Taking Note: Conversations with Evernote

Introducing Focus Culture

When Evernote decided to refresh its brand after 10 years, it was about more than tweaking the logo or adopting a new color scheme. It was about distilling the company’s essence, clarifying its purpose and point of view. In this episode, Francie Strong and Jonathan Woytek walk us through why Evernote undertook this effort, what's changed and what hasn't, what it means for the company and its customers, and what other brands can learn from the experience.

People can work from literally anywhere now, but that freedom brings serious challenges. How can you set a remote team up for success? Sales organizations have been dealing with these questions for years, so we sat down with two global leaders to get their perspectives. Dave Mattson is CEO and President of Sandler Training. Norm Happ is Evernote's Senior Vice President of Sales, Customer Success, & Partnerships. Together they offer a blueprint for building and maintaining a remote team that works.

Are you a creative person? Most people have been conditioned to think of creativity as the sole domain of geniuses, a divine quality beyond the reach of normal humans. But is it? In this episode, we talk with Allen Gannett, author of "The Creative Curve." Allen looks at the science of creative success to break down common myths, and explains how anyone can learn to navigate the "creative curve" with the right mix of preparation, timing, and feedback.

We’ve all heard about “dream teams,” collections of individuals who somehow become more than the sum of their parts and achieve extraordinary things. But where does that synergy come from? What can we learn from the teams that have it? And how can we apply those lessons to our own work? To find out, we asked Shane Snow, author of the new book, "Dream Teams: Working Together without Falling Apart."

Growing a small business takes a solid foundation of tools and talent. But time and resources are limited, so how can you find, evaluate, and manage the right people and the right tools to get more done in less time? In honor of Small Business Week (April 29–May 5, 2018), leaders from Evernote and Upwork get together to share trends they’ve seen in the SMB space and their favorite tips for helping small businesses scale up faster.

Too often, we let life become something that happens to us, rather than something that comes from within. In this episode, we explore how to take charge of your own growth. Leadership mentor Michael Hyatt explains how to reconnect with your goals and have the best year ever, no matter what month you start counting from. And then we have a conversation with Marvell Allen, a coach who helps people discover their leadership potential in the office, regardless of experience or job title.

SXSW is coming, and Evernote has two speakers set to take the stage in Austin this March. Chris O’Neill, Evernote's CEO, talks about how societal trends are leading businesses to change the ways they build bring products to market. And Anirban Kundu, CTO, examines the implications of artificial intelligence for the way we work. Don’t miss these two insightful conversations.

From The Nerdist to Talking Dead, from stage to screen, Chris Hardwick is a restlessly creative force in comedy and nerd culture. He’s also a man who purposefully re-organized his life, changing his habits to become the person he wanted to be. We sat down with Chris to get his thoughts on creativity, motivation, and organization; the evolving state of social media and nerd culture; and what the world of comedy can teach us about building up small ideas into something worth sharing.

Grant Faulkner is the Executive Director of National Novel Writing Month, a.k.a. NaNoWriMo. Every November, hundreds of thousands of writers commit to creating a 50,000-word story in just 30 days. Grant knows all of the excuses we have for not acting on our creative impulses, from lack of time to the notion that we simply aren't creative. In this episode of Taking Note, Grant discusses the challenge of NaNoWriMo and reveals how to conquer our inner obstacles to unleash our creative writing potential.

What does it take to release your full potential at work? Jay Acunzo, an award-winning podcaster and dynamic keynote speaker, has a surprising answer: Intuition. In this episode, Jay tells us why intuition plays a huge importance in our happiness and well-being. But it’s not just about trusting your gut or following a muse. It’s about using self-awareness to find our most fulfilling and meaningful path, and empowering ourselves to do more.

Jess Lee is currently a Partner at Sequoia Capital, and was the Co-Founder & CEO of Polyvore until 2016. In this episode, Jess discusses what she learned when starting her career at Google, how it helped her grow Polyvore, why some companies are unable to cultivate good company culture, and why women in the tech industry are still struggling to get ahead. She also shares her methods for staying grounded and organized throughout her day.

Taking Note #8: Joshua Zerkel on Organizing and the Evernote Community

Taking Note #7: Getting Organized with Joshua Zerkel

Taking Note #6: Tiago Forte on Productivity & Provocation