TJ Kelly - Web design, development, SEO, Social Media, Wordpress » Life

Off to [Smaller] and Better Things

TJ Kelly — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 15:14:05 +0000

The title of this post was stolen, without permission, from the almighty Fred LeBlanc. And it’s perfect. Sorry/thanks, Fred.

I resigned my position at StudentCity, my employer for the last 4 years. As of October 17, 2011, I work for McDougall Interactive, a digital/search marketing company in Danvers, MA. I’m sad to leave my friends and colleagues at SCC, but I’m excited for what’s ahead for me with McDougall.

Thank you, StudentCity

I’m grateful and indebted to StudentCity for the time, energy, resources, and training they gave me. I started there when I was just a few months out of college, still new to the real world.

I got my start there, learning how to design and code for an enterprise-level website, maintain code standards across a team, and build scalable, reusable assets. I learned how the business world works, an important lesson for SaaS workers. And I learned how *I* work, a VERY important lesson for any employee.

It feels like graduating

School is designed to prepare students for the real world. My 4 years at StudentCity felt similar. It felt as if those 4 years were an internship or apprenticeship, preparing me for the next thing.

The trouble is that, when students graduate from schools, they do so together and it’s a happy occasion. When a worker “graduates” from a company after several years, s/he does so alone and it’s bittersweet.

I’ll miss StudentCity

Mostly the people. I’ve had the same boss for almost all of those 4 years. He’s been awesome; friendly, accommodating, understanding, patient, trusting, empowering, inspiring, just about all the things one could hope for in a manager.

The rest of the IT team, old and new. In those 4 years, I had the pleasure of working alongside 16 other IT people. Currently, 6 of them are still employed by StudentCity and only 5 in our department. It’s a smart, talented group of people and they’ll be just fine without me.

Why this will be better

I loved my time at StudentCity. Things weren’t always perfect, but I have nothing negative to say about the company or people. It was by no means “bad.” However, working with McDougall will be better for me for several reasons.

I’m invested in their products and services ― something I couldn’t say about spring break.
It’s a small, flexible, adaptable company ― no getting lost in a sea of parent companies.
They need my help ― the design & development parts of McdIA weren’t a priority until now.

I can’t wait to start this new chapter in my life and my career. It’s going to be challenging, fun, and rewarding. I’m nervous about it, but very excited to hit the ground running.

Flash Mob Wedding in Boston

TJ Kelly — Thu, 06 Jan 2011 15:35:44 +0000

A very clever way to get married! I’m sure the Prudential Center crew were caught off-guard and definitely less than thrilled, but hey—that’s the point of a flash mob.

Most impressive to me were the teenagers and children involved in the mob. That’s one thing I’ve not seen before.

Congratulations to the newlyweds, apparently named Jon and Caroline.

Video of the flash mob wedding

Work with me: StudentCity is Hiring

TJ Kelly — Thu, 07 Oct 2010 19:43:53 +0000

My company is hiring a junior or middle-level web designer/front-end developer. I’ve been put in charge of finding and hiring this person, since they will work closely with me every day.

The position is a full-time in our Peabody, MA office. This new designer will be the sixth member of our IT department and will get to work in a young, energetic office selling spring break to college students. What could be better than that?

If you or your loved ones are interested in the gig, please get in touch with me. I need help!

Required skills & experience

Good with HTML & CSS
Experience creating UI elements in Photoshop
Working knowledge of jQuery
Understanding of PHP/MySQL

Nice-to-have skills & experience

Experience with complex CSS layouts and CSS3 techniques
Knowledge of semantic, well-formed HTML
Experience with WordPress
Understanding of SEO best-practices

Ideal characteristics

High standards, avoiding the “quick & dirty” method
Passion for crafting excellent user experiences
Active user of Facebook, Twitter & other social media outlets
Apple fanatic, loves burritos

Things I Don’t Care About that Others Enjoy

TJ Kelly — Sun, 03 Oct 2010 21:51:23 +0000

There are lots of “popular” things that I don’t care about; things like reality television, celebrity gossip, and Chinese food. I made a list of these things, just for fun.

Original list, October 3, 2010

Jersey shore, reality television in general
Celebrity gossip
Chinese food
Cars, engines, horse power, blah blah
Horoscopes
The Office, LOST, Network dramas & sitcoms in general
Fox News
“Corporate culture,” “business rules,” other business jargon
Basketball, golf, tennis
The Olympics (most of the time)
Computer OS specs & details (memory, storage, processor, blah blah)
Deadliest Catch, Ice Road Truckers, Swamp Loggers, Axe Men, etc.
Poker
Mixed martial arts
Farmville
“Good beer” or “real beer”
So-called “high fashion” or anything related to a “runway” that isn’t also related to aviation

Added October 8, 2010

John Lennon’s birthday
Randy Moss being traded to the Vikings

What about you?

What “popular” things do you not care about? I’m sure I’ll think of more items to add.

On Portaduction

George Parks: Inspiration Personified

TJ Kelly — Tue, 21 Sep 2010 14:38:54 +0000

George Parks was the director of the UMass Minuteman Marching Band from 1977 until his death on September 16, 2010. He led the Minuteman band for 33 years.

George had a unique way of living: enthusiastically. His charisma and charm were undeniable. His skill and talent for leadership were unmatched. He embodied the beliefs he taught: that life is for living.

George was famous for telling his students, “Raise your hand as high as you can. Now raise it two inches higher. That’s what wrong with your lives!”

Inspiration in its purest form

George inspired people more than he educated them. Yes, he educated. And very well at that. But his greatest gift to his students was a flame of passion he would ignite in their souls.

His energy and enthusiasm were infectious. He routinely converted shy high school band geeks into loud, proud, bando machines by shouting, “Band is the best thing you could ever do. And don’t you let anybody tell you otherwise!”

Thousands and thousands (I’d argue it’s more like millions) of drum majors learned the technique and mechanics of conducting from him. But they went away raving about their excitement for band. THAT is what George Parks taught his students—excitement.

George’s best skill was leadership

He led. People followed. He spoke. People listened. For George, it appeared easy. He understood the principles of strong leadership—clarity, consistency, and confidence—and was very, very good at them.

I’ve never met anyone else who commended such admiration and respect. And boy could he work a crowd. On several occasions, I saw him address a crowd of thousands and in a matter of seconds, capture their attention and motivate them to respond.

He knew that part of leading is following. He surrounded himself with talented people who could help him accomplish his goal. He assembled and maintained arguably the best college marching band staff in history. And he let his staff work, never micromanaging or interfering.

If only corporate America or the government could learn these lessons.

He died too soon

George left us at 57 years old. The world should have gotten another 30 years of his energy and enthusiasm. I’m sure he would have retired before too long, maybe 10 years from now. But those would have been an important 10 years.

But more than being too young, he just wasn’t finished yet. There are still high school students who think band isn’t cool. There are still UMass students who think the UMass band isn’t cool. There are still UMass football fans out there who leave the stadium after the fourth quarter. All of these George worked hard to change.

Permanent impact on people’s lives

George was famous for his speeches. He delivered variations of the same monologues year after year at his Drum Major Academy. One of his most famous lines was, “You have the best opportunity of anyone in your schools to have a permanent impact on people’s lives.” And as Brent King reminds us in his beautiful video tribute, no one had more impact than George did.

Brent King’s video tribute

On Corporate Sponsored Clouds

TJ Kelly — Tue, 13 May 2008 22:00:30 +0000

Remember gazing up into the clouds as a little kid? Trying to find bunny rabbits or smiley faces?

Advertisers remember it too. Now you can gaze skyward and see Mickey Mouse… literally. What will they think of next?

Company floats ads in ‘clouds’ shaped like corporate logos – Wired Magazine

On Politics (briefly)

TJ Kelly — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 04:09:40 +0000

I don’t want to say too much on the matter. I simply want to point out that everything I’ve read on the internet, seen on tv, and heard from any half-way-reliable source leads me to believe that Senator Barack Obama can, should, and will be the next president of the United States. I support him and I truly hope he wins.

I think all 3 of the major candidates are impressive in their own ways. But for my money, Obama is it. His e-campaign can be followed in the following locations.

Check him out. Read about him. Watch videos. Do your own research. You’ll be impressed. Go Obama.

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On Parental Mind Control

TJ Kelly — Wed, 08 Aug 2007 03:07:41 +0000

For any Facebook users out there, you may have seen a "Sponsored Story" in your news feed recently. It’s a YouTube-style internet video clip/advertisement for a computer. I’m not generally one to publicize an ad. By definition, they get enough exposure on their own. This one, however, I feel is worthy of some extra attention.

It’s very simple… kid wants computer > kid tries to control parent’s mind > parent makes fun of kid > parent gets kid the computer anyway, seeming unaware that his mind is being controlled. The tagline? "No, really. It works. The Society for Parental Mind Control can show you how."

Let me tell you why this is one of the most interesting ad campaigns I’ve ever seen…

It’s a YouTube-style "funny internet clip," very popular with teenagers.
The name "Parental Mind Control" is enough to make anyone with parents stop and think twice.
The added bonus phrase "No, really. It works" is a blatant lie, but because of its "straight-forward honesty," many people will think, "It does? How?" and click the link.
It’s a clear example of viral marketing, combined with a sort of internet-age "reverse psychology" in which the ad company lies to you, you know they are lying, they know that you know they’re lying, but they lie anyway for "humor value."
It’s built on the modern American teenager’s willing dependence on their parents, saying, "Use mind control, get a sweet computer." It might as well say, "Manipulate your parents and get them to buy you an expensive piece of equipment. It won’t cost you a dime! Who cares about how much it costs them?!"

The marketers behind this ad did a fantastic job of combining techniques and targeting their audience. I’d be interested to see how many computers they sell as a result of this ad. It occurs to me that I don’t even know who is selling the computer. The ad never says. But, I suppose that if I control my parents’ minds effectively, they’ll just know which computer to get me.

On Life-Changes

TJ Kelly — Tue, 17 Jul 2007 03:04:42 +0000

This is a pretty uncertain and changing time for a person… post-graduation, that is. A few personal upheavals thrown in there, and you’ve got a dazed, wandering kid trying figure out which way is up. Funny, though, is the tendency times like these have to make us more self-aware and better able to take a step back and appreciate the complexities of life. It’s very humbling.

On April

On The Past Few Months

TJ Kelly — Mon, 02 Apr 2007 02:57:53 +0000

At last! After more than three months, TJKweb is finally back. I had to go through a battle with my old host company. Finally, a reliable host that provides both flexibility and security. Since they’re not paying me, I won’t advertise for them by recommending them by name.

Spring is officially here. And with it comes a redesign and a fresh look for the site. I’m using this redesign to experiment with some more clean, white-based design ideas. And as always, the green tint made its way in.

There are 55 days left until I graduate. It’s starting to sink in…

On Portaduction

TJ Kelly — Wed, 29 Nov 2006 03:23:15 +0000

Cell Phones, Laptop computers, Portable Digital Assistants, Satellite-Connectivity & "Anywhere Internet"… the world has become portable. Gone are the days of tethered desktop workstations and static, immobile command centers.

Portability and productivity have become synonymous. Television viewers and internet browsers are constantly bombarded with advertisements promising products that will free your business from it’s physical constraints, unshackling us all from the laws of gravity.

I have dubbed this wave of the future "portaduction", or portable production.

Portaduction will have vast implications for the world of communication, technology, and law. These issues now cross borders, all over the country and the world. Will the laws catch up?

On Cyber-Results

TJ Kelly — Mon, 02 Oct 2006 03:07:51 +0000

I am a webdeveloper. I perform work. I produce a good. I receive monetary compensation for my goods and services. Just like the good old-fashioned business model. The only problem is, when it comes down to it.. I don’t have anything concrete to show for my efforts. Every “good” I’ve produced is in the realm of “intellectual property.”

What that really means is that it’s intangible. We’re in an age now where tangibility is no longer a requisite for ownership and legitimacy. Something doesn’t have to physically exist for it to be perfectly legit and legal. I guess that’s not such a big deal, it’s just a little bit different than what we’re used to dealing with, and it will take some getting used to.

It’s also not a brand new idea. Ever since people began copyrighting song lyrics, artwork, books and other writings, broadcasts and radio frequencies… the concept of owning and legitimizing something that exists beyond the two-dimensional world has been in play.

It’s still a little odd, and some ways a bit disheartening, to think that none of my accomplishments can be held or touched. They’re ultimately just arrangements of electric currents. I’m proud of them, certainly. But I can’t frame them or keep them in a shoebox to show my grandkids someday.

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