Monthly Archives: June 2010

Making Friends with Calling Cards

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The Joker has a Calling Card - So Should You

The Joker has a Calling Card - So Should You

Back in the day (the 1800′s) gentlemen carried calling cards. It was used to introduce yourself, request a meeting (date), and even express condolences. In today’s modern society, it feels like a calling card would not be necessary, but I argue, that there is no better time to have your own calling card.

You have Facebook, Twitter, email, phones, a blog (maybe), IM, and about 100 other ways for people to contact you. However, after I meet you, I can’t find you or I forget who you are. Imagine you meet someone at a party and you want to get to know them better. You put their name and phone number (more likely their email) in your phone. Weeks later, you’re going through your phone and you find this contact, but you don’t remember why you wanted to to contact them.

Now imagine you are at a party and you meet someone. This time you give them your calling card and you make a note on the back, “Meet at the Yelp museum mixer.” Not only are you the only one handing out calling cards, but you added a note that makes it easy to remember you. Also, can you think of a better way to introduce yourself to a nice lady? Your calling card mixed with a story of how gentlemen would use them to express interest in the fairer sex can only lead to one thing, follow up contact.

Business Cards are for American Psychos

Business Cards are for American Psychos

“But Mike, I have business cards. Why should I have a calling card?”

Most people change jobs every four years, most people keep the same email, phone number, IM, etc. forever. Plus, business cards have your company info on it. It tells the recipient nothing about you (plenty about the company you work for). Here’s what you can put on your calling card: Name (First Name, Last Initial is fine), Nickname, Email Address, Facebook URL, Twitter Name, Google URL, Yelp URL (you can get a personal URL from Yelp too), QR Code, xBox Live Gamer Tag, and your Blog URL.

There are a bunch of places you can go to get your own business cards, several are about $30 for a box of 500. Here are a few suggestions:

  • Crane & Co. – very nice and pricey
  • The Stationery Studio – still nice, cheaper
  • Zazzle – They have pre-designed, 4-color cards
  • Moo – My personal favorite. They have some killer “ready made” cards

Having your own calling card makes it easier to break the ice in odd situations, makes you stand out (until everyone else is using them), and will increase your contact list.

The Gentleman’s Guide to the Calling Card - Art of Manliness Article

May I Offer You My Calling Card? – Time / CNN Article

Genius Ideas in Las Vegas

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As I was having dinner with my cousins tonight, I realized that Las Vegas has done some amazing things to remove money from your pocket. Here are three things that I feel are the smartest.

ONE: Beer Pong at O’Sheas – imagine you are in college, you have been playing beer pong in your dorm room for four years and now that you’re 21, you are in Las Vegas. You don’t have a lot of cash and you are not too interested in playing $25 blackjack. As you’re walking down the street, you see o’Sheas has beer pong. 4-hours later, your wasted and you spent about $200. On top of that, as you are walking out of the hotel, you spend another $100 on blackjack because your too wasted to not play. That was $300 worth of beer pong. Genius!

TWO: Oxygen Bars and Water Massage in the Malls – I have seen these in many malls in Souther California, but I have never been interested in trying them. I’m sure you feel the same way, and so do all the customers sitting at the oxygen bar and getting massages. There is something magical about Las Vegas that makes people want to do something they won’t do at home. It could be as complex as getting a tattoo, visiting a hooker, or something as simple as getting a water massage. Genius!

THREE: Painting the ceiling of the mall to look like dusk – today we had lunch at the mall inside the Venetian. I stress inside because when we put our name in at the front, we were asked, “Would you like to be seated inside or outside?” We then had to take a group evaluation and the conclusion was, “Outside is good, it’s nice out right now.” But there is no OUTSIDE, there is only INSIDE. We were covered by 42 floors of steel and concrete. The air was cool and still, the light was artificial and unchanging, but today, I had lunch outside, inside the mall at the Venetian and I never once considered leaving the mall and going to a great local restaurant only a few blocks away. Genius!

There are plenty more Genius ideas in the City of Sin. I’ll be sure to let you know all about them.