codeslush

My children are a little spoiled and often ungrateful. My little boys, four and five, are especially unaware of how hard many people have it and how good they have it. For that reason, I wanted to show them that doing something for someone else is a good thing and can make you feel good inside. Note: I have not done nearly enough of what follows in my life, and I want to change it!

I wanted to do something for the poor and homeless. I made a few calls over the course of the past week and thought going on a food drive was a good idea. We would gather food, take it to the food pantry, and later, watch as people received food from the donations. This felt like a safe and easy thing for the little ones to be able to make an impact.

Today was the day of "food gathering" - and it was an excellent experience. Every family that was home was able to provide something. I realized, through this experience, that this was beneficial for my children for reasons beyond the original intention:

1. Taught them to do something for others (the original intent). 2. Taught them that going up to random people and speaking with them, or asking them for help, is okay and not that difficult (not expected). 3. Taught them to communicate a mission statement with clarity, so people would understand why you are ringing their doorbell (not expected). 4. Taught them that people are rather generous and appreciative when approached with good intentions (not expected). 5. Taught them a little about planning. We created a flyer that we could show people what was needed by the food pantry, we planned the process, from a few calls, to the entire "life-cycle" - and we went into action. 6. At first, the children were nervous, and honestly, so was I! It is hard to go "door to door" and ask for something. It was completely worth it for all involved and we all felt good as we finished the first phase - arguably, the most difficult.

I wanted to share this on HN because many of us have a hard time meeting new people or getting something started. The outcome of my experience was greater than I could have imagined and we all feel great about the experience.

Backdrop: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r2QZW1mexhQ

I'd like to buy the poor a home, furnish it with love

grow apple trees, honey bees, and snow white turtle doves

I'd like to teach the poor to code, in perfect harmony

i'd like to give the poor a chance, and help them to succeed

that's the song i'd sing

i'd like to teach the poor to code, in perfect harmony

i'd like to give the poor a chance, and help them to succeed

that's the song i'd sing

i'd like to give the poor a chance, and help them to succeed

.....

I don't pretend to understand much of anything, but I can make some time to do something like this and it has been one of those recurring thoughts that passes through my head regularly - and has done so for the last decade or more. If you are in the LA/OC/San Diego area and know of people and/or organizations with whom I can connect to give this a shot, please let me know.

I recently watched a rather excellent interview on Mixergy (http://mixergy.com/nick-oneill-allfacebook-interview/) and the entire interview is actually filled with nuggets of gold, but I wanted to highlight one really important thing that might not be so obvious: At the tail end of the interview, Andrew went to do a plug for one of his advertisers/sponsors, and it involved a testimonial he received via email from a customer. Turns out, he couldn't pronounce the customers name. Ironically, Nick knew the person and helped out. Anyway, I am almost blind to any form of advertising and pretty much just block it out. But because of the way this unfolded, a day later I still remember the persons name (Guarav) and I remember the product being pushed. And...I actually ENJOYED the plug! Andrew was embarrassed, but should not have been! It was just so authentic, a little humorous and not at all a negative reflection on Andrew (i.e. lack of prep, etc...).

This made me reflect a little on my own experience. I'm often discussing and demonstrating complex technical tasks in front of prospects/customers as part of my job. I long ago gave up trying to have the perfect script, flawless demo and decided instead it was better to just roll with the punches. This creates a situation where things are not always perfect and mistakes happen, but that inevitably happens with the perfectly scripted demo too! But interestingly, when mistakes do happen, the audience becomes MORE engaged and I think they remember things better. I'm thinking it must be the result of the same thing I experienced with Andrew's interview. This isn't to say a drastic mistake will not leave a negative impression, but I'm wondering if minor mistakes are actually a net positive??

Do you have examples of where mistakes/imperfect interviews/demos/etc... have worked out favorably for you?