Björn Jeffery

I never went to business school and I never studied economics. At the time when I was choosing what to study, it was never even an option that crossed my mind. There was no future where I could see myself working with that sort of thing.

Just a few years later, I was running my own company and I realized that some of those courses might have been good after all. It didn’t primarily come from an urge to deep dive into the balance sheet, but from understanding my clients and the world that they were in. Because they had been to business school. And they referenced things that I didn’t really understand. Had I taken a few courses in economics, it might have been easier to relate to them.

After many of these meetings, I thought to myself that maybe it wasn’t so much about the specific business terminology but more a general sense of context. What mattered to the clients was what they were reading and talking about. So while I was commuting between Malmö and Stockholm, I made a habit of reading Dagens Industri – the Swedish business newspaper. I tried to read more or less everything in it (even when the articles made no sense at all – which was fairly often), and to read it every time I got the opportunity.

Months of reading Dagens Industri later, things were beginning to make sense. I still had to Google what a hedge fund was on numerous occasions, but it was starting to fall into place somewhat. The turning point was a meeting with a new potential client. It was going pretty badly until I referenced an article from Dagens Industri that I had read earlier that morning. I saw the change in the client’s eyes straight away. It was as if I was suddenly one of them – someone in the know. Of course I wasn’t really, but I had apparently learned enough to be able to have an informed conversation. The meeting changed at that very second and went well.

The point here is not to say that the only thing you learn in business school is to talk about hedge funds. I know this isn’t the case. The point is that what was difficult for me wasn’t to learn the business stuff – it was understanding what it was I needed to learn to progress. That context mattered and that stepping into the lives of my clients really helped in bridging a gap of communication and faith.

There are many ways of learning things. Knowing what you need to learn though – that seems to be an everlasting challenge.

A truly great piece of journalism and storytelling, with an interesting twist at the end. Make sure that you make it all the way through.

The Professor, the Bikini Model and the Suitcase Full of Trouble – NYTimes.com

When designing social software, I imagine one of the most challenging things is finding the incentive to interact. Answering the question: How and why should I use this service? I haven’t really designed anything like this (on a serious scale, at least) so I wouldn’t know from personal experience. But being an avid user at least allows me to see the complexity that is there.

I’ve been thinking about this when using Foursquare lately. As I remember it, Foursquare launched as a service to find out where your friends were and what they were doing. Privacy is of course an issue with these sorts of things and it was structured as a social network where you add your friends. If you don’t want people to see where you are, don’t add them as friends. The Facebook-model, if you will – a symmetrical relationship between two people (if I am their friend, they have to be my friend too).

Over time, Foursquare seems to have left that idea a little bit and moved over to become a way to find new places in a city. You can filter by seeing where your friends have been – not necessarily where they are. That little detail makes all the difference, for me. From a privacy perspective, I’m not sure I want people to know where I am – but I’m generally fine with telling people where I have been. Every person has their own rules, I suppose.

Since the intent of the service is now changed, I would much prefer a Foursquare that was asymmetric. The Twitter-model. Since I mainly use it to find new places to go, I’d like to follow people that live in the city that I’m currently in. I understand that they are most probably not interested in me, so a simple “Follow” would suffice and wouldn’t burden them too much. Asking someone I don’t know to be my “friend” just to get a restaurant recommendation seems a little much.

It’s interesting how these relatively small choices have such a big impact. It seems like Foursquare is going through a bit of a rough patch. I wonder if it would be different if it was asymmetric instead.

I don’t want to wait with pursuing my dreams

It’s not all the CEO’s doing, but it’s all the CEO’s fault.

The most alarming and depressing stats I’ve come across are that 45% of college students didn’t seem to learn much of anything during their first two years, and as many as 36% showed no improvement after four years. Whatever’s going on with these kids at these schools, it’s not education.

Can’t stop watching this.

Hot Cheetos & Takis [HD] (by 13twentythree)

Say no to the request, not the person.
You’re not rejecting the person, just declining his invitation. So make that clear. Let him know what you respect about him — maybe you admire the work he’s doing, or recognize his passion or generosity. Maybe you would love to meet for lunch. Don’t fake this — even if you don’t like the person making the request, simply being polite and kind will communicate that you aren’t rejecting him.

I was recently in a discussion where a few of the meeting participants were asked to define the most important question for their business area (in media) right now. Their suggestion was: “What is the right model for digital media?”. They had spent considerable time trying out new projects, revenue streams and other ways of working. Them and everyone else, I should say. This search has been going for 15 odd years or so.

The discussion made me think, and somewhat provocatively I suggested a new question instead: “Is there a right model to be found?”

Sometimes you get so caught up in trying to solve a problem that you forget whether the question you are trying to answer even is the right one to attempt. What if there isn’t a good model out there? What if the media industry have spent the last 15 years on a wild goose chase? Looking for something that will never be considered as good as their original business – however successful it may be. It could be the case. And even if it isn’t, the possibility should be considered.

Businesses come and go. Some change. Some don’t. I think the key must be to know what category your business is in, and then work with it under the prerequisites that come with that.

Being a dying business is not the same thing as having a bad business. It can be very profitable while doing so, but it won’t last. Accepting that might be the best strategy for such a business.

Toca Boca in an Apple ad. Proud!

Apple – iPad – TV Ad – Together (by Apple)