Chip Griffin: Pardon the Disruption

Returning from Think Week

My semiannual Think Week has concluded, and I'm full of ideas and energy. Think Week is my opportunity to step back and take a 30,000 foot view of my companies, projects, and activities to make any necessary strategic adjustments. I unplug as much as possible, get out of town, and try to put my mind in the right place to sort these things out in a relaxed way. By shunning the day-to-day slog we all get bogged down in, I find I can make better judgments and churn out more productive ideas. I have been doing this for a number of years now, and I always find myself rejuvenated upon my return every 6 months. Ironically, I often find it more restorative than vacation in many ways.

(If you want more details on Think Week and my thoughts on the subject, check out my Mass High Tech magazine column on the topic from late last year.)

As I return from my latest solo retreat (or "advance" as Newt Gingrich used to like to call it when he was Speaker of the House), I have tweaked my focus a little bit. In particular, I have decided to rededicate myself personally to two of my publications, Media Bullseye and Cork & Knife. When I created Eaglon as a new media publishing company last year, I had great hope for it, and I am at least as excited about the concept today. These two publications in particular have gained traction and show real promise for long-term success.

At the same time, I am slowing down some other Eaglon projects in order to focus the limited resources of my startup enterprise on these two flagship outlets. You can look forward to lots more content and innovation from both in the coming weeks and months. And you will finally see print versions of each magazine, something that was part of the original vision. In fact, the first "dead tree" edition of Media Bullseye should hit the street next week featuring the best of the web content from the first quarter of this year.

Of course, CustomScoop remains an important part of my personal portfolio as well, and I'm excited about some of the innovation we'll be offering up in the coming weeks. I'm especially proud of the fact that we will be rolling out a very useful tool that no other traditional or social media monitoring company can boast. My efforts during Think Week have convinced me that I am striking the right note in my involvement, focusing primarily on high-level product vision as well as being a public "face" for the company.

This Think Week did not dwell heavily on my AOS Ventures, or my volunteer work with American University, or other companies and projects I'm involved in. Generally, I find it helpful to zero in on just a few areas to achieve maximum results.

Flight Delays Really Are Getting Worse

Paul Kedrosky, the always insightful data guy, points to new US Department of Transportation statistics that show that more flights have been delayed so far this year than ever before.  He even includes an astonishing list of flights delayed 100 percent of the time (though it isn't clear if these are daily flights that have been operating for the whole year or not).

I've been telling people lately that flights have been getting worse, but now we have hard data to go along with my gut feeling and one person's data.

A Flurry of Posts Are Coming. Here's Why.

This has been an especially hectic week for me as I have been on the road for business since Tuesday.  Now, that's not all that uncommon for me as regular readers will know.  I am on the road almost every week for 3 days or so.  But this week I had to combine my business activities in Washington, DC with my responsibilities as part of the American University School of Public Affairs Advisory Council.  I found myself shuttling between downtown DC and the AU campus on 3 consecutive days, which for those of you familiar with the city will understand is not a quick, easy trip.

The Council is a great group -- this was my first meeting -- with a lot of diversity in background, experience, and views.  I hope to be able to continue to contribute to the efforts that Dean Bill LeoGrande and his team at SPA are making and to work with the broader American University community in general. 

In any event, I have gotten caught up now on my reading, and I have a bunch of topics I want to address.  I'm going to try to hit on as many as I can before the Red Sox-Yankees game begins.

Technorati tags: American University, School of Public Affairs, BIll LeoGrande

Welcome to TechJots

TechJots focuses on high-tech entrepreneurship.  It will be a mix of commentary, product reviews, company profiles, interviews, and links to interesting news.  Have a tip?  Share it with us.

Who am I?  I'm Chip Griffin and I am a serial entrepreneur.  I've successfully started several companies, including CustomScoop and NetVocates.  It all started in 1998 when I formed Griffin Strategy Group, a public affairs consulting firm that specialized in helping organizations and candidates communicate online.  In all, I've been a founder of 5 companies in the past 8 years -- and I've got a few more in the pipeline itching to come out. 

I have a keen interest in seeing what's going on -- seeing great ideas, learning from innovators and entrepreneurs.  And I have a special affection for anyone doing that outside of Silicon Valley -- not that I have anything against my friends in California, but I think plenty of people are already covering that region.  There's less of a spotlight on the East Coast and I want to add my efforts to the mix. 

Hopefully this blog will serve as a resource for others who share these passions. 

After all, why should Silicon Valley have all the fun?