How to Spend a Windfall Feb 1
After having an exit people often asked me what I did with all the money. Three rules and how I actually invested it. StoriesInvesting
Engine Restart Checklist Aug 13
What it takes to restart a company after COVID shut everything down. StoriesLeadership
Business Lessons from Star Fox 64 Dec 5
What a Nintendo 64 game taught me about leadership and running a company. StoriesLeadership
Before there was OpenWater, there was Oriental Rug Company Dec 3
The story of my dad's business and how it shaped everything that came after. Stories
OpenWater-on-Thames Dec 2
Flying to London to close the biggest deal in company history — the one that brought us European operations. StoriesStrategy
Leadership Anonymous Apr 12
Growing the next generation of leaders at OpenWater, inspired by Daft Punk's Teachers. StoriesLeadership
Wait…You Banned Good Morning? Mar 30
Starting the day with a good morning message seems polite but it drives me nuts. I banned it. Stories
Liberty Two-Four is now Air Force One Jan 14
The story of our flagship product SONAR and its journey from side project to main event. Stories
Founder Stories — About Project ETOPS Oct 4
The codename for our most ambitious product bet — inspired by how far a plane can fly from the nearest airport. Stories
Founder Stories: Why We Built Api2Pdf Jun 19
How a side project born from frustration with PDF generation became its own product. Stories
Living on the Edge Apr 24
The constant tension of running a company that's always one bad quarter from the edge. StoriesStrategy
Making Profit vs Growing the Company Jul 19
The eternal founder dilemma — take money off the table or reinvest everything back in. Stories
What's in a Name? (The Original Memo) Feb 20
The unaltered 2014 private memo about how we chose the name OpenWater. Stories
1 Year from Success, 1 Month from Bankruptcy, and a Lifeline Jan 26
Cash flow anxiety at its peak — and the lifeline that kept us going. Stories
Distance from Christmas Jan 10
A server outage during AAF's biggest competition — and the scramble to fix it. Stories
Employee Termination Part 3 Dec 12
The actual firing — the conversation, the aftermath, and what I learned. Stories
Employee Termination Part 2 Dec 12
Monitoring Sarah's activity and building the case for the hardest decision yet. Stories
Employee Termination Part 1 Dec 12
After nearly a year of deliberation, I finally decided to dismiss Sarah. The hardest day of work I've faced to date. Stories
State of the Company November 2013 Nov 11
Short update: 7 people in the office, cash flow stabilized, and the plan for next year coming together. Stories
Earthquake near Cebu Oct 16
Our long time Virtual Assistant in the Philippines was caught in the major earthquake — and reported to work the next day. Stories
State of the Company October 2013 Oct 13
Cash position slightly better, hired our first temp to perm person, and deciding to scale back website projects. Stories
Do you feel you have peaked? Oct 12
The winds were blowing away from custom websites and towards products. The question was what to do about the team. Stories
AAF In Person Training – Boise, ID Recap Sep 29
What was supposed to be a training turned into a relationship-building session that shaved off 4 months of trust building. Stories
State of the Company September 2013 Sep 9
Cash flow pressure peaking, expecting near $0 in bank by month end. Just have to hold our breath and make it to renewal fees. Stories
Memo to Developer Staff Post AAF Version Launch Sep 5
A thank you to the dev team after the smoothest launch yet, and a look ahead to becoming #1 in awards software. Stories
The Price War — Conclusion Aug 30
The price war turned out to be a price discussion. Four outcomes on pricing strategy: price on value, not costs. StoriesStrategy
Tsunami of Business Aug 24
When business comes in waves and you're not sure if you can handle the next one. StoriesProduct
Barbarians at the Gate Aug 19
A competitor showed up and demo'd their product right in front of us. What we did next. StoriesStrategy
That Creepy Salesman Part II Aug 15
The conclusion of our encounter with the salesman who taught us everything about what not to do. StoriesLeadership
That Creepy Salesman Part I Aug 14
The story of a sales mentor who was equal parts brilliant and terrifying. StoriesLeadership
State of the Company August 2013 Aug 11
The very first state of the company update — where it all began. Stories