Kevin Myers

I am currently reading the “The Purpose Driven Life” by Rick Warren. Today’s lesson really hit home as it connected “what matters most” with good time management. Time is our most precious gift as we only have a set amount of it and none can be recovered.

Because your life is ALL ABOUT time and how you spend it, this is why the greatest gift you can give someone is your time. In order to do this you must schedule what’s important and create a STOP DOING list in order to focus on the things that matter most.

The answer therefore to what matters most is “time that you give loved ones.” Every moment we give our children, our family or our friends and especially the time we take to really listen to our wives are the greatest gifts of all.

These sentences and reflections really gave me a lift today and renewed perspective:

The best use of time is love.
The best expression of love is time.
The best time to love is now.

Why now? Because you don’t know how long you will have this opportunity. Circumstances change. People die. Children grow up. You have no guarantee of tomorrow. If you want to express love, you better do it now.

To anyone who sees or reads this post… INVEST TIME NOW with all your loved ones

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My Mom’s Birthday, what better day to reflect on loved ones. This is my siblings video card to my mom…

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A Buckeye Confession:
I love the Buckeyes and I will support them for a lifetime and beyond as I am sure they play in football in heaven!
I also love that Jim Tressel has restored The Ohio State University to its rightful position among the most elite programs in College Football that we have not enjoyed since Woody Hayes roamed the sidelines.
That’s not the confession, those are the facts.
The confession sounds more like step 1 in a 12-step program… “My name is Kevin and I have an addiction!” My Buckeye addiction is one that often causes me to react irrationally for anything short of perfection. I know anyone reading this may chuckle, because you might not know me, but you know a Buckeye fan like me. You may make fun of me/us at our expense, but I know those same people would give anything to be in a position where your team is part of a national conversation, albeit for better or worse.
We are a passionate, loyal, loud and yes, sometime a cantankerous group of fans and alumni. Every bit of our enthusiasm comes from one simple fact; we LOVE The Ohio State University Buckeyes. Since 2002 I have attended three National Championship Games with the Buckeyes and three other BCS games. Going 3 for 6 is pretty good in any book when playing on that grand of a stage.
Recently we have had trouble “winning the big one” and as such I have joined others that practice our annual rite of passage and second career of coaching the Buckeyes. For the first time I can remember, many are taking out their anxiety of getting bashed themselves by rival fans or football pundits by taking Jim Tressel’s offensive game plan and play calling to task. I too have participated in this debate, but not at the peril of supporting a great man and a world-class football coach. I support our head coach and would have no other but Jim Tressel at the helm of this great team.
So whether other Buckeye fans support this “confession” or post is of little consequence to me, like everything good put on a blog or tweet, it is an honest and transparent admission of the state of mind of this rabid Buckeye fan. And just as I may debate and disagree with Republican tactics I still hold true to my conservative values, I do disagree with our offensive game plan & tactics, especially in recent big games. BUT I still support my team, The Ohio State Buckeyes, and our leader and coach, Jim Tressel.

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It’s football season again, my rite of passage is to passionately root for the Buckeyes. Very proud that we take a moment to remember our opponent’s greater calling beyond the football field. Check out this video and show your support whenever, wherever you can.

Thank you to everyone in the US Armed Services…

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The magic of Twitter is finding gems each day, this video is certainly one of them…

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SEO is not for the timid nor the impatient.
SEO is for anyone who loves what they do and endeavors to understand the nature of others who would value or desire what they offer.

Impatient, do Pay Per Click (PPC).
Smart, learn form PPC and Keywords then spend all your time on SEO and becoming relevant with online social communities.

Patrick Sullivan has a great example of why he and I subscribe and study at the SEO school of Chris Drake & Firehost.com

“This link is wicked cool example of learning SEO article applied at Jigsaw Health where they know their customers need and value magnesium supplements.“

Read More Here

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We were interviewed for our recent announcement for funding, I am sharing this version below because the reporter listened to the same story we share with others, but this one written with the persona of the reader in mind, Venture Capitalists. See below as the description for what iMemories does, and why it got funding, is crafted so that likely readers (baby boomers) can hear the story in the same way we would share or tell it at a party or social event.

Thank you Tomio Geron for telling the iMemories story in a way my parents would understand. In iMemories terms this is our customer persona we call the “Family Historian” or “Family Matriach,” This is one of our largest target segments who has the desire to reflect on memories or life events and discretionary income to take action.

Dow Jones Venture Wire

By Tomio Geron
8/12/2009

Those boxes full of old videotapes and photos just take up space in many homes. But iMemories Inc., which has raised $6.2 million in Series B financing from Capital Southwest, hopes to turn those dusty old physical media artifacts into new online social media.

Valuation and the company’s financial figures were not disclosed.

People can send iMemories their old videos and photos and the company has an automated system for digitizing the media. The company charges $10 per video digitized and $0.50 per photo. People can then view them online or order a DVD hard copy.

The company also has a subscription business. People can pay $5 per month for 100 gigabytes of hosting of the photos and videos that iMemories digitizes, as well as any other digital photos or videos that people want to upload. About 50% of people who digitize their photos with iMemories also sign up for the subscription service.

People can then share them with friends and family in a password-protected environment. Unlike services like YouTube, the video can be any length.

“We can handle an enormous amount of volume,” said Mark Rukavina, founder and chief executive of iMemories. “The number one thing is we delight our customers and make it really easy for them.”

IMemories also keeps a high-resolution version of any video or photo it digitizes so that people can later order a better copy suitable for watching on a high-definition television, rather than just a computer screen.

The company has recently announced partnerships with two large companies, Best Buy Co. Inc. and Blockbuster Inc., which are helping to sell iMemories.

Founded in 2006, iMemories previously raised $3.6 million in angel financing in 2008 led by Doug Ducey, former chief executive of Cold Stone Creamery.

Rukavina is a serial entrepreneur, having been chief operating officer of Mastering Computers Inc., which went public and then sold to Platinum Technology Inc. in 1998, and co-founder of KnowledgeNet Inc., which sold to Thomson Corp. in 2004.

The round of funding was reported last month by VentureWire, citing a regulatory filing, and the company officially announced the round and the investor on Tuesday. Bill Ashbaugh, senior vice president with Capital Southwest, will take a seat on the company’s board of directors.

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Dear Friends,

Sam Walton was once asked for his opinion of the 1991 recession, he said, “I’ve thought about it, and decided not to participate.” Within only two years Wal-Mart’s share price was up 200%. The real lesson from this quote is to focus on Sam’s positive attitude towards his business model and the value his customers received from Wal-Mart, and forget about market conditions you cannot control.

The same can be said for iMemories today. iMemories has parlayed its passion for helping customers preserve and share their family memories into a new round of investment capital to further establish its leadership position and fuel its future growth. Current market conditions can not quell the enthusiasm people have today to reflect on what matters most in their lives, their family and friends and the priceless moments they shared together.

As you can see from the press release in the link below, along with the story appearing today in the Arizona Republic, a significant round of venture capital has been infused to make sure families nationwide discover the iMemories experience. To paraphrase highlights from the release “iMemories is meeting an insatiable demand in the market to enjoy, share and celebrate the memories that are the very fabric of our lives. Personal videos and photos are the connections to both the past and present.”

iMemories Press Release

http://www.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20090811005309&newsLang=en

Arizona Republic Story

http://www.azcentral.com/business/articles/2009/08/10/20090810biz-imemories0811.html

iMemories website

http://www.imemories.com

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To read this and encourage others…

Two men, both seriously ill, occupied the same hospital room.

One man was allowed to sit up in his bed for an hour each afternoon to help drain the fluid from his lungs.
His bed was next to the room’s only window.

The other man had to spend all his time flat on his back.
The men talked for hours on end.

They spoke of their wives and families, their homes, their jobs, their involvement in the military service, where they had been on vacation.

Every afternoon, when the man in the bed by the window could sit up, he would pass the time by describing to his roommate all the things he could see outside the window.

The man in the other bed began to live for those one hour periods where his world would be broadened and enlivened by all the activity and color of the world outside.

The window overlooked a park with a lovely lake. Ducks and swans played on the water while children sailed their model boats. Young lovers walked arm in arm amidst flowers of every color and a fine view of the city skyline could be seen in the distance.

As the man by the window described all this in exquisite details, the man on the other side of the room would close his eyes and imagine this picturesque scene.

One warm afternoon, the man by the window described a parade passing by. Although the other man could not hear the band, he could see it in his mind s eye as the gentleman by the window portrayed it with descriptive words.

Days, weeks and months passed.

One morning, the day nurse arrived to bring water for their baths only to find the lifeless body of the man by the window, who had died peacefully in his sleep.

She was saddened and called the hospital attendants to take the body away.

As soon as it seemed appropriate, the other man asked if he could be moved next to the window. The nurse was happy to make the switch, and after making sure he was comfortable, she left him alone.

Slowly, painfully, he propped himself up on one elbow to take his first look at the real world outside. He strained to slowly turn to look out the window beside the bed.

It faced a blank wall.

The man asked the nurse what could have compelled his deceased roommate who had described such wonderful things outside this window.

The nurse responded that the man was blind and could not even see the wall.

She said, ‘Perhaps he just wanted to encourage you.’

Epilogue:

There is tremendous happiness in making others happy, despite our own situations. Shared grief is half the sorrow, but happiness when shared, is doubled.

If you want to feel rich, just count all the things you have that money can’t buy. ‘Today is a gift, that is why it is called The Present.’

The origin of this letter is unknown, but it brings good luck to everyone who passes it on.

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Great article today in AdWeek by Andy Murray, CEO of Saatchi & Saatchi X

My Favorite Excerpts:

The brand characteristic that builds emotional bonds in today’s world is empathy. To get to empathy, you have to be great at listening, with the intent to fully understand the situation, feelings and motivations of consumers.

Read the rest here (http://bit.ly/OHrOH)

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