I sat down with former student and current friend Karl Schlegel to jive about productivity, social media and what keeps this up and coming business exec on the move.
Karl, tell readers of The Daily Saint a little about you and what you're currently working on.Mike, I have been very blessed. I am the oldest of 6 children and graduated from Oratory Prep and later Rutgers College. I am a serial entrepreneur who seeks to work with clients who want to make a global impact and push past the boundaries of what they previously believed to be impossible. My firm Blackstar Group, LLC takes a holistic approach to strategic business development and works with clients across a spectrum of industries (from defense technologies to children's characters). We embrace a client's product or service and analyze it from several perspectives including the client's, the customers' and the market. Then we formulate a strategic plan and help clients connect to the resources necessary to take their businesses to the next level. We are very passionate about what we do.
Karl, how do you stay organized and efficient?
I believe that organization and efficiency is a discipline that requires practice and time. I must say that I am far from being "organized and efficient", however I have been progressing along this path through the use of several tools:
1. A person to keep me accountable. Like it or not, I need to be reminded of certain things from time to time. Being held accountable is not a punishment, rather it is an opportunity to grow and identify potential stumbling blocks that interfer with moving forward. A client ALWAYS keeps you accountable :) I find that having a mentor or mentors is a great way to ensure that I stay on track and continue to grow on all levels.
2. A scheduling book. I have a large notebook sized scheduling book that I use to keep track of deadlines and meetings. I usually punch these into my blackberry so that I have this on hand on the go, but few things substitute for writing a "To-Do" or as I am working to call them "Accountability Tags" on paper with a pen.
3. My blackberry: I use a blackberry curve and am grateful for the ability to get e-mail on the fly, as well as text, and my calendar.
4. When something pops up, I try to do it at that time rather than wait till later. I have found that taking care of the little things allows you to take care of the big things. Leaving too many little things causes them to turn into enormous tasks.
Karl, what productivity skills would you like to improve on in the next 6 months?
I am working on setting deadlines and completing tasks ahead of time. I also am not a big fan of making lists because sometimes lists become unmanageable and serve to depress rather than aid. I would also like to network more effectively at networking events. I do not mean that I want to rush through and snap up as many business cards as possible, but I want to be a better judge of figuring out if I am the right fit for the other person and vice versa. Events take time and money. Therefore it is important to be judicious in the use of both. Mike, I am open to suggestions on this :)
Karl, what effect has social networking had on your work?
Networking is one of my favorite topics! I believe that everything revolves around networking and that all networking is social. I believe that people are the hidden gems in society and that if people just looked around, they could find everything that they needed. Therefore, I try to meet and start conversations with as many people as possible. I have been very fortunate to have experienced great success with so-called "social networking" online. I have met some great business contacts through Facebook, believe it or not. I have also been able to take advantage of LinkedIn and met many people by engaging in the discussions hosted by various groups. The key with social networking is to engage and participate in the community. This is one of the core principles around Twitter which is being watched very closely by branding execs at companies ranging from jetBlue to Nielsen to Microsoft. I recently attended a conference in New York where brand reputation was the topic and the keynote speaker, Jenny Dervin, from jetBlue spoke about the importance of Twitter and social media in building and managing a brand's (therefore company's) reputation. Personally, I was able to help a company connect with Microsoft Health Vault by helping the company receive coverage on MedGadget, one of the top medical blogs on the internet. The company ended up doing a deal with Microsoft Health Vault which was very exciting. I also got invited to an invitation only dinner after an executive and I began chatting on Facebook and learned about the society balls. As a result I ended up dancing in the Quadrille Ball and escorting a beautiful young lady at the Viennese Opera Ball. The organizers and dancers in the balls have become close friends of mine and we get together several times a week!
Anything else you'd like to share with the TDS audience?
I try to live my life around a core set of principles. Seek to help others, follow your passions and dreams, and understand that you are always selling yourself whether actively or passively. I like the way Steven Spielberg said it best when asked what he did for a living in an interview. He said, "I dream for a living". Dreams are so powerful and propel us forward to utilize our gifts and talents. I love working with passionate people.
I have also learned first hand from my failures. I have failed a great deal and made many mistakes, however I try to look at failure as the teacher of success. I like the following quote from Thomas J. Watson, founder of IBM.
"Would you like me to give you a formula for... success? It's quite simple, really. Double your rate of failure. You're thinking of failure as the enemy of success. But it isn't at all... you can be discouraged by failure -- or you can learn from it. So go ahead and make mistakes. Make all you can. Because, remember that's where you'll find success. On the far side."
-Thomas J. Watson, Founder of IBM
I have also learned that sometimes there is nothing that can be done except to trust. While I struggle with this, as anyone who is human will, I draw confidence from my faith that the right thing will happen in the end. I have also learned that no matter what happens, when we choose to accept what has taken place, we gain power over the situation and ourselves to move forward.
Thank you Mike for allowing me to share with your audience and thank you for being a great mentor and role model for me.
Follow Karl today on Twitter at renovatiogroup
I've been a list keeper for as long as I can remember. It began as a basic means of keeping things in placeholders in my old Palm PDA. The simple memo feature was perfect for keeping track of my blood pressure, bike race statistics or talks that I had given and didn't want to repeat to the same audience.
