Intro
It’s been a year since we launched our first product, Jaclyn Hill Split Pan. We’re now ready to talk about what went right and what went wrong.
Jaclyn hill split pan
The reason for the split pan (a.k.a. “the jaclyn hill split”) is that we think we can do much better than the way startups are currently doing it, and that it is going to take more than just one change to drastically improve our process.
This post at Medium represents a labor of love that I put a lot of work into, and am very passionate about, but I do not think it is going to be a particularly useful contribution to the conversation, so I’m leaving it here (and even if you agree with what I say, please feel free to ignore this entire post). This is why:
In short: we want everyone who reads this post to know what we are doing and why. If you don’t agree with us, feel free to ignore this whole post.
I am writing this because my wife and I have been talking about startups for a long time now, and I see something in the startup world that feels fundamentally broken — there seems to be no clear way for founders to get out of the business or for employees who are working there to have rewarding experiences. And if you’re reading this then you probably also have some sense of what I mean by “broken” as far as startups are concerned; after all, most of your friends (or family) would probably call your startup fucked up too.
To put it simply: when you enter a startup space today there is no clear path out through founders and employees who are forced into working on things they don’t want or shouldn’t be working on — employees are either making products they don’t want or necessary work they don’t know how to do well; founders aren’t being paid enough or enough often enough; there aren’t enough people in positions of power out there whose experience matches up with their technical expertise; and all these factors mean that everyone involved in the startup experience has very little chance of having an enjoyable one either — especially since many founders start out with little-to-no idea what they’re doing when they start working in the space.
And so when my wife came home from her day job at Facebook one night, she told me about something she had heard from some other employees at Facebook:
“They say hiring people shouldn’t be hard.” – Mark Zuckerberg
I thought that was true here too — hiring engineers should not be hard — because most engineering teams aren’t really
How to make a split pan
Split pan is a method of cooking that requires two pots. One pot is kept hot to soften the butter, while the other pot is kept cold to keep the sugar from crystallizing. The sugar can be added to the hot pot when it’s warmed up, or you can use it straight from the freezer.
This article on Medium by jaclyn hill splits her jaclyn hill split pan in half as well. It’s pretty instructive and there are a lot of great tips here as well.
Tips on making a split pan
If you’ve ever gone to a picnic and found a half-eaten piece of fruit on the table, you’ve probably noticed that it is often easier to get it out of there than to eat it. And, if you’re like me and you’re either not in a picnic mood or don’t have the time or means to set up a picnic table, then this problem may be even worse.
The solution to the dilemma is twofold: some people prefer to share their food; and some people prefer to eat alone (and therefore use an actual picnic). Some people choose not to share because they are privacy-conscious. Some people choose not to eat alone because they don’t want any company (who needs company?). Others want both worlds — sharing but preferring solitude.
So: how do we split our food? The answer is simple: by finding ways that both sides of the equation can be satisfied simultaneously. We need to create options for both types of users; so let us start by defining what we mean when we say “split pan.”
To start with, as an example, let us assume that one side is always shared while the other side is always solo (which is also known as being non-split). There are several ways that could be done: 1) The treat could be broken into two portions and placed on separate plates (of which there are many variations); 2) The treat could be cut into four pieces so that none of them touch each other; 3) The treat might have four different colors on it or none at all (so that no matter which part you eat first it will still taste good); 4) Even better — give everyone their own plate at the same time so that no one gets sick from sharing. Of course, there are many more variations possible for this as well.
Anyway, now let us assume that there are some options available: 5) Perhaps add a lid but keep it open so everybody has access at once; 6) Perhaps do something similar with each portion; 7) Let everyone drink out of different cups so no one gets sick from sharing; 8) Do something similar but add some sloshing sounds when someone puts his or her food down in front of others so that everyone knows what he or she put down where; 9) Everyone picks one dish at random and eats it without breaking eye contact with whoever picked first — or perhaps even with
Getting the right shade of red for your new paint job
I’m a real estate agent who has dabbled in internet marketing. I’ve been bitten by the bug, and this is my first article on the site. I know that marketing is a tricky thing because it depends on how you define it. For me, though, marketing is about getting more clients than competitors, because that means more money.
I have clients who are interested in owning an apartment or condo. If they find out I do this work myself (for free), they might see me as just another “property guy” who isn’t doing anything to make life easier for them (since we are just trying to sell them a house). But if I can find ways to market my business and make it look like we are really helping people buy something, then they will see us in a different light.
We have a website where we show our properties and talk about how to get the best deal — but there are three things that separate us from everyone else:
• We don’t call ourselves real estate agents. We call ourselves property managers. We don’t do much of anything for any of our clients other than help them find an apartment or condo for themselves (which is why we never advertise on Craigslist).
• We don’t call ourselves real estate agents unless there is some kind of service involved (e.g., we bail out tenants when their landlord fails to pay). So if you want to get advertising space on our website, you have to be willing to do something useful with that piece of space — but if you want us to advertise your property or provide services on your behalf, then you have to be willing to offer something valuable back in return (e.g., rent-to-own financing — which we can do no matter what).
Our client base could very easily skew towards people who aren’t looking for an agent at all — so any mention of “real estate agent” puts them off and makes them think the only reason we exist is so that we can act as their agent instead of theirs (and sometimes we even end up doing this!). If someone wants us because they need us as an agent rather than customers, then they’re not going to see us as a real estate agent at all; and if they don’t think of us as being there solely because they feel like they need someone else’s help finding an apartment or condo — then they may become
Finish off with a glossy top coat and you’re all set!
In her book, Hill describes the split pan as the way to finish off a project. By design, it works well for many things, but we are not quite there yet.
Split pan is a technique where two layers of paint are applied to the same surface, with each layer of paint covering one side of the painted surface. Then, in between them, she describes how to get a glossy topcoat. For example:
The advantage of using a split pan is that you can apply multiple coats without worry about clumping or bubbling. Because each coat is applied in an overlapping manner, this allows you to get an even coating on both sides of your painting without worrying about what’s underneath. The important thing to remember when using this technique is that you try to cover your entire surface with all four coats at once so you don’t have any spots that haven’t been covered.