Author Archive

THG @SXSW: Using an “Army of Interns” to Kick Your Business into High Gear

on February 13, 2012

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We have a bumper crop of Hired Guns presenting their ideas at next month’s SXSW Interactive. Over the next few weeks we’ll be profiling them, so that you can get a taste of their ideas — whether or not you’ll be making it to Austin yourself.

Marshalling Your Army of Interns
Tuesday, March 13, 3:30
Presenter: Larry Smith

Your Twesume
(your resume in 140 characters or less):
Mine is just six words: “Tell your story, that’s my story.”

Why did you want to speak at SXSW?
I’ve learned so much in the years I’ve gone to SXSW, and I’m thrilled to offer any knowledge I can back. This year I’m leading a “Core Conversation.” It will be a nice change of pace: rather than doing a panel or fancy presentation where I’m the “expert,” I’ll be leading a discussion in a room of very smart people sharing tips and experiences together.    Read More →

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Tell Your Story, and Make It Fast

on October 24, 2011

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This Thursday, October 27, The Hired Guns Academy will be hosting “What’s Your Story?,” our popular class on storytelling and elevator pitches. Below, the class’s instructor and creator, Larry Smith, talks about when he first realized that limits and parameters are your friend when it comes to creating a powerful, authentic story about your work life.

I was at a wedding this past weekend. The happy couple kissed. The dancing began. And soon enough it was toast time. One by one friends and family took the microphone to pay tribute to the bride and groom. And one by one those loving tributes turned into rambling disasters — often with no end in sight. “Somebody needs to wrestle the mic from him,” I heard a guest say at one point, in a less-than-hushed tone. Still, everyone was in a good mood and laughed off the hot messes who were doing their best to fete the happy couple.

After all, you’re allowed a certain amount of slack at a wedding. But when you fail to get your story straight when the stakes are higher — at a job interview, for example — the consequences are often much worse.

   Read More →

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“Write Drunk, Edit Sober”: Kick-start Your Elevator Pitch

on March 16, 2011

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The storytelling community I started, SMITH Magazine, is best known for the Six-Word Memoir project, but my core philosophy of telling your story comes down to even fewer words than that: Write drunk, edit sober.

Not that you should actually be drunk (the inebriated writer is a silly, antiquated idea, among other things). Rather, you should just let the words fall out of you, however messily and spastically, whether you’re writing a memoir, a letter, a flirty email, a toast, reports for work, or your Elevator Pitch.

In my class at the Hired Guns Academy, “What’s Your Story: Master the Art of the Elevator Pitch and Harness the Power of Short-Storytelling“, we’ll spend part of our time together “writing drunk.”    Read More →

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THG @SXSW: Getting Internet Buzz Without Spending a Fortune

on March 9, 2011

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A number of Hired Guns are presenting at SXSW Interactive this year. This series profiles a few of the proud and the brave. Please tweet and like this story so as a community we can build a little buzz for them.

How to Create an Internet Phenomenon for Peanuts
Tuesday, March 15, 12:30
Presenter: Larry Smith

Your Twesume
(your resume in 140 characters or less).
“Everyone has a story. I help you tell yours.”

What inspired you to submit your idea?
As I’ve told and retold the origins and subsequent amazing journey of the Six-Word Memoir project, I’ve thought a lot about the reasons it caught on. Whether the audience is members of a youth writing center in Bushwick or 800 big brains at PopTech, there are some clear lessons about why Six Words works so well, and how and why it spread across the world in an organic, authentic way.

Why are you the expert on it?
I created the phenom and have nurtured its growth carefully and obsessively for five years.

Why did you want to speak at SXSW?
These are my people! I’ve learned so much in the years I’ve gone to SXSW, and I’m thrilled to offer any knowledge I can back. Above all, it will just be fun.

Who should come to your talk?
Anyone who loves stories on how things start and grow; anyone who is interested in starting or growing his or her own project; anyone who loves the Six-Word Memoir project and other projects that have gone from nothing to wildly popular without tons of money….

What will people walk away learning from you?
How I did it and how they can, too. If you stick to it and truly, truly love it, it’s quite possible to turn a passion into something that goes viral and even makes a profit.

What do you hope you learn from your SXSW experience?
Same as always: meet new people; fill my head with new ideas; stay up late and get up early; have a blast in Austin.

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Product Management, User Experience, Information Architecture, Interaction Design, Usability Testing

Project Management, Program Management, Production, Content Production

Animation, Art Direction, Creative Direction, Corporate Identity, Flash Design/Dev, Graphic Design, Web Design

Content Strategy, Editorial, Copywriting, Copy Editing, Research, Blog Outreach

Brand Management, Business Development, Sales, Product Marketing, Event/Conference Planning, Promotions, Marcomms, Corporate Comms, Direct Marketing, E-Marketing, Public Relations, Market Research

Account Management, Account/Brand Planning, Media Strategy, Communications Planning, Media Planning/Buying, Social Media, Search (SEM, SEO), Web Metrics & Analytics

Web Development, Front End Development

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