• Ultimate benefit outweighs the risks

• Love for technology can never be justified

• There is a downshift in entrepreneurship 

"The more people are becoming authentic, bolder, raw, and real, the more they want more of it because it is more identifiable than when everything's perfect." - Jen Groover

How do you become your own brand in the new media? Modern society has its own say for being different and bold. In this episode, Jen Groover shares what it takes to be authentic and to produce massive success in the end.   

Three Things We Learned

• Authenticity has various definitions

Because of our training, there are belief systems that we abide. But it does not always work. We can be authentic just the way we are in the new media. Unique ideas can shine brightly despite the oppositions, as in the case of Spanx Founder Sara Blakely.

• Existing ideas have untapped potentials

Creativity opens the door to greater possibilities. It knows no bounds. Existing ideas can be reimagined and transformed into outstanding ones.

• Influencer marketing is leading the way

Industry influencers have established a name for themselves in the categories they belong. Nowadays, partnering with them to market a brand has become widely popular. They have the power to reach the information you desire.

With the rise of social media and other marketing platforms, people can already choose any information they want. They also get to choose which type of authenticity they want to see or hear from.

Despite how rude the language is, people still enjoy the message they receive. As Jen puts it, people can identify with it better when not everything is perfect.

Bio

Empowerment and Business Expert, Creator of The Butler Bag, Author of “What If? & Why Not?”, Motivational Speaker, Entrepreneur, Spokesperson & Media Contributor

Jen Groover has been tagged by SUCCESS Magazine as a “One-Woman Brand”, a “Creativity and Innovation Guru”, and a leading “Serial Entrepreneur” by Entrepreneur Magazine. Jen Groover’s name has quickly become synonymous with innovation, entrepreneurship and evolution. She has gone from guest-hosting television spots, to inking deals with some of the industry’s biggest heavyweights. Jen recently made history at the New York Stock Exchange, as a member of the first all-female group to ring the opening bell, representing women’s leadership and economic independence. Her influence and leadership has aligned her with amazing brands, such as USANA Health Sciences, Avon, Verizon and SkyMall, for which she acts as a spokeswoman.

Her success skyrocketed with the creation of the Butler Bag, the world’s first compartmentalized handbag, and has not stopped since. Jen spring-boarded the Butler Bag’s success into a...

2017 was a year of upheaval for the tech industry, and now change presents big opportunities in the diversity conversation. Does the idea of meritocracy really function in a world where inherent biases might exist? How do you identify potential in someone with no proven track record of performance? Why does “distance traveled” matter? On this episode, I dialogue with Sequoia Capital partner, Jess Lee about making diversity a priority in tech.

In a high intellectual capacity job where there’s collaboration, diversity actually produces performance and better outcomes. -Jess Lee

3 Things We Learned

VCs must prioritize what their clients prioritize

As VCs, your customers are your founders. At the end of the day, you have to be able to convince the best founders to work with you and make a difference in their trajectory. You must care about what’s important to them.

Distance traveled is a worthy metric of success

We tend to judge a person based on where they are but it’s important to know where they started. The distance they traveled to get where they are is what we should be evaluating.

Meritocracy is the ideal, but people don’t always start on an even playing field

There are inherent biases that affect how someone is considered and evaluated in their field, and these can easily taint meritocracy. It’s important to remember that the bar isn’t the same for everyone.

When it comes to diversity in the workplace, meritocracy is the ideal. However, it’s also necessary to measure the distance traveled by a person. It’s more about where they started and how far their journey has taken them, and less about having a huge headstart to get to the same point. There is something to be said for being willing and able to hire on potential. Making this a priority won’t just make us more diverse-- it will improve the outcomes for companies.

Guest Bio

Jess Lee is a partner at Sequoia Capital and the former chief executive officer of Polyvore. Follow her on Twitter @jesskah.

"Most people forget that they are an investment to an organization." - Nick Kullin

Marketers spend countless hours producing great content. But what makes non-conformist marketers unique? What do traditional marketers miss? From the struggling 17-year-old kid that he once was, Nick Kullin made his place to becoming one of the youngest CEOs that matter. He bravely recalls his past and shares his unconventional insights that you too could take to advance your business.   

3 Things We Learned

The industry is constantly evolving at a fast pace

Many marketers make the same mistake of using old ways, old formulas. But what may have worked previously won't work anymore today. Things are changing at even a faster pace than expected, and companies don't know how to capitalize on those changes.

Implement an "awesometistic" way to share your story

It takes a combination of being awesome and authentic in your story. Know your brand's value and showcase your true identity. And instead of bragging about it, feel great about it.

Employees are an investment and not simply work horses

As someone representing the company, a marketer should be clear about his motives. What can you do on your part in order to usher the business to its summit? Employees or anyone in a team serve to fulfill their roles.

With all the noise online, marketers rise to the challenge of setting themselves apart. To do that, innovative ways are necessary. But it does not mean strength lies in the majority. In the end, there is no single formula to success and the keys to it could just be hidden in the palm of your hands -- your story, values, and attitude towards life and business.

Guest Bio

Nick Kullin, a fearless and eccentric young entrepreneur, always believed that inside of every successful self-made person is a poor kid who followed their dream. Nick is the founder of Second Flight Consultancy, one of the fastest growing growth-hacking agencies specializing in digital marketing and business development. Nick built his agency within less than 14 months to a 6 figure a month revenue agency, all without a college degree and in his mid-twenties.

Entrepreneur recently listed Nick Kullin number #4 of the 27 CEO’s under 27, through his success of both his agency and his coaching Academy “Second Flight Academy,” a premier 8-week 1-on-1 growth hacking and marketing training program for business owners and marketers to learn how to accelerate their marketing efforts while keeping a lean marketing budget.

http://secondflightconsultancy.com/

Innovations in data have brought about the age of personalized products at scale. How does this fit into the greater concept of unscaling? How is it so different from the age of scale? How will blockchain actually protect our privacy? On this episode, Kevin Maney shares some of the key insights from his latest book including living your life as a personal enterprise and personalized education.

This new group of inventions is enabling something very different in this idea of scale. -Kevin Maney

3 Things We Learned

Early innovations led to the concept of scale

Inventions of the 19th century created the conditions that brought about scale. That set in motion the idea of economies of scale, where the ultimate goal of a business was to generate profit from selling one thing to the most people.

Healthcare will shift towards a more personal solution

So far healthcare has been a mass market product but it’s going to be affected by the market-of-one model. This means the healthcare system can actually get to know your individual health patterns and gear a more personalized treatment towards them.

We’re heading towards the model of a personal enterprise

Because of the data and the network that we are all a part of, each person will be able to leverage whatever they are good at. They will also be able to connect to a market for what they do and be able to make a living.

When mobile, social and cloud started happening, they led to the creation of enormous amounts of data that is enabling something very different in the idea of scale. It’s not going to be mass markets anymore, but rather markets-of-one on a massive scale. This will flow through many facets of human life, from healthcare to education, and cause us to shift back to how things were pre-1880, where services were personalized and geared towards the individual. Automation will play a large role in this shift, allowing it to be done profitably. It won’t be via craftsmanship, but through business.

Guest Bio

Kevin Maney is a best-selling author and award-winning columnist. Maney co-authored, with Al Ramadan, Dave Peterson and Christopher Lochhead, the 2015 book Play Bigger: How Pirates, Dreamers and Innovators Create and Dominate Markets, published by Harper Business.  Maney’s other books include The Two-Second Advantage: How We Succeed by Anticipating the Future...Just Enough, a 2011 New York Times bestseller. He also co-wrote the most widely distributed business book of 2011, Making the World Work Better: The Ideas That Shaped a Century and a Company, which marked IBM’s centennial. His other books are Trade-Off: Why Some Things Catch On, and Others Don't; The Maverick and His Machine: Thomas Watson Sr. and the Making of IBM; and

As a podcast host, the position of trusted guide is one you earn. How do you achieve this and create your own category within the broader medium of podcasting? Why is “interview” a bad word? What level of comfort and confidence comes with being in the game for a while? On this episode, Jordan Harbinger and I have a dialogue about wading through the waters of podcasting.

It’s hard or impossible to create a category if you don’t have the skills around it. -Jordan Harbinger

3 Things We Learned

The host matters as much as the guest

The host of a podcast is important because they are the trusted guide who takes the listeners on the magical mystery ride of the show and its narrative. This trust is not instantly gained, but earned over time.

Shows based on talking points and interviews can fall short

The problem with interviews based on talking points is that they can very easily skirt through what could be a great conversation about someone’s life because you’re just rushing to get through your list of points within a certain amount of time.

Better different than better

We’ve been told that the way to be successful is to be better. However, in a lot of ways, the pathway to success is being different, breaking new ground, and being unique.

With so many podcasts out there, it’s tempting to try to photocopy what someone else is already doing. The truth is, making an ass out of yourself because you’re trying a new strategy to differentiate yourself is much better than just doing what other people do. The last thing you want is to be a bad cover band of an A-Class act. When you are unique and authentic, a lot of the other things fall into place effortlessly.

A legendary career will have both winning and losing moments. What are some of the lessons you learn on the way to your dream job? What are means-to-an-end jobs and why are they so important? How do you become aware of what you’re worth? On this episode, I have a dialogue with one of my colleagues from Scient, Wendi Sturgis, who imparts powerful wisdom for navigating the highs and lows of life, career, and the market.

Know what’s most important to you next. Is it the title, the responsibility, the role or the money? -Wendi Sturgis

3 Things We Learned

Get comfortable with the money discussion

Money is a conversation so many of us are uncomfortable with, and this bleeds into how we ask to get paid what we’re worth. Get comfortable with talking about it with your close confidants because if you don’t, you won’t be able to have the conversation with someone who doesn’t know you.

Sometimes you’re going to have “means-to-an-end” jobs

In our career trajectory we’re going to have dreams jobs that are the ultimate goal, but some jobs will just be pitstops. These are important because they teach us more about what we really want, and lead us closer towards that ultimate job.

Being a next-level executive is all about knowing when and how to push

You can’t bulldoze your way through things when you’re running an organization with billions in it. You have to find the right leadership team and the ways to set the right strategic direction.

Life has a great duality to it. You will experience ups and downs and have legendary moments and losing moments. It’s so critical that you know what your worth is and surround yourself with the right people. When you know your value and your North Star, you will be able to navigate life while taking lessons where you get them and growing every step of the way. This is what will help you determine your next move and execute it gracefully.

Our homes have always been sacred and private spaces until they became “smart”. What data is produced by our smart devices and how is it used? Is sacrificing our privacy worth all the tracking and data gathering? Is the data innocuous or is Big Brother really watching our every move? On this episode, the writers of the brilliant Gizmodo story, “The House that Spied on Me” are here to discuss the experience of having over 15 smart devices in the home and what it taught them about data, the accountability of data companies, and whether or not smart devices actually improve our lives.

Usually the modern contract is that we trade privacy for convenience, but living in the smart home I felt like I was trading privacy and convenience. -Kashmir Hill

3 Things We Learned

Data can be used to incentivize, but it can also be used to penalize us

Data broker companies are like insurance companies. They are trying to minimize risk and maximize profits. The more data they have on you, the more structures they can set up for rewarding you or incentivizing you. However, that means they can also penalize you for not doing something.

Smart devices aren’t as regulated as we’d hope they are

The fallacy in the surveillance conversation is that we think things are more regulated than they actually are. If we consider the fact that very few people actually know what the data is and how it is being used, we realize that there isn’t enough oversight on companies that handle all this personal information.

Net neutrality has moved backwards because of the money that’s now in data

You would think that our advancements in technology and the internet would mean we would uphold net neutrality as the gold standard, but the opposite is happening. This is because in the past, big companies didn’t know how to make money off the internet. Now they do.

We’ve been taught to believe that our homes being tracked makes our lives more convenient and easy, but it’s a huge tradeoff if we consider the amount of privacy we give up in the process. This smart home experiment shows us that these devices aren't providing the benefits a smartphone would-- so maybe sacrificing all this data isn't worth the information we’re getting. This is all information that can be used to study us behaviorally and teach us more about ourselves, but it can also be monetized and sold to big corporations. This tells us that the consideration to bring smart devices into our homes is one we have to take very seriously.

Guest Bio

Kashmir Hill is a senior reporter for the Special Projects Desk, which produces investigative work across all of Gizmodo Media Group's web sites. She writes about privacy and technology. Follow her on Twitter @kashhill

Surya Mattu is the data reporter at the Special Projects Desk which produces investigative work across all of Gizmodo Media Group's web sites. Follow him on Twitter @suryamattu

To read the full story go to: https://gizmodo.com/the-house-that-spied-on-me-1822429852

Human beings study language and the mind typically without including profanity, and that leaves out a huge part of language. What does cussing teach us about history, human behavior and how we relate to each other? How do people navigate contextual and situational environments when it comes to swearing? On this episode, Benjamin Bergen is here to talk about studying swear words, and learning more about people through them.

Having a word for something creates a category to hang stuff on. -Benjamin Bergen

3 Things We Learned

Kids understand the context of language better than we think

Most people understand the contextual and situational environment of when certain words can be spoken. That’s why we can find swearing at a comedy club acceptable, while we wouldn’t accept a CEO swearing in a board meeting. This is something even our own children understand.

Swearing comes with some interesting perceptions

When you swear, people perceive you as more honest, authentic and comfortable with yourself. At the same time, you can be perceived as less in control, intelligent and literate. It all just depends on where you are and who you’re with.

Words young Americans find offensive

Younger people find slurs more offensive than swear words. They don’t like derogatory terms for people based on sexual orientation, ethnicity, and religion.

Language is a huge component of culture and personal identity. The language we grow up with is your language for life. When it comes to swearing, we learn a lot about human behavior, our sense of morality and how different generations find different words profane. Usually a word takes the trajectory of going from being normal, then being brought to judgment, and over time becoming offensive. In many cases, certain words will rotate out with the passage of time, and new words become profane. This is how they change over time from generation to generation.

Guest Bio

Benjamin Bergen is the author of What the F: What Swearing Reveals About Our Language, Our Brains, and Ourselves. You can find it here!