As of today, the market has rebounded a bit. But, overall the oil market downturn is still a hard reality for businesses struggling every day.After the high flying days when oil still sold over $100 per barrel, $50 per barrel feels like the end.Is it though? Let’s take a trip down memory lane.Back in the Day, When I Was Young...It’s 2008. Financial markets are melting down. 2.3 million Americans just lost their homes in foreclosure.To top it off, gas prices hit $4.00/gallon for the first time in history. It seemed everyone was out of credit and out of cash.It certainly was tough on me. I was selling for AT&T back then. My territory? Detroit, Michigan.Several times each month I would call on a prospect only two here this response, "Appreciate the call, but we're closing up shop next week." Businesses were folding all around me.I couldn’t even build a solid book of business when the iPhone was first invented. How could anyone build a successful small ...
Tribe Rocket Inc. Blog
Tribe Rocket Inc. is an oil and gas media company. When we are not building and monetizing our audience, we are helping brands build their audience to sell them things.
High Skilled Immigration: How to get a Green Card Without Employer Sponsorship
Years ago, as a young attorney new to the Houston area, I was set up on a blind date with Pavan.Pavan was was a very nice and honest man. He was also a young doctor from India. He was working as a high skilled immigration candidate to get his Green Card. He said that people like him felt that they loved the U.S.Then he said something that struck me:“When you get your Green Card, it’s like the U.S. loves you too.”I’ve been privileged to grow up in the U.S. I didn’t have to go through any kind of process to get status here. And, I understand the privilege we inherit as Americans. Not just because of what Pavan said that evening.With a major in Chinese, I lived in China for a couple of years before I went to law school. I’ve lived in a country that’s not my home. It's challenging. But, unlike Paven, I never sought to move to China permanently.Many of the clients I've worked with over the past nine years were just like Paven.Simultaneously optimistic about ...
Why NOV Owns OTC 2016 Houston – And You Can Too!
I can already hear you, "Of course NOV owns OTC 2016 Houston. They're a $23 billion company."That's a fair objection. National Oilwell Varco (NOV) has an abundance of riches to leverage at an event like the Offshore Technology Conference (OTC).For as long as I've known him, Mark LaCour has stressed the importance of attending NOV's Annual Shrimp Boil. He often talks about the quality connections you can make, and he's not wrong.There is no shortage of heavy hitters in the room.But the quality connections you can make are just one of myriad reasons NOV dominates OTC 2016 Houston -- and every year. Let's dig into some of those reasons, and see what you can do to prepare for next year.OTC 2016 Houston: Free Beer! Free Food!You see the beer tent. You see the food trucks. You see a massive stream of people grabbing plenty of food and beer.Your natural first thought is, "We can't afford a kegger!"Again, fair objection. You probably don't ...
Lean Six Sigma Projects: 5 Questions You Need to Succeed
If you're new to Lean Six Sigma, you're probably asking, "Where can I find good Lean Six Sigma Projects examples?"In this post, I'm not going to so much walk-through good Lean Six Sigma projects examples as much as I'm going to take you through the process of creating a strong Lean Six Sigma projects.But first, why Lean Six Sigma? Simple answer. Efficiency.If my time in the United States Air Force taught me anything, it's that there is a process for everything. Lean Six Sigma is more than a way to ring out inefficiencies in business. Taken to heart, it's a philosophy that can change your life and the way you attack problems of all stripes.Laying the GroundworkThe first step in any successful project is to ensure you establish the correct scope. Establishing a realistic project scope shields you from the risk of going too big too soon.When the Lean Six Sigma lightbulb goes off for executives, project managers, and front-line workers the tendency is to try to fix ...
Post Hoc ergo Propter Hoc: How To Be Ignorant… In Latin!
Allen Gilmer is Co-founder and CEO of Drillinginfo. This post originally appeared on LinkedIn, where he has been posting a string of gems! Follow him on LinkedIn here. Post Hoc ergo Propter Hoc. Rolls off the tongue, doesn't it?This Latin term succinctly describes a thought process that American humans, especially plaintiff attorneys, use in lieu of science, and, in fact, often confuse with science.It means, literally, "It happened after an event, therefore, it is because of the event". The most famous example being that the sun rises because the rooster crows.Doctors and most scientists understand the fallacy of false cause, or coincidental correlation. I ran into early in my professional career. You're Killing Me, Seismic Every dead cow in the area died because our seismic crew somehow poisoned them with dynamite or pin flags. Every cow was also a world class breeder in the prime of life up until the point the vet performed the autopsy to discover that the livestock ...
Why I LOVE Oil and Gas Reason #1,265,974 (3 Minute Read)
There are millions of reasons I love oil and gas. I had a fascinating Skype video call with a young man in Algeria yesterday who helped me add to the list.He is 23 years old and graduated university a month ago with a Masters Degree in Reservoir Engineering. We talked at length about what it's like trying to get work in an National Oil Company (NOC) environment vs. the free market environment of America.He told me everyone in Algeria dreams of getting out of Algeria.We also talked about social media adoption in the country -- 99% Facebook. Ha! Why I LOVE Oil and Gas in America Entrepreneurship in Algeria is still in its infancy. It was fascinating to realize how easy we have it in America. I've known that we are the only country in the world whose citizens own its minerals for years, but I've never seen firsthand how much that affects a country's entire economy.It's not illegal to start an oil business in Algeria; it's just a suicide mission, metaphorically speaking. ...
How Small Upstream Services Can Pivot Downstream
Crude oil is trading near $50 a barrel and upstream services are hurting.Given the siloed culture of this industry, many small oilfield business owners think the best they can do is wait for prices to rebound. Which is perfectly understandable.I got my start in oil and gas at Drillinginfo. I was in the industry for almost four years before Mark LaCour from modalpoint taught me the oil industry isn’t just the guys getting oil out of the ground.On the past two episodes of This Week in Oil & Gas On-Demand Radio Mark and I have talked about the number of jobs available to laid-off upstream workers in midstream and downstream companies. While shifting your company’s focus isn't as easy as getting a job, if you're an upstream services executive or entrepreneur you can kill it downstream. If you're interested.You just have to search. And, as Mr. Jim Rohn once said: Finding is reserved for those who search. Let's search and see what we can find. Transforming Upstream ...
Oilfield Revenue University: Exponential Growth for Small Upstream, Midstream, Downstream, & Service Companies
A few weeks ago we sent a survey to The Tribe. The results showed us something about our list that is true of the entire industry. Oilfield revenue is largely driven by small businesses.Nearly 90% of the oil produced in America comes from small independent oil companies. Over 90% of US natural gas production comes from small independent operators.Likewise, we found over 90% of you are small business owners. The true backbone of the industry. You are the nimble operators, midstream, downstream, and service companies. Without you, this industry could not succeed.When Americans hear "oil" they automatically think BP, ExxonMobil, and Shell. But these Super Majors could not exist without you. Because you are the true pioneers.Without you, plays would never heat up. Without you, mid-sized operators wouldn't know where to buy acreage. Without you, the rest of the industry can't find oil, get it to where it needs to go, or turn it into the final products that make modern ...
Befriending Jay Baer: A SMMW15 Networking Video Tutorial
This is how I became friends with Jay Baer, and how you can be friends with any speaker at Social Media Marketing World 2015 (SMMW15), and any other conference you attend.https://youtu.be/iqj05RKTWFc ...
How to Build Business Relationships Online With 6 Simple Steps
If you work in the oil bidness, you better figure out how to build business relationships. We work in the biggest smallest industry on earth.Relationship building skills aren't a nice to have for oil pros, they are a necessity.You would be hard-pressed to find a group of professionals who can grow relationships as well as oilfield veterans — offline.The disconnect happens when members of The Great Crew Change come to a budget meeting to talk about investing in social media.Executives in the oilfield see Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn as noisy distractions from real business. On the other side of the table, millennias and members of Gen Y don’t understand why their bosses don’t “get it”. They grew up online. In their world, building virtual relationships is a natural process.Both sides have a legitimate beef in the conversation, but the burden of proof is on the younger generation.It’s up to the Great Crew Change Crew to demonstrate how social media marketing ...