Mike Germano on Knowing When to Concede and When to Confront

In Chapter 18 of 23 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, VICE Media Chief Digital Officer Mike Germano answers "What Has Experience Taught You About How to Better Manage Confrontation?" Germano shares how he is better at working through larger confrontations. He struggles with smaller confrontations, where he often gives in to appease the other side. Larger conflicts, however, motivate him to stand up for his team and work to win for his side. Mike Germano is Chief Digital Officer at VICE Media, a global youth media company based in Brooklyn, New York. Germano joined VICE Media via its 2013 acquisition of Carrot Creative, a social media agency he co-founded and led as CEO. 

Matt Curtis on Building a Hard Work Ethic One Project at a Time

In Chapter 1 of 20 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, Matt Curtis answers "Where Did You Learn Your Work Ethic?" Curtis learns his work ethic by watching his grandfather constantly help others and find projects to do. Curtis takes this own approach in his life, building his work ethic by always finding a project to do where he can help others, including his current work on a urban rail system for Austin, Texas.

Matt Curtis is the director of government relations at HomeAway Inc. Previously he was deputy to Austin mayors Lee Leffingwell and Will Wynn. He has represented the City of Austin at the U.S. Conference of Mayors and the National League of Cities. In 2011, Curtis joined the Harvard Kennedy School Urban Policy Advisory Board to work on national best practices facing American cities. He earned his bachelor's degree in radio, television and film from the University of North Texas. 

Matt Curtis on The Joy of Working in the Travel and Tourism Industry

In Chapter 6 of 20 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, Matt Curtis answers "What Do You Find Most Enjoyable About Working in the Travel Industry?" After losing over 200 pounds and starting to travel, Curtis embraces the adventure part of his job. He embraces opportunities to travel to new cities and meeting with people. In trips to Bruges, Belgium and Nashville, USA, Curtis also makes time to explore the city via city bike rental or bike share options.

Matt Curtis is the director of government relations at HomeAway Inc. Previously he was deputy to Austin mayors Lee Leffingwell and Will Wynn. He has represented the City of Austin at the U.S. Conference of Mayors and the National League of Cities. In 2011, Curtis joined the Harvard Kennedy School Urban Policy Advisory Board to work on national best practices facing American cities. He earned his bachelor's degree in radio, television and film from the University of North Texas. 

Matt Curtis on How to Help a City Plan Travel and Tourism Strategy

In Chapter 7 of 20 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, Matt Curtis answers "How Are You Finding New Ways to Stay Connected to Government in the Work That You Do?" Through volunteering, Curtis is able to get involved in city and local government economic development initiatives. He is able to add value as a travel and tourism professional to work with cities around the world as they plan economic development travel and tourism strategies. For Curtis, this means helping cities work through alternative transportation, from light rail to Car2Go car sharing to bike share programs.

Matt Curtis is the director of government relations at HomeAway Inc. Previously he was deputy to Austin mayors Lee Leffingwell and Will Wynn. He has represented the City of Austin at the U.S. Conference of Mayors and the National League of Cities. In 2011, Curtis joined the Harvard Kennedy School Urban Policy Advisory Board to work on national best practices facing American cities. He earned his bachelor's degree in radio, television and film from the University of North Texas. 

Matt Curtis on How to Identify City Government Best Practices

In Chapter 8 of 20 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, Matt Curtis answers "How Are You Deepening Your Understanding of How City Government Works?" By working in city government and working with city government in his job at HomeAway, Curtis travels the world and finds ways for local governments to identify and implement best practices from other cities. He finds there is nearly always a case study of a city developing a program or implementing a solution that eliminates for any local government to "reinvent the wheel" on a project, on areas such as economic development and city infrastructure.

Matt Curtis is the director of government relations at HomeAway Inc. Previously he was deputy to Austin mayors Lee Leffingwell and Will Wynn. He has represented the City of Austin at the U.S. Conference of Mayors and the National League of Cities. In 2011, Curtis joined the Harvard Kennedy School Urban Policy Advisory Board to work on national best practices facing American cities. He earned his bachelor's degree in radio, television and film from the University of North Texas. 

Matt Curtis on Making a Difference by Helping Clients Solve Problems

In Chapter 11 of 20 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, Matt Curtis answers "On a Daily Basis, What Does It Mean to Contribute in the Work That You Do?" Curtis shares how each day his work is about helping clients around the world solve problems and preparing resources to help clients solve problems in the future. By constantly communicating with clients, he is able to address issues as they come up and gain insights on how to prepare strategies and case studies to assist them in the future.

Matt Curtis is the director of government relations at HomeAway Inc. Previously he was deputy to Austin mayors Lee Leffingwell and Will Wynn. He has represented the City of Austin at the U.S. Conference of Mayors and the National League of Cities. In 2011, Curtis joined the Harvard Kennedy School Urban Policy Advisory Board to work on national best practices facing American cities. He earned his bachelor's degree in radio, television and film from the University of North Texas. 

Matt Curtis on How Great Advocates Can Advance Your Career

In Chapter 12 of 20 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, Matt Curtis answers "What Role Have Advocate and Sponsor Relatioships Played in Your Development?" Curtis shares how he has been fortunate to have not only great friends and mentors but also great advocates. He finds advocates help by taking initiative to open doors for opportunities that might otherwise be closed. This type of sponsor relationship boosts Curtis' confidence and fuels his desire to pay it forward and give back as an advocate.

Matt Curtis is the director of government relations at HomeAway Inc. Previously he was deputy to Austin mayors Lee Leffingwell and Will Wynn. He has represented the City of Austin at the U.S. Conference of Mayors and the National League of Cities. In 2011, Curtis joined the Harvard Kennedy School Urban Policy Advisory Board to work on national best practices facing American cities. He earned his bachelor's degree in radio, television and film from the University of North Texas. 

Matt Curtis on Building Leadership Skills in a Director-Level Job Role

In Chapter 15 of 20 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, Matt Curtis answers "What Leadership Skills are Becoming More Relevant to You As Your Career Progresses?" Curtis shares that in his director-level role, the two leadership skills that stand out are 1) embracing the experience learning from failures and mistakes and 2) the importance of being encouraging and positive independent of team size.

Matt Curtis is the director of government relations at HomeAway Inc. Previously he was deputy to Austin mayors Lee Leffingwell and Will Wynn. He has represented the City of Austin at the U.S. Conference of Mayors and the National League of Cities. In 2011, Curtis joined the Harvard Kennedy School Urban Policy Advisory Board to work on national best practices facing American cities. He earned his bachelor's degree in radio, television and film from the University of North Texas. 

Matt Curtis on How to Use Positivity to Give More Helpful Feedback

In Chapter 16 of 20 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, Matt Curtis answers "What Type of Feedback Do You Respond to Best?" Curtis finds he responds best to feedback that acknowledges his work, is frequently given and is done in a positive tone. Whether it is about something he could do better or something he has done well, Curtis finds these three feedback elements motivate him best at work.

Matt Curtis is the director of government relations at HomeAway Inc. Previously he was deputy to Austin mayors Lee Leffingwell and Will Wynn. He has represented the City of Austin at the U.S. Conference of Mayors and the National League of Cities. In 2011, Curtis joined the Harvard Kennedy School Urban Policy Advisory Board to work on national best practices facing American cities. He earned his bachelor's degree in radio, television and film from the University of North Texas. 

Matt Curtis on How to Find Common Ground in a Negotiation

In Chapter 17 of 20 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, Matt Curtis answers "What Role Do Negotiation Skills Play in Your Work?" Curtis shares how he negotiates often in his work and how being being a patient, friendly active listener helps him find common ground and win-win outcomes in negotiations. He finds this is especially true negotiating common ground working with government, given concessions are nearly always part of a negotiation.

Matt Curtis is the director of government relations at HomeAway Inc. Previously he was deputy to Austin mayors Lee Leffingwell and Will Wynn. He has represented the City of Austin at the U.S. Conference of Mayors and the National League of Cities. In 2011, Curtis joined the Harvard Kennedy School Urban Policy Advisory Board to work on national best practices facing American cities. He earned his bachelor's degree in radio, television and film from the University of North Texas. 

Bijoy Goswami on How to Empower a Stewardship Ethic in Others

In Chapter 6 of 17 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, community leader Bijoy Goswami answers "How Are You Learning to Empower Others to Be Community Stewards?" Goswami shares how he first has one-on-one coaching conversations with others. He then employs models of experience to visualize the journey stewards might take and how that compares with something like community service. This then allows him to refine what it means to steward and how that energy will express itself.

Bijoy Goswami is a writer, teacher, and community leader based in Austin, Texas. He develops learning models to help individuals, organizations and communities live more meaningfully. Previously, he co-founded Aviri Software after working at Trilogy Software. Goswami graduated from Stanford University. 

Matt Curtis on Building Strategic Partnerships With Local Government

In Chapter 18 of 20 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, Matt Curtis answers "How Are You Improving How Your Company Builds Strategic Partnerships?" Curtis shares how working with local government stakeholders on local government issues is about not forcing issues on another party. Instead, Curtis creates construtive dialogues to help him understand both sides and build consensus on the right path to take. He finds it helpful to engage in local government groups such as Congress for New Urbanism, The National League of Cities, the United States Conference of Mayors and the Urban Land Institute to work through best practices.

Matt Curtis is the director of government relations at HomeAway Inc. Previously he was deputy to Austin mayors Lee Leffingwell and Will Wynn. He has represented the City of Austin at the U.S. Conference of Mayors and the National League of Cities. In 2011, Curtis joined the Harvard Kennedy School Urban Policy Advisory Board to work on national best practices facing American cities. He earned his bachelor's degree in radio, television and film from the University of North Texas. 

Matt Curtis on Why Transparency is Key to Collaboration Success

In Chapter 19 of 20 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, Matt Curtis answers "What Have You Found to Be the Keys to Creating Successful Project Collaborations?" Curtis finds the key to a successful project collaboration is being transparent. For Curtis, transparency opens a collaborative conversation or negotiation more directly toward moving forward with a solutions-focused outcome.

Matt Curtis is the director of government relations at HomeAway Inc. Previously he was deputy to Austin mayors Lee Leffingwell and Will Wynn. He has represented the City of Austin at the U.S. Conference of Mayors and the National League of Cities. In 2011, Curtis joined the Harvard Kennedy School Urban Policy Advisory Board to work on national best practices facing American cities. He earned his bachelor's degree in radio, television and film from the University of North Texas. 

Courtney Spence on How Grandparents Instill Family Values

In Chapter 1 of 20 in her 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, nonprofit CEO Courtney Spence answers "What Were Your Grandparents Like and How Did They Influence Your Development?" Spence shares how her grandparents passions for politics, love of family, and life of civic duty and World War II military service shaped her parents and her own values.

Courtney Spence is founder and CEO of Students of the World, a nonprofit empowering a diverse network of student and emerging filmmakers to apply storytelling skills in purposeful work. She is also the Founder and CEO of CSpence group, a creative agency building millennial-focused content and programs for brands. Spence earned a BA from Duke University. 

Bryan Law on the Rewards of Economic Development Consulting

In Chapter 14 of 23 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, business strategist Bryan Law answers "What Did You Find Most Rewarding About Doing Economic Development Consulting Work?" As an economic development consultant, Law is able to find common best practices in industries such as agriculture where he can bring together stakeholders from the private sector, the donor development community, and government. He then translates these best practice knowledge from one part of the world to another part of the world to enhance agriculture in new places. The impact he creates with this work leads him to a job in global business strategy at Google.

Bryan Law is a Principal in the Global Business Strategy Group at Google and a board member at Angola University. Previously, he was a manager at Monitor, management consulting firm. He has worked in consulting roles at Watson Wyatt and Mercer. He earned an MBA from the Northwestern University Kellogg School of Business and a BA from Georgetown University. 

Preston Smith on Teaching Teachers Common Core Critical Thinking

In Chapter 10 of 22 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, elementary charter school network CEO Preston Smith answers "What Has Your Work Experience Taught You About How Education Careers are Changing?" Smith shares how teacher training is shifting from outcome-based training built on No Child Left Behind to input-based training of Common Core standards. Inherent to this is a higher focus on critical thinking and problem solving. As a result, teachers need to adapt training to meet expectations of the new standards while also being flexible to embrace new changes in education such as new classroom technology.

Preston Smith is co-founder and CEO of Rocketship Education, the highest performing low-income school system in California. After graduating the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Smith joined Teach for America. After three years teaching 1st Grade, he founded a district school in San Jose and became its principal. Smith was selected as a member of the 2010 class of Aspen Institute New Schools Fellows. 

Simon Sinek on Building Trusting Teams in the US Marine Corps

In Chapter 7 of 23 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, author and public speaker Simon Sinek answers "What Has the United States Marine Corps Taught You About How a Circle of Safety Motivates Staff?" Sinek shares what Marine Corps basic training has taught him about leading teams more effectively. The United States Marine Corps breaks down the individual and trains them to be interdependent on their fellow Marines. This creates a circle of safety bond of trust that allows Marines to increase team performance in the most difficult situations. Simon Sinek teaches leaders and organizations how to inspire people. Sinek is the author of two books, "Leaders Eat Last: Why Some Teams Come Together and Others Don't" and "Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action". He is a public speaker, an adjunct professor at Columbia University and a Brandeis University graduate.

Simon Sinek on Managing by Turning Followers into Leaders

In Chapter 13 of 23 in his 2013 Capture Your Flag interview, author and public speaker Simon Sinek answers "How Are You Learning to Better Manage and Motivate Teams?" Sinek shares what he has learned about management from retired Navy submarine captain David Marquet, author of "Turn the Ship Around." Sinek learns the importance of turning followers into leaders by supporting them, trusting them, and encouraging them to make decisions and take ownership. Sinek notes how the approach is more parenting than managing and results in greater employee engagement. Simon Sinek teaches leaders and organizations how to inspire people. Sinek is the author of two books, "Leaders Eat Last: Why Some Teams Come Together and Others Don't" and "Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action". He is a public speaker, an adjunct professor at Columbia University and a Brandeis University graduate.