Small Efforts - with Sean Sun and Andrew Askins: Recent Episodes
Sean Sun and Andrew Askins
Two agency owners and friends talk about cybersecurity, design, and the continuous small efforts it takes to build a business.
(0:24) This is officially a rock climbing podcast
(8:15) Andrew and Sean's gardens have attracted guests
(12:59) Sean lowkey needs another break
(25:10) Miscreants is doing a collection drop at DEFCON
(29:56) Rebranding is like creating a religion but without Kool-Aid
Thanks for listening to Small Efforts, a podcast collaboration between Krit and Miscreants. Shoutout to the Hatch Team and Mary Vuong for producing and editing.
Links:
- Andrew’s Twitter: @AndrewAskins
- Krit: https://www.krit.com/
- Miscreants: https://www.miscreants.co/
- Sean’s Twitter: @seanqsun
- Hatch Team: https://www.hatch.team/
For more information about the podcast, check out https://www.smalleffortspod.com/.
(0:27) There’s a parallel universe where Andrew’s life revolves around photography
(8:34) Sean is suspicious as hell
(17:31) The real reason why so many CEOs are super fucking into meditation
(29:34) Andrew and Sean’s bi-weekly book club chat
(37:32) Your lawyer career doesn’t mean shit if you can’t work on your streetwear brand
Thanks for listening to Small Efforts, a podcast collaboration between Krit and Miscreants. Shoutout to the Hatch Team and Mary Vuong for producing and editing.
Links:
- Andrew’s Twitter: @AndrewAskins
- Krit: https://www.krit.com/
- Miscreants: https://www.miscreants.co/
- Sean’s Twitter: @seanqsun
- Hatch Team: https://www.hatch.team/
- Sublime Security: https://sublimesecurity.com/
- Email Rep IO: https://emailrep.io/
- Ted at Sentinel IPS: @tedgruenloh
- Margins by Ranjan Roy and Can Duruk: https://www.readmargins.com/
- Leave Me Alone: https://leavemealone.app/
- SparkToro: https://sparktoro.com/
- Melissa Perri’s book: Escaping the Build Trap: How Effective Product Management Creates Real Value
- Bionic reading: https://bionic-reading.com/
For more information about the podcast, check out https://www.smalleffortspod.com/.
(0:25) The difference between Andrew and Sean is that Sean is extra delusional
(6:27) Sales feels like throwing shit at the wall and seeing what sticks
(17:23) Either the channels depend on the day, or different channels work during different times
(24:32) Giving constraints encourages creativity, not stifles it
(34:21) Andrew and Sean are both traveling and bad at bowling
Thanks for listening to Small Efforts, a podcast collaboration between Krit and Miscreants. Shoutout to the Hatch Team and Mary Vuong for producing and editing.
Links:
- Andrew’s Twitter: @AndrewAskins
- Krit: https://www.krit.com/
- Miscreants: https://www.miscreants.co/
- Sean’s Twitter: @seanqsun
- Hatch Team: https://www.hatch.team/
- Traction: https://www.amazon.com/Traction-Get-Grip-Your-Business/dp/1936661837
For more information about the podcast, check out https://www.smalleffortspod.com/.
(0:22) Getting experience is all about putting in the reps
(9:09) It’s easy judging a designer by their portfolio. A PM by their resume? Not so much.
(18:58) It’s mad hard building a leadership team
(27:12) Commission vs. Salary: We’re undecided on which one’s better
(37:03) If Krit didn’t exist, Andrew would definitely have an SEO marketing agency
Thanks for listening to Small Efforts, a podcast collaboration between Krit and Miscreants. Shoutout to the Hatch Team and Mary Vuong for producing and editing.
Links:
- Andrew’s Twitter: @AndrewAskins
- Krit: https://www.krit.com/
- Miscreants: https://www.miscreants.co/
- Sean’s Twitter: @seanqsun
- Hatch Team: https://www.hatch.team/
- Pyramid of Success: http://www.coachwooden.com/pyramid-of-success
- Traction: https://www.amazon.com/Traction-Get-Grip-Your-Business/dp/1936661837
- Entreprenurial Operation System: https://www.eosworldwide.com/
- Luke Stephens: @hakluke
- HackerContent: https://hackercontent.com/
For more information about the podcast, check out https://www.smalleffortspod.com/.
(0:22) Sean was recently diagnosed with ADHD, and that’s OK
(5:58) I’m not undisciplined, mom—I’m just wired differently
(10:16) Wages as a CEO: How much should you compensate yourself?
(20:21) Stocks are steady, but business is more rewarding
(26:53) Sometimes, it’s the stupid risks that pay off (so go sponsor that esports team)
(30:36) Personal note: Rest in peace, Mike Murray
Thanks for listening to Small Efforts, a podcast collaboration between Krit and Miscreants. Shoutout to the Hatch Team and Mary Vuong for producing and editing.
Links:
- Andrew’s Twitter: @AndrewAskins
- Krit: https://www.krit.com/
- Miscreants: https://www.miscreants.co/
- Sean’s Twitter: @seanqsun
- Hatch Team: https://www.hatch.team/
- Atonic Habits: https://jamesclear.com/atomic-habits
- Bureau of Digital 2022 Salary Guide: https://bureauofdigital.com/2022-salary-guide
- Mike Murray: @mmurray
- Organizing Solutions for People with ADHD: https://www.amazon.com/Organizing-Solutions-People-Revised-Updated/dp/1592335128
- Pilot’s 2021 Founder Salary Report: https://pilot.com/blog/2021-pilot-founder-salary-report
For more information about the podcast, check out https://www.smalleffortspod.com/.
(0:27) It’s good to have a playbook in case you get hit by a bus tomorrow
(6:19) You can’t have a great process if you don’t iterate or communicate
(11:31) The more granular you get, the more you get bogged down by the rules
(18:14) Awesome employees + no rules = chaos
(23:17) The client does have the final decision, but it’s sad if you just act like a waiter
(33:24) Miscreants don’t sponsor losers
Thanks for listening to Small Efforts, a podcast collaboration between Krit and Miscreants. Shoutout to the Hatch Team and Mary Vuong for producing and editing.
Links:
- Andrew’s Twitter: @AndrewAskins
- Krit: https://www.krit.com/
- Miscreants: https://www.miscreants.co/
- Sean’s Twitter: @seanqsun
- Hatch Team: https://www.hatch.team/
- Maker’s Pace: https://anchor.fm/makers-pace/
For more information about the podcast, check out https://www.smalleffortspod.com/.
(0:27) The Tale of Two Founders: the Technical One and the Sales and Marketing One
(6:58) Sean is Andrew’s new therapist
(13:39) Letting go of your Legos is harder than it looks
(17:48) Hot Take: Social media memers don’t make for good marketing directors
(23:32) Sean is like a laptop with too many Chrome tabs open: constantly getting drained
(29:56) Relinquishing Perfectionism: It’s not that their version is worse—it’s just different
(35:40) Miscreants is now an eSports sponsor
Thanks for listening to Small Efforts, a podcast collaboration between Krit and Miscreants. Shoutout to the Hatch Team and Mary Vuong for producing and editing.
Links:
- Andrew’s Twitter: @AndrewAskins
- Krit: https://www.krit.com/
- Miscreants: https://www.miscreants.co/
- Sean’s Twitter: @seanqsun
- Hatch Team: https://www.hatch.team/
- Productive Flourishing: https://www.productiveflourishing.com/
For more information about the podcast, check out https://www.smalleffortspod.com/.
(0:27) Andrew got roped into volunteering with a local high school robotics team
(4:12) It’s mad hard to hire a product designer
(10:59) One does not simply get hired because one uses hamburger menus
(20:22) There’s always a weird rift between international and domestic employees
(28:38) How do you keep your employees happy when you can’t give them a ping pong table?
(31:38) You can’t pay someone a shit salary just because they’re in Mexico
(40:44) Hiring People: It’s like a transaction, so don’t be shitty
Thanks for listening to Small Efforts, a podcast collaboration between Krit and Miscreants. Shoutout to the Hatch Team and Mary Vuong for producing and editing.
Links:
- Andrew’s Twitter: @AndrewAskins
- Krit: https://www.krit.com/
- Miscreants: https://www.miscreants.co/
- Sean’s Twitter: @seanqsun
- Hatch Team: https://www.hatch.team/
For more information about the podcast, check out https://www.smalleffortspod.com/.
(0:27) Andrew got his first snow boots ever, and Sean is terrified of surfboarding
(4:36) Sean wishes he had an office-office, and Andrew's looking to hire a product designer
(10:14) Andrew’s new pitch: a low-cost, automated recruiting service with a flat fee
(19:58) There are many great online job boards out there, but Ziprecruiter is not one of them
(25:34) Coinbase's Super Bowl ad was a super clever campaign
(30:02) Andrew and Sean play a game using Krit's data on cybersecurity product names
(40:07) Sean’s new self-care regime: breathwork
(45:32) It's hard to know just how many people you should hire
(51:48) You can't build a business on something people don't want or don't know that they need
Thanks for listening to Small Efforts, a podcast collaboration between Krit and Miscreants. Shoutout to the Hatch Team and Mary Vuong for producing and editing.
Links:
- Andrew’s Twitter: @AndrewAskins
- Krit: https://www.krit.com/
- Miscreants: https://www.miscreants.co/
- Sean’s Twitter: @seanqsun
- Hatch Team: https://www.hatch.team/
- Pallet: https://www.pallet.com/
- Superpath: https://jobs.superpath.co/
- Krit’s cyber security product names analysis article: https://www.krit.com/blog/cybersecurity-product-names
For more information about the podcast, check out https://www.smalleffortspod.com/.
(0:27) Andrew’s never been to Disney World, and Sean’s surrounded by cat owners
(5:18) Domain names are like gym memberships: you should take them seriously
(10:38) People are scrambling to figure out how to close that lead gap, and that’s fair
(15:40) A less boring alternative to white papers: interactive microsites
(19:48) No time for microsites? Start a movement with other companies
(24:33) What’s better than hosting competitions? Free swag.
(28:19) Everyone loves free stuff—including existing customers
(31:59) One does not simply close the lead gap by making marketing events
Thanks for listening to Small Efforts, a podcast collaboration between Krit and Miscreants. Shoutout to the Hatch Team and Mary Vuong for producing and editing.
Links:
- Andrew’s Twitter: @AndrewAskins
- Krit: https://www.krit.com/
- Miscreants: https://www.miscreants.co/
- Sean’s Twitter: @seanqsun
- Hatch Team: https://www.hatch.team/
- Label Time: https://label-time.com/
- Minimum Viable Secure Product: https://mvsp.dev/
- Trace Labs: https://www.tracelabs.org/
For more information about the podcast, check out https://www.smalleffortspod.com/.
(0:25) Andrew and Sean are going to play a game
(2:57) Microcopy: the little bits of texts that can make a huge splash
(7:48) Accessibility: it’s just good design
(10:18) Andrew wants tooltip walk-throughs to burn in Hell
(14:05) Not all product analytics is created equally
(20:03) Why do people have a customer support robot when it takes hours to get a response?
(23:19) Documentation is more scalable than customer support, but most people suck at it
(32:47) Andrew’s quick correction
Thanks for listening to Small Efforts, a podcast collaboration between Krit and Miscreants. Shoutout to the Hatch Team and Mary Vuong for producing and editing.
Links:
- Andrew’s Twitter: @AndrewAskins
- Krit: https://www.krit.com/
- Miscreants: https://www.miscreants.co/
- Sean’s Twitter: @seanqsun
- Hatch Team: https://www.hatch.team/
- Growth.Design: https://growth.design/
- Samuel Hulick’s User Onboarding: https://www.useronboard.com/
- Parallax tool: https://www.getparallax.com/
For more information about the podcast, check out https://www.smalleffortspod.com/.
(0:32) Andrew’s holiday break was so good, he had the Sunday scaries
(4:59) Sean’s starting a vlog!
(9:49) Krit might pit VCs against each other for spots on the VC List
(15:22) There’s a reason why some people can get degrees in finance and others can’t
(18:53) Hot Take: Filming yourself dumping money on people is like filming a monitoring game show
(29:11) Positive incentives are healthy until you’re dangling Lambos
(33:12) Andrew and Sean think about buying a Lambo
Thanks for listening to Small Efforts, a podcast collaboration between Krit and Miscreants. Shoutout to the Hatch Team and Mary Vuong for producing and editing.
Links:
- Andrew’s Twitter: @AndrewAskins
- Krit: https://www.krit.com/
- Miscreants: https://www.miscreants.co/
- Sean’s Twitter: @seanqsun
- Hatch Team: https://www.hatch.team/
- Casey Neistat’s course: https://monthly.com/casey-neistat-filmmaking
- Krit’s Top InfoSec VCs: https://www.krit.com/infosec-vcs
- Krit’s 2021 Year-in-review: https://www.krit.com/blog/2021
- Barrel: https://www.barrelny.com/
- Coventure: https://coventure.vc/
- Andrew and Sean’s Lamborghini Gallardo search: Lambos in Detroit
- MSCHF: https://mschf.xyz/
- Peter at Barrel’s Twitter: @peterkang34
- Starter Story: https://www.starterstory.com/
For more information about the podcast, check out https://www.smalleffortspod.com/.
(0:27) Andrew hopes he's resilient to SAD because he has plenty of other mental anguish
(3:29) Culture and Business: Only having awesome culture doesn't put food on the table
(15:58) Miscreants just launched three freaking projects back to back
(19:09) Appealing to Emotions 101: Emphasize with pain
(21:33) If you think figuring out your niche is hard, try finding someone else's
(29:15) Standing out in a Commoditized Industry: Specifically show what you do
(38:07) Krit and Miscreant's 2022 goals: Less chaos, more focus
Thanks for listening to Small Efforts, a podcast collaboration between Krit and Miscreants. Shoutout to the Hatch Team and Mary Vuong for producing and editing.
Links:
- Andrew's Twitter: @AndrewAskins
- Krit: https://www.krit.com/
- Miscreants: https://www.miscreants.co/
- Sean's Twitter: @seanqsun
- Hatch Team: https://www.hatch.team/
For more information about the podcast, check out https://www.smalleffortspod.com/.
(0:27) Running an agency is like leading geese while not knowing where you're going
(5:45) Holidays While Remote: Having fun traditional office stuff is hard
(9:11) Miscreants’ Black Friday merch sales were so high that Sean became a folding master
(11:56) The hardest part of having a newsletter is making it
(15:05) Krit learned some interesting things from testing their design audit process
(19:30) And Miscreants is launching a YouTube channel
(23:55) Andrew and Sean might share an Airbnb for RSA
(26:43) If Greg's happy, Andrew's happy
(29:30) Andrew and Sean and the future of the pod
Thanks for listening to Small Efforts, a podcast collaboration between Krit and Miscreants. Shoutout to the Hatch Team and Mary Vuong for producing and editing.
Links:
- Andrew’s Twitter: @AndrewAskins
- Krit: https://www.krit.com/
- Miscreants: https://www.miscreants.co/
- Sean’s Twitter: @seanqsun
- Hatch Team: https://www.hatch.team/
- Krit’s InfoSec VC list: https://www.krit.com/infosec-vcs
- Krit’s Product People Interview with Haroon Meer: https://www.krit.com/blog/sweating-the-small-stuff-with-haroon-meer-founder-of-thinkst-canary
- Malcolm Gladwell’s book: https://www.amazon.com/Blink-Power-Thinking-Without/dp/0316010669
- Mike Monnik’s Infosec Black Friday List: https://github.com/0x90n/InfoSec-Black-Friday
For more information about the podcast, check out https://www.smalleffortspod.com/.
(0:27) Krit (sort of) got hacked
(7:21) One does not simply tell employees and clients that one got hacked
(13:23) Two Types of Recruiters: Those who “spam the shit out of everybody,” and those who build relationships
(18:31) “Holidays are tough”
(23:47) It’s hard juggling days off while pushing against stagnation
(26:54) Selling butts in a seat is easier when you have a smaller team
(30:27) Making Playbooks: Is it better to make it simple than have all the context in the world?
(34:44) Krit just hit a major milestone!
(39:37) Sean’s new clothing line is out
(45:04) Andrew’s talking to a social media manager, and Sean’s trying to do a content marketing push in a newsletter format
Thanks for listening to Small Efforts, a podcast collaboration between Krit and Miscreants. Shoutout to the Hatch Team and Mary Vuong for producing and editing.
Links:
- Andrew’s Twitter: @AndrewAskins
- Krit: https://www.krit.com/
- Miscreants: https://www.miscreants.co/
- Sean’s Twitter: @seanqsun
- Hatch Team: https://www.hatch.team/
- Miscreants’ new clothing line (Away from Keyboard): https://shopmiscreants.com/collections/away-from-keyboard-2021
For more information about the podcast, check out https://www.smalleffortspod.com/.
(0:27) Andrew, Sean, and another Andrew
(7:24) Getting ahold of the people you want and don't want to get to
(11:30) Crossing the chasm: Getting rid of collection bias and positioning yourself better
(16:15) Leading people who work for the people who work for you
(20:15) The Difference Between Therapists and Executive Coaches: One tells you to shut up and suck it up
(23:09) Values vs principles
(32:02) Andrew Morris's goal used to be to sell for $30M. Given that GreyNoise is valued at more than $30M today what are his goals now?
(40:34) Andrew and Andrew have a nuclear, mutually-assured destructive friendship
(46:48) Andrew and Andrew and their startups that never started up
(53:52) GreyNoise used to be the world's most inefficient musical instrument
(57:47) Being in school is hard, but dropping out is even harder
(1:06:21) Standing out in the Old-Boys-in-a-Suit Club: How to get noticed
(1:17:49) Working Sustainably: How not to burn out
(1:24:52) Sean asks a very important question, and Andrew embarrasses Andrew
Thanks for listening to Small Efforts, a podcast collaboration between Krit and Miscreants. Shoutout to the Hatch Team and Mary Vuong for producing and editing.
Links:
- Andrew's Twitter: @AndrewAskins
- Krit: https://www.krit.com/
- Miscreants: https://www.miscreants.co/
- Sean's Twitter: @seanqsun
- Hatch Team: https://www.hatch.team/
- GreyNoise: https://www.greynoise.io/
- Andrew Morris's Twitter: @Andrew___Morris
For more information about the podcast, check out https://www.smalleffortspod.com/.
(0:27) Andrew has a cat named Stevie Nicks, and Sean’s cold and stressed in LA
(3:17) Krit has officially launched one of its non-security clients
(5:47) Sean’s New Pitch: Soundtracks based on interviews
(8:27) Remixing and Repurposing Old Content: Why build from scratch when you have a foundation?
(11:22) Running Remotely: How do you make your company more transparent internally?
(16:50) Sean might be hiring another PM!
(17:59) Speed: How fast is too fast?
(23:58) The Secret Key to Speed: Managing your client’s perception
(29:18) Selling full-time equivalents is similar to selling timeshares of someone
(36:56) Project management is mad important, and so is billing for it
(44:48) Building structure in your org is like building a product
Thanks for listening to Small Efforts, a podcast collaboration between Krit and Miscreants. Shoutout to the Hatch Team and Mary Vuong for producing and editing.
Links:
- Andrew’s Twitter: @AndrewAskins
- Krit: https://www.krit.com/
- Miscreants: https://www.miscreants.co/
- Sean’s Twitter: @seanqsun
- Hatch Team: https://www.hatch.team/
- Koshercart: https://kosherkart.com/
- Krit’s interview with Jose Nazario: https://www.krit.com/blog/finding-signal-in-unstructured-data-with-jose-nazario
- Latacora: https://www.latacora.com/
For more information about the podcast, check out https://www.smalleffortspod.com/.
(0:21) The Yin and Yang of Running an Agency: How much can you control?
(7:42) LinkedIn Marketing is free game
(11:21) Onboarding Plans: Unexpectedly hard to develop
(18:01) Andrew and Sean have a graveyard for domain names of projects they’ve abandoned
(25:30) Some projects are very, very dead
(30:57) And some were shot dead before they took off
(35:04) You can’t expect prototype speed past the prototype stage
(37:41) Development and Marketing: When do you go to the next stage?
(41:12) Swag Ideas for Cons: Animal Crossing clothes and other virtual swag
(45:17) The Miscreant and Krit Hackathon: Coming soon to a DefCon near you
(52:12) Our Small Efforts
Thanks for listening to Small Efforts, a podcast collaboration between Krit and Miscreants. Shoutout to the Hatch Team and Mary Vuong for producing and editing.
Links:
- Andrew’s Twitter: @AndrewAskins
- Krit: https://www.krit.com/
- Miscreants: https://www.miscreants.co/
- Sean’s Twitter: @seanqsun
- Hatch Team: https://www.hatch.team/
- Threat Intelligent extension: https://threatintelligent.io/
- Product People's first post: https://www.krit.com/blog/finding-signal-in-unstructured-data-with-jose-nazario
For more information about the podcast, check out https://www.smalleffortspod.com/.
(0:29) Andrew’s cat, Po’ Boy’s, new friend: a cat named Danger (work-in-title)
(2:49) Security Companies: Why so many ‘S’ names?
(8:12) Hiring Notice: Sean’s still looking for a Project Manager
(10:56) Hiring Notice: So, Sean’s really looking for a Producer/Project Manager
(14:36) Getting referrals for Design People from Tech People isn’t the greatest
(17:05) Andrew and Sean really appreciate Mike Privette (Return on Security)
(22:02) Broadening Horizons: When do you work with people outside your niche?
(26:41) Having an outside perspective in an industry isn’t always a bad thing
(30:37) Hot Take: Attribution in marketing isn’t very useful
(35:13) Our Small Efforts
Thanks for listening to Small Efforts, a podcast collaboration between Krit and Miscreants. Shoutout to the Hatch Team and Mary Vuong for producing and editing.
Links:
- Andrew’s Twitter: @AndrewAskins
- Krit: https://www.krit.com/
- Miscreants: https://www.miscreants.co/
- Sean’s Twitter: @seanqsun
- Hatch Team: https://www.hatch.team/
- Bureau of Digital: https://bureauofdigital.com/
- Home Repair Lab: https://www.homerepairlab.com/
- Mike Privette: @mikepsecuritee
- Rethink: https://rethinkcanada.com/
- Return on Security: https://www.returnonsecurity.com/
For more information about the podcast, check out https://www.smalleffortspod.com/.
(0:27) Irvine's sunsets are crazy and Detroit's EDM scene is wild
(4:50) Andrew's kicking off his interview series Product People
(7:41) Sean is a fanboy of Return on Security
(10:20) It's not all about the VC outreach
(12:19) Product Management is such a weird industry
(19:50) There aren't many good online security communities for intermediates
(23:47) There's a difference between having a fan base and having a community
(29:01) Sean hypothesizes the history between lawyers and legal pads
(31:52) Making or finding the perfect feedback tool: easier said than done
(36:42) Our Small Efforts
Thanks for listening to Small Efforts, a podcast collaboration between Krit and Miscreants. Shoutout to the Hatch Team and Mary Vuong for producing and editing.
Shoutouts:
- Information on Peerlyst - https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/peerlyst
- Product People: https://www.krit.com/newsletter
- Return on Security: https://www.returnonsecurity.com/
- User Snap: https://usersnap.com/
- 0x00sec - https://0x00sec.org/
Links:
- Andrew's Twitter: @AndrewAskins
- Krit: https://www.krit.com/
- Miscreants: https://www.miscreants.co/
- Sean's Twitter: @seanqsun
- Hatch Team: https://www.hatch.team/
For more information about the podcast, check out https://www.smalleffortspod.com/.
(0:27) Laptops and remote work go hand in hand
(3:27) But Sean and Andrew are not about that digital nomad life
(6:10) Setting the right goals is a constant struggle
(8:24) Andrew's therapist is a surprisingly awesome business coach
(11:35) Time Measurement: Think about your to-dos, but don't go super, super in detail
(14:03) Andrew shares some of his goals
(19:24) Life with a Co-Founder: No shared values? Good luck
(24:49) Success is success
(28:56) Sean’s latest pitch: A one-stop-shop service for all things swag
(34:22) Sean drops some knowledge on getting connected with VCs
(42:52) Our Small Efforts
Thanks for listening to Small Efforts, a podcast collaboration between Krit and Miscreants. Shoutout to the Hatch Team and Mary Vuong for producing and editing.
Links:
-
Andrew's Twitter: @AndrewAskins
-
Krit: https://www.krit.com/
-
Miscreants: https://www.miscreants.co/
-
Sean's Twitter: @seanqsun
-
Hatch Team: https://www.hatch.team/
For more information about the podcast, check out https://www.smalleffortspod.com/.
(0:27) Sean doesn't know how to pronounce "Michelob"
(1:12) Andrew and Sean’s Relationship: It’s been a long two years, man
(4:37) Andrew and Sean are pretty much risking their lives to be at DEF CON
(14:30) It can be mad hard to sell B2B tech products
(17:57) Connections in Security: It can help with even the most unrelated things
(20:43) Choosing Your Company’s Differentiator: Better data and better AI is not the answer
(24:15) Choosing Your Company’s Differentiator: Less bad guy, more on making jobs easier
(25:59) Reiterating pain points is becoming a pain point
(28:48) Tool fatigue: Bundling is not the answer
(33:13) Krit and Miscreants are lowkey rivals (but friendly ones)
(38:59) In a room full of potential, it’s super important to know your strengths and weaknesses
(42:15) It’s important to know where you draw the line with product strategy
(49:19) Our Small Efforts
Thanks for listening to Small Efforts, a podcast collaboration between Krit and Miscreants. Shoutout to the Hatch Team and Mary Vuong for producing and editing.
Links:
- Andrew's Twitter: @AndrewAskins
- Krit: https://www.krit.com/
- Miscreants: https://www.miscreants.co/
- Sean's Twitter: @seanqsun
- Hatch Team: https://www.hatch.team/
- Def Con: https://defcon.org/
- Krit’s Article on InfoSec Acronyms: https://www.krit.com/blog/infosec-acronyms-explained
For more information about the podcast, check out https://www.smalleffortspod.com/.
(0:25) Getting out of a Funk: It's hard to stop feeling scattered
(8:17) Zoom fatigue is real
(9:22) Andrew's gotten really into rock climbing recently
(13:12) Sean tries to pitch liquid chalk
(16:28) Tensions Within Security Twitter: We need to express more empathy
(20:15) The beverage and security industries are kinda related
(23:34) Andrew pitches DART (working title)
(30:02) There's surprising a lot of security content on TikTok
(33:31) Media and Paid Ads: it's weird to get unrelated ads on unrelated topics
(36:47) Our Small Efforts
Thanks for listening to Small Efforts, a podcast collaboration between Krit and Miscreants. Shoutout to the Hatch Team and Mary Vuong for producing and editing.
Links:
- Andrew's Twitter: @AndrewAskins
- Hatch Team: https://www.hatch.team/
- Krit: https://www.krit.com/
- Miscreants: https://www.miscreants.co/
- Sean's Twitter: @seanqsun
- Shubs's (@infosec_au) Tweet: https://twitter.com/infosec_au/status/1417646439434317829
For more information about the podcast, check out https://www.smalleffortspod.com/.
In episode 2, we talk about the new MITRE D3FEND framework and an internal project at Krit to answer the question, "What defines good design in InfoSec?" We also touch on marketing strategy, learning not to overcommit, expanding your team, camping, and exit plans.
(0:21) Andrew is giving Sean major FOMO.
(3:04) An empty office: You don’t know what you’re missing until it’s gone.
(4:20) Only a part of us misses having an in-person team.
(6:23) Hiring Notice: Sean’s looking for a project manager.
(7:22) Our Take on the MITRE’s D3FEND Framework
(10:15) Lukewarm take: People should have free reign on their personal accounts and trademarking common words isn’t cool.
(12:13) MITRE’s D3FEND Framework: Is it Useful?
(16:19) How do you even define a good product?
(24:44) Marketing Strategy: Designing a good product can be mad hard.
(28:01) Sean’s method of evaluating products: Finding the Drop-Off
(28:58) Andrew tries to convince Sean to go camping.
(30:10) The Rite of Passage as an Agency Owner: Learning to not overcommit
(34:22) Andrew’s Exit Plans: Make Krit’s culture so awesome, there isn’t a need for an exit plan.
(39:23) Our Small Efforts
Thanks for listening to Small Efforts, a podcast collaboration between Krit and Miscreants. Shoutout to the Hatch Team and Mary Vuong for producing and editing.
Links:
-
Sean's Twitter: @seanqsun
-
Andrew's Twitter: @AndrewAskins
-
Hatch Team: https://www.hatch.team/
For more information about the podcast, check out https://www.smalleffortspod.com/.
(0:22) Case Studies: Timing Case Studies can be mad hard.
(1:57) What Andrew is doing for lead gen.
(2:57) Hiring Notice: Andrew's looking to hire some accountability to keep his writing on track.
(5:23) Connecting with people in security should be organic.
(8:59) Someone owes me a Chick-Fil-A: Motivating your co-host by bribing them with Chick-Fil-A.
(9:46) Misophonia and why Sean can’t listen to ASMR Mukbangs
(11:01) Sean's UX in Cybersecurity Presentation: It's the little things that make a huge impact.
(17:00) Krit has an awesome newsletter. Miscreants is working on a newsletter, too.
(19:31) Sean and Andrew's Biggest Fans are their Moms: "Having a little mom support is never a bad thing."
(21:41) Networking Meaningfully: Building a meaningful relationship with the person you're trying to connect with can get you really far.
(27:53) Life as a Founder: Confidence is a freaking roller coaster, but at least you get to get involved in cool things.
(34:18) Sean’s all in on merchandise
(43:01) Instagram and LinkedIn stalking is just OSINT.
(45:07) Our Small Efforts
Thanks for listening to Small Efforts, a podcast collaboration between Krit and Miscreants. Shoutout to the Hatch Team and Mary Vuong for producing and editing.
Listen on:
- Apple Podcasts
- Spotify
Links:
-
Sean's Twitter: @seanqsun
-
Andrew's Twitter: @AndrewAskins
-
Hatch Team: https://www.hatch.team/
-
Miscreant Stickers: https://shop.miscreants.co/products/spring-2021-sticker-pack
For more information about the podcast, check out https://www.smalleffortspod.com/.
Small Efforts is a podcast about cybersecurity, design, and the continuous small efforts it takes to build a business.
Join hosts Sean Sun (founder of Miscreants) and Andrew Askins (founder of Krit) as they share the ups and downs of growing design agencies in the cybersecurity industry.
Sean knows a lot about cybersecurity, Andrew knows a lot about running an agency. But they both have a lot to learn.