Founder & CEO of Pocket-lint.com.
What led you to start working in digital/media publishing?
I’ve worked in the media since 1998 starting in newspapers in the design department. After a number of roles in newspapers, magazines, online, and even PR, I started Pocket-lint in 2003 because at the time there were no digital-only publications that were putting the reader first. Every tech publication at the time was about a magazine first mantra, and I wanted to change that.
What does a typical day look like for you?
My days are incredibly varied. One moment I am working with the editorial team to help build a strategy around an event or a story we are working on, the next I could be helping the developer make the site better, or working with sales guys to come up with a creative pitch that is going to add value to a campaign. Then again I could be flying to the other side of the world to cover a story myself.
What’s your work setup like?
When I’m in the office I use a MacBook Pro, but if I’m on the go I switch to an iPad Pro. The team all work remotely so we use a number of cloud-based apps like Slack, Google Docs, and Dropbox to keep in touch and share work. For filing stories to the site, we use a custom build CMS that I designed.
What do you do to get inspired?
One of the big benefits doing what we do is that we get to cover some of the most successful companies in the world and as you would expect the people that run those companies can be very inspiring. If that isn’t enough to get us excited I and the team are big believers in doing exercise. There’s nothing like a good gym session, run, or cycle to get you wanting to win the day.
What’s your favorite piece of writing or quote?
A day without a mistake is a day wasted. I’m not sure who said it, but I’m always aware that nobody is perfect. If you aren’t making mistakes you aren’t learning, and if you aren’t learning you have to question why you’re doing what you’re doing.
What is the passionate problem you are tackling at the moment?
As a small company, we have to work within the means that we have. Unlike virtually all our competitors we aren’t backed by a big VC fund, or have shareholders to bail us out. So we choose the battles to fight, and the way to fight them very carefully.
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Any advice for ambitious digital publishing and media professionals just starting out?
Sure. Work hard, treat others how you want to be treated, and remember that it’s a long game that’s not going to be easy. If it was easy everyone would be doing it.
