Cathy Erway on How to Measure Quality of Relationships in Life

In Chapter 16 of 20 in her 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, author and food writer Cathy Erway answers "How Do You Measure the Quality of Relationships in Your Life?" For Erway, measuring quality of relationships at work and in her personal life comes down to having mutual respect for one another. With respect comes ways to appreciate, enjoy and love each other and spend more fun and rewarding time together.

Cathy Erway is an author, food writer, freelance copywriter, radio show host and teacher focused on healthy food advocacy. Her second book, "The Food of Taiwan: Recipes From the Beautiful Island" is a cookbook featuring Taiwanese recipes ranging from homestyle dishes to street food favorites. Her first book, "The Art of Eating In" developed from her blog "Not Eating Out in New York".  Erway earned a BA in creative writing from Emerson College. 

Phil McKenzie on Choosing Work That Aligns to Best Life Purpose

In Chapter 10 of 20 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, entrepreneur Phil McKenzie answers "How Are You Learning to Better Balance Service and Self in How You Live Your Life?" McKenzie shares how he has blended service and self in his life and work, choosing a path building a global conference series that he believes is his best life purpose. In his work, he helps frame more positive and less destructive conversations around influencer culture and how they can make the world a better place.

Philip L. McKenzie is the Founder of Influencer Conference, a global content platform that brings together tastemakers in the arts, entrepreneurship, philanthropy and technology to discuss influencer culture. Previously, he led an influencer marketing agency and was an equities trader at Goldman, Sachs & Co. He earned an MBA from Duke University and a BBA from Howard University.

Mike Germano on Balancing Service and Self to Live a Fuller Life

In Chapter 5 of 23 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, VICE Media Chief Digital Officer Mike Germano answers "How Are You Learning to Better Balance Service and Self in How You Live Your Life?" Germano shares just how much changed in his life when he learned his wife was pregnant with their first child. He notes how before it had been about serving others and then, with the baby on the way, it made him realize he needed to take care of himself. This meant putting family first and making time away from the office. It also meant putting a higher priority on eating healthier and exercising more regularly. He notes how selling his business helped give him financial freedom to better balance work and home and, with this, actually be able to give more at work each day.

Mike Germano is Chief Digital Officer at VICE Media, a global youth media company based in Brooklyn, New York. Germano joined VICE Media via its 2013 acquisition of Carrot Creative, a social media agency he co-founded and led as CEO. 

Mike Germano on Taking a Company From Basement to Boardroom

In Chapter 10 of 23 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, VICE Media Chief Digital Officer Mike Germano answers "Reflecting Back, What Do You See As the Defining Stages of Your Entrepreneurial Journey?" Germano shares what he learned from starting a digital media company in a basement through growing Carrot Creative into a social media agency leader and selling the business to VICE Media. He discusses failures, including having a Middle East office expansion not work out, and successes, building a team and now, as an entrepreneur who sold a business, to mentor the next generation of entrepreneurs.

Mike Germano is Chief Digital Officer at VICE Media, a global youth media company based in Brooklyn, New York. Germano joined VICE Media via its 2013 acquisition of Carrot Creative, a social media agency he co-founded and led as CEO. 

Mike Germano on Aligning Financial Planning Goals to Personal Values

In Chapter 22 of 23 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, VICE Media Chief Digital Officer Mike Germano answers "As You Get Older, How Are Your Financial Planning Goals Change?" Germano shares how after many years putting all his money back into his business, Carrot Creative, after selling his business to VICE Media he is in a position to invest. He looks at nontraditional outlets, such as investing in a pizza business and buying a stake in a minor league baseball team, the Brockton Rox, to complement angel investing and stock market investing.

Mike Germano is Chief Digital Officer at VICE Media, a global youth media company based in Brooklyn, New York. Germano joined VICE Media via its 2013 acquisition of Carrot Creative, a social media agency he co-founded and led as CEO. 

Bijoy Goswami on How to Assess Wellbeing Using Journey Capital

In Chapter 9 of 17 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, community leader Bijoy Goswami answers "What is Journey Capital?" Goswami shares how journey capital is a way of measuring how one can experience life by using time to measure change and growth. He contrasts journey capital with human capital and knowledge capital as measures of personal and professional development.

Bijoy Goswami is a writer, teacher, and community leader based in Austin, Texas. He develops learning models to help individuals, organizations and communities live more meaningfully. Previously, he co-founded Aviri Software after working at Trilogy Software. Goswami graduated from Stanford University. 

Audrey French on The Joy of Becoming a Mother

In Chapter 8 of 21 in her 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, new mother Audrey Parker French answers "How Has Becoming a Mother Been a Transformational Experience for You?" French shares how becoming a mother has forever changed her life. She shares how she realized how empty her life was without being a mom, even with so many positive things happening in her personal life and career.

Audrey Parker French is a new mother living with her husband and son in Austin, Texas. Before leaving work to focus on family, French co-founded CLEAResult, an energy management consulting firm she helped grow to #144 on the 2010 Inc. 500 list of fastest-growing private companies and then sell to General Catalyst Partners. She graduated from Wake Forest University. 

Audrey French on Overcoming Self-Doubt to Live a More Fulfilled Life

In Chapter 15 of 21 in her 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, new mother Audrey Parker French answers "What Role Do Habits and Routines Play into Your Pursuit of Living a More Fulfilled Life?" French shares how she has used neurolinguistic programming techniques to identify subconscious behaviors and shed negative ones and use positive ones. She pushes herself to get over issues of doubting herself when making decisions and appreciating that as a new mother she will make mistakes and be able to correct them over time.

Audrey Parker French is a new mother living with her husband and son in Austin, Texas. Before leaving work to focus on family, French co-founded CLEAResult, an energy management consulting firm she helped grow to #144 on the 2010 Inc. 500 list of fastest-growing private companies and then sell to General Catalyst Partners. She graduated from Wake Forest University. 

Hattie Elliot on How to Give Better Advice When Asked for Help

In Chapter 4 of 15 in her 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, entrepreneur Hattie Elliot answers "How Have You Learned to Give Better Advice When People Ask You for Help?" As someone who connects people for a living, Elliot learns the most important part of giving advice is to underpromise and overdeliver. This helps to ensure she is able to meet expectations when making promises. She also learns to refine her willingness to help others to focus on a smaller group of close friends and family.

Hattie Grace Elliot is the founder and CEO of The Grace List, a social networking company that creates destination events and experiences to forge lasting personal and professional connections across its young professional members. Elliot graduated from the University of Cape Town in South Africa, where she studied economics, philosophy, and politics.

Matt Ruby on Creating New Ways to Help Comedians Make It in Comedy

In Chapter 4 of 19 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, standup comedian and Vooza founder Matt Ruby answers "What Do You Enjoy Most About Creating Ways to Help Other Comedians Succeed?" As a comedy screenwriter and producer as well as an organizer and host of several standup comedy shows, Ruby finds happiness giving people trying to make it in comedy a chance to thrive and succeed. He enjoys the experimentation that comes with working with creative comedic talents and finds ways to build upon doing it booking standup acts by casting comedians in acting roles.

Matt Ruby is a standup comedian based in New York City. He also founded Vooza, on online comic strip web series that makes fun of tech startup culture. As an actor, director, writer and producer, Ruby leads the creative direction for the team. Before his comedy career, Matt was employee #1 at 37Signals. He graduated from Northwestern University. 

Michael Olsen on Striking a Balance Volunteering and Making a Living

In Chapter 10 of 20 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, management consultant Michael Olsen answers "How Has Volunteering Impacted Your Learning and Development?" Olsen learns early the importance and reward of volunteering his skills and time. Now in his 30s, he gains a pragmatic point of view on life that he first needs to make a living to support himself and his family. While this may mean Olsen volunteers less in the short term, it also pushes him into a health care career helping others so long term, through work and volunteering, he can make a difference.

Michael Olsen is a management consultant at Accenture. Previous to Accenture, Olsen earned dual MBA and MPH degrees at Emory University in Atlanta. Olsen earned a BA in symbolic systems from Stanford University and spent the next five years founding an IT consulting company, Redwood Strategies. 

Bryan Law on Going From Introvert to Extrovert in a Business Career

In Chapter 2 of 23 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, business strategist Bryan Law answers "When Are You At Your Best?" Law finds his best working on collaborative teams and helping lead them to achieve goals. An introvert in his early 20s, Law attends business school and learns to be more extroverted in his behavior, seeking out opportunities in student government. This helps him build acumen working with large teams.

Bryan Law is a Principal in the Global Business Strategy Group at Google and a board member at Angola University. Previously, he was a manager at Monitor, a management consulting firm. He has worked in consulting roles at Watson Wyatt and Mercer. He earned an MBA from the Northwestern University Kellogg School of Business and a BA from Georgetown University.

Managing Your Time to Live More Meaningfully

In Chapter 12 of 16 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, product management executive Ramsey Pryor answers "How Are Your Aspirations Changing As Your Experience Grows?" As he gets older, gains career experience and raises a family, Pryor finds he does not want to do anything that is at the expense of what matters most to him, namely his family, his work, and his health. If those begin to suffer, then he pushes himself to take a step back and revisit whether his actions are out of alignment with his priorities.

Ramsey Pryor is a product management executive at IBM focused on cloud-based collaboration and security software products. Previously he was VP Product Marketing at Outblaze, acquired by IBM. Pryor earned an MBA from IESE Business School in Barcelona, Spain and a BA in Economics and Spanish from Northwestern University.  

A Simple Rule to Live a More Fulfilling Life

In Chapter 21 of 22 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, education technology entrepreneur Adam Geller answers "How Are Your Aspirations Changing As Your Experience Grows?" As he gains experience as an entrepreneur, Geller finds that work alone will not allow him to live a fulfilling life. He pushes himself to set aside more time outside of work to feel more fulfilled. From cycling to yoga to healthy eating, Geller pursues things that add joy to his life. He finds that happiness outside of work makes work more enjoyable and sustainable as well.

Adam Geller is founder and CEO of Edthena, a video platform enabling online teacher coaching, peer review, and group learning. He is a recent Education Ventures fellow at the Kauffman Foundation and the founder of Teach For Us, a network connecting Teach for America corps members and alumni. He earned a BA from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a MA from the University of Missouri-Saint Louis.

Geoff Hamm on Why to Do Business With People You Consider Friends

In Chapter 5 of 20 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, mobile business executive Geoff Hamm answers "How Are Your Personal Experiences Shaping Your Professional Aspirations?" Hamm believes that work life and personal life are not mutually exclusive. With experience, he learns to prioritize and embrace doing business with friends who also work in the Internet industry.

Geoff Hamm is a business development executive and VP Strategic Alliances at mobile marketing platform start-up Applovin in San Francisco, CA. Previous to Applovin, Hamm held senior sales management positions at Tapjoy, Scribd, Electronic Arts, Yahoo!, Orbitz, IAC and Excite where he built deep relationships with advertisers and brands. Hamm graduated from the University of Illinois.

When to Move Your Family From the City to the Suburbs

In Chapter 18 of 20 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, mobile business executive Geoff Hamm answers "What Factors Did You Consider in Your Decision to Relocate From the City to the Suburbs?" Hamm finds that moving to the suburbs comes down to providing more space for his family. In making the move, he also considers public school options for his kids. He finds moving to the suburbs helps him slow down and embrace family life more fully.

Geoff Hamm is a business development executive and VP Strategic Alliances at mobile marketing platform start-up Applovin in San Francisco, CA. Previous to Applovin, Hamm held senior sales management positions at Tapjoy, Scribd, Electronic Arts, Yahoo!, Orbitz, IAC and Excite where he built deep relationships with advertisers and brands. Hamm graduated from the University of Illinois.

Finding Meaningful Work in Elementary Education

In Chapter 2 of 22 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, elementary charter school network CEO Preston Smith answers "What Makes Your Work Meaningful?" Smith shares how he gets fulfillment helping kids and families come together around a shared education purpose. Teaching elementary school creates lifetime bonds between Smith, his students and their families serve to constantly remind him of the bigger mission in his work long after he has left the classroom teaching for a CEO job.

Preston Smith is co-founder and CEO of Rocketship Education, the highest performing low-income school system in California. After graduating the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Smith joined Teach for America. After three years teaching 1st Grade, he founded a district school in San Jose and became its principal. Smith was selected as a member of the 2010 class of Aspen Institute New Schools Fellows.

Preston Smith on the Awesome Feeling of Working at a Job You Love

In Chapter 6 of 22 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, elementary charter school network CEO Preston Smith answers "What Do You Enjoy Most About What You Do?" As CEO of a network of schools serving low-income districts in California, Smith finds inspiration working with talented and committed co-workers doing mission-based work to build higher quality schools to give students a better education.

Preston Smith is co-founder and CEO of Rocketship Education, the highest performing low-income school system in California. After graduating the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Smith joined Teach for America. After three years teaching 1st Grade, he founded a district school in San Jose and became its principal. Smith was selected as a member of the 2010 class of Aspen Institute New Schools Fellows.