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I jump-started and moderated a Twitter discussion today: #sandwichsecrets. I asked folks to share what tips they had for making good sandwiches. There were nearly 50 tweets from about 15 people.

Conversation was slow at first, but my @-replies and re-tweets kept things going. Sometimes an open prompt helped people get creative and share their preferred sandwich recipe. Even after a two-hour break from Twitter, I was able to evoke some more conversation with one or two tweets.

The first “volley” happened when my friend Andrew unknowingly tweeted about mustard on sandwiches just minutes after I started the hash-tag.

Then, our mutual friend Brandon jumped in, and added his thoughts about spicy mustard and Sriracha. I also saw some pretty creative suggestions.

Toward the end of the day, there were at least a few people following the discussion and helping to carry it on.

It would have been more effective had I brought two or three other people on board before the hash-tag ever went “live,” and I’m sure it would have been more effective to start earlier in the day. I didn’t even send out my first “sandwich secret” until after I had my 11:00 snack! I also could have brainstormed and blogged about it beforehand – but it was simply spontaneous.

If you’d like to see most of the discussion (protected tweets and tweets without the hash-tag not included), see below. I’d call it a successful Twitter experiment.

click to embiggen!

I’m at Kansas City Startup Weekend. It’s Sunday. We’re down to the wire, but we’re doing well. Presentations start in less than four hours.

Startup Weekend is a convergence of developers, designers, and doers.  Friday night, people pitch ideas for online services that could be created.  The most popular ideas are picked, teams are formed, and the work starts.  The overarching idea rules the process, so the web developers do the heavy lifting to create the product.  Along the way, business plans and interface designs are drafted and developed.  At the end of 48 hours, 10 or 15 teams will present their ideas and product demonstrations in front of Angel Investors, the media, and the public.

The most attractive pitch I saw on Friday night was a service to connect bicycle messengers to available work.  Surely, people have messages and parcels that need to be delivered – but Kansas City (and many cities) have no bike delivery services.  Why not create a network for them?

I got together with five other dudes, and we set to work. We came up with TreadEx.org.

It’s a dispatching service for bike messengers.  Basically, we cut out the middle man.   Messengers create profiles, and “check in” when they’re available for hire.

Senders visit the site, and click the “send a package now” button.

The site sends a text message to the first available messenger, asking them to accept the mission.  Once they accept, the site sends them a phone number.

Within minutes, the customer receives a call from the messenger, and the two of them will work out the details of pickup, delivery, and pricing.

It’s simple, and it cuts out the middle man.

TreadEx. A dispatching service for bike messengers.

I am very proud of our product! I designed the look and feel of the site.  Devin designed the logo (look familiar?), and Ryan did the Ruby on Rails backend.

Joshua is working on Act2Go – a phone-banking application for smart phones.

Startup Weekend was stimulating and exciting, and I hope to attend another one.

One of the hardest things to remember to do at a busy time in your life is self-promotion. But in fact, it is one of the most basic, as it is also self-preservation.

I don’t have any tips for self-motivation, because my motivation comes and goes.  Sometimes, I don’t follow this list very well.

I’ve compiled a list, but it could be summed up by “luck favors the prepared” – when you’re ready for opportunities, they come to you.

But here are things that are necessary:

• Update your resume when your information changes.  You may need it instantly!
• Keep blogs and URLs current, with relevant information. (especially your business)
• Use twitter.
• Continue to make new contacts.  Meet new people.  Every new person you meet has a network of their own that is entirely unique.
• Keep up with old contacts.  Even if it’s as brief as a Facebook message or wall post, it’s important.
• Keep creating.

Just a few things I’ve learned as an entrepreneur!