2013 Year In Review

By Josh Highland in Josh's Rambling

new_years_2013_dead

For the last few year I list the goals that I would like to achieve for the year (2013, 2012, 2011, 2010, 2009). With this post I’d like to take some time and see how many of my 2013 goals I managed to achieve.

  • Attend more tech conferences

I Only attended 2 tech conferences this year, but both of them were completely insane and in San Francisco. Oktane 2013, the first user conference of Okta.com (a service that I LOVE), and the first California Shopify meetup (another company that I absolutely love). This year was about quality, not quantity. Grade: #meh

  • Speak at some tech conferences / user groups

Since I only attended one conference and one meetup, presenting at neither of them, this is nothing but fail. Grade: #epicFail

  • Continue to Automate more of my income

I’m really proud of the accomplishments I have made in this area. B2B SaaS apps are definitely where it’s at. This was the best year for me in that regard. Most of the work was automated, but there was some manual components that I should delegate out. Grade: #epicWin

  • Pay off more debt

This goes in hand with automating my income. This year I absolutely attacked my debt. Automating more of my income really helped this. Becoming debt free is a hard thing to do, but I’m closer now that I have ever been in my adult life. Grade: #epicWin

  • Develop another Shopify app

I’m VERY close to releasing my 3rd Shopify app but I don’t think it will happen in 2013. More important to me than releasing another app is the growth of my existing apps. Both of them were extended, optimized and updated. There was a significant amount of development that went into these that I am proud about. Grade: #win

  • Delegate more of my tasks (4 hour work week style)

This one has made my yearly list a few times now. Every year I make some progress, but I never feel that it’s enough. This year I have make some partnerships that have been helpful in offloading some task, but at the same time I’ve created some new projects that fill the void. Sort of not making anything new, I don’t know what the answer to this one is. Grade: #meh

  • Finish and publish my SEO book

Writing is a much slower process for me than I thought it was going to be. Sometimes I find it hard to convey what I want to say in written form. There have been points in the process that I have found it very enjoyable to sit down and write. The bottom line is that I didn’t get it finished or published. I’m currently about 40% done with the content creation portion. Grade: #fail

  • De-clutter my life – Get rid of things that I rarely use

I’ve really been working on this one. I’ve started listing things on craigslist and eBay and donating things to goodwill. This is going to take me some time before I feel that this is completed, but I think I’m winning. Grade: #win

  • Continue body building – Stack on more muscle

For the most part this was true. I’m still relatively big, and I haven’t lost interest. I’ve slacked off in Q4 of this year, but I’m still passionate about it. I find that heavy physical activity forces my brain to shut off for a while (in a similar way that heavy metal concerts do). My body takes over and give my brain time to rest. Grade: #win

  • Blog more about my experiences with tech and raising a son

Yeah this didn’t happen. working full time + raising a son + running a business = not much time for personal blogging. Grade: #fail

  • Test a pair of Google glasses

This has to be the most #epicWin EVER! Not only did I try on a pair of Google Glass, I was selected by Google to get a pair of Google Glass. I even went to Google to pick them up. I’m honored to be on the leading edge of wearable tech because of Glass. I was even interviewed by the New York Times magazine about Glass. Grade: #epicWIN

  • Have a  conversation with Kevin Rose, and Tim Ferris

Despite my attempts on social media, this didn’t happen.. next year. Grade: #epicFail

  • Promote my clothing line Wolves Clothing more

My delegated work efforts contributed to this one. I’ve taken on a partner that handles the day to day of this. As a result, we have gotten a lot more traction. 1 + 1 = 3. Grade: #win

2013 was a ear of growth for me. I stepped into a new position at work, my business started to really take off, and I have a toddler that I want to hang out with all the time. 2014 is going to be awesome. I can’t wait.

2013 Q1 Review – Glass Edition

By Josh Highland in Google Glass, hardware, Josh's Rambling

2013 has been an interesting year for me so far.

Following my goals for 2013, I have been focused on building more software products and services that automate more of my income and help me payoff some debt. I’m finding great success with Shopify.com apps and consulting work. I should really blog about this more.

Yesterday I got an idea for a shopify app. I have a very strong feeling that its going to be great once I launch it. I’m hoping to have it done by the end of summer.

To help promote my clothing line, Wolves Clothing. I’ve brought on a partner / vice president. In a short time we have already started seeing some progress. I’m very hopeful for the future as we branch out and start to sponsor more bands, events and athletes.

Being a new father in a digital age has really changed things for me. In mid February I was at home having lunch, talking to my wife, when all of a sudden my son #JacksonHighland started trying to walk on his own. Amy acted fast, pulling out her iPhone and capturing a video of Jackson’s first steps.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zW5lImoyvXE[/youtube]

The entire experience was amazing. Having my son walk to me was a great feeling, but the realization that I had a high definition digital copy of that experience really hit me hard. I will have a copy if that moment forever. I will be able to share that moment with my family, loved ones, and with Jackson himself when he gets older. I want to capture everything. I don’t want to miss moments like this.

I also realized that I have a digital photo of him from every day that he’s been alive, and those will last forever as well. I have a few dozen pictures of myself as a child, Amy only has a hand full of baby pictures of her (Her house burned down in 2003). Jackson is going to end up with thousands of images of him growing up.

The day after Jackson took his first steps, Google announced a contest called #IfIHadGlass. In 140 characters or less you had to tell them how you would use Google Glass if you got a pair, and include the hashtag #IfIHadGlass.

One of my goals for 2013 was to try a pair of Google Glasses. If I was able to wear a pair for 5 minutes, I would consider this goal accomplished. I submitted the following to the contest:

I have an 11 month old son. Every day he does something new and amazing. #ifihadglass, I would always have a camera ready to capture those moments forever, and share them with family and loved ones. He will only take first steps, and say his first word once.

I also attached the video of Jackson’s first steps.

Yesterday I found out that I was accepted into Google Glass Explorer program! I’m getting a pre-release pair of Google Glass! It’s still hard for me to believe.

IfIHadGlass Winner

I love the concept of wearable computers. If you know me well, you know that I would love to augment myself with digital parts. I’ve always wanted a heads up display, just like RoboCop, The Terminator, and The Predator.

My entry to Google is genuine. I will mostly be capturing video and images of Jackson growing up. I will always have a camera available when he starts to do something new and awesome. I can’t wait.

I imagine that Google Glass will change a lot of things in my life. I’m going to be doing a lot of testing, app developing and blogging about Google Glass. Stay tuned!

Picard Google Glass

My Goals For 2013

By Josh Highland in Josh's Rambling

new_years_2013

Every year I posts a list of things I want to accomplish in that year. 2013 is going to be a big year for me, i can feel it. Here is a list of some of the goals that I have for myself:

  • Attend more tech conferences
  • Speak at some tech conferences / user groups
  • Continue to Automate more of my income
  • Pay off more debt
  • Develop another Shopify apps
  • Delegate more of my tasks (4 hour work week style)
  • Finish and publish my SEO book
  • De-clutter my life – Get rid of things that I rarely use
  • Continue body building – Stack on more muscle
  • Blog more about my experiences with tech and raising a son
  • Test a pair of Google glasses
  • Have a  conversation with Kevin Rose, and Timmothy Ferris
  • Promote my clothing line Wolves Clothing more

2012 Year In Review

By Josh Highland in Josh's Rambling

new_years_2012_dead

For the last few year I list the goals that I would like to achieve for the year (2012, 2011, 2010, 2009). With this post I’d like to take some time and see how many of my 2012 goals I managed to achieve.

  • Reduce the amount of “stuff” that I have. I need to make room for my new son (due in march!)

I think I’ve done an OK job at this. I converted my office into my sons room. During that process I got rid of a fair amount of stuff. The remainder of it is in the garage and the current office (formerly the spare bedroom). I need to stop hording things that I don’t use. I’ll give me self a #meh on this.

  • Delegate responsibilities and tasks better. I have too many projects and not enough time, I need to let other people take over a few things, (4-hour work week style of course)

This is a #Fail for me. I’ve actually managed to create more side work for myself and managed to lose an employee. I’ve got to get better at this if I’m going to live that 4-Hour Work week lifestyle

  • Automate more of my life (income / shipping / bill payments / etc)

This is an #epicWin for me. I’ve been able to create more passive income this year, and automate more of my bills. It feels like I’m starting to get the hang of this this stuff.

  • Launch a Shopify.com app

Another #epicWin, I’ve was able to launch two shopify apps (SEO Meta Manager & Order Lookup App), get them featured by Shopify. As a result, they have become some of the top rated apps in the Shopify App Store. I credit Gary Vanerchuk’s book, “The Thank You Economy” for a large portion of the success I’m seeing. NewLeaf Labs also became certified Shopify professionals… #LikeABoss

I’m some where between a #win and a #meh on this one. I was able to launch more shirt designs, strike some promotion deals and gain a wider awareness of the brand. I know 2013 will be a better year. I’ve made some pretty large goals for the company, and I need to see them through.

  • Launch my first iPad application and get my 10th iPhone app into the store

YES! totally a #Win. I was able to launch my 10th iOS application into the app store. It’s a universal app meaning that is runs on iPad and iPhones / iPod Touches. NewLeaf Labs knows iOS app development!

  • Continue to improve my fitness (strength & muscle mass)

2012 was a good time in the gym. At my peak during my bulking cycle I was 225lbs, I trimmed down to 190lbs and got to about 13% body fat. I can see a difference in the way my body responds to physical activity. It loves it! Having a baby in march, Jackson Highland, it was difficult to get to the gym as often as I would have liked. Having my lifting partner, @JustinGiese, switch to a graveyard shift schedule didn’t help either. All in all, its a marathon, not a sprint. Bodybuilding is a lifestyle not an activity. I have big plans for 2013. I’m going to hit it hard early on, bulking, then lean out for summer. I’m looking forward to it. #getBig #win

  • Move more of my projects / data to “the cloud”

I can give myself a #win on this. I moved my physical servers out of a co-located space, into a vitrualized environment on the cloud. So instead of just moving the apps and data to the cloud, I moved the servers! The future is here!

  • Improve my SEO skillz (nothing fancy, just gain a better knowledge of what I should be doing as best practices)

This is an #epicWin. One of my Shopify Apps is an SEO tool for managing meta and title tags. I did a lot of research on the subject of SEO. I also started writing an book on the subject. My book should be released in mid 2013. I need to make it happen.

  • Build an app that uses the instagram API

I did this early in 2012. I used the app to help promote the presence of my Straight Edge Clothing company, Wolves Clothing (XWolvesClothingX). It was a web based app. It was actually much easier to make then I thought it was going to be. However, I was doing some things that fell into a gray area of their terms of service. Instead of having my account killed, I decided to disable the app. I do plan on re-working the app and using it again, for fun and profit!

This was a #fail on my part. I need to do a better of of this. This is one of my favorite business ideas that I have helped grow. Don’t get me wrong, the business is doing well, but I think it can really be pushed harder. Our designs are awesome and a great bargain for bands and clothing companies looking for high quality designs at reasonable rates.

  • Contribute more to charitable causes

This is a #win. I continued to contributing time and energy to We Still Believe, a non-profit group in Orange County aimed at helping the less fortunate. My Straight Edge Clothing Company, Wolves Clothing, was a sponsor at “Mosh-4-Food 2”, an annual canned food drive that was able to generate several tons of food for a local food bank. I also participated in a We Still Believe event at Disneyland for adults with special needs. Giving back is awesome and I want to do more of it.

2012 was a life changing year. I’m looking forward to what 2013 holds.

PageKite – An awesome tool for serious web developers

By Josh Highland in Programming, software, Tech

If you have done any serious web development, you know how important it is to have a local environment to work in.

It’s not very hard to set up a local web server, database server, and just start banging out code. If you have a mac, you don’t even need to install anything to start a PHP or Python project.

Development problems comes into play when you reach a point in your project when you need to start making inbound calls for things like oAuth or web hook callbacks. For these sorts of things to happen, you need your dev machine exposed to the world, and presented in an addressable format, or upload the whole project to a production server – both, a pain, and a time suck when you are developing.

Exposing your web server to the world usually requires a few modifications and a little bit of know how. Once ready to expose to the world, you need to open firewall ports and advertise your IP Address. If you are like me, and program on the run (office, home, coffee shop, airport, etc), I don’t always have access to router / firewall / port forwarding settings. Technically it’s against the Terms Of Service of my internet provider to expose a web server on my connection, so I CAN’T open any web server ports.

Enter PageKite to save the day.

PageKite is a cool project out of Iceland (yes Iceland!), that solves the problems I listed above. PageKite makes local websites or SSH servers publicly accessible in mere seconds, and works with any computer and any Internet connection. It’s also 100% Open Source. It’s dead simple to use. You just need python installed on your machine (which serious web developer doesn’t have python installed?), and the pagekite.py file from pagekite.net.

For $4 a month, you can’t beat the ability to run a simple lite weight script that securely exposes your web server to co-workers, API services, and anyone else you can think of. You probably don’t want to run a production level server via PageKite, but it gets the job done for development work, and it does it in an amazing way.

The best part is the fact that it doesn’t matter what type of connection you are on, you can expose your work to whoever wants to see it. No firewalls, no dynamic IPs, no hassle. I’ve used PageKite to build my last two Shopify apps, SEO Meta Manager, and Order Lookup App. It’s been nothing but an awesome experience. PageKite has found a permanent place in my web dev tool box.

check it out at http://PageKite.net. The Video below is a bit long but explains it very well.

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7a66r23jnKA[/youtube]