About Today’s Subject
Creator of: Retronyms, Dokogeo, Scheme Studio
Day Job: Designer, Entrepreneur, Software Developer
Location: Cleveland, Ohio
Websites: Retronyms, Dokogeo, Scheme Studio
Twitter: @johnpaulwalton
Multiplying Your Focus Area Outward
Today you’re in for a treat as we wrap up our series of interviews filmed at the 2011 Weapons of Mass Creation Fest. John-Paul Walton operates in multiple spheres, but design is at the heart of everything he does. While he identifies first and foremost as a designer, he puts his design talents to work as a graphic designer, web designer, interactive designer, and software designer. He’s done an awesome job of taking his focus area of design and multiplying it outward into numerous arenas. He’s also a great example of finding ways to turn ideas into businesses.
Partnering to Launch Businesses
We had an interesting conversation, largely focused on John-Paul’s numerous entrepreneurial pursuits – launching a design firm (Scheme Studio) with his wife, launching a software studio focused on touch screen platforms (Retronyms) with his brother and another partner, and launching a game company that uses GPS (Dokogeo), also with his brother and another partner. A theme you may notice here is that he’s highly collaborative, and that comes from his overall philosophy of teaming up with other people who are talented in other areas.
Launching One of the First Voice Recorders on the iPhone
Early on in the days of the iPhone, John-Paul, his brother, and a friend created an app called “Recorder,” one of the first voice recorders on the iPhone (at a time when the iPhone didn’t come pre-loaded with a voice recorder). That app did pretty well for them, and they decided to take their earnings and invest it into starting a company. Retronyms was born. Since then, they’ve developed more apps, including FourTrack (a multitrack audio recorder) and their latest creation, Tabletop (a “modular audio environment” for the iPad that lets you mix and match different devices).
I could write a lot more about our conversation, but why don’t I dive in to a few insights that stood out to me and then let you watch the videos?
A Few Insights from My Conversation with John-Paul
- Set aside time to let your creative ideas run free. The team at Retronyms is scattered among several cities, so they’ve developed an annual event called “The Debacle” that brings everyone together for 10-14 days with the goal of starting a product on day one and shipping it on the final day. At its core, it’s about bringing their team together, but it’s also about unleashing their creativity and seeing what they can accomplish in a focused span of 10-14 days.
- Partnering with people who are strong in areas where you’re weak can open up doors and opportunities you can’t even envision. John-Paul has co-founded numerous businesses with his wife, his brother, and other partners. He finds a lot of meaning in knowing that he’s helped create and be part of collaborations and partnerships where each person brings their own unique talents to the table to help create something bigger and better than any one person could have on his or her own.
- One approach to making a living is to develop a specific skill set that can be used in broad ways. John-Paul seems like a good example of someone who has found a solution to the jack-of-all trades / master of none dilemma. He has a specialized skill set as a designer, but he’s found ways to use those skills and that mindset as a designer in very broad ways aligned with his passions. Even though he has a specialized skill set as a designer, he’s used that skill to branch out and create new opportunities instead of getting pigeon-holed into just one thing.
Alright, it’s interview time. Take your pick:
Option #1: A Taste (2 min. clip)
Option #2: The Feast (full 15-min. interview)
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