Another day, another book

So since summer is here, the entire graduate school business environment is on a sort of pause. This pause has allowed me to utilize my time and do something I've been procrastinating on for quiet a while, reading business related books.

Perhaps one of the best books I have read so far is, Never Eat Alone by Keith Ferrazzi. This book is an eye-opener for anybody and everybody. Not only is it a book about how to properly network, and the right way to go about it, taken out of context it can be interpreted as a step by step guide to properly building your network.

Furthermore, this book is motivational. Be warned, after you finish reading it (even if its at 2 am) you will want to get online and start updating your address book and managing your contacts.

Good luck!

The Power of Your Personal Brand: A Case Study Approach

People change, so how do celebrities keep up with their current fans and attract new ones over time? This question is in every celebrity or politician’s mind. This movement toward personal branding has been seen in every brand through the ages, where marketing specialists cook up new “hip” ideas to appeal to new generations, as Coca-Cola has been doing throughout our lives.

Brands are powerful, and several celebrities have been working in interesting ways to develop their personal brand and further their career. Let’s analyze a few actors and see what has happened throughout their lives.

Russell Brand – a British comedian, at first, known for his Rockstar-ish ridiculous style. He has exchanged his metal chain, his leather pants and pointy shoes for stylish business type attire that is more presentable to the public, attire that is appealing and professional. Since the change, his career has taken off, and he is well on his way toward becoming a respectable actor. Russell Brand’s personal brand, now changed, has directly impacted his career for the better. Now we must ask ourselves, with this change, what affect will this play on Russell Brand’s existing fans?

Brad Pitt – perhaps the best example and most interesting case in personal branding. Brad Pitt’s career has evolved, and through the years, his personal brand has changed. At first, he was viewed as a hunk with a pretty face. To build his brand beyond his “pretty face,” Brad Pitt started taking roles that were not based on looks (Fight Club, Twelve Monkeys), and with the marriage to Jennifer Aniston, his image has shifted from “pretty boy” to a “romantic”. These movie roles were not taken by Brad Pitt because of lack of options, but rather as a necessary shift of his personal brand. In recent years, after his partnership with Angelina Jolie and several adopted children, Brad’s personal brand has changed again. What is Brad’s personal brand now and has it made him more successful? And what will his brand look like in the future?

Charlie Sheen – the only person whose name is associated with “tiger blood,” is perhaps the most fascinating example of personal branding.  Charlie Sheen’s personal brand matches the characters he plays on screen: rebel, crazy, easy going, etc. Once his latest outbreak came about, his personal brand was not hurt because his target audience already expected this type of behavior, it was consistent. This shows that once you have a solid foundation for your personal brand, and are consistent with it, any press will be good press. How was this different from Tiger Woods/Britney Spears/Mel Gibson, and the negative press on their personal brand?

As we can see, a personal brand is powerful and is necessary. Once it is established, it has the power to attract your target audience and increase your popularity. It is important to stay true to your personal brand and shift it slightly and appropriately with your target audience. People trust your personal brand and do not want to be taken for a fool when you betray your own image.

96% of Startups fail

I am reading this intersting book called "The One Minute Entrepreneur" by Ken Blanchard

They made a very interesting point that was also pointed out in MBA school the very first year.

When entrepreneurs start a business, 40% of the businesses fail within the first year, 80% of the businesses fail within the first 5 years, and 96% of the businesses fail within the first 10 years.

This is because these businesses are started by technicians, writters, electricians and such. They continue to do the work they are skilled at, while ignoring other vital parts of the business.

I believe the author is right on the money.

About.Me

Finally!!! I found a picture I wanted to put as a background on my about.me/alexkhamudis site.

It took a while of searching through my galleries but finally its up there. I think this picture sparks enough curiosity to see more, or to learn more, after all, who doesn't like Belgian waffles?

Opening notes

Dear Ladies and Gentlemen,

The time has come for me to start a blog. After months of procrastinating and convincing myself that I have nothing to write about, I am throwing in the towel and actually making one.

So lets discuss the blog starting experience. The hardest part is deciding to start one, put your ego aside, put your fear of sharing personal information aside, and just create one. If you're really self conscious, you may create one just for the fun of it and never update it again, but at least you'll know that its up there and you can update it whenever you'd like. I am not here to promise that I will update this blog on a regular basis, I simply make the promise of intending to update it regularly.

I asked myself:
Q: Which blogging service should I choose?
A: I chose blogger simply because it is owned by Google. Google runs many of the accounts we use online, they are a very trusted brand, and worth the investment of a few key strokes that represent your thoughts.

Well, I have caught you up on what's been happening with the blog writing process in my head, stay tuned for something else next time.


Thank you for reading,
-Alex