Scott Bourquin’s Post

I am very excited as we start testing the newest version of the Live Fan App. This week on Wednesday at 10AM Pacific I hope you will watch CoolToys TV with the Live Fan App and tell me what you think. The newest versionnis now available in the app store. Quick links on the apps page at Fan2Stage.com

As we start rolling out the new Fan2Stage® Virtual Audience System®, one of the items that was a major issue a year ago when working with a talk show was latency. Telling a joke and not getting laughter for 180 seconds just doesn't work. We tested twitch and saw 90 second plus latency times, but the good news is that there are some ultra low latency services out there. You can live stream a show and have a live audience in almost real time with low latency streaming and Fan2Stage.com. What will you stream?

2021 and 2022 felt like a bad hangover from the "two week" shutdown to "flatten the curve". Since neither of those things really happened I understood how parents said those were the "lost years" for many children. Because of the "Pandemic" shift to the economy, in 2019 and 2020 I sort of ignored my goals and just went surfing. I tasted retirement and it really didn't quite suit me yet. Both years the same three simple #goals were on my whiteboard so I could see them everyday. While #goalsetting for 2023 I changed two of the three goals. You might say I lowered my sights hoping for something positive to end on. In the past If I posted a goal, with the help of my wife I would achieve it. As I sit in my office on this, the last day of 2023, I realized that I did in fact achieve one of the two goals I erased from the white board. While I didn't focus on the goal itself, my return to a "normal" work schedule let me achieve it quite easily. One of the other goals on the board that was also achieved was a major reason for reaching the goal I removed. It felt nice to achieve something on my board for the first time in nearly four years but also to achieve something I almost gave up on. Even though I removed two goals, the replacements were still a bit lofty given my schedule. The third was not achieved and that was all on me. It remains for 2024 and has moved to the top spot. My hope for you is that as you look back on 2023, you too find blessings and achievements that have been missing from the previous four years. I know there are still those who feel like they are falling backwards. I also hope for all of us that we can leverage the current momentum and keep moving forward in 2024. More importantly I hope we each find an opportunity to help lift up someone else so they can move forward too. #noonedoesitalone What #goals2024 will you go after? #Goodbye2023

Sometimes education can be both challenging and fun at the same time. Having lived in the Napa Area for many years I thought I knew wine. Then after a trip to France I realized I knew so little that I didn't even know what I didn't know. Yesterday, my Wine & Spirit Education Trust Level 2 Award in wines pin and certificate finally arrived. At least now I know there is a lot I don't know. A little knowledge can be a good thing. For those of you that like wine, I suggest the Level 1 class in person as a great "Date Day" thing to do. I took Level 1 with Kelly Bourquin and had a blast. If you end up taking Level 2 afterwards it isn't my fault...

How did you start your weekend? #5K #runforaclaus #giveback

We have been working on Fan2Stage for nearly two years to expand the ability of live streamers to reach a live audience and connect. Look for an upcoming episode of #cooltoystv with the latest version of #fan2stage #livestream. Be part of our test audience, details soon.

We met years ago when he published « Play », a lot of people didn’t get it, but I have been playing ever since!

I’m happy to share that I’ve completed my Level 2 Certification at Wine & Spirit Education Trust!

From time to time I remind myself I still don't know what I want to do when I grow up. Today I learned that I passed the Wine & Spirit Education Trust Level 2 Exam with merit.

Are you "Needed" or "Wanted"? Which is better? Recently I was interviewing for a possible position at a new company. While talking with someone about an old boss of mine several things suddenly made sense. My old boss was the master of telling us we "needed" something we didn't even know existed. At the same time he was selling us on the latest gizmo, he was telling us why we want the gizmo. I didn't really pay too much attention to what he was doing and why it was so important to the success of the business until recently. It started with a conversation about food. We need food that nourishes our body and yet there is a huge line of people that want "puffed candy" or "bacon wrapped hot dogs" or "fried twinkies" at the fair every year. Sitting there listening to the interviewer, it all clicked. She said that she liked her job because once they hooked a customer, the customer needed them and couldn't leave. As a customer I despise being "owned" by a vendor. Car companies are trying to pass rules so only authorized dealers can fix the car you buy from them. Effectively they are trying to own your business instead of earning it. A business I owned once sold a brand that was highly sought after. I liked what the brand did, but I spent years finding a way around it because once you finished programming it, the customer was stuck with you and you them. No one could make changes but the person that originally programmed it. If the programer quit and put a password on the master file, it could cost you thousands to keep your own customer. I hated it as both the business owner and a customer. We eventually dropped the brand. My grandfather told me that if you learn how to fix things and make things work, you will always be needed. What he forgot to say was that the key to success is to also be wanted. As I sat there discussing a new platform in my interview it all came together. I let them know that I would want to build the platform in a way that people would need it, but do it so well they would want it. One interviewer replied "So why stop building Fan2Stage?" Since I didn't know they even knew about F2S, I was caught off guard, and I think they could tell. I guess there truly are no secrets. After a short pause, my answer was simple. "I am not stopping, and I hope it is something this company might want to add to its platform someday". As I said this, the voice of a director I know came into my head. He used to say that "Hollywood isn't about who you know. That's a line of bull. Making it here is about the people you know that like you". I realized my response didn't help them like me. At the end I was confident I wouldn't get the job. Being needed and not wanted isn't enough. Being wanted and not needed might work if you can learn what they need.