So like I said, Keith and I went to the Seed conference in Chicago last Friday. It was awesome. Jason Fried, Carlos Segura, Jim Coudal, Gary Vaynerchuk, Edward Lifson, Jake Nickell, and Jeffrey Kalmikoff didn’t disappoint.
The idea of staying true to who you are, both personally and in business, was one of the stronger themes of the day, whether the advice came from Gary V. talking about “making your DNA your business” or pretty much everyone insisting on the importance of regularly and firmly saying no.
Promoting the idea that all committed entrepreneurs can embrace and build on their passions while winning in business was one of the mail goals of the conference. Here are the highlights, with some variations on that main theme:
The Threadless Guys on Doing What You Love.
Jake and Jeff talked about learning to ‘monetize passion’, and how they built a company from what they love doing. Start from what you love, they say, and you’ve got what’s most important covered. The successes of skinnyCorps and Threadless are testaments to the power of this idea in action.
37signals on Extreme Detail.
Jason departed from his usual presentation on ‘Getting Real’ and talked about the nitty gritty of 37signals’ UI Design. Like why they don’t do wireframes or documents. Or any other artifacts, for that matter.
The main point? Turns out, it’s not so different from 37signals’ characteristically wise advice: Focus heavily on what matters to the user and those things that also contribute to the success of your business. Exclude unnecessary noise from your design and development process. Allow yourself the luxury of focusing on practical stuff that leads to measurable results.
Excluding fluff means you have energy left over to hone in on important details that make your product stand out. This extreme attention to detail is part of what’s made 37signals’ products so successful, and is the best way to distinguish yourself as a businessperson, artist, or whatever.
Edward Lifson on Mies van der Rohe.
Mr. Lifson gave an infectiously passionate presentation about Mies van der Rohe’s modernist architecture work, including Crown Hall (where the conference was held). Lifson’s obvious passion for art in general and Mies in particular was, in my estimation, the highlight of his talk.
Lifson also talked a lot about the history of modernist architecture and helped us understand how Mies’ love of concepts like universal space, freedom of movement, and bringing the outdoors indoors influenced his work. You can check out Lifson’s blog for more info.
Jim Coudal on Embracing Creative ADD.
Jim talked about that schizoid feeling you get while shuffling around for your next brilliant idea, and suggested that we all just chill and embrace the creative ADD. Because the ADD comes from flipping through your options until you find something that rocks.
The jerky ups and downs of trying out new stuff that excites you is how great things are created in art and business.
Gary Vaynerchuck on Marketing as Queen.
According to Gary, content is king, but “marketing is definitely queen. And we all know who wears the pants in the family.”
Gary talked about pushing your site’s good content a step further by getting out and learning about your customers, confidently promoting what you have to offer, never being afraid to ask for money, and (most importantly) committing yourself to building a community around your personal brand.
Good marketing involves more than just copywriting, and requires you to actually do something to build trust and win support.
In general.
In general, the conference was was geared toward inspiring people to commit to their passions and take what they love seriously—this is just as important in business as it is in art.
Keith and I came back feeling energized. We’re currently working out some sweet ideas we’ll execute on in the near future.
Thanks to 37signals, Segura Inc., Coudal Partners, and friends for a great conference.
Very nice :)