Urgent Speed

Scheduling Meeting still Sucks

Coordinating meeting times is still cumbersome.  Sometimes it takes a dozen emails simply to find a time for a 3-person call.   Why hasn't this problem been solved?  Microsoft? Google? Can't someone make a universal tool for finding a time to meet?

Adeo at TheFunded is so fed up he has adopted a freestyle approach, but my gut says there has to be a technological solution. 

For years i have been following  Whenisgood.net, and this morning i was invited to schedule a  meeting using the service.  Wow has the service has improved!  Liberal use of AJAX helps, and I think they are on the right track. Similarly to Timebridge, they still haven't hit the nail on the head yet, but I have high hopes.  I wish them and others sucess. 

One hint for Whenisgood: if you're serious about solving the scheduling problem...splurge and buy the .com domain...or even better buy pointment.com from our half-baked attempt to solve this problem. 

Please, someone solve this multi-party-cross-platform-scheduling problem so my assistant and I can move on to other pressing issues.  

Cold Calling

It’s not exactly customer centric consultative sales; but Jeffrey Gitomer
cracks me up with his advice on how to get people to call you back.

Go AWAY Grim Reaper

Last year I was bummed that the world lost Milton Freedman, but the Grim Reaper won’t stop.  Today I learned Momofuku Ando passed away.  The busy, lazy, broke college student, or anyone that lived in Tokyo will miss the inventor of raman noodles.

Is Blogging like Dieting?

I am continuously amazed at how many different ways people make a living!  Recently at a holiday party, I met a man who made a living selling salads and opening gyms.  Over eggnog he explained that January is his busiest season because many people make a New Year's resolution to lose weight.  Turns out, December is to Retailers as January is to “Salad/Gym”-ers.

I noticed many bloggers went on vacation during the holidays… did they also resolve to get back to blogging after the New Year?   I will be monitoring to see if there is a reduction in the average number of human generated posts per hour in February VS January.  Who knows, maybe if I keep blogging I will post my findings. More likely, I will be too busy eating salads at the gym.  ;-)

E-Holiday cards Suck

 

When did it become acceptable to spam your friends and business associates with E-holiday messages? 

I am not that old, but I remember a day when all notes and addresses were hand written.  Then folks started using their computes to print the labels.  Next think you know they were forgoing finding holiday stamps and using a postal meter.    I am sorry, if your admin is the only one to see the card, and you’re using a corporate postal meter –that is called junk mail.

But worse, if you are just merging your outlook address book with an e-greeting card service....that’s spam!  Personal e-mails from friends and vendors are appreciated; Viagra ads and e-holiday cards are not.   

Call me old fashioned, but this has gotten out of hand.  I am ok with E-Birthday cards. (Also, if my 85 year old grandmother wants to PayPal me my annual birthday $20 she will be equally welcomed, but come on E-Christmas, E-Seasons Greetings, E-New Years …give me a break!

Is deportment dead?

Emily Post where are you when society needs you?

End Rant…Happy New Year