Dorian Dargan

Focus

Mon, 03 Jun 2013 01:13:00 -0400

Historically, one of my biggest struggles has been that sometimes I get so excited about new ideas and possibilities that my mind jumps from one thing to the next. What ends up happening is that I’m “doing too much” and don’t give my projects/ideas the love and attention they deserve.

I’ve seen this manifest itself in my art as well. When I’m inspired, I love starting new pieces. But I don’t always feel like finishing what I’ve started - it’s just not as exciting.

One way I’ve tried to deal with this is by actively imagining new ideas, but with the understanding that they are just that - ideas, not projects. This would allow me to still engage in the excitement of generating new ideas, yet keep me from spreading myself too thin. But that’s not always enough.

Sometimes I need to resist the urge to let my mind wander and just focus on one thing.

Recently I have been putting the majority of my creative energy into YouNow. While it is still important for me to keep my creative juices fresh, I realize that making YouNow the best it can be means giving it my all.

And so I’ve learned that doing anything meaningful (and doing it excellently) requires great focus.

Has staying focused ever been a challenge for you?

Overcoming Procrastination

Sat, 01 Jun 2013 10:44:00 -0400

Procrastination can be crippling when you have big dreams that you are trying to make into realities.

It’s pretty much human nature to procrastinate. Given the complexities and constraints of real life challenges, it’s virtually impossible to do what needs to be done immediately, every single time.

But I’ve learned over time that there is a way to overcome the setback caused by typical procrastination: embrace “good” procrastination and eliminate the bad.

Here’s what I mean:

1. Prepare yourself to be successful later.

When you employ “good” procrastination, you are preparing yourself now, for future success later. If you come out of a meeting or class with action items, at the very least you want to set yourself up for success later. Perhaps this means making an outline of the paper you need to write, or summarizing the 3 main to dos, with your thoughts on how to accomplish them.

The entire point is that you are acknowledging “i am going to do this later”… but you are preparing yourself to be ready when “later” comes.

2. Only procrastinate once.

In the Calvin & Hobbes comic above, Calvin is “waiting for inspiration” before he starts his big project, because he needs the feeling of pressure that will get his creative juices flowing. This is often why we procrastinate - we just don’t feel motivated to do what needs to get done at the moment. So “last minute panic” provides the sense of urgency needed to make things happen.

But you can create this sense of urgency yourself! A great practical way is to abide by this rule: only procrastinate on a particular item once. And when you do, prepare yourself for future success by setting a deadline of when you will complete the task. Then, when your deadline comes around, buckle down and GIT R DONE. You procrastinated once to get it out of your system - now is the time to make things happen.

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At the end of the day, productivity is about discipline. But these are two actionable ways to build the right habits and overcome procrastination!

The difference between dreamers and doers

Tue, 14 May 2013 12:36:00 -0400

Have you ever noticed that great ideas & aspirations are everywhere? Yet, despite this, many viably good ideas don’t become reality and most of us do not accomplish what we want to achieve.

Why?

Because there are 2 types of people in this world: “dreamers” and “doers.”

Dreamers think of countless ideas of how to make the world a better place. They see opportunity, but do not seize it - because they are preoccupied with working out all the details first. They are afraid to share their brilliant ideas with others because they think someone might steal it, or they are afraid of failure. As a result they are not very productive.

Doers are dreamers who realize that the future actually has to be created - it does not build itself. Doers understand that not everyone is able to “do,” so while dreamers are worrying, doers are working. Doers prioritize & move quickly, and are not afraid to get their hands dirty. At the end of the day, they get stuff done.

Doers make dreams into realities.

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NOTE: If you are a dreamer who wants to become a doer, it’s not too late! I would recommend reading Making Ideas Happen by Scott Belsky. It gives great insight into what it takes to be extremely productive as a creative person.

How "Personality" Can Help Your Branding

Mon, 06 May 2013 09:22:00 -0400

It isn’t enough to make a product that has cool features or start a business that solves hard problems. Developing a strong brand requires establishing a unique voice and building an emotional connection with your target audience.

How do you build this type of connection?

1. Don’t be boring. Be unforgettable.

Mailchimp does a great job of making email (typically boring) feel magical. Their monkey mascot delights me every time I login with quips & random links to funny videos.

2. Have a personality that resonates with your target audience’s values.

At YouNow, we have started to really let our personality shine through in our communication with our users. Our twitter stream is full of internet culture, humor and youthfulness. And it appeals to our audience.

See a few of our tweets and our users’ replies below:

This messaging has been very successful in helping us to define our brand and connect with our users. The tone we use reflects our values and tells our users that we understand them!

3. Be consistent.

The final piece to establishing brand identity is to consistently portray the same voice. Just like in relationships, people want to feel like they know you intimately, and can trust you to be you.

Developing your own unique personality takes time - but when you find it stick with it. Your audience will love you for it!

The Pursuit of Excellence

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 17:21:00 -0400

Each day I try to teach myself how to operate on a world class level
to be in the top 0.1%
to be excellent beyond measure
10x more productive than the next great person
but with that comes both the good and the bad…
the awesome, exciting visionary work
but also the boring dumb stuff
so i find unique ways to motivate myself
and get the mundane done as quickly and effectively as possible
so i can get on to the awesome stuff.

How does one know if he is operating excellently?
if i examine myself and see room for improvement…
I know i’m not there yet
and it gives me motivation (if nothing else does)
to be even more excellent than I was the day before
and 10x more excellent than everyone else.

Excellence is not a destination - it’s the journey.

Train Yourself to be an Innovator

Thu, 18 Apr 2013 14:55:00 -0400

Have you ever wondered how you could become “more innovative?”

I strongly believe that self-improvement starts with building the right habits. In this case, “building the right habits” means training yourself to innovate. There’s no other way around it.

What does this look like in practice?

First, place yourself at the intersection of something “cutting edge” that excites you, and be disciplined about pursuing deeper knowledge in it. Having strong knowledge of the domain will allow you to identify opportunities for innovation.

If your job or school allows you to engage with something new and exciting, you should jump on it. If you aren’t so fortunate as to have something innovative as your daily focus, seek out innovation on the side. Find a field/topic that excites you, envelop yourself in it, and get involved. Go to meetups, hold informational interviews with nascent experts in the field, read books, blogs - whatever it takes.

Once you begin to establish domain knowledge, constantly ask yourself how can this be improved? What markets aren’t being properly catered to? What is deficient in this technology / product / system?

Think of it this way: you want to live in the future, and discover what is missing in the present.

And then make it happen.

Give Yourself Time to Think

Mon, 15 Apr 2013 11:45:00 -0400

Giving yourself allotted time to think without distractions is essential for your own productivity and personal well being. This could take the form of sitting down with a pen and paper, or taking a long walk, or swimming - it should be a planned time when your mind is not occupied with any complex task.

For me, I get this daily, for about an hour on the train going to and from work. And on Saturday mornings, I’ve recently taken to long walks throughout Brooklyn, after a morning run.

Having a clear mind allows you to make decisions with the proper perspective.

If you view yourself as an innovator, then this is essential - how can you navigate uncharted paths if you can’t clearly visualize your trajectory?

Give yourself time to think.

// See further discussion of this post on Hacker News.

Tracing With Your Smartphone

Fri, 12 Apr 2013 17:28:00 -0400

One day after a run in Brooklyn, I wanted know how many miles I ran on my route. But I didn’t want to piece together a solution using Google Maps & mental math. I was mobile, and wanted something visual and simple.

I said to myself:

“Self… I wish I had an app with a minimal map interface, where I could trace my finger on a map, in any combination of streets, and it would tell me the distance.”

This hypothetical app would use a free-form sketch technology where my traced path would snap to conform to the street lines on a map. This would allow the distance to be calculated because my sketch would correlate with an actual street route.

See wireframe below:

After I thought of this, I wondered “how else could this line “tracing” idea could be applied?”

For example: a Snapchat-like app where you can take an image & create a stylized version of it by drawing over it. Much like tracing paper… where you could sketch over a face in a photo, and the lines snap into place around the main forms in the photo. The final product is a traced line drawing that (kinda) looks like the subject.

Then you share the sketch with your friends.

Would you find either of these apps useful or interesting? How else could this minimal sketching approach be used?

Jump Into Your Television

Sat, 23 Feb 2013 14:40:00 -0500

Have you ever wanted to jump into the TV like that kid from Charlie & The Chocolate Factory?

Well get ready… it will be possible soon.

The TVs of our near future will have apps on them, and amateur video streams will also be consumed as entertainment. As a viewer. you will have direct influence over what you’re watching, via live voting/polling & chat.

Mark Suster of GRP Partners says that “TV of the future will not always have linear stories” and people will begin to play a greater role in controlling & participating in their own TV experiences - in real time.

It’s true.

There are a few key trends that lead me to believe this:

consumers are increasingly addicted to real time connectivity
people are eager to participate in content creation around social memes (i.e. “Sh*t People Say”, Gangnam Style, “Harlem Shake” videos)
the second screen is becoming a standard for consumer entertainment experiences
ubiquitous wireless access & increasingly powerful mobile devices make video capture & transmission easier than ever before

… basically, the internet and TV will converge in many ways.

How will this look?

Successful players in this space will make an experience tailored to the consumer’s interests, creating a seamless personalized browsing experience, while allowing for discovery.

Live people/content will be organized around topics & interests, to make browsing & discovery easier. TV will be a tactile, participatory experience. And browsing becomes not just looking for your favorite shows, but also finding new interesting people & relevant discussion.

At YouNow, a live video social network, we see this as a huge part of our product’s future. Our users will be able jump into the television set through their mobile device or webcam, and get in front of an audience of real people all around the world to chat, meet others or entertain!

A huge market is opening up for amateur content & real-time live video engagement. And YouNow plans to be at the center of it.

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Mark Suster has been talking about the future of television for years, and many of the trends he has foretold are coming into play now. If this interests you, I encourage you to read The Most Interesting Online Video Trend, and check out his Future of Television presentation.

What are your thoughts on the future of television?

How a Simple Door Lock Works

Mon, 18 Feb 2013 11:58:00 -0500

Ever wondered how locks work?

A few months ago I came across a sturdy, abandoned door on the streets of Brooklyn. I ended up carrying it home, and using the door to make a painting. I removed the handle & lock on the door - finding a supporting structural cylinder. I liked it so much that I put it on a chain, and I’ve been wearing it around my neck for the past few weeks.

Since the door lock’s inner workings are simple, yet interesting, I thought I would take the opportunity to explain how a basic cylinder door lock works.

1. A key enters the lock shaft. If the key is the correct shape, and properly solves the “puzzle,” then the pins are properly aligned and turning the key also turns the cylinder. If the key is the wrong shape, the pins prevent the key from turning.

2. When the cylinder turns, it also turns a “cam” that is attached to the cylinder. The cam pulls a bolt in laterally through a second cylinder, allowing the door to open. When the bolt is extended into the frame of the door, the door cannot be opened, and is locked.

I am fascinated by simple technology that solves everyday problems. Whenever I can, I like to take the opportunity to disassemble the components that fit together to solve a problem & figure out how they work.

Let me know if you thought this was as cool as I did, and if there is anything else you’d like to see me dissect!

The "Broken Window" Theory

Wed, 13 Feb 2013 10:35:00 -0500

An apartment with a single broken window deteriorates quickly because when tenants see it, they tend to think that the management doesn’t care. This results in neglecting care of the facilities and the building decays rapidly into disrepair.

A good example of this is New York City crime rates in the 1980s. The city’s inability to control even a small crime like graffiti was a signal to citizens that it would not be able to address more serious issues - so crime abounded. However, crime rates dramatically decreased when the city engaged in urban renewal efforts, which started with something as simple as cleaning the graffiti on subway cars.

It is important to fix “broken windows” in your product. Seemingly insignificant details can often have a disproportionately adverse effect on how your company is perceived - both internally and externally.

A “broken window” is a negative signal to both your users and your team. And you want them to know that you care. So don’t sacrifice excellence for agility - fix your broken windows.

Why did Stickam fail?

Tue, 05 Feb 2013 12:06:45 -0500

After 7 years of operation, Stickam is shutting down. A pioneer in the live video space, Stickam paved the way for live video sites looking to be more than seedy hubs for pornography. They were the originators.

And now they are closing their doors. Why? Well, I certainly don’t know the exact reasoning, but I can make a few educated guesses as to why Stickam is throwing in the towel.

1. Competition

Many other players have entered the live video space over time. Ustream, blogTV, justin.tv, twitch.tv, YouTube Live, tinychat (and YouNow of course!). More competition with different experiences can appeal to niche consumers, thinning out the pool of potential dedicated users.

2. Low engagement

It’s hard to keep users engaged on live video sites. Engagement is driven by broadcasters, and so there must be an incentive for these users to go live. It’s a variation of the chicken & egg problem. No one wants to broadcast if nobody’s watching, and no one wants to watch if no one is broadcasting.

If the main traffic comes from external influencers, who are driven by financial incentives, then when marketing funds run out and influencers leave, you are left with no users.

My guess is the cost per user acquisition outweighed the lifetime revenue per user.

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The service that will be most successful in this space will create an experience that viewers and broadcasters can enjoy - even without high profile users. It will not be only about content, but about meeting people in a safe, fun & enjoyable way.

And if my team and I do our job right, that company will be YouNow.

The "interest graph" is coming...

Mon, 04 Feb 2013 07:40:00 -0500

The interest graph represents the next frontier in “social.”

Contrary to the social graph, which can be used to make inferences based on your social connections, the interest graph maps tastes, creating a network of people who share interests, but don’t necessarily know each other. Based on data such as: likes, follows, purchases, engagement behaviors, explicit and implicit interests, etc, the interest graph can provide unique insights into individual consumer preferences and behaviors, allowing for experiences that are increasingly personalized and relevant for consumers.

This is already happening! - to some degree. For example, Quora presents content to you based on topics that you have followed, and the interactions of people you are following. It quickly provides you with a custom tailored experience, with ample content discovery opportunities.

But content discovery is just the first step.

The next step is a deliberate effort to connect people with people, (rather than content) using the interest graph.

While “content” may be the conduit for connectivity, the ultimate goal (in my mind) is using interests to catalyze intimate human interactions.

This is where I see YouNow going - using the interest graph to bring together likeminded people & facilitate real-time interaction experiences. More to come on this…

What are your thoughts on the interest graph?

Imaginations: 2-in-1 Tablet / Laptop Combination

Fri, 25 Jan 2013 08:06:00 -0500

Yesterday I was chatting with my colleague Erez Barkai (CTO of YouNow) about AAPL’s declining stock (currently at $446/share), and how they need to develop a new product, rather than squeezing the extra juice out of existing product lines.

He suggested an idea for a new product, although I’m pretty sure that Apple wouldn’t go for it. Nevertheless, I thought it was a cool idea to explore, so I made a sketch of it below.

The idea is this: a tablet / laptop combo, where each component has separate operating systems, but when connected, they function on one OS.

Components:

Keyboard (with it’s own hard drive & OS) acts as a port for the tablet
Tablet - acts like a monitor when connected to the keyboard (turns off it’s own OS), but acts as a fully-functioning tablet when separated from the keyboard.

NOTE: The idea to combine a laptop & tablet is not quite novel. There are other convertibles on the market, like the Lenovo Yoga Ideapad 13, and the HP Envy x2 (which actually seems very similar to this idea). The main idea here is not adding a peripheral to a tablet, but rather added functionality & a separate, advanced OS when connecting the keyboard.

While a convertible tablet/laptop has advantages (like cost efficiency), the ability to separate the pieces introduces issues like durability concerns, and it seems hard to pull off elegantly. And if we are talking about Apple, it’s likely they wouldn’t make anything like this (not really their style, and maybe not in best interest, considering potentially cannibalizing other product lines).

What are your thoughts on a 2-in-1 laptop/combo? Would you buy one, let alone use it? And what is Apple working on next… a phablet?

3 Lessons From Snapchat: Get People To Share Your Product

Tue, 22 Jan 2013 08:17:00 -0500

I have been talking about Snapchat a lot lately, and with good reason. Their recent growth is proving that they are doing something right - at the very least they are getting people to use the service and invite their friends.

So what can we learn about how to increase a product’s virality from Snapchat?

1. Make it clear WHY users should invite their friends
Snapchat elucidates that users should get their friends on the service quite easily - in fact it is central to using the service. Since the photos self-destruct, it is in the users best interest to get more friends on Snapchat, so they can have more content to consume. This creates a hyper-desire to get more people on the service, (even greater than what is typical for products with network effects) since users are not collecting photos, but simply experiencing them.

2. Make it easy to connect with friends ALREADY using the product
Since the user understands that Snapchat will be more fun with friends, she is obliged to add her friends who are already on snapchat. Snapchat makes this easy, by importing the user’s contacts, showing clearly which friends are on the service. When the user adds their friends, it drives further engagement, accelerating the viral loop.

3. Provide a simple way to invite friends NOT using the product
So if my first experience was good, but I understand that I need more interactions to make my experience better, then the natural next step is to invite my friends who aren’t on Snapchat - whether by direct invite via Snapchat, or by word of mouth recommendation.

Snapchat includes in the friends list not only the friends using Snapchat, but also those who are not currently using the service. This makes it easy to invite friends, and also reemphasizes the fact that the user should again reach out to their friends to get the maximum benefit on Snapchat.

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At YouNow we are working to optimize our viral loop, and so I plan to take these quick learnings and apply them. Is there anything else to learn about virality from Snapchat?

Why I Love Snapchat

Fri, 18 Jan 2013 10:22:00 -0500

I’ve been using Snapchat a lot lately. I’ve mentioned this before, but I think it’s a compelling product for a number of reasons.

I’ve noticed recently that what has really captured my heart about Snapchat, is that it allows me to find real world canvases on which I can paint my imaginations, and quickly share them with my friends. For example, I’ll draw a genie emanating from a bottle in a water advertisement… or a playfully menacing Godzilla frolicking among NYC skyscrapers.

I think one of the hallmarks of a good consumer product, is its ability to instill a sense of ownership and freedom in the user while still providing the proper constraints necessary to make the product simple and intuitive.

Have any of you used Snapchat? I’d love to know your thoughts.

And of course, please friend me on Snapchat! doriandargan

Act Like an Owner

Tue, 15 Jan 2013 10:33:00 -0500

Working at a startup really teaches you how to produce quality work out of nothing. Rather than inheriting proven systems, best practices, and tools to help you be efficient, you have to build these structures yourself, extract key learnings from your work, and above all, execute.

And because solving problems out of thin air, and thinking on one’s feet 24/7 isn’t natural for most, you may find it difficult to be productive when you’re given huge problems with very little structure. Even in highly structured situations, it can be hard to consistently perform at the level it takes to really “knock it out the park.”

If there’s any piece of advice I’d give, it would be to act like an owner. Think: “if this was my company/team/business unit, what would I do to ensure that is succeeds?” It’s a sure-fire way to become instantly more valuable to your team, and perform at the level of excellence that will ultimately advance your professional goals.

Here are a few ways to “act like an owner”:

Own Your Domain
Be indispensable in a vitally important part of your business or team. If you have been tasked with a particular task, OWN that space. Be an expert. If you handle your company’s web presence, then do what it takes to become a social media guru, and the go-to person for your team.

NOTE: this doesn’t mean you are limited to only your expertise, and can’t contribute in other areas where your team needs help. In fact, you should be a pioneer and expand your domain.

Which leads me to my next point…
Find Voids, and Fill Them
When you are working in situations with high uncertainty and little structure, there are bound to be gaping holes in your team’s approach or product. Discover where your team is deficient, and propose solutions to your problems - and be prepared to lead the implementation yourself.

Be proactive: consider how you can best help your team, and then execute it.
Work Sustainably
Create an infrastructure which helps your team/product/company to continue on sustainably. An owner doesn’t build a company just so that it can come crashing down. Entrepreneurs, while perhaps motivated by the reward of an exit, build a company because they want to see it continue on to create value. The same concept can be applied to your work, (since you are acting like an owner) but on a smaller, more manageable scale.

For example, if you have a task that you do repeatedly, find a way to automate it and do more with less work. Not only does this make you more efficient, and will free you up to fill voids and expand your territory, but it will also ensure that others can also build upon your work.

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When you begin to think of yourself as an “owner,” your approach and work product begins to change drastically, making you much more productive & helpful to your team. Do you have any experience with being effective in situations of huge uncertainty and a lack of structure? I’d love to hear your advice.

Striving for Excellence: My Goals for 2013

Fri, 04 Jan 2013 12:17:00 -0500

As a follow up to my post “Life Hack: Build the Right Habits,” in which I discuss how powerful habit is in shaping who we are, I thought I would be transparent and share a few of my goals for 2013, show the measures I am taking to “build the right habits” and drink my own kool aid. I’m also taking a small, focused approach to these goals, to ensure that I make the most of them.

Overall, my theme for 2013 is “striving for excellence.” My goals are:
1. Hone my product insight & problem-solving capabilities
2. Increase my productivity by a factor of 10
3. Challenge myself to be mentally & physically excellent
4. Find proper product-market fit for YouNow

As a small case study, I’d like to focus on my first goal, break down why it’s unnatural for many people to solve problems, and explain how I am combating this natural impulse with the right behaviors in 2013.

Goal #1. Hone my product intuition & problem-solving capabilities.

People prefer to find solutions, not create them, as most people don’t like to engage with this part of their brains. It feels too hard. “Why think critically when someone else can do the work for me?”

Common behavior for dealing with day to day obstacles is to:
a) complain / avoid the problem
b) adapt, to mitigate the impact of said obstacle
c) find and employ a solution someone else has created

C is a fine approach, but there are often problems we encounter for which we cannot easily find solutions. This leaves you the option of either a) complaining / avoiding the problem (which is counterproductive) or b) adapting so that the obstacle is less annoying (energy efficient, but ultimately unproductive).

I often find myself in the option b territory, doing what I like to call “evolutionary evasion.” Depending on the nature of the problem I may encounter, I will often adapt and learn to live with/around the obstacle, rather than finding a solution. For peace of mind, “evolutionary evasion” may be a good tactic. But for innovation, it is a bad approach. Someone has to solve the problem - why shouldn’t it be me?

So, I am making it a habit to solve problems (big and small).
I touched on this partially in my blog post “Flex the Muscles of Your Imagination.” In it, I explain how I challenge myself daily to invent something new. Sometimes my “imaginations” solve problems, and other times they are fanciful. Examples include: an elegant floating candle, rubber-like flexible eyeglasses you can put in your pocket, and a super-thin & flexible dual-screen tablet.

By actively and habitually engaging my brain in problem-solving, I am training myself to recognize the inefficiencies and limitations around me, and imagine creative solutions. Resolving to write down / sketch out my ideas, even if I don’t understand exactly how they should work at first, allows me to be prolific and uninhibited. And instead of evading my problems, or putting them off until later, I am attacking them head on in 2013.

Do you have any suggestions on how to become a better problem solver? Or perhaps, any tips on achieving my other goals? Your feedback and thoughts are welcomed!

- Dorian Dargan

Life Hack: Build the Right Habits

Mon, 31 Dec 2012 10:24:00 -0500

Habits are incredibly powerful in determining our productivity levels, professional success, personal health, values, and more. And how “good” or “bad” they are is really shaped by the behaviors we exhibit. Therefore, by understanding that we as humans naturally create habits, and that habits are incredibly formative in your development as a person, you can mold yourself into the person you wish to be, simply by building the right habits.

Habits are powerful - how?
The behaviors you exhibit on a regular basis define who you are. While we all have conceptions of who we’d like to be, the truth is that we are the person we consistently perpetuate day after day. This is why it’s important to be aware of how powerful your habits are, because they determine who you are in reality. In order to improve and achieve the goals you have set for yourself, you need to change your behaviors consistently.

If you work out fervently, you will likely be in good shape. If you practice the guitar daily, you become more skilled and familiar with the instrument. If you read frequently, you will become more knowledgable and a better reader. Conversely, if you sit on the couch and watch 5 hours of television and eat potato chips every day, you are priming yourself to be unhealthy. It’s important to recognize that our habits are not the exception, but our behavioral norm - this is why they define who we are.

Pretty simple & straightforward.

How do habits form, and what are the implications?
As humans, we become easily accustomed to doing things the way we’ve been doing them, and our minds/bodies work together to build habits for efficiency’s sake. It becomes natural to repeat the same behaviors, and essentially we become good at doing them - with less effort. So to get the most out of our natural human inclination to create habits, the idea is to limit destructive behaviors & consistently practice constructive behaviors.

There is a positive feedback loop that good habits create. By executing constructive behaviors, and developing good habits, you build skill. Additionally, you are creating a momentum of continued positive behaviors, allowing you to consistently take advantage of the skills you are building. Building excellence in anything is a combination of those two things: developing skills and exhibiting behavior that makes the most of that skill.

I’m using habit to improve my productivity, problem-solving insight, and physical fitness. I encourage you to discipline yourself to build the right habits that will help you achieve your goals.

- Dorian Dargan

Let's Focus on Moments, Not Memories.

Sat, 22 Dec 2012 01:28:00 -0500

Facebook introduced an app called “Poke” yesterday. “Poke,” which seems to be a clone of Snapchat, lets you nudge your friends by sending them a poke, message, picture or a video - the catch is that the content only lasts for matter of seconds. There is no archiving of the event: simply a record that it happened in a blank activity feed.

What I like about Snapchat (& Poke) is that I am able to share a fleeting moment with a friend that can never be revisited, yet the very existence of that moment adds nuance to my relationship with that person. For example, I caught Godzilla chillin’ in midtown (see picture above) sent it to my friends on Snapchat.

The emergence of this trend of instantaneous feedback & the consumption of ephemeral moments is something that I have been thinking about for the last few months. Naturally, I’ve been considering its implications for YouNow, the live video social network I’m working on.

We (YouNow) don’t do archiving well, because we haven’t focused on it. I think this is a good thing. Instead, YouNow’s value comes from real-time feedback of a live experience.

We’ve seen users searching for archived content (especially with people coming from YouTube), as there is a natural human desire to “see what you missed” when someone was live or had a “show”. But I think removing archived content, while perhaps counterintuitive, could be the right approach, as it makes watching/doing a live broadcast an exclusive experience. It also attunes users to other interesting content that may be happening on YouNow.

I have a few ideas on how to make this work, by still providing a way for users to capture the most interesting and exciting moments of a live broadcast. But first, I’d like to hear your thoughts.

How would you propose that we allow our users to capture live experiences, without archiving the video?