It was a cd. Vista sp1 actually. Borderline ridiculous…

Imagine the impact of this 1 cd:

Freight
Assembly
Manufacturing
Time
Petrol

Why does this app beat all other Iphone GTD applications? One word:

Integration.

Todo integrates flawlessly with Remember the Milk (RTM) and Toodeldo (what I am currently using). These are two of the most popular GTD web-based applications.

A single system is extremely powerful. You have one place for data, backed-up and synced over the air with a local copy on your IPhone.

RTM and toodledo also offer many other ways to use this system with dashboard widgets for the mac and pc along with firefox extensions and igoogle plugins.

Other GTD applications have not achieved integration with already popular products and instead chosen to try to make themselves the central hub for web-based GTD rather than leverage off proven products like RTM and toodledo.

Download your copy here.

Why don’t they charge what they are worth? Maybe its because they have that trap door/escape option during or after a project that keeps us from giving 100%. We can always say “I dont have to do my best as I’m not charging what I am worth”. As opposed to being fully immersed in work and giving our all. Here is the revelation:

Everytime you under-charge you waste energy.

Almost all people who undercharge spend time thinking about how they should have charged what they are worth. This wasted energy effects concentration, communication and work quality.

Just do it, charge what you are worth. You will be happier, your work will be of more quality and you will have less stress in your life.

Organisations or individuals who try to use a medium to write about a medium are eventually limited.

I have always thought that these types of pursuits apart from rare exceptions are sometimes quiet acts of desperation to gain authority in a field that they did not quite succeed in.

Some examples include:

• writing about writing
• blogging about blogging
• songs about songwriting
• A online business about how to succeed in an online business

Can anyone think of any other examples?

We were disciplined to not use our imaginations when we should have been encouraged to using them the most. Why?

Creative thought.

Creative thought is the most powerful form of thought. Turning the formless into the form is a skill that few have due this brainwashing. Those that have creative thought win.

One word to describe it: incompetence. Here we have a company that is going to be the first in the world to release a device that has never had so much hype associated with it and they screw New Zealanders out of a deal. Two days ago on Monday when Vodafone announced the plans would start from $199, they we were utterly dissapointing when the pricing was announced yesterday.

For a brief moment on monday there was this huge demographic of people who suddenly thought “you know what, im gonna get one of those”. This demographic dissapeared the moment plans were released yesterday which can be described as a bungling mess.

When the prices were announced yesterday, the Vodafone site was down for over an hour and I got the plan information off of geekzone.  Geekzone is more reliable than a multinational.

Who runs this company? Surely you would anticipate a spike in traffic? It seems that the pre-registering with Vodafone for the IPhone accounted for nothing as the media are hinting that the only way to get an iphone is to either order online (site will go down) or que in line in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch. Another blunder.  A colleague of mine (heavy Telecom customer) went into a Vodafone store to pre-register.  He is heavily dissapointed.

Techcrunch covered the story helping to spread international attention at the hideous plans.

So here we are, first in the world to sell, first in the world to blow it. Welcome back to 3rd world status New Zealand.

There has been considerable backlash within New Zealand with an online petition(with over 1100 signatures in less than 24 hours) to boycott Vodafone and an interview with the Vodafone “marketing manager” as he was systematically crucified on live television.

So Vodafone, why go for a small market when you could have had a huge market?  You chose a big piece of a small pie, rather than a small piece of a big pie. Its the same old story and New Zealanders wont get over this one anytime soon:

Data pricing is expensive in New Zealand, dont use it.

Lets keep text messaging and fall further behind.

Any mobile applications I release wont be featured here if current market conditions prevail.

Will Vodafone listen? I doubt it, you don’t have to when you have a monopoly.

Telecom, your move.

The patterns of getting coffee, checking email and even thinking can influence your work mode. These patterns have developed your entire working career.  Have you ever had a clear thought about a problem at work after work has finished and wondered how you didn’t come up with the answer at work?  This is work-mode.

Take a moment and ask yourself; where you learnt your work-mode patterns from?

Was it that first poor boss or your old office buddy Gary? Was it your mentor or that slacker whos always late? We are all influenced.

The point is this: Work-mode can be disruptive because you may not be performing at your optimal rate. And if your not at that optimal level, you then you need to change your state.

The
two methods to do this are either by moving your body or drastically
changing your focus.

Here are some suggestions:

• Take a brisk walk
• Snooze for 15minutes
• Listen to some music
• Talk to a friend
• Watch a video that is non work related online
• Laugh a bit

They rush to work in the morning, brisk walking, erratic driving only to get to an office in a hurry and slip into “work mode” at a desk so that they cannot wait to leave work and rush home as soon as possible.

Madness.

So why is it that marketers are running campaigns in their least receptive time? billboards, flyers, handouts, promotions occur at times when people are rushing around.

Its the same old interruption marketing that does not have any permission.

Nike has recently teamed up with gyms to provide integration between gym equipment and the Iphone. It is now only a matter of time that this type of integration will exist on anaerobic exercises.

The point is this:

We spent alot of time honing a business plan and talking to people and it seemed that some shared our vision, some did not. We even went to a few of the local business incubators in Wellington to pitch the idea and get some advice from “experts”. This was the wrong move.

The incubator was more interested in the “budget” or “board of advisors” than pointing two fresh-faced grads in the right direction. We clearly understood that these are important areas to address, but not at that time. We wanted to get the concept right, see if it would fly…This proved very frustrating.

The moral of the story is this: Dont expect any type of inspirational/visionary advice from these so called “experts”. They are only really there to sell consultancy services.

You are the visionary.
You are the one who sees the future.
These people are not entrepreneurs.

23,000 signatures is at least 4.5 million dollars of handset business alone and if we add the minimum sales that Rogers would get of $60 per month on a basic plan Rogers stands to lose potential business of $16,560,000 annually. All up a minimum handset plus plan for two year loss of around 37.6 million dollars!

Vodafone take note, it takes one voice and many supporters to create this much impact, lead the field and release competitive plans!

UPDATE

Looks like we are hinting at a great deal from Vodafone according to this article

UPDATE

Looks like vodafone screwed the public with the highest in the world pricing. Watch their little spokesman get eaten alive on Campbell Live