Help Us Select a Logo for Hometown – OUR HOMETOWN

Reblogged from Our Hometown (official blog of hometown shoes)

Filed under: Hello

Sorry it is been weeks since I have written a post (or may be that’s a good thing).

It is my birthday. I am 24 now.

Each year my birthday realizes me many things. I look into past and future. Prepare myself to be a better person, tried to do the same last year. I failed. I succeeded sometimes too.

It is great. It is all great where I find myself now.

I am not really sure how to say, but let’s keep it simple:

Thank you for being with. I am thankful I am still alive. And universe is giving me an opportunity to work on wonderful projects like leading Hometown Shoes.

I have learned:

“A lot gets changed, and it’ll be changed more by time.”

I am so glad to initiate few changes, and I hope this year it’ll be changed more.

HUG .. ✿•*¨`*•.¸(¯`w´¯)¸.•´*¨`*•✿

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Filed under: Hello, Life

Like me, if you live on Internet and Pakistan, strong are the chances you’re already familiar with the Authority of Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA). We know PTA from their active involvement in our SMS, Watching us online, and yes banning Facebook and other websites in general.

Most recently over 1,000 porn sites were blocked by internet service providers (ISP), directed by PTA. It was also stated by a source, “They are adding to the list on a daily basis.”

Here is where I and PTA get face-to-face, my problem is not like they have blocked my favorite porn site. History is history, we all share it. Instead they added my innocent site in the list too, and it is blocked today.

My website (http://hometownshoes.com/) is about selling shoe, not even close to porn. But who knows, when the ‘athletes foot’ is banned. May be they found a link between shoes> athletes foot>something unethical, but I don’t know about.

This is what I see, when I open my website

When you visit the link in Pakistan, it reads: “THE SITE IS RESTRICTED” and site name appears as PTCL. So I instantly called to PTCL helpline inquiring them the problem my website is facing. But after a 13 min long wait, their busy CSR told that it is blocked from PTA and PTCL has nothing to do with it.

While writing this post, too much to my surprise, I find I am not alone. In fact, PTA has blocked all sites in Pakistan which contain the word ‘shoes’ in its URL and first of it took place one Nov 01, 2011. Now somebody please explain me what is wrong with sites containing shoes.com in its address. That is totally ridiculous.

From its website, PTA claims ‘‘To promote and protect the interests of users of telecommunication services in Pakistan.” But instead from my experience PTA is causing loss to my business and now I’m insecure about running my website in Pakistan. How sad..!

Any ways, I visited PTA website assuming for some help, but in vain. No one answered my call from any of their contact numbers. More, I wrote an email, hoping that they would solve my problem at an earliest when they see my complain message.

This is not at all childish or minor mistake. PTA has the responsibility to make our life easier on web and telecommunication in general. But such continuous stupid mistakes are making it worse for people like me. I am angry and sad at the same time.

PTA is keeping to over use its authority. Shall we stop them?

Filed under: Hello, Pakistan

Making something from scratch ain’t easy, but it is never boring. I love working on Hometown.

But here is a problem/opportunity I am encountering every single day.

For the past 4 years I have been learning about internet tools, doing business and what not. Yes I was taking help from all the gurus, resources and my experience. So what is the problem?

Problem is very simple. All the problems I am facing are totally new for me, I have never encountered anything like that. I have never talked with VCs or worked on business plan.

And when I look back at what I learned. It doesn’t help very much, so every time to fix a problem I have to learn the solution. Thankfully I am proudly one of the best known learner I have ever met.

This girl is learning and solving a problem at the same time.

Got the point?

Time has been changing all the time, this time changes are faster. Everything has changed, and it’ll keep changing. So who can help you to address changes.

As we have talked earlier, a person with ‘15 years of experience‘ is not gonna help. Instead we need a learner, who can learn faster. Who is eager to learn from success, average results and from failure the most.

Take a deep breath. <– Please do it.

Give some thoughts to whom you are hiring, or going to work with. Is she a good learner.

Same idea applies in relationships. Thankfully no one is perfect, in the life, everyone of us faces new problems and challenges. For example, I shall have a a wife, and some kids. Some in-laws too. <– Every problem shall be new. I am ready.

Best is the one who keeps learning. Rather than living life based on past experience.

I recently learned from Robin Dickinson, who said this:

The past is not the future.

OMG! It is not. It is not at all.

It is all good to live in present and more importantly looking into future.

I love being learner, and working with great learners.

Be a learner! Surround yourself with learners!

Filed under: Experience, Learning, Management

‘I applied at 18 different jobs in banks, but they all ask for 2+ years of experience. How the hell I can assure them that I have all what it takes to be for what I am applying for.’ <– Told a friend of mine, who was seeking for a job without any prior experience in bank industry.

What I want to say is this:

Many many times young people do not do something because they assume that, this work can only done by people with ‘15 years of experience‘ and newbie like us are not able to do it at all.

They unfollow their heart because of the initial hurdles which come in their way. Worse is that, we keep doing this. Even in our 70s.

I can not do this. <– Please make sure to say this after trying at least for 3 times with 3 different approaches.

15 Years of Experience is a tag, to keep creative people away and they do this to protect their jobs.

I think I have made my point, and it doesn’t need more words.

The idea of the post came into my mind, when I learned that my 24 old friend Bilal wants to design cars in next few years. He has no experience in designing cars, but he surely knows his passion “design.” Thankfully he is also helping us with the logo of Hometown, and I am amazed at what he has done so far.

This is probably the first time, he is doing and getting on his way to design cars. Incredible.

In the picture below is Max Wolff, the head designer for (Ford’s car) Lincoln, said, “Our goal is to make Lincoln look like nothing else that’s out there.”

The Ford guys knew that this 38 years guy will bring something which 58 can not.

I wish the very very best luck to my friend Bilal, who wants to do this before his 30 and to everyone of you who is not afraid of the tag ’15 years of experience’

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Filed under: Business, Experience, Learning