User:Byron Van Arsdale

Byron Van Arsdale

Byron Van Arsdale
  • Welcome

My name is Byron and thanks for coming to my AboutUs.org personal page. I have no earthly idea how Kristina set up a talk page so use my email if you want to contact me!

Having a bit of fun watching the ramp up to the Apple WWDC 2008, I came up with the following definition:

iPhonoclast: one who thinks differently and happily avoids poor user experiences by using an iPhone! June 9, 2008  :-)

I've add this as a new signature line on the Apple forums I visit!

Here are the AboutUs.org links to my companies:

Main Website: ConferenceCallTraining.com

Blog: PowerConferenceCalls.com

Products: RossdalePress.com

Rentals: TeleconferenceLine.com

  • My Email

LinkedIn: read more

Twitter: @headset


  • My Location

Austin, Texas - an amazing city with a diverse culture, wonderful music, friendly people, and great food.


  • Things I Care About

My passion is creating communities and learning environments using conference calls.

What I find most strange is that I'm the first person to create a model and develop training to effectively use a tool that has been around for over 30 years! Trial and Error has been THE ONLY model by which countless people around the world have learned to use (abuse?) conference calls.

I've been working on my book about how to lead and communicate with groups of people by conference calls for about 2 years now. In February 2008, I found myself, for the third time, starting from the beginning. Anyone who thinks writing a book is easy probably has never written a book! While I have both loved and fought the process, the journey has been well worth it. It's May 2008 and I am farther along in the process with the intention to have my first draft completed by June 2008. With luck, the third time is the charm. Oh, for any aspiring writer's, this is an excellent 12-step program to free you from the need for "perfection". I could have sworn that I'd learned this in the Summer of 2004 when editing 5 of my 6 audio CD training products (about 22 hours of recording when finished)!

While the business world is a primary focus for me, there is a relatively new challenge I'm starting to work toward solving. The Avaian Bird Virus reminded the world of what can happen during a pandemic. Life would be radically different from today and technology would play an essential role in keeping communities together. The model I developed for conference calls has always been much larger in its scope. I saw that clearly when a friend introduced me to the term social distancing. In short, how does a community continue forward when a pandemic forces limited physical contact? A lengthy Google search one evening around May 2007 showed me another place to help bring meaningful change.

Other things that I'm passionate about include my wife/soul mate Bernice, sailing, golf, windsurfing, kitesurfing (next on my list), and cooking. Oh, and most important of all, laughing!


  • Something Fun

Cooking - I love to cook. If you have are looking for an amazing gift for friends and family that are interested in cooking, especially the complete novice, give them a copy of The New Best Recipe [1] by Cook's Illustrated. I was talking with the Chef and Founder of Cannoli Joe's [2] (highly recommended) in Austin and he said this cookbook was better than what they'd been using in Professional Cooking School! If you want something to tell you how to cook and EXACTLY what to do to make a great meal every time, this is the cookbook for you. I also get the Cook's Illustrated magazine and have found it to be equally valuable.

San Francisco set up an interesting method to raise money for charity - artists painted metal hearts in wide variety of unique styles and then sold the hearts. Many of the hearts have found their way into private homes and offices. While walking through Union Square in early August 2007, I came across three amazing examples that were still in the public. Thanks to the artists who painted these amazing creations. [sorry - link is no longer valid to see pictures and story]

Austin did something similar yet I never heard about it until recently. Instead of hearts, they painted guitars and placed them around town.

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