Archive for the ‘SET Consulting’ Category

9pm EDT, I’m live on the Par-tay. Send your tough questions…and let’s rock


July 9, 2008 by Jared Goralnick
jonnys_partay_graphic

Tonight I’ll be interviewed by Jonny Goldstein on Jonny’s Par-tay.  He’ll have some questions but half the fun is where you take the show in the live chatroom.  If you can’t be there tonight at 9pm EDT, just leave a question in the comments and I’ll be sure to answer on the show, which will be recorded and posted here.

Watch it live here!

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Technotheory’s new design! And an odd surprise…


June 23, 2008 by Jared Goralnick

TT_logoFor the last week I’ve been testing a new theme design on this website.  I hope it will make information easier for you to find, and promote a consistent look with my company’s other websites.  You’ll be surprised to learn how we did it.

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Why AwayFind? To escape from email (quick clip from SOB Con 2008)


May 8, 2008 by Jared Goralnick

AwayFind - away to escape...a way to be found The following is a short video that explains why I created AwayFind (and touches on how to batch your email). I delivered this as a presentation to the School of Blogging Conference in Chicago (under the parameters of 20 slides presented in 5 minutes). I hope you’ll enjoy this, and will participate in the private beta. Feel free to skip to 0:42 for the meat of the presentation…

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How to get started with working remotely


April 30, 2008 by Jared Goralnick

Telecommuting by the fire

Three quarters of the meetings that “merit a face-to-face” really don’t. It’s not “telecommuting” (that’s so 1997) and it shouldn’t even be called “working remotely”–it’s just WORKING. I’m putting my foot down and removing any distinction. Working from home has greatly improved my business, my sanity, and my life. So I’m opening up the kimono here on my tools. No, you don’t need to come in, you can read this from anywhere in the world.

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If you trust people more, you’ll have a lot less to do. And my lessons learned


April 3, 2008 by Jared Goralnick

dagny_book_shred

We’re never so vulnerable than when we trust someone – but paradoxically, if we cannot trust, neither can we find love or joy

-Walter Anderson

However much you trust the people that work for you–trust them more.  If no one reports to you, trust that someone could…and find them.  The greatest barrier to getting other people to do your work is you.

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Enjoy what you’re doing. Get results. Ditch the rest


February 11, 2008 by Jared Goralnick

When was the last time you listed all your work responsibilities and ranked them according to enjoyment and value? If you’re spending much time on tasks that aren’t fun or valuable then you shouldn’t be doing them–automate, delegate, or eliminate them. And, if possible, try to get the things you enjoy most to produce the most value for you.

Example: my blogging. Two years ago when I started this blog I had little reason to write entries like this–most of the business I sought related to Microsoft Office productivity…and, to be frank, I no longer get a thrill out of explaining most Microsoft Office end user issues online. But I like writing about bigger issues and offering advice. Now that I’m working on a productivity application and have become more involved in certain circles, it makes business sense to write about this stuff. What I enjoy is aligned with where I derive value.

Counterexample: software development. I really enjoy solving technology problems…and getting my hands dirty with the code (when I’m familiar with the language). But it’s not a good use of my time because I can’t make much progress on a programming challenge when I have a dozen other projects to manage. Instead I now focus more on the architecture or user experience of technology problems, which gives me a similar buzz without the same timesuck.

I’d encourage you’d to make a list of all your responsibilities and figure out why you’re doing them, and what you get out of them. Consider Continue reading…

Proud to announce a new website for SET Consulting!


January 15, 2008 by Jared Goralnick

After many months of effort, I’m happy to say that my company, SET Consulting, has released a completely redesigned website with mostly new content: www.setconsulting.com. Some new stuff: our team, examples of our work, and filtering our tips based on a particular product (like Word, for instance).

While we regularly work with talented web designers and developers, this was a completely home-brewed effort. No, we’re not planning to offer web design or development as a service to our clients…but we have realized two things:

  • (When you have the talent,) a “do-it-yourself” effort for something so important to the company feels incredibly rewarding
  • Occasional challenges with coding are worth overcoming when both our work on AwayFind and Office projects often have web components

Deep thank yous go especially to Keith (the design), David (the code), and Kate (the tireless proofreading — here’s her blog) for bringing this to fruition. And, of course, thank you to the wonderful clients who allowed us to create case studies for our portfolio: Continue reading…