how has Oprah Winfrey managed to be SO successful for SO long?  What has given Oprah her unique staying power?  The Washington Post wanted to know.  So, they polled a panel of successful men and women, of varying backgrounds and areas of expertise,

Since I first read the panelists’ responses a few days ago, I have been thinking a lot about how Oprah’s recipe for success can be applied to business.  Personally, I relate to “Oprah the Entrepreneur.”  Three thoughts have continued to resonate with me, from this panel’s responses and my own ruminations.

These are:

Oprah’s Connection

Oprah identifies with her audience. She exudes a genuineness that allows her audience to relate to her. As an entrepreneur, it is important to connect with each client. Delivering best-in-class service, in each client’s genuine best interest, will always set you apart from your competition.  Know your client.

Doing Good Oprah was able to recognize, early on, who she was; what made her tick.  Knowing jer own strengths (and shortcomings), Oprah has been able to find situations that value who she is.  As a small business owner, it is crucial to understand who you are, recognize your strengths, and channel those strengths to pursue and develop business opportunities that are comfortable for you.  Do not chase projects that require skills that you do not have, are not interesting to you, or that may compromise your values.  Do not seek relationships with clients who you cannot help.  In other words, seek comfort.  This does not mean that you should not have a reach that exceeds your grasp.  But, it does mean that you should not compromise your values or promise anything that you cannot deliver.  Know yourself.

Knowing What is Next Oprah has announced that she will end her television show after over twenty years on the air.  She is leaving at the top.  You can bet that she did not make this decision without a lot of thought.  This may be the most challenging part.  No doubt, as entrepreneurs, we are consumed with our business 24×7.  We are constantly looking for ways to serve our clients and help them to achieve their goals.  Sometimes we can lose sight of our own goals for a project.   We should always have personal goals for a project and, periodically, we should re-assess these goals and make necessary adjustments.  Sometimes, knowing when to call it quits, learn from the experience, and move on may be the best option.  Be honest to yourself and to your client.  Know the Relationship.

Another article The Argument Left Unsaid About Foreign Students written in 2008 still holds true today. I hope the new Obama administration takes this into consideration and rethink ways retain talents in our own country. America is established based on diversity an innovation.

“As we trend towards a knowledge-based economy, it is imperative that we remain competitive in the global marketplace.

If American universities and American politicians want to help higher education and the economy, it’s time to move beyond just lobbying to get foreign students into the country for a few years – but to talk about why it makes sense to welcome many for their careers.”
Gautham Pandiyan

I just bought a Vado, a pocket video camcorder by Creative , released May 2008. Reason for wanting a video gizmo? To be able to capture videos spontaneously. After one week of using Vado, I am really liking it. It is small, inexpensive ($99), light (less than 3 oz), and because of its very ‘plastic’ texture, I feel comfortable letting my 6 year old daughter handling it.

I did a comparison video from a Vado and Flip:

Vado vs. Flip

Shot with Vado

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PTWp-aYL6Kw]

Shot with Flip

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O8IR9fWjvxg]

When comparing 1:1, I can see the difference in video and sound quality. Flip has higher quality. Will I return my Vado for a Flip? No. For my intention of using a pocket camcorder, the ease of use (I like the easy upload to youtube), light weight and rechargeable bettery outweighs the slight difference in quality. One thing of note. The Flip camcorder was accidentally dropped once, and from that, the keys are more difficult to respond (to play and stop when recording). While I am not going to drop my Vado to test out the result, I seem to think Vado will have a better resistance because of it’s plastic frame as compared to the Flip which has a metal frame.

Have you seen the tan guy with long thick blond dreadlocks, red shorts walking on Connecticut Avenue?

Another reason I want a pocket camcorder is to interview the Connecticut Walker. If you live in the DC, Rockville area, there is this blond guy, tan, muscular, early 30s with thick dreadlocks down pass his shoulders, and always wearing red shorts without a shirt (in the winter, he would wear a pair of red sweat pants with a t-shirt). My description of him may make him sound hotter than he is. I would imagine he has lots of wrinkles on his face from walking in the sun day-in and day-out. I would see him walking very fast paced up and down Connecticut Avenue at different times, rain or shine. I don’t think he has a car. Sometimes I spotted him by Chevy Chase DC, and other times by Olney, Maryland, which is a good 17 miles away, a long way to walk. I have always wanted to ask him who he is and why he is always walking. So hopefully one day soon I’ll report back with a video of the Connecticut Walker.

Want more info on Vado?

Short video of exactly what to expect from Vado in the box to using Vado

Click here for comparison of the latest pocket camcorders

As seen from chart below, Japan and Korea are leading the blog readership, with U.S. as a close third. Clearly this is the direction we are heading with increasing blog posts. The U.S. is leading the user generated video space, which is mainly due to U-Tube providing mostly English content. No doubt web based videos is and will continue to be a hot trend.

I am in the market for either an iPhone or Blackberry, I think I may wait until June for the iPhone.

“..When the 3G iPhone is introduced this summer, AT&T, the exclusive U.S. iPhone sales partner with Apple, will cut the price by as much as $200, according to a person familiar with the strategy.

AT&T is preparing to subsidize $200 of the cost of a new iPhone, bringing the price down to $199 for customers who sign two-year contracts, the source says. Apple is expected to have two versions of the new iPhone, an 8-gigabyte-memory and a 16-gigabyte-memory model with price tags widely expected to be $399 and $499.” Read more from Fortune.com

Investment in start-up companies fell across the US last quarter as venture capitalists stepped back…

The decrease sent total VC investment to its lowest point since 2005, coincidentally was the year that marked the beginning of the “web 2.0” craze which led to a revival of excitement around internet companies in Silicon Valley, the world’s leading venture capital hub. Since then, we are starting to see other internet companies sprouting up across the U.S.

According to Dow Jones VentureSource, in spite of the economic slowdown we still have a healthy amount of investment, especially in the areas of  IT, energy, and business, consumer and retail. The last time start-up Investment plunged was in 2001 when the US economy entered a recession. That was when the bursting of the dotcom bubble wiped out overvalued tech stocks and left investors hesitant to fund new internet start-ups. However, situation is different this time. Most of the economic slowdown is related to the housing market and financial services sector. Therefore, some may conclude that the VC industry could be insulated from US economic weakness. Let’s hope so. Only time will tell.

Silicone Valley got its fame from the infamous dot com era.  It was a time when everyone is curious and wants to know about the dot com bubble. So the bubble grew and grew and POP, it went. Those who watched the speedy rise and sickening fall remember the predictable way the collapse began: in denial. Fast forward to 2008. Where are we today? Could this be the web 2.0 era? What impact does the economic slowdown has on the tech world? The fact is that the economic slowdown is directly impacting the tech industry. Personally, I am seeing increasing trends of people I know in Tech jobs having no jobs.  Even Google is being impacted by the slow economy. Their stock decreased 41% compared to Nov 2007. That, to me is a warning sign: If Google’s profitability is in jeopardy, then no company in tech is safe.

A tail of 2 Bubbles.. (April 7^th Fortune magazine)

Below are great tips for career success. I hope you will find it helpful as I have.

10 Tips for Career Success
By Alvah Parker 

1. Find ways to learn continuously.
2. Find ways to improve whatever you do. Be willing to incorporate the new ideas that you learn in #1.
3. Do your work completely and with pride.
4. Be true to your own values.
5. Clear up those irritations (energy drains) so that you can devote your energy to your work.
6. Practice self-care so that you feel good about yourself.
7. Keep work in perspective so that you have time for other parts of your life (family, friends, hobbies, volunteer work).
8. Listen carefully to everyone. Managers need to walk around and talk to employees and customers.
9. Network within your company and outside.
10. Delegate tasks when appropriate and empwer those doing the work to do it their own way.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3XGJq8wrw5I

I think I’ll take the chance anyway! Change is good right?