Category Archives: david quail

You never know until you test it. Even with blog posts

Posted on by under advice, david quail, Uncategorized

By some definition, my techvibes guest post “Why you should choose Canada over the valley” went viral 2 days ago.  Less than 24 hours after it was live, it was their 4th most viewed article of the year, and currently has 10X more shares than any other article within the last 2 weeks.  It was trending on hackernews front page all day.  Usually at around #5. All in all, a very successful post which drove engagement and dialog.

I’ll share some specific data on what those type of numbers “meant” in terms of conversions, as well as some other side effects of the article, but I really want to take the opportunity to emphasize that this is a good example of never knowing if something *will work* until you actually try it.

I’d talked to a few people about the topic of “false positives in the valley” before, and mentioned writing a blog post about it. I’d usually get fairly mixed responses about it’s potential.  The night I submitted it I almost backed out, thinking it wasn’t engaging.  I wanted to incorporate a couple startup genome studies from my good friends at startup compass.

Turns out that blogs are a lot like product.  In a lot of ways, I suppose they ARE product.  Talking is a great, collect as much data possible, run tests to validate assumptions.  But regardless of how much you’ve talked to others, and tested assumptions, you don’t truly know if you’re onto something until it’s seen in the context of real consumption by real users.

Lean startup – in Objective C

Posted on by under advice, david quail, software startup

I felt like modeling some of the lean startup process in objective C – including when to raise capital.


Idea *idea= [[Idea alloc] initWithPassion];

Experiment *experiment;

while ([idea.market representsMassiveProfit]){

   experiment = [[Experiment alloc] initWithSomethingTestableAndIdea:idea];

   [experiment validate];

   if (experiment.addsValue){

      [idea addObject:experiment];

   }

   if (capital + idea == majorGrowth){

      if ([capital.source addsNonMonetaryValue] && [capital doesNotUnreasonablyDilute])

      {

         [capital accept];

      }

   }

   [experiment release];

}
Now if only someone would write an initWithPassion, addsMonetaryValue functions this whole startup process would be a breeze!

C100 Internship program

Posted on by under david quail

I want more Canadians, especially students, to get exposed to Silicon Valley companies and culture.  We don’t have to clone “the valley”  … but … there certainly is incredibly valuable experiences and connections in the Valley that can be leveraged from back in Canada.

That said, together with the C100, I’m thrilled to start a program called the C100 internship program, a program that will connect exceptional Canadian students with Silicon Valley comapnies.

Read more about it on the website www.c100interns.com

Effective networking while at an event

Posted on by under advice, david quail

*This post was inspired by an “effective networking” panel appearance I had at the AccelerateAB conference

Networking – the type you do when building relationships – rather than connecting wires and routers – is an investment.  Time spent building these relationships pays dividends some time after the investment is made.  Right or wrong, business is often done with your friends and people you know and trust.

I’m not going to quantify the value of this investment in this post but rather make a fe w notes regarding things you can do while at a networking event.

1.  Resist your introverted temptation to stay at home and hack.  It truly does pay off.

2.  The goal of the event is to go home with a handful of contacts that you genuinely want to go for lunch or beer with … not a pocketful of biz cards from faceless names.

3.  Ask them “what’s your story,” rather than “what do you do / where do you work?”

4.  Stay in touch with Facebook rather than linkedin.  Facebook allows you to start building a real relationship with someone.  Linkedin allows you to view their resume.  Nuff said.

5.  Humility goes a LONG way.  No one wants to get to know the blow hard know it all.

6.  Have a story and passion, even if you’re faking it.

7.  If you can get em to talk most … you’ve won.  That’s like dating women.

8.  Organize an event (poker night, pub crawl, tech talk).  People will come to YOU and think of you as someone who has their sh$it together.

9.  Share your thoughts on their business, connect them with others that may help … but dont try to solve everyones problems.  Face it … you’re guessing just like they are (and everyone else in the room.)  If you do try … you WILL be that blowhard know it all.

10.  Recognize Malcolm Gladwell’s Mavens.  Get to know them, their value and network can literally be 1000X anyone in the room.

11.  But don’t ignore the geek in the corner of the room.  They could be your best contact you’ve ever made.

Winners quit all the time

Posted on by under david quail, quitting, seattle startup weekend

One of the most stupid words of wisdom that we so often try to rally behind is “winners never quit.” The fact of the matter is that winners quit all of the time … they just quit early and before they’ve wasted a bunch of time and energy down a dead end.

Now I’m all for rallying behind a cry for persistence. I learned very early in life and in my career that “when the going gets tough, the tough get going.” In any sort of athletic training I’ve done, it’s often the case that you’re only getting fitter and stronger when you push yourself when you don’t think you’ve got anything left to give. The first 8 leg squat repetitions don’t do that much for you, but the final 2 … when it really hurts and you want to quit … is where you make all your athletic gains. This is also the case in mental exercise. Plugging away isn’t making you any smarter, but pushing through a tough problem gives you the experience and mental gain. Seth Godin talks about this as pushing through “the dip.”

But there comes a time when pushing through this dip is useless. There’s nothing on the other side of the dip that you are trying to gain. You may as well have quit before you even entered the dip.

It seems counter intuitive, but it’s often TOUGH to quit. You often hear that quitting is easy. I think a lot of the time, it’s exactly opposite. Some of the toughest decisions I’ve made is to quit! Why is that? I think it’s a combination of 3 things:
- There’s always uncertainty. Maybe you shouldn’t be quitting. Maybe the other side of the dip is fruitful.
- I really don’t want to be known as a quitter.
- Quitting usually hurts someone else … and NOBODY likes to hurt anyone.

Winners are able to recognize these three things and quit before they start, or shortly after. It’s risky, it may hurt someone, and people may see you as a quitter … but you’ll have a lot more time and energy to spend on something actually worth while.

My Work Visa

Posted on by under advice, david quail, TN Visa

In the last 3 years while working with Saflink, Verdiem, and Invisible Software Inc, I’ve been through the legalities, and process of acquiring several US working visas … L1-B, H1-B, and 3 TN’s. Oh, and I was also working with Microsoft on getting TN status to work with them.
Here’s the top 5 things I’ve learned:

1. Although big, scary, and intimidating, Imigration officers are your friends.
Yup, those guys sure know how to make a person feel guilty …. Even if there’s nothing for you to feel guilty about. Each time I get through the application interview, I feel a bit dirty. I feel like I’ve done something wrong … even though I haven’t. But …. I’ve learned that these guys actually are your friends. While it seems like it, there, not actually out to get you, or to stump you on your work history, or job role. They’re simply looking to do their job, and gather the information they need to stamp your working visa.

2. These guys have heard about google.
It really floored me the first time I applied for a visa with Invisible Software the information they had on the company and myself. They knew who worked for the company, where some of the people had worked before, when I’d worked with some of the people currently with the company, information of the product. While I knew that they had access to immigration information, I’m not sure why I figured they didn’t have access to google, and the wealth of information available for anyone on the internet.

3. Make your application package complete and professional looking.
While working at Saflink, we had several lawyers draft up the documentation needed for application. The lawyers coached me on how to conduct myself during the interview. Immigration officers spend their days reviewing and conducting these interviews. Make it easy on them by having all of your documentation ready, ordered, and professional looking. When applying with Invisible Software, I had the needed documents, but they didn’t have the look of something placed together by lawyers. It makes a difference

4. They mainly just want to know that you’re not sneaking into the country.
This may seem stupid to say, but it took me a while to realize this. Meeting the requirements of a NAFTA position and proving that your company has the ability to pay you, isn’t their way to best have fun with a stressed out traveler. It’s not a game of *how can we stump them* that they like playing. At the root of these questions is “Is this guy trying to game the system and create a porous border for himself?” Did this guy just doctor up documents for himself, withdraw $50 and show up at the border?

5. Just tell the truth
This of course seems obvious, but when under the critical eye of the scary Immigration officer it might seem tempting to stretch truths to make the process easier for yourself. Invisible Software is a small software company. It’s received funding (but not like Verdiem ala Kleiner Perkins) and is financially stable (but not like Microsoft), but not at the same level as Microsoft. While it’s tempting to claim billions in funding, and Microsoft revenues, there’s nothing wrong with just saying “Invisible Software received funding that will provide runway for at least a year, and the goal is that revenue will extend the runway. Currently there are only non-paying beta users, but there will be a paid version available in the future.”

My Own worst Critic

Posted on by under criticism, david quail

For some reason, I find myself sitting in Edmonton International terminal, contemplating my response to self-criticism, as I wait for my flight to Seattle. Maybe it’s that holiday time of year where I begin to reflect on the year that was, but I’m reliving a few moments within the last year where I became critical of myself, and thinking about how I handled my own feedback. I guess you could say that I’m being critical of the way that I criticize myself.

After a terrible performance in Bozeman Montana I was convinced that I’d lost whatever ultimate Frisbee skill and talent that I once had. After receiving negative feedback on my attempts to generate demo videos for our product, I was convinced that I had no place in producing marketing material.

In both situations, I think that by admitting fault, I did the first thing correct. I passed a self reality check. Instead of ignoring the facts, I accepted that my performance wasn’t at the level that I expected of myself. It seems like this is the righteous decision to criticize ourselves for our shortcomings. After accepting such criticism I think there’s 2 ways where I go wrong handling this information.

1. I use the criticism as a dodge.
I think that a lot of time, self-criticism serves as a way of me avoiding doing something much harder. It seems odd, but I think it’s true that often it’s easier to call yourself fat rather than diet and exercise, easier to call yourself a poor programmer and logician, than to take the effort to get better.

2. I focus on the criticism instead of what I can do about it.
“I’m fat, and unattractive. I’m never going to meet anyone and have a family.” Why instead don’t we say “I’m fat, and unattractive. I think whenever I’m bored or anxious, I fall into the habit of eating pretzels. Maybe I can grab a water instead”
I read something from Eric Maisel a while ago about this. He suggests that whenever dealing with criticism, either self or external, is to state the facts, and then say “and ….” I spent a week generating a demo video, and it didn’t meet the standard of what our team expected and ….. while I realize that I failed this time, it was my first time doing such a thing, I learned that I need to focus on the higher level goal of the demo video rather than subtle details such as smooth transitions and voice overs. I realize that I need to produce a script that makes sense as the first step to generating a video. I realize that I need to let the script drive the actions instead of the actions drive the script.

The alternative to self criticism isn’t denial or wandering around in ignorance. Never would you say “I don’t make mistakes. I think for myself, the most effective alternative is stating the facts, feeling the bit of pain, then moving on to what I can do about it, and what I learned from the mistake.

BTW … I’m actually not fat and lazy ….. but I am a poor programmer … which is why I focus on breaking the software with internal tools ☺

Blackberry storm review

Posted on by under Blackberry, david quail, iphone, storm

I’ve been playing around with my iTouch for over a month now, appreciating it more and more every day. On Friday, I bought myself the new Blackberry storm from Verizon.

The bad:

1. The on screen keyboard isn’t effective.
While I like the tactile feedback, the keyboard is cramped. The key you are hovering over is highlighted (to allow you to make a correction before entering the key), but the keyboard is so crammed that the highlighted key is hidden underneath your finger.

2. The keyboard is often in the way and is hard to dismiss.
When using the keyboard, it often dominates the screen real estate, not allowing you to see what you are working on.

3. The UI navigation and accelerometer is sluggish.
There always seems to be a second or 2 lag before applications are opened. Furthermore, switching between landscape and portrait mode usually takes a couple seconds.

4. Commands are often 2 clicks away.
Many of the apps hide common commands away in the application menu. When sending an sms message for example, you have to open the file menu, and then select send message … instead of being able to quickly send the message with one button.

5. No wifi
I’m really puzzled by this. When data is unlimited, I don’t see the motivation to disallow users to use their own bandwidth instead of that of the Verizons

The good

1. Having a 3.2 Mpx camera is sweet!

2. GPS navigation from wireless is fast, accurate, and well designed.

3. The email application is better than the iPhone app.
Emails are consistently cached locally for quick and speedy retreival off or online, while the iPhones messages are rarely cached locally.

The No Complaining Rule

Posted on by under complaining, david quail, Jon Gordon, The no complaining rule

I just finished reading “The No Complaining Rule” by Jon Gordon.
I think I’ve been fortunate to work with, and socialize with generally *positive* people, but the book resonates strongly with me. I often find myself being adversely affected by negativity in work and social settings.

My top 5 things noted from the book:

1. There are 2 reasons why people complain:
- They are fearful and helpless
- Complaining has become habit

2. 80% of people you complain to don’t give a da#$mn, and 20% are happy that you are complaining.

3. “Venting” as people like to call it …. is bull shi#$t.
- I think people justify their complaining by saying that it’s therapeutic in some way. Somehow by “getting things off their chests”, they’ll feel better. I simply don’t believe this. Therapists used to get their clients to knock out a punching bag until they found out that the temporary satisfaction did not outweigh the long term anger and violence it generated. Complaining tends to cultivate negativity and adversely affect both the complainer AND the person being complained to.

4. There is a time and a place for complaining.
- The world isn’t perfect, and one shouldn’t just accept everything in an effort to avoid complaining. Don’t mindlessly complain; but rather complain in an attempt to find a solution to the issue you are complaining about. Use the moment as a signal that there is a problem that needs a solution … not a problem that needs to be ranted about.

5. Allow the grass to grow instead of spraying the weeds.
- Instead of killing off all of the negative energy, foster a positive environment where positive thoughts suffocate the negative ones.

6. Focus on the positive and be grateful
- Pause to think of all of the things that you’re grateful. Recognize that no matter how bad you have it, somebody has it much worse. You can’t be both negative and grateful at the same time, so focus on the positive.

7. It’s YOUR CHOICE
- When dealt with any situation; it’s YOUR CHOICE to focus on the negative of the situation; or else to take the positive path.

I suppose more than anything, I was reminded that happiness is determined 10% by facts, and 90% by presentation and selection of these facts. We all exist in a world that we could either paint to be evil, malicious, and negative … or else one that is happy, and positive. The choice is ours.