time

Commuting is a side effect of many jobs and sadly the higher the salary the more commute time we’re willing to do. Finding ways to shave off commute time has a proven benefit as measured by this study (PDF).

When changing jobs wasn’t a possibility I used public transportation and got an internet capable cellphone so I could deal with paperwork related annoyances during the commute. Instead of trying to find time at home I’d deal with them while in traffic. I also borrowed and bought a few books.

Today my job allows me to work from home and my commute takes about 38 seconds. I still need to commute a few days a week but I can choose to take the car and avoid rush hour traffic.

2. Removed Small Frustrations

I start every day by making some tea. I had this cheap kettle that would randomly turn off on me. One day after pouring cold water over tea leaves I decided to drive to the store. Now every morning I look at the testament of a foregone frustration with a smile from ear to ear.

Removing frustrations can be as simple as moving the furniture or spending a few bucks.

3. Played Sports

A Harvard University study started in 1937 that spanned 72 years determined that healthy play can relieve daily frustrations making us happier overall.

A few years ago I joined a volleyball team and now I play a minimum of once a week.

4. Attended Regular Meetups

Would doubling your income make you happier? Well it turns out that seeing a group of people that meets just once a month provided the same benefit as doubling your salary.

Once I started digging I found out that Montreal was vibrant and full of user groups and programming language enthusiasts that meet regularly. I’ve met some really interesting people through these groups and some of the contacts even helped me professionally.

5. Drank Socially With Co-Workers

When work sucks your life sucks. A good team feels comfortable cracking a joke to the CEO. Imagine how many valid concerns are not expressed if a team has to worry about everything they say.

Good communication is perhaps the reason why those who occasionally have a single drink after work with colleagues make significantly more money on average than those who do not drink at all. Team members who do drink are probably made aware of problems and can resolve situation before they occur. It’s a different setting and we all know that a little alcohol can make shyness go away.

So it’s perhaps a stretch to make this point but seriously having a drink has some beneficial effect on the time you spend at work and that can’t all be bad since you’re there a good portion of your day.

Did anything make you happier lately and want to share?