Every day on the crowdSPRING Twitter account and on my own Twitter account, I post links to posts or videos I enjoyed reading or viewing. These posts and videos are about logo design, web design, startups, entrepreneurship, small business, leadership, social media, marketing, and more! Here are some of the links that I’ve liked and shared this past week!

The video above shows a mechanical device for opening and pouring a bottle of wine. It’s complicated, huge, loud and I love it!

How anyone can create a successful online business for next to nothing (Part III) – http://bit.ly/yyTI6X

Why Do Some People Learn Faster? – http://bit.ly/wFcigV

Why You Need Marketing Analytics, Not Web Analytics – http://bit.ly/zYurcM

Competitive Differentiation that Matters – http://perfor.ms/wzrk7a7 Rules for Bootstrapping a Business – http://bit.ly/A5uzm7

Repeat after me: business is always about the customer – http://bit.ly/zzdgnG

Women (Entrepreneurs) Who Go Their Own Way – http://bit.ly/wrBdYn

Twitter’s Secret History As the World’s Worst Tech or Media Business – http://gaw.kr/wH6hqq

Why I left Google – http://bit.ly/xDOns2

Competitive Differentiation that Matters – http://perfor.ms/wzrk7a

A Start-Up Ecosystem Forms in Chicago – http://on.wsj.com/y09pUa

How Y Combinator Started – http://bit.ly/yqjidP

Repeat after me: business is always about the customer – http://bit.ly/zzdgnG

Name dropping! Now what could go wrong with Silicon Valley – http://bit.ly/AvdwaV

Hiring of Kevin Rose by Google sends all the wrong signals to Silicon Valley – http://bit.ly/FORxBS

The Magic of Doing One Thing at a Time – http://bit.ly/wSMs9S

Secrets of the acquisition process from EA and Zynga – http://bit.ly/wv3Mv0

5 New Spots for Chicago Tech Entrepreneurs – http://on.wsj.com/yBMyce

Startup Recruiting 101: Strategies, Hacks & Don’ts – http://bit.ly/zOrH9P

Frighteningly Ambitious Startup Ideas – http://bit.ly/zXgY76

Why Do Some People Learn Faster? – http://bit.ly/wFcigV

7 Rules for Bootstrapping a Business – http://bit.ly/A5uzm7

How I Changed My Life, In Four Lines – http://bit.ly/yh474X

Apple sold more iOS devices in 2011 than all the Macs it sold in 28 years – http://bit.ly/yJH8Di

A Big Idea: Y Combinator Now Lets Founders Apply Without… An Idea – http://tcrn.ch/yIN4yB

Pinterest CEO Ben Silbermann’s Lesson for Start-Ups: Go Your Own Way – http://bit.ly/wAReI6

Why are companies defecting from Google Maps? – http://bit.ly/xAXRxU

Why This 29-Year-Old’s Company is Worth $400 Million – http://bit.ly/xVSisb

MEMO TO EVERYONE: You Can’t Beat Apple By Trying To Be More Like Apple – http://read.bi/AmSLDw

U.S. Manufacturers Are Hurting Themselves by the Way They Hire – http://bit.ly/yD0ssP

Yahoo! Crosses The Line – http://bit.ly/zpjLxf

Why You Need Marketing Analytics, Not Web Analytics – http://bit.ly/zYurcM

How Three Germans Are Cloning the Web – http://buswk.co/y7mhHn

Twitter’s Ad Sales Are Booming, Says Gawker – http://bit.ly/yYnJNe

Why Marketers Never Learn From Others’ Social-Media Mistakes – http://bit.ly/zBXNci

Marketing the Viral Effect and Not-for-Profit Gold – http://bit.ly/zpLFbK

How This Man Made Dos Equis a Most Interesting Marketing Story – http://bit.ly/y5JtJm

Why You Need Marketing Analytics, Not Web Analytics – http://bit.ly/zYurcM

Honest ads that say what we’re all really thinking – http://bit.ly/wqvsZM

Trada Has Unlocked The Secret To Google And Facebook Ads That Work – http://bit.ly/zuAQ04

Top Non-Destructive Photoshop Techniques – http://bit.ly/xiqLO1

“Be interested in being wrong.” An interview with Jonathan Ive, Apple’s designer – http://bit.ly/y9top2

PBS Mini Documentary About Typography – http://bit.ly/zBwjp5

(more…)

Every day on the crowdSPRING Twitter account and on my own Twitter account, I post links to posts or videos I enjoyed reading or viewing. These posts and videos are about logo design, web design, startups, entrepreneurship, small business, leadership, social media, marketing, and more! Here are some of the links that I’ve liked and shared this past week!

The image to the left is a photo taken from inside a musical instrument. More interesting photos taken inside musical instruments in the Other section below.

Image credit: Brjoern Ewers

Small Business Tips: Foreign Payments, The Patriot Act, OFAC, and you. – http://bit.ly/xW82GP

This is a good resource for email subject lines: http://bit.ly/yMwZPL

The Importance of Brand in an Era of Digital Darwinism – http://bit.ly/wo6iYn

Selling or Funding A Startup? Tips On Surviving Technical Due Diligence – http://bit.ly/A8h315

I’m getting sick of the bullshit – http://bit.ly/ysF40u

Where Do Good Ideas Come From? – http://bit.ly/yyHVDA

How are VCs paid (and should entrepreneurs care)? – http://bit.ly/w2B2Cy

The safe career path in the future – skip college and start a company – http://bit.ly/wT6yZZ

Why entrepreneurs don’t sleep well – http://perfor.ms/zJPjIZ

Why Startups Should Curate Content – http://bit.ly/yXHwyP

The Importance of Brand in an Era of Digital Darwinism – http://bit.ly/wo6iYn

Google’s Rules of Acquisition: How to Be an Android, Not an Aardvark – http://bit.ly/wLVxma

Entrepreneurs must learn to listen and others must learn to give constructive feedback – http://bit.ly/y9Q9WD

Four Things Entrepreneurs Can Learn From Warren Buffett – http://bit.ly/xN4EUz

Ambient Social Location Apps Will be Consumer Duds – http://rww.to/we3laJ

Always Go Home with the Lady Who Brought you to the Dance (about startup fundraising) – http://bit.ly/w0OJnx

One Year Later: How Google Panda Changed Our Business – http://tcrn.ch/wacRfO

Fred Wilson’s Latest Advice for Start-up Ninjas – http://bit.ly/wKhpMn

Customer Validation: What To Do Post Product/Market Fit – http://bit.ly/A5JiIo

How to Develop Your Fund Raising Strategy – http://bit.ly/xzXcEz

Have Arrington and Conway screwed up big time with their investment in Highlight? – http://scoble.it/ACh25Z

Most Web Design Agencies Suck – http://bit.ly/w5AI2f

The Importance of Brand in an Era of Digital Darwinism – http://bit.ly/wo6iYn

30+ Extreme and Controversial Ads – http://bit.ly/zdMkIP

Did Facebook Just Kill Earned Media? – http://bit.ly/w6mLYR

Have Facebook Stores Flopped? – http://bit.ly/z02X9a

One Year Later: How Google Panda Changed Our Business – http://tcrn.ch/wacRfO

American Express transforms Twitter hashtags into savings for cardholders – http://bit.ly/A0lI7h

This is a good resource for email subject lines: http://bit.ly/yMwZPL

Google Is About Failure — The Failure Of Brands – http://onforb.es/y8A00y

E-commerce calls to action: 10 best practice tips – http://bit.ly/zL87Ec

The Collapse of Print Advertising in 1 Graph – http://bit.ly/wEET3j

Who Decides What Gets Sold in the Bookstore? – http://bit.ly/zYiF3R

Connecting Nonprofits With Pro Bono Help – http://bit.ly/yhe3Dp

20 Free Sans-Serif Fonts Licensed for Font-Face – http://bit.ly/wqWkNa

[Freebie] 15 Photoshop Watercolor Brushes – http://bit.ly/xpu1AW

50+ Amazing & Clever Examples of Alternative Movie Poster Design – http://bit.ly/zdgKdp

(more…)

Every day on the crowdSPRING Twitter account and on my own Twitter account, I post links to posts or videos I enjoyed reading or viewing. These posts and videos are about logo design, web design, startups, entrepreneurship, small business, leadership, social media, marketing, and more! Here are some of the links that I’ve liked and shared this past week!

The image to the left shows the Lord Howe stick insect, Dryocecelus australis, which was presumed extinct by 1960 but found again in 2001 on Ball’s Pyramid, the remains of an old volcano that emerged from the sea 7 million years ago.

How to Start Your Business on the Cheap–With Help From the Crowd – http://bit.ly/xszFer

What Small Businesses Can Learn From Jeremy Lin – http://bit.ly/ytKN38

9 Ways Google+ Can Help Your Business – http://bit.ly/wr1nmi

How to tell your customers that you screwed up? – http://perfor.ms/xpHWe9

Secrets to Select and Evaluate Innovative Business Ideas – http://t.co/nTduJ80M

Don’t try to game the system – provide awesome service instead (good reminder from Seth Godin) – http://bit.ly/ymBgLs

Why Cloud Is A Big Deal For Small Business [INFOGRAPHIC] – http://bit.ly/xViGUG

7 Things Your New Website Must Have – http://bit.ly/wdvXOj

How to Make the Move From Big-Business Employee to Small-Business Owner – http://bit.ly/xPdxOR

How to Start Your Business on the Cheap–With Help From the Crowd – http://bit.ly/xszFer

Once you take money, the clock starts ticking – http://bit.ly/AhLVVb

Secrets to Select and Evaluate Innovative Business Ideas – http://t.co/nTduJ80M

How To Choose A Co-Founder – http://bit.ly/AqQAV4

Twitter, the Startup That Wouldn’t Die – http://buswk.co/zUnqtF

A classic startup horror story: the M&A bait and switch – http://bit.ly/ABwzQd

Change Your Employees’ Minds, Change Your Business – http://bit.ly/A2JOUs

Paths to $5M for a startup founder – http://hub.am/z8oapS

Patience & Persistence – http://bit.ly/wuYlyi

“Is this a billion dollar business?:” The tension between market sizing and innovation – http://bit.ly/ygRE6u

How the bathroom can teach us a lesson about right vs. pragmatic – http://bit.ly/zlg2O9

Why Tech Entrepreneurs in Developing Countries Struggle to Raise Funds – http://bit.ly/z92G5s

3 things entrepreneurs need to know about patent law reform – http://bit.ly/ybR4ZK

Kickstart Your Lean Startup With Effective Feedback – http://bit.ly/wvzYrQ

Caterina Fake: Fast Growth for a New Social App Is a Very Bad Thing – http://bit.ly/zfMARM

Fun look at home and office desk/computer setups of the team 37signals – http://bit.ly/xUGFJD

9 Ways Google+ Can Help Your Business – http://bit.ly/wr1nmi

MEET THE NEXT CEO OF MICROSOFT: Steven Sinofsky Is The Heir Apparent – http://read.bi/A13ZH9

How to tell your customers that you screwed up? – http://perfor.ms/xpHWe9

Four Traps That Suck Meaning Out Of Work – http://bit.ly/yvI4Q7

Raising funding as a first-time founder – http://zite.to/yw8vYP

Don’t try to game the system – provide awesome service instead (good reminder from Seth Godin) – http://bit.ly/ymBgLs

Ten Lessons I Learned from Shark Tank – http://tcrn.ch/AesPu2

Banksy on advertising – http://bit.ly/ygGWcg

The Illustrated Anatomy of a Viral Pinterest Scam – http://bit.ly/y11w3h

9 Ways Google+ Can Help Your Business – http://bit.ly/wr1nmi

Leveraging the Social Media: 5 Ideas For Your Job Search http://bit.ly/xASKKM

Creating a Blog using Collaborative Consumption Services – http://bit.ly/xLGeCQ

Caterina Fake: Fast Growth for a New Social App Is a Very Bad Thing – http://bit.ly/zfMARM

Shocking. People click on Facebook ads that show breasts – http://bit.ly/AkaBej

Why Google+ Doesn’t Care If You Never Come Back – http://tcrn.ch/xhPWXY

Illustrator Tutorials: 70+ Awesome Hot New Tips – http://t.co/KnCMr2kO

50 Astounding Adobe Illustrator Tutorials – http://bit.ly/yUseqg

A Showcase of Free To Download Russian Fonts – http://bit.ly/AyESdS

28 Fresh Illustrations to Inspire You – http://bit.ly/yaazsh

1500+ Awesome Multi Color Gradients – http://bit.ly/zE3NIN

The Psychology Behind Movie Poster Designs – http://bit.ly/waahKU

22 Free Elegant Fonts For Logo Design – http://bit.ly/xT0E76

28 Inspiring Typography Examples within Poster Artwork – http://bit.ly/yEqKSf

Beautiful Bokeh Textures For Your Next Project – http://bit.ly/yPFicx

Hey Designers: Do You Want Your Artwork Visible On Google Earth!? http://bit.ly/zLUkqu

Free Quality Photoshop Brushes for Your Design Arsenal – http://bit.ly/xuN7M2

Design before computers ruled the universe – http://bit.ly/yC3KxD

(more…)

Every day on the crowdSPRING Twitter account and on my own Twitter account, I post links to posts or videos I enjoyed reading or viewing. These posts and videos are about logo design, web design, startups, entrepreneurship, small business, leadership, social media, marketing, and more! Here are some of the links that I’ve liked and shared this past week!

The video above shows Australian Magician James Galea performing an unbelievable magic trick with a deck of cards. How does he do that?

The Zappos Effect: 5 Great Customer Service Ideas – http://hub.am/yh0hLq

5 Ways to Use Social Media and Your Online Presence to Drive People Offline – http://bit.ly/wuUkMf

crowdSPRING’s Small Business Spotlight of the Week: Should I Get Married? – http://bit.ly/y3eS9q

Functions over Titles – http://awe.sm/5fI9Z

Agreeable Guys* Finish Last – http://bit.ly/zqA34S

10 Things Entrepreneurs Can Learn From Politicians – http://bit.ly/z68bxM

Ron Conway is a Silicon Valley startup’s best friend – http://bit.ly/xtt9L7

Zap your brain and get focused quickly. If it were only this easy – http://bit.ly/yl5kYS

The Three Things That Got Fab.com Two Million Users In Seven Months – http://read.bi/wdzAyR

Functions over Titles – http://awe.sm/5fI9Z

Does Startup Density Predict Success? – http://bit.ly/x8RfdY

Between failure and Facebook – http://bit.ly/wAE6BD

The Zappos Effect: 5 Great Customer Service Ideas – http://hub.am/yh0hLq

4 Entrepreneurial Lessons Learned From Self-Publishing My First Book – http://bit.ly/AmJBHT

Agreeable Guys* Finish Last – http://bit.ly/zqA34S

Hit men, click whores, and paid apologists: Welcome to the Silicon Cesspool – http://bit.ly/yGFips

We assume that brainstorming works pretty well to solve most problems. But does it really work? – http://nyr.kr/AbiEmG

The mad dash to remove something before the deadline – http://bit.ly/A94VTR

The Three Things That Got Fab.com Two Million Users In Seven Months – http://read.bi/wdzAyR

Is Bitcoin, once the next shiny thing, on its last breaths? – http://bit.ly/wf8fBR

50 Fresh High-Quality Free Fonts for Your Designs – http://bit.ly/wKvinq

20 Free Fonts Used In Iconic Movies – http://bit.ly/zQudPt

12 Things I Have Learned After 7 Years of Freelancing – http://bit.ly/xUtycT

50 Useful and Fresh Photoshop Tutorials – http://bit.ly/xhiFE2

(more…)

Every day on the crowdSPRING Twitter account and on my own Twitter account, I post links to posts or videos I enjoyed reading or viewing. These posts and videos are about logo design, web design, startups, entrepreneurship, small business, leadership, social media, marketing, and more! Here are some of the links that I’ve liked and shared this past week!

The image to the left is a fun look at what a movie poster for an Oscar-nominated film would be like if it literally wanted to communicate what the movie was about. More fun posters in the Other section below.

8 Legal Steps for Starting Your Business – http://on.mash.to/AdW6Rn

Could Your Business Survive Without You? – http://bit.ly/ApHXux

Good tips on what to say when you fire someone (all biz owners must be comfortable doing this) – http://bit.ly/z1wLNw

Small Biz and Startup Tips: 5 Ideas to Prepare for an Economic Recovery – http://bit.ly/x64Zme

The Power of the Rule of Three in Marketing Your Small Business – http://bit.ly/wqmtu5

The Perpetually Vexing Problem of Hiring Programmers – http://bit.ly/w5QTm2

5 Reasons The Windy City is a Great Place for Startups – http://j.mp/zh4Zw8

How to build your startup without learning code – http://bit.ly/yPw6Vq

The Chicago FireStarter Venture Capital Fund – http://bit.ly/ytkmoa

The Perpetually Vexing Problem of Hiring Programmers – http://bit.ly/w5QTm2

SaaS: Change starts easy and then gets really hard – http://bit.ly/wZqTSt

Could Your Business Survive Without You? – http://bit.ly/ApHXux

8 Legal Steps for Starting Your Business – http://on.mash.to/AdW6Rn

This was the right response from Path – http://bit.ly/zNiKIi

Small Biz and Startup Tips: 5 Ideas to Prepare for an Economic Recovery – http://bit.ly/x64Zme

The Power of the Rule of Three in Marketing Your Small Business – http://bit.ly/wqmtu5

Good tips on what to say when you fire someone (all biz owners must be comfortable doing this) – http://bit.ly/z1wLNw

Pinterest is quietly generating revenue by modifying user submitted pins – http://bit.ly/xa9Aj5

When did advertising get so small? – http://bit.ly/xd0S8c

Good to see companies focus on real advertising metrics – http://bit.ly/xoHbOU

Silly to reach conclusions based on results of a study surveying 200 people (about twitter addiction) – http://bit.ly/yx4ssE

Is traffic from StumbleUpon just “noise”? – http://bit.ly/x6Sa9W

This was the right response from Path – http://bit.ly/zNiKIi

Yelp advertising is a rip-off for small advertisers – http://bit.ly/yraI9X

Only 1 “Top Brand” Has Created A Google+ Page In The Past Two Months, Report Says – http://bit.ly/yugLbG

Crowdsourcing has a longer-term payoff than originally thought: study – http://smrt.io/xCfZSm

Pinterest continues to impress with referral traffic – http://bit.ly/zHheNr

Those Millions on Facebook? Some May Not Actually Visit – http://nyti.ms/Af9DAG

Those Millions On Facebook? They Actually Visit, And It’s Not A Huge Deal Anyway. – http://tcrn.ch/yDQUPv

Rice University And OpenStax Announce First Open-Source Textbooks – http://tcrn.ch/ytEUYk

AT&T, Google Among The Biggest Online Advertisers — comScore – http://tcrn.ch/A2fKGT

70 Excellent Adobe Illustrator Tutorials – http://bit.ly/yZimmK

50 Illustrator Tutorials To Create High Quality Icons – http://bit.ly/wNiIP1

How to Stop Yourself from Stealing from Your Design Gurus – http://bit.ly/yhUJ8j

(more…)