Technologists in DC?!

Technologists do exist in Washington D.C. Initially, we thought we were alone in D.C., like Y: the Last Man (not as dire, but with the same sense of self-importance). Whenever we would meet with media companies, I would have to explain the “long tail” for the fortieth time.

The Washington Post reports on the growing web startup scene in D.C. though. Well, for the past two months, I have been going to Refresh DC, where I have made great friendships with many people in the D.C. technology community. It wasn’t one of those events where everyone is a PR/Marketing/Sales/non-technical person who wants to ride on the brilliance of people who make products (the no-talents like me, although I am recovering). Indeed, (I still somewhat cannot believe it)… there were actually people who could create cool stuff (like us!).

Some of these cool people include:

Referring to the Washington Post article, where are Qloud, Freewebs, andHungry Machine folks? Where is CollectiveX, which debuted on TechCrunch? We do see others (both VC-backed and bootstrapped) at these get-togethers, but it’s no wonder that most people, as Paul Graham says, move to a start up hub, especially since those network effects don’t occur as much inside the beltway. So, come on big guys (the other ones), host something or at the very least, show us that you tried. It helps little start ups (like mine) know that we aren’t completely in the wrong city.

Vital Idgit Vote

Ever since the rise of Jon Stewart’s the Daily Show and Stephen Colbert’s Colbert Report, the Onion has started fighting back for market share in the world of faux news. I, for one, am enjoying the competition and was really informed about the vital Idgit demographic in American politics.

The main descriptor for an Idgit-(a) doesn’t commit to candidate until 15 minutes before vote and (b) responds well to repetitious advertising. Extremely important in in 2008. I might even hazard to say the key to the 2008 election.

A little bit of water in Kenya

My buddy Saul Garlick, who heads the Student Movement for Real Change wrote an article for Policy Innovations. He writes about the "15.6 km freshwater line and initiating sanitation projects... led by the Kayafungo Women Water Project group... [for] 36,000 more people in Kayafungo." Perhaps the most interesting part of the article is this statistic:

Access to clean water is proven to increase gross domestic product in a developing nation by as much as 3.4 percent per year. Moreover, returns on investment can reach $3–34 for the community per $1 invested in the production of water, according to the World Health Organization.

Read the whole article by Saul here: http://www.policyinnovations.org/ideas/commentary/data/000029

Student Advice about the Truman Scholarship

By Andrew Lee, Truman Scholar from CO’06 (Published 3/07; Republished Dec. 2, 2007)– (For anyone interested in adding or wanting me to link any other documents, please contact me at Andrew@andrewlee.com).

So, I’ve recently received a lot of questions about insider advice and how to best prepare for the Truman Scholarship process, so I decided to write a document that will be able to provide some Insider Student Advice about how to do your best and win the Truman Scholarship. By making this open and more detailed than other advice out there, I hope to make the process more transparent and also help those out there without a lot of institutional knowledge and advice.

The Truman Scholarship has been one of the best opportunities for my career and for my life. The community (colleagues and mentors) help me to remember why I dedicate my life to public service and bettering the world. Nevertheless, I just want you to know that many students who do not receive the Truman go on to win other scholarships (Rhodes, Marshall, Mitchell, NSF, etc.) and it is always better to have gone through the process than to have not.

The process helps you assess your status in life, where you’re going, and most importantly what matters to you. Even if I did not win the Truman, I would still be a better person for it. Especially if you see yourself in public service (civil service, public office, advocacy, non-profit, or anything for that matter), applying for the Truman Scholarship is a no-brainer.

Additionally, I suggest that you go ahead and reach out. There is no harm in contacting previous alumni from your college or even current Truman Scholars. If they don’t get back to you it is because (a) they’re too busy, and you need to contact them again or (b) they somehow missed your contact. If someone doesn’t want to be helpful, then they’re probably not going give good advice anyway. Enough prologues! The real advice after the jump…

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APPLICATION AND SCHOOL SELECTION
Because your university can only nominate 4 people, being a nominee from your school is quite an honour. Especially if you go to a large university, the feat is more impressive. The criterion with the Truman are fairly straightforward, they want to see that you have displayed leadership, commitment to public service, and also that you are academically qualified. On the application, my advice is as follows:

  1. Start early on your application. Don’t put it off to the last minute. Make multiple drafts of it. Each word should have impact. Eliminate the passive voice, and write well.
  2. Research the website. Read thoroughly the satisfactory and unsatisfactory responses. The guidance that they provide you is essential in making sure that your application is on the top of the pile.
  3. Focus on the three areas of leadership, commitment, and public service. A good Truman app has all three of those areas showing something deeper- a commitment to work for the greater good.
  4. The creative question is important to spend time on, especially because it is your way of giving the committee something beyond the simple three criteria of leadership, public service, and academics.
  5. Your recommenders should be focused on the following:
    • academic recommendation- write about specifics in academic achievement
    • public service rec - validate what you wrote as a satisfying public service activity
    • leadership rec- validate whatever you wrote about as a leader.
  6. You should be going through at least five drafts of your application and getting a wide variety of readers to review your application.
  7. Your policy proposal should be well researched, should somehow link to the other answers in your application, e.g. your future area of study, etc.

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INTERVIEW
SO, you’ve submitted your application. You’ve probably gone through 25 drafts of the application and pestered everyone in your circle of influence to read and re-read the application. Finalists are announced online and since everyone is clicking on the Finalists section, their server is crashing left and right. But… you see your name! Congratulations, you have made an elite group of individuals. Now you need to focus on your interview…

WARNING: At the interview stage, all the candidates are very qualified and I’m sure if you were to have the interview on another day, you might get different Truman Scholars. Once you’ve made the cut as a finalist for the Truman Scholarship, you should be very proud of yourself. You should be honoured to be considered a finalist and should understand that much of what comes out of the interview is determined by luck. Even if you do your best on an interview, someone’s best may just be better than yours. Additionally, the interview is twenty minutes. Think of the numerous times that you’ve messed up a romantic date, lost an argument, and generally weren’t able to communicate in twenty minutes. Many people are done in by a bad interview. It happens to the best of us. Nevertheless, you goal is to do your best for the interview panel and show them who you are.

Here are some suggestions/observations that I concocted or received from former Truman scholars:

  • 13 other finalists will interview with you, and you will be only slightly competing with them (but don’t treat it that way). They will choose between ¼ to ½ of you for the scholarship. Befriend these people, they are amongst the elite finalists and will likely continue their work as change agents, so become friends. Additionally, bring something to read or some cards to play and get to know your fellow finalists.
  • Read 3 newspapers/periodicals a day (esp. if your focus is on local politics) for two weeks, prior to your interview.
  • The interview is a test of your potential not your ability to argue with the panel.
  • Have 3-4 points that you want to hit within your interview. Make sure that you connect the dots with an underlying theme.
  • Dress your best.
  • KNOW YOUR APPLICATION INSIDE AND OUT.
  • Go to this website: http://govt.cmc.edu/welliott/TRUPREP.htm and have answers to all of the questions. Practice with your friends.

Interview Proper

  • Get rest. If you can’t sleep, go work out and then drink some milk and then go to bed. It’s more important that you get rest than if you stay up all night to study for the interview.
  • Be relaxed and conversational. If you come out crying, it’s okay… you may well be a scholar. Many have not received the scholarship when they think they’ve done well. So make sure you think you’ve done your best.
  • Brevity is the soul of wit, brilliance, and all things scholarship-related. Try providing answers in clear and succinct sentences. Your panelists will want to ask you more questions, so give them the opportunity to do so.
  • If the interview is hostile, that means that they think you can handle it. Make sure that these people are on your side.
  • If you’re going to law school, answer why? Name a lawyer-leader and a lawyer in your field of choice.
  • When asked about why you want to be a Truman scholar, specifically use the word “community,” but also truthfully answer why. The scholarship is nice, but it’s about a group of people in this world who are going to change it.
  • If they ask you if you would run for public office, say, “Yes” or “If the opportunity arises…” Do not say no because they believe in you. EDIT: say whatever you truthfully believe. When I wrote this advice guide, a Truman scholar told me that saying “yes” was good because the Truman foundation was in flux increasing its brand (changing the J.D. ban, increasing public service requirements, and pushing for scholars who would later be politicians [think Bill Clinton-> Rhodes Scholar association]). Nevertheless, this debate will never be settled, so say whatever you truthfully believe because public service can be a wide variety of things.
  • Answer their objections, by saying, “You know I can see your objections, but I disagree because (a), (b), (c).”
  • You don’t want them to ask you about the Truman scholarship that means they have nothing else to ask you. You want to get your interviewers engaged and excited in the conversation. Inspire them and make them believers in your cause.
  • Make sure to answer the question of what would happen if your cause disappeared tomorrow.
  • Remember those 3-4 points? Well, if you didn’t hit them in the interview, hit them in the closing statement. Don’t overload the closing though because your closing will just sound weird if there is no logical connection to your statement (so don’t go for four). I would suggest maybe aiming for one or two of your strongest points.
  • After the interview, go walk and stretch out and shake off all of that energy.

Questions I received while on the interview:

  1. So you’re a Dem, who would you choose for the 2008 Prez ticket (or insert other hot race)?
  2. I see that you’ve worked for Senator Ken Salazar, why did you work for him?
    1. What qualities about him inspire you?
    2. How do you think that image helps him get that message across?
  3. Tell me the three greatest accomplishments thus far of the George W. Bush Presidency?
    1. Some of those impacts we may not see until the future, give me two more.
    2. Why No Child Left Behind or the Department of Homeland Security?
  4. Let’s switch gears and talk about your proposal? Why not focus on conservation instead of charging folks to pay for water?
    1. But, they’re paying a large amount already in Arvada and other places along the front range?
    2. How do we know that increased prices will lead to conservation?
    3. And what about the poor?
  5. Summarize for me the prior appropriations doctrine of water law? Why is it a problem for water allocation?
  6. So, you’re frugal. Really frugal. What do you spend your money on?
  7. We’re almost out of time. Any last things you’d like to tell the committee? (This was the closing)

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WINNING QUALITIES
How did I win? I really don’t know (after the interview, I felt like I didn’t get it, but had a great sense of Satori) , but here are some possible reasons:

  • Humour (mentioned that I spend money on NPR and Fantasy Congress)
  • Specificity (I showed current events knowledge on water)
  • Turning the interview into a dialogue (when asked initially how I was doing, I said fine, and then asked how everyone else was doing; I wanted to convince these panelists to believe in my cause);
  • Relaxation and confidence (perhaps both faked, but I think that always helps), may be some outspokenness (without being rude)
  • Lastly thoughtfulness (use your brain, it’s your best asset).

- You can do this. There is a reason you’re a finalist. You should be ready for the interview. Most of the time people, who win are shocked because they think the person next to them should have won. At this level you need to go in thinking that you have nothing to lose because you don’t. You’re special (not in the way your mother always told you), but really you are someone who cares about the state of the world and wants to make it better. Winning a scholarship won’t change that part of you.

- In the future, if you would like to reach me, feel free to e-mail me at Andrew-aet-andrewlee[doet]com. Hope this helped and good luck.

Below is a write-up from a fellow 2006 Truman Scholar- Rachel Ackoff:

http://www.scribd.com/doc/2372380/2006-Truman-Debrief-by-Rachel-Ackoff

Below is some more advice from a fellow Claremont McKenna grad and 2005 Truman - Nic Heidorn:

http://www.scribd.com/Nic-Heidorn-Truman-Scholarship-Advice/d/27244907

 

Nirant Gupta Truman Scholarship Advice

Small Advice for Approaching a VC

So, I’ve met venture capitalists before in informal settings, but I’ve never met them in the business setting. I recently had the opportunity to do so and this guy was fabulous- one of the coolest venture capitalists I had ever met (t-shirt, shorts, wild hair, energy galore).

Although I read a bunch of books about it and read blogs on the subject, I thought I needed to actually hear it from a real-life VC. I asked my VC uncle (the middle-stage, Chinese non-new media firm) about what I should do and here’s what he wrote back:

I’m not sure there are areas to necessarily avoid. The main thing is simple: describe clearly what your company is doing and what it plans to do. And, be aware that what every VC wants is a growing company in a hot sector. So, you really want to get across two things: Company growth:

  • your revenue is increasing (or if no revenue, your users or site hits are increasing)
  • Sector growth: gaming; political blogging is booming.
  • A typical question they will ask is how you will monetize your traffic. Also what are your exit plans (you may point out that there’s strategic interest from other media players, plus IPO).

Be sure you have clear what you want from the VC: i.e, how much money. They might ask at what valuation–you don’t have to say but can answer the market will determine. If you need funds fast, say you are flexible to negotiate a win-win…

Good luck!

That’s it. Straight from an actual managing director of a venture capital firm (he’s a decision maker). Of course, Get Venture, Venture Hacks, Guy Kawasaki, and everyone else has everything mapped out to the nth degree, but I think my uncle writes the basic gist.

Other Notes: They do not care about how young you are. Nevertheless, they care that you can execute. This VC told us that our youth was an advantage because we kind of knew what our generation wanted.
One last thing to add is to make sure you’re likeable. “Even if you have a great technology, I need to like you.” Goes to show you the litmus test for teams- do something well and be well liked.

Seattle, WA

After sleeping through most of my flight from Washington D.C., I am now in the beautiful city of Seattle. Ryan (one of the partners in crime at Fantasy Congress) is a native of Seattle and was going to be here anyway to celebrate the joyous marriage of his sister. In fact, I think he may exercise some of his fantastic piano playing talents at the wedding as well.

I’m gonna visit the University of Washington campus (courtesy of my friend Travis) and also meet with some potential investors who may be interested in changing the world of politics with technology. Hopefully, I may be able to see the infamous Paul G. Allen Building where Eric Schmidt told students and faculty that Google would be the future of technology, challenging the longstanding monopoly of Microsoft. (see one of those videos). Even if we don’t get any investment, I hope to get feedback. According to Jessica Livingston, author ofFounders at Work, “I’d say determination was the single most important quality in a startup founder. If the founders I spoke with were superhuman in any way, it was in their perseverance.” Yes, we’ve been rejected before, but as with all things harsh criticism is better than nice platitude.

The weather here is beautiful. Although Seattle is a predominantly rainy place, there is a sense of quiet that results from that rain. It smells like the Rockies and the brisk temperature gives me a small sense of home.

The Backup- Shoot Away Those Nightmares

From Jesse (the wittier Truman Scholar from the Claremont Colleges)… knowing that by my side is “The Backup,” I can sleep more soundly at night. Hurry, while supplies last!

You can get one for each side of the bed! The best line is that it’s not “intended for us with children” because you wouldn’t want a child with a nightmare blowing a hole in the wall.

Is Customer Service a Technology Problem?

Right now, as I write this, I have been on hold with Delta Airlines... I should have just said, "Go ahead change my flight." I should have said this 3 HOURS EARLIER! Now part of my customer service problem is likely caused by inexperience (the nice young woman on the other end of the line was new to the office), but I think part of it was also that they had the wrong technology. I was on hold for three hours because her system was using different class code searches instead of just getting the most inexpensive deal. As she was quoting me the ridiculous price of an extra $600 to add one leg of the flight and change another, I checked Kayak.com and found a flight that would take me from San Jose to Denver to Washington, D.C. for $280. Of course, the lower offer was from United Airlines, but it just goes to show that the world of customer service is partly a technology problem. It shouldn't take five hours and in a perfect world shouldn't take me anytime as I could search through a bunch of previously answered help queries. There is no shortage of people with pain (in the business sense) in the airline industry. Whoever (probably a great arithmetician) can figure out a way to predict when to get a cheap ticket or just save me 3 hours of hold time with a better technological customer service solution, you'll do well in the future.

What to think of the Goreacle and His Prize

So, I woke up this morning to find a pleasant surprise amongst all my news sources and even in my e-mail-- Al Gore had won the Nobel Peace Prize! Here's what Al personally wrote to me (on mass e-mail):

Dear Andrew,

I am deeply honoured to receive the Nobel Peace Prize. This award is even more meaningful because I have the honour of sharing it with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change--the world's pre-eminent scientific body devoted to improving our understanding of the climate crisis--a group whose members have worked tirelessly and selflessly for many years. We face a true planetary emergency. The climate crisis is not a political issue, it is a moral and spiritual challenge to all of humanity. It is also our greatest opportunity to lift global consciousness to a higher level. My wife, Tipper, and I will donate 100 percent of the proceeds of the award to the Alliance for Climate Protection, a bipartisan non-profit organization that is devoted to changing public opinion in the U.S. and around the world about the urgency of solving the climate crisis.

The response has been mixed. Many jubilant, while others sceptical over whether Al Gore really deserved the award (they must have not received the personal e-mail). I responded (like someone who watches Academy Award winning movies) by saying that global warming will cause resource wars, and a friend's dinner response was "resource wars are going on right now" (meaning there must be someone who deserved this prize more) which made me write this e-mail to a fellow Truman Scholar...