day job | Croncast - Life is Show Prep

Betsy and her husband Kris Nov 02, 2007

Fri, 02 Nov 2007 08:21:44 -0400

Croncast - 2007-11-02.mp3
Show: #428
Length: 30:52
Size: 22.2mb
Format: mp3

Betsy and her husband Kris Nov 02, 2007

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It's Tell a Friend Friday
Tell your people, people
Switched up the intro
Added Podcast.com as a place you might get your podcasts
Check them out
Happy early birthday to Mark
He needs a cold turkey quit smoking partner
You up for it Betsy?
Does he have someone in Atlanta?
My birthday is then seven days after
Right after our three year mark
We'll be doing this until the wheels fall off
I get worried about our archive
Yeah, can't you just burn it to disc
Final paycheck from the day job came in today
Today was the contract execution date
So many things had to fall into place
We talk money and situation for a bit
For those of you who don't like this stuff skip ahead to 14:08
Many people have been in our shoes
You better get a job Mr B
It's already not been nice
We said we weren't going to talk about this stuff anymore
However, it's all be got going on right now
It is what takes up our waking hours
That's your problem Mr B
It's stressful
Yeah, we could end up moving . . . highly likely
Very little is going on here in Chicago
Not a leading edge city
The coasts are full of rocking gigs
Looking for jobs that are in wrong category
I found 10 different ones put away like this
Next is to contact the recruiters on these sites
Newly revised resume in PDF format (Yes, I know address is missing in this version)
Check it out
Though it's the same as my Linkedin Profile
I've had lots of people on this resume
Everyone is telling me that this will take longer than
Every time we talk about money it makes people crazy
Don't bother sending the hate mail
What do you want for your birthday?
Don't even say
Health insurance?
I have health insurance for us through January
Could this be worse?
Yes
I have contracts, things I can't share
It's up to listeners to fill in blanks
Dating the show
Part of being smart is that you should hate TV
I love TV Mr B
When you say kerchief it sounds like crew chief when you say it
Your references are all 80's TV
I am breaking into a new garage sale area
Hinsdale, a swanky Chicago suburb
Betsy puts the stereotype lifestyle
Kris finally tells the breast feeding plate story
The mosquito fogger driving down the street and chasing it
Breast feeding was the best time of my life
If you have healthy children
I will buy you your own plates, Betsy
With correct hair, eye and nipple color
You're gonna get me a titty plate?
You just don't bust those out that awesome
Oh, man your mom, Kris
You have no more awesome stories
I watched Three's Company
You watched Titty Plates

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Tags: Franklin Mint Breast feeding plates Kris Smith Resume Podcast.com mosquito fogger

Stepping out of Room 214 into the hallway

Tue, 23 Oct 2007 09:49:34 -0400

In January of this year I took the position, VP, New Media with Room 214, an internet and search engine marketing company. I brought with me Castlock, the podcasting and rss metrics platform that I developed in early 2006.

This was an exciting opportunity. I had built a solid relationship with the founders of the company over the previous year working closely with them to produce podcasting and new media campaigns for the Alltel Racing podcast (NASCAR driver Ryan Newman), four podcasts for NFL Pro Bowl players during 2006 season and many other client podcasts; all the while holding a position as Associate Director, e-Learning for another company. Many of you might remember us talking about this last January.

The last ten months working for Room 214 have been great, but the time has come for all of us to move on.

What will I do now?

I'm not sure. But I do have quite a few options . . . probably more than I realize. There are a couple that leading the pack right now.

My first option is to make sure my resume is up to the task of assisting me gain new full-time employment. It is pretty amazing how over the last three years podcasting and rss have transitioned to "new media" and are being welcomed into the corporate structure. All that bickering about every company being a media company seems to be coming true!

My second option is to put more energy into my podcast production company, Palegroove Studios, and get back in the saddle for podcast production, consulting and licensing of Castlock. When I started with Room 214 I put it on the back burner since I was doing the same work as my "day job".

My third option, and least viable as a solution, is to go all out Croncast. I would love nothing more than to be doing the show full time and bring video into the mix but this doesn't seem to be the right time.

That's it, that is what's been up around here.

Like any time of transition this is an interesting and exciting time. I am already wondering which path I will end up going down and where the choice(s) that I make will lead my family next.

If you've got any thoughts send them to me from the contact page, email kris[at]croncast.com or send them the old fashioned way and give me a call on my GrandCentral line (thanks Rick!) at 630.445.1719.

Update: I should have added this the first time around (it was in the show notes from Monday!)

Feel freed to check out my Linkedin Profile

Tags: Kris Smith Room 214 VP, New Media Palegroove Castlock

Smartphone absurdity, I want just one

Sat, 25 Aug 2007 12:23:33 -0400
I didn't realize how absurd this smartphone crap was until the day before yesterday. We have a potential client using Blackberries as podcast players. Which was no big deal since I worked on a solution a few years ago at my day job but I needed to get the same version as the client. Hence a new radiation hot spot for my palm.

Now in the house:

1 Treo 700 (mine, Verizon)
1 xv6700 (Betsy, Verizon)
1 iPhone (work, AT&T)
1 Blackberry 8703e (work, Sprint)

Two of them are for work, like I marked them above, but it is ridiculous. They all do like one thing better than the others, one carrier's plan is better priced or the network makes all the difference. What do I mean?

Best sounding as a phone:
1. Treo
2. iPhone
3. Blackberry
4. xv6700 (horrible)

Ease of use as a phone:
1. iPhone (my mother-in-law could use it)
2. Treo
3. Blackberry
4. xv6700 (need 3 hands to make a call)

Ease of use overall:
1. iPhone
2. Blackberry
3. Treo
4. xv6700

Best OS:
1. xv6700 (windows mobile 5.0, too bad everything else about it sucks)
2. iPhone
3. Treo
4. Blackberry

Best media playback:
1. iPhone (wonder why?)
2. xv6700
3. Treo
4. Blackberry

Best keypad:
1. Blackberry (update: thanks Garrick for pointing out I misspelled it the first time -LOL)
2. Treo
3. xv6700
4. iPhone (it's pretty . . . hard to use quickly)

Best sms device:
1. Treo
2. Blackberry
3. xv6700
4. iPhone

Best email device:
1. Blackberry
2. Treo (would be third if AT&T edge were faster)
3. iPhone (on wifi this is second)
4. xv6700

Best web device (network):
1. Treo (doubles as EV-DO modem, love it)
2. xv6700 (doubles as EV-DO modem, never used it)
3. iPhone
4. Blackberry (locked into a special start page, blah and doubles as EVDO modem but Sprint rates are insane)

Best web device (wifi):
1. iPhone (experience much like real browsing
2. xv6700 (fast but reformats pages)
The other two are AWOL with no wifi capability

Best camera:
1. iPhone
2. Treo
3. xv6700
Blackberry is without

Best network:
1. Verizon
2. Sprint
3. AT&T

Best overall:
1. iPhone
2. Treo
3. Blackberry
4. xv6700

Taking all of this into consideration and my experience with all four operating systems and form factors, I have decided that my ultimate phone and carrier combo would look something like this:

An iPhone on Verizon's network, use as EV-DO modem, with an add on keypad and GPS onboard. That would get an 'ooh la la' and an amen.

Tags: iPhone xv6700 Treo 700 Blackberry 8703e Verizon EVDO Sprint GPS

Dave Slusher does me wrong - open reply

Fri, 08 Jun 2007 12:23:29 -0400
The following is a comment that I left for Dave Slusher regarding his podcast from yesterday lambasting me on "podcasting day job" from a presentation that I gave in 2006. It is waiting approval at his site, and in case it doesn't meet the specs I thought I would post it to the public here. To hear what I am writing about you can download it and listen to 20:40 - 24:50.

I usually don't respond to this type of stuff but this deserves another perspective . . . like one from me, the guy in question. Thanks to the friend that pointed this out. He also rips Scoble, so I am in good company.

My comment:

Okay, where do I begin. Dave, you and I are not strangers. We know each other from podcasting and have spoken on more than one occasion. We've both been at this podcast thing for a long time, you since Aug '04 and me since Nov '04, we've both got some perspective.

I respect your thoughts on my presentation, but I don't agree with you.

The presentation in question, "Leveraging your knowledge as a successful podcasting consultant" from PME 2006 was based on sharing my experience working for clients to produce podcasts from my basement. It was to help give a framework to those who wanted to make some extra bucks. Shit, I even give out my own business template for pricing and structure to those who attended and to those still asking for it.

Success, for me has been doing what I love, audio production, writing code and using my creativity in projects that pay me. Would you have me buy the argument that only "real" creativity comes from the absence of greenbacks?

In February of 2005 I opened my consulting company and two weeks later I had MTV as a client. Was it also bad that in my presentation I shared how I lost them as a client? Maybe the fact that I recommend to podcasters that they should talk to a business attorney and an IP attorney so that they can avoid pitfalls like libel or onerous contracts?

In my life, I too am trying to save for retirement, college for the kids and a safety net. If I can make a buck podcasting for other people . . . big or small to put toward them by making podcasting my day job it doesn't feel like I am punching the clock. It might mean that I am working "just another shit job" in my basement. However, it doesn't feel like a shit job. It feels like I am doing something that I love. That should account for something in the personal satisfaction category, I rank this job a 1.

You and I simply differ on how to make money podcasting. You like the advertising/sponsorship model and I prefer to both produce my own personal podcast and use my skills to make works for other people. My personal podcast has been delivered 3 times a week for 2 1/2 years with my wife every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Want to question my passion for podcasting?

On this, I'm not asking to debate this topic but simply recommending that if anyone is interested to hear the presentation in question head over to http://pa.gigavox.com/ and look for big goatee and bald head for the right session.

The bottom line for me is this is what someone who enjoyed both of our sessions had to say about them:

"Dave Slusher from Evil Genius Chronicles. When he speaks, I'm there."

"Kris with Palegroove Studios gave the most honest, non sales pitch presentation on podcast consulting. He shared real world numbers, which is rare in this day and age."

Given our interactions in the past a comment about me like this shouldn't surprise me but as one podcaster to another, I'm sorry that you need to . . . wait, someone is asking for another mocha something, biab.

Back, I'll let the public decide if I am an evil prick trying to destroy "podcasting" by taking corporate money to work a shitty day job doing what I love from the comfort of my own home or if I got lucky and found a way for myself to make a living for family and our futures doing what I love from the comfort of my home . . . at my day job.

Tags: Dave Slusher Evil Genius Chronicles podcasting history ID3 Podcast Magazine day job

Betsy and her husband Kris Aug 25, 2006

Fri, 25 Aug 2006 06:54:29 -0400

Croncast - 2006-08-25.mp3

Show: #267
Length: 31:28
Size: 21.6 mb
Format: mp3

Betsy and her husband Kris August 25, 2006

1) Fill out the appropriate form for you - *New* Listener or Get a Handle (current listener)
2) Verify your email address (Activates and qualifies those with a "Handle")
3) *New* listeners get activated and qualified by using their special RSS feed
4) 300th new listener and the person whose Handle they use win iPods AND
5) A drawing for 2 more iPods from everyone who entered!
Who's that voice?
Running out of breath
Get some exercise Mr. B
Betsy is getting into this exercise bit
Like most of America I am motivated by reality television
Maybe I shoould get off the couch
"Workout" the show
Cobwebs on the mic
The only celebrity is Jodi Watley
Billy Ocean tomorrow
Breast reduction surgery no needed
What man stands behind that surgery
Two bar stools on wheels to push them around
Two great acres for one great house
Kris's stress level is through the roof and it makes him smell
What happens when you make more money podcasting than your day job?
If we close the big deal I will talk all about it
Please no Booba
Kris smells like bad bad bad
Deodorant is your friend
"Kris . . . you want a candy bar don't you!"
Fuck you and your candy bar
The old waitress and punishment
Betsy's evil horrible sound that will stay with me when I am rotting in the earth
Garage sale Betsy just can't stay away
Paying the lawn mowing boys
Greatest garage sale ever
The big toys are back . . .
300 by 300th update
PhilipZ is holding it down with Handle Moxie

Tags: Workout Billy Ocean Jodi Watley breast reduction body odor