From SXSW:

One of the first sessions I went toat SXSW interactive was called “How Not to Be a Douche Bag at SXSW” hosted by @violetblue and @edrabbit.

Now these are good guidelines for any trade show, convention or business conference you attend. I have sometimes stepped over this line and been a douche bag, but I am getting better.

Here are 10 ways to spot a douche bag mentioned at the session:

1. They call themselves an expert, guru or ninja.

2. They are always badge surfing even when you are talking to them to see if there is someone better around to talk to.

3. They shove their business card at you even before they introduce themselves.

4. They only wears free shirts with logos that they get at conferences.

5. They always are cutting in line.

6. They take a picture of you without asking.

7. They pitch their company when they asking a question to a speaker or panel.

8. They monopolize the panelist’s time afterwards and doesn’t let anyone else ask questions.

9 They tweet mean comments on Twitter when people are presenting.

10. They hog the outlets in any room.

How do you identify a douche bag???

I am off today to SXSW (South By Southwest) in Austin. 29,000 people attend this Music, Film and Interactive Conference.

I will be attending the interactive conference where they will feature the best of emerging technology, social media and a who’s who of the industry.

Being a noob, I hear that you don’t really attend this event. Rather, it is so big that it just happens to you. I look forward to the intro session : How Not to Be a Douchebag at SXSW

Follow me at the conference here or from Twitter @barrymoltz.

If you are at the conference, let me know. I would love to meet IRL (in real life).

Carol Roth is one sharp business person who will give you the best advice you never asked for. This week, I went one on one with Carol and we discussed what customer service means in today’s tough business environment. Plus:

-Which companies are getting customer service right and why;

-Some of the most common customer service myths;

-How you can create a culture of customer service;

-Plus, the biggest mistake that entrepreneurs make and more…

And you are not going to want to miss Carol doing some great movie impressions!

Carol Roth Interviews Thought Leader Barry Moltz on Customer Service from Carol Roth on Vimeo.

I flew on Friday to New Jersey to see Mike Michalowicz, The Toilet Paper Entrepreneur. Watch the Encounter!

Click here to view the embedded video.

Dalton Conley

A year ago, I read an article in Newsweek magazine that changed my perspective on my life.  It was called “Welcome to Elsewhere” that really hit home. Have you ever read an article or a book that described you perfectly? This article is me. Read on:

“Today’s professional, is constantly dogged by a feeling that he or she should be “elsewhere”—back at the office, at a party full of potential clients, home with the kids or at a social function with the spouse. Always on the go, we feel like we are in the right place at the right time only when in transit, moving from point A to B. Constant motion is a balm to an anxious culture where we are haunted by the feeling that we are frauds, expendable in the workplace because so much of our service work is intangible.”

On Business Insanity Talk Radio today, I talked with

Dalton Conley who is currently Dean for the Social Sciences, as well as University Professor at New York University. He is also the author  of  Elsewhere, U.S.A.: How We Got from the Company Man, Family Dinners and the Affluent Society to the Home Office, BlackBerry Moms and Economic Anxiety

We talked about:

1.How life is a blend of work and pleasure and we are never quite in the right place. How did we get here and should we all wish to go back to the days of the Mad Men?

2. How the ubiquity of information in today’s “knowledge economy” makes each occupation’s claim to unique expertise flimsy. Dalton says that “We all should worry—rightly—that Google, Open Source and Web 2.0 will make us as obsolete as professional travel agents.”

3. How we are working more today than ever before.

4. How women moving into the workforce has affected us working harder.

Listen now!

On my ChicagoNow, It’s A Small Business World Blog, one of my readers made a comment that I need to repeat here:

“Isn’t this what owning a business is all about? Taking the risk – with your money, time, your soul? We live and breathe our business, have invested just about everything we have in it. Too bad more people didn’t know that most small businesses give everything to their business.  Would customers think twice before asking for a deeper discount or one more add-on.  Would a bank look at the investment made by the business owner to keep the doors open?”

Entrepreneurs invest more than money. We invest more than our time. We invest our soul. Until I read this, I never realized that I invested my soul or maybe I really traded my soul to see my ideas succeed.

Trading your soul. This is why the success and failure of running one’s own business has such an impact. We dream about our business. We pray for our business. We live our business. The result matters.

What do we trade our soul for? Money? Prestige? Our Family? Power? Not me. I traded my soul for my business so I could see my passion succeed. I traded it to see my ideas and vision become a reality. I traded my soul to make a difference in this world through my business.

Do you think small business owners trade their souls? Have you? How?

The Clarkson Elevator Challenge 2010

I love the idea of an elevator pitch. Telling someone what you do or what your business does in less than 60 seconds.  Now, this is indeed a talent.

Given the chance, many of us can blab on for a long time about what we do or what our business idea is. But, to be able to crisply tell that story in a minute, now that’s a talent.

Why is this so important? In reality, most of us stop listening after 15 seconds after you start talking and if you don’t get them interested right away, you are done. This is why I have always loved what Laura Allen did at 15 Second Pitch.

I traveled on Saturday to speak and help be a judge at the Clarkson University’s Second Annual Elevator Pitch Competition sponsored by their CEO group (Collegiate Entrepreneur Organization). It was a very exciting day with students pitching a variety of ideas from improvements for the auto industry to novelty items. Each student presented two times and I was impressed with how they learned from the feedback of the judges each time.

No day goes without its failures. The celebration cake from Walmart was no different. I had to do major surgery on it so it would say Elevator instead of Elavaton.

The Cake Before

The Cake After

Gabrielle Bernstein

Do you ever wonder what your true purpose in life is? Is it making money to support your life and family? Is it making a difference in this world? Are these two things mutually exclusive?

Meet Tim Kelley. He is an author, teacher, and visionary guiding tens of thousands of people around the world to achieve extraordinary clarity of purpose. He has trained over 1,000 coaches, facilitators, and consultants in his methods. Tim works with aspiring world leaders, helping them find their way to impact our changing world. I just read his book, True Purpose, 12 Strategies for Discovering the Difference You Are Meant To Make.

Listen on Business Insanity Talk Radio as we discuss:

1. Step-by-step method for determining exactly what you are meant to do in this lifetime.
2. How do small business owners begin to answer the question, why are we here?
3. Twelve separate and distinct approaches to learn the exact details of your purpose and which are most relevant to small biz owners.
4. How knowing your purpose helps you run a business.

Next, how do you get past the fear that is holding you back?

My next guest was  Gabrielle Bernstein who was recently featured in The New York Times’ “Sunday Styles” section as the guru for the next generation, motivational speaker, and life coach. She launches her first book ADD MORE ~ing TO YOUR LIFE – A HIP GUIDE TO HAPPINESS.

Gabrielle was just one year out of college when she co-founded the Women’s Entrepreneurial Network, a non-profit professional organization that connects female entrepreneurs. She recently launched her social networking site HerFuture.com for young women to find mentors.

Gabrielle is a regular blogger for the Huffington Post New York and crazysexylife.com. She can also be seen riding around the West Village in NYC on a unicycle.

Listen to the interview now!

Mari Smith

Mari Smith has been called  “the Pied Piper of the Online World.” She is one of the most sought after Social Media Keynote Speakers, Trainers and Consultants. She helps entrepreneurs and business owners accelerate their business profits using an integrated social marketing strategy, with particular focus on Facebook and Twitter.

On a special segment of Business Insanity Talk Radio, we talk about:

1: How to design a powerful social media strategy for your business using the right tools.

2: How the average business person out there establishes themselves as a thought leader in the industry.

3: Simple strategies to powerfully leverage visibility and brand.

4: How to drive a flood of traffic to your website and blog.

5: The do’s and dont’s of “tweeting.”

Tell us your social media strategy tips!

Listen to Mari now!

Victoria Labalme

I am always amazed when I get off stage after a speech and people say to me that I am a naturally good speaker. My response always is the same: I smile and say that there isn’t anything natural about it.

No one that you see that is good at speaking in front of people just wings it. To be good at anything, it takes practice over and over and over again. When you watch the Olympic skaters – how many times do you think they practiced that routine- thousands of times? Tens of thousands?

Developing the skill to speak well in front of a group is not just for motivational speakers or professional presenters. It is for every business person. The ability to relay ideas in a clear and convincing manner is a skill that will take you a long way.

We talked on Business Insanity Radio today with four professionals about the key success factors:

Victoria Labalme has trained senior executives at Fortune 500 companies, sales teams, entrepreneurs and industry leaders. Victoria has helped thousands of individuals tap into their innate talents to take their communications and presentation skills into an entirely new realm.

Robin Creasman is a media, marketing, and entertainment industry expert who shares success lessons from the world of rock & roll. His background is from the world of entertainment as a touring and recording artist with USA Records, marketing director for a national record company, an award-winning television producer, and an in-demand success coach to some of the top entertainers, professional speakers, and authors in the country.

Marshall Makstein is one of the founders and president of eSlide. He started eSlide with his partners 8 years ago because he was crazy enough to start a company that specializes in PowerPoint design and production. He believes a presentation can be one of the most important corporate communication tools available today.

TJ Walker is a world-renowned speaking expert
•      #1 USA Today, Wall Street Journal, Business Week bestselling author of “TJ Walker’s Secret to Foolproof Presentations”
•      Speaking consultant to CEOs, Presidents, Prime Ministers, US Senators, Miss Universes and Nobel Peace Prize Winners
•      Speaking world Champion, set world record for speaking on most talks shows in a 24-hour period (112 talk radio shows)-6-1-2009

Listen Now!