November 11th, 2009 | Jake

This week we brought together Sean O'Connor, independent film maker and founder of ratingworld.com, and Steven Rosenbaum, an American television producer, Filmmaker and most recent founder of Magnify.net.

Sean has worked on various film and video projects ranging from producing videos for Diet.com to feature length films. His latest film Flashover, was a winner at the 2008 Boston Film Festival. Sean recently completed the script for his next feature film and when he is not working on film he is focused on his startup company, ratingworld.com.

Steven is best known as the creator of MTV News UNfiltered and has received countless awards for his fine work in film making, including 2 Emmy Awards and 6 New York Festival's World Metals. Steven is the founder of Magnify.net, which allows people to create and add video experience to their website.

The conversation centered around the changing film industry and what Sean and Steven have been observing from their different perspectives. In the podcast you can hear Steven speak with Sean about his experience as a film maker, what inspired him as a producer and why he ultimately decided to leave the film production world to start Magnify.net.

Additionally, we heard about how many of the barriers have been lowered for more people to become producers of their own video and what implications this has on film making as an industry.

As a result of the conversation I asked Steven and Sean to come up with their Rule 53.  Steven jokingly warned, do not proceed past Rule 52!

Rule 53:
While lower costs and access to technology may make it easier to get in the door of the film industry, it takes people who are steadfast, driven and slightly insane to deliver the quality and value to attract an audience.

Special thanks to Steven for introducing Alexa to Alan Webber who is the inspiration behind Rule 53!

November 5th, 2009 | Alexa

One of our many goals at DartBoston is to facilitate helpful introductions within our community.  This week, I got the chance to pair up Tom Petr, founder of Schedr.com, and Barry Goldberg, the CTO of Unigo.com.   We spent some time talking about team building, staying lean in a startup environment, deficiencies in academia and technology trends from a gen-y standpoint.

I asked him to be an early guest on this show because Barry is passionate about his work, really good at what he does, and most importantly, a genuine human being. What's his Rule 53?  Barry offered a few pieces of advice that included the following:

• Network, network, network!
• Rely on yourself first before asking others to join your team.
• Be knowledgeable about your craft.

The conversation took a bunch of different directions and towards the end, Barry wound up asking Tom and I some questions about where we think web trends are headed.  What are some perceptions around Facebook connect?  Will future web users value a single-sign on username across platforms?

We raised some interesting points, but you'll have to listen to find out what they are...

[podcast]http://dartboston.com/rule53/episodes/ep1.mp3[/podcast]

Many thanks again to Tom and Barry for taking the time out to participate in this week's show.  Stay tuned for next week when we bring together Sean O' Connor from Ratingworld.com and Steve Rosenbaum, the CEO of Magnify.net! 

Any feedback or guest requests, you can email me at alexa@dartboston.com or leave them in the comments.

October 20th, 2009 | Jake

We couldn't have asked for a better setting to launch Dart's new show Rule53. We had a huge crowd that showed up to WorkBar Boston last night to see our very first episode.

It's funny to think that we had 40+ people last night to watch the first Rule53 show and I had 4 people (including myself) for the first show of Pokin' Holes. Alan, I guess you need to teach me how to draw a crowd.

I want to thank everyone for coming out and showing your support. I say this a lot but I really mean it... DartBoston is nothing without all of you guys and gals. In this episode, Alan Webber, founder of Fast Company and author of Rules of Thumb (which I highly recommend you pick up) was on hand last night to talk to one of our own, Jessica Manganello of Exemplar Law.

While this is just the first of many Rule53 shows, I thought it was a great start and we hope to improve it as we move forward. But of course we can't do that without your help so please leave some comments for us on on how we can improve Rule53!

Part 1 of 2:

Part 2 of 2: (more...)

October 20th, 2009 | Alexa

There's no denying that these are turbulent times we live in.  In the past year alone, thousands of Americans lost their jobs while banks and corporations crumbled.  Today, only 46% of 16-24 year olds are employed, the lowest number since 1948.  According to BusinessWeek, we're breeding a "lost generation" - young adults who are "bright, eager and unwanted."

There's no telling what the effects of this recession will have on young adults long-term, but for now, we need guidance, and we need it fast. Professors lecturing about the world they once knew no longer suit our needs.

We need leaders and teachers who are changing the game today and re-writing the rules before our very eyes.  We need a Rule 53.

******************************

The search for Rule 53 started this past summer when I came across Alan Webber's book, "Rules of Thumb: 52 Rules for Winning at Business without Losing Yourself." The book was gifted to me by my friend Steve Rosenbaum, CEO of Magnify.net.   I found myself eagerly turning the pages, one-by-one revealing the portrait of a man who was accomplished yet humble, provocative yet witty, a stranger and yet in many ways, my new best friend.

Alan's book gave me what I had been searching for all summer long.  It offered me advice on what it means to be an entrepreneur today, the challenges that we all face as professionals experiencing transitions, and a moral compass for navigating a world that is ripe with misfortune and adversity.

Many recognize Alan as the co-founder of Fast Company magazine, but to me, he's so much more than that.  He is an eager listener, a lifelong learner, a selfless connector, and a generous mentor.

Together, Alan and I are embarking on a quest to define Rule 53, an open collection of stories and anecdotes that define a new era of leadership in turbulent times.  We're going to pair eager and hopeful twentysomethings with their experienced counterparts in hopes of sparking insightful and helpful conversations.  It's a living sequel to the last chapter in "Rules of Thumb," which says, "Be alert, there are teachers everywhere."

The actual show will be produced with better sound quality, but here's a little pre-recorded phone conversation that Alan and I had to start things off.  Rule 53 - preshow.