It’s easy to write off new entrepreneurs from unlikely places, and we as a society have trained ourselves to forget about those condemned to prison and correctional facilities. Yet the resilience shown by many prisoners, eager to reintegrate into society in productive ways, is the exact type of tenacity necessary to succeed in the unpredictable world of startups and freelancing. Non-profit Defy Ventures has been tapping into that previously untouched potential, setting the stage for inclusive entrepreneurialism. Finally, investors and business leaders are beginning to take notice.
Defy Ventures is a non-profit that challenges society’s perception of incarcerated individuals by viewing them as Entrepreneurs in Training (EITs)—full of untapped potential. This shift in perspective is more than semantics; it represents a profound change in how society perceives incarcerated individuals.
By providing hands-on training and traditional educational resources to inmates seeking career development, Defy helps overcome the lack of access to resources faced by inmates. The organization upgrades participants with leadership development, personal growth training, and startup incubation. Defy’s focus extends beyond startups to include gig workers, digital nomads, handymen, HVAC technicians, and freelancers, supporting small business owners with essential tools to kickstart their careers and make a meaningful impact in their communities.
The non-profit’s impact is far-reaching, providing a powerful solution to reduce recidivism rates. According to the report dated 2021, Defy Ventures has a three-year recidivism rate of less than 15% (compared to the national average of 39%), and 84% of Defy graduates who were seeking employment found job placement. Defy is changing the lives of EITs and reframing the narrative of what an entrepreneur can look like, where they can come from, and the environments in which they can thrive.
Defy’s narrative of transformation demonstrates that the spirit of resilience and the passion of prisoners—combined with education, new opportunities, and support—translate into successful entrepreneurship from a segment of society too often brushed aside.
As an entrepreneur and volunteer, I was honored to participate in a Defy Ventures pitch competition and attend Defy’s graduation ceremony in a California prison. I went in with many misconceptions about the program and the participants, but my experiences with Defy rewrote those expectations. I learned that it takes nine months of rigorous study, examinations, and focus on personal growth, which prevents the faint-hearted and less resilient individuals from making it onto the EIT graduation list. Defy challenges participants and finds those with the tenacity and adaptability that any business leader knows are so vital in today’s tumultuous job market.
I believe that it is crucial to avoid romanticizing this journey or overlooking the past mistakes of the EITs. Instead, Defy’s aim is to recognize the current potential in each of them and provide them with the tools and opportunities to nurture that better future. Some of the most successful entrepreneurs came from troubled backgrounds and have overcome personal struggles, reinforcing that adversity often breeds resilience and innovation. Defy’s graduates embody this energy and possibility.
Inclusive entrepreneurship is the idea that all people, irrespective of their demographic, socioeconomic, or personal characteristics, should have equal opportunities to become entrepreneurs, start their businesses, and contribute to the economic development of their communities. As investors and business leaders, we can further this cause by considering how our portfolios can diversify and thus encompass ventures, freelancers, and entrepreneurs that break traditional molds.
Investors and business owners can consider collaborating with organizations like Defy Ventures and others that provide training and support to marginalized groups such as the incarcerated, immigrants, veterans, and refugees. Often non-profits eager to team up with hiring partners, these organizations have a deep understanding of the unique challenges faced by marginalized individuals and can help develop their entrepreneurial skills. Collaboration can be a quick shortcut to finding untapped pools of freelancers and gig workers.
By investing money and support in these programs, you contribute to their sustainability and enable them to continue their valuable work, essentially lengthening the alternative entrepreneur’s runway through education and mentorship. There can also be tax benefits for supporting these organizations financially. When hiring, consider utilizing such non-profits as a starting point for due diligence and skill verification. They can provide insights and recommendations about the skills and potential of their graduates, helping you make informed decisions and identify talented individuals who may bring diverse perspectives and experiences to your team.
Another crucial step is to encourage your own HR teams to broaden their pool of applicants for both traditional employment positions and freelance or gig work. Leaders can encourage teams to request certain new hires or contracting positions be filled with alternative freelancers who will bring valuable and unique insight from their unique experiences. Consider implementing strategies such as storytelling screening processes, skills-based assessments, and targeted outreach to underrepresented communities to ensure a more inclusive and equitable hiring process.
By actively working with organizations that train marginalized individuals, supporting them financially, and widening the scope of applicants for gigs, financial leaders and business owners can embrace inclusive entrepreneurship. By doing so, they not only contribute to social impact but also unlock untapped talent, drive innovation, and create a more diverse and resilient business ecosystem.
The work of Defy Ventures and similar organizations serves as an inspiration for both young entrepreneurs who are seeking to make a difference and investors keen on partnering with organizations that promote inclusive entrepreneurship. The journey Defy Venture’s graduates embarked upon is about more than starting a business. It is about reclaiming prisoners’ lives, defying the odds, and breaking cycles of negativity. For the EITs, inclusive entrepreneurship is not just a vocation but a lifeline.
Effective communication is a critical skill in both professional and personal settings. While much focus is given to the art of speaking to convey ideas and vision, perhaps the most crucial aspect of communication is listening.
There are two main types of listening: active and passive listening. While they may look the same on the outside, they are two entirely different endeavors with entirely different outcomes.
In this article, we’ll discuss the similarities and differences between active vs passive listening and offer some advice on when to use them. Let’s dive in!
Have you ever been running errands with your significant other when he or she runs into an old friend? You stand, listening as the two of them attempt to catch each other up on the past 7 years of their lives. You’re listening, but while you’re listening you’re also thinking about how hungry you are and about how you hope there isn’t a line at the car wash, your next stop on your errand journey. This is passive listening. You’re hearing someone speak though you’re not fully engaged.
Now let’s change up the scenario and say that you are the one who runs into an old friend unexpectedly. How does your listening change while catching up with a good friend you haven’t seen for many years? Chances are you actively listen to your friend. You give them your full attention, ask questions, and genuinely want to know more.
This example shows the stark difference between active and passive listening. But let’s break them down even further.
When it comes to active vs passive listening, understanding the distinction is crucial. Active listening is the act of giving someone your full attention. It involves avoiding distractions so you can engage with them on a deep level. Active listening also requires you to WANT to hear what the other person is saying. This attitude helps you to empathize with the speaker so you can understand their whole message rather than just recognize the words they’ve used.
Here’s what active listening isn’t: It isn’t getting lost in your thoughts, waiting for your turn to speak.
Some people are naturally active listeners while others need to practice the skill. While it may not be easy to master, there are numerous benefits to active listening such as:
Active listening is perhaps the most important component of communication because it keeps you engaged with the speaker in a meaningful way. Active listening also makes the speaker feel heard and validated, which prompts them to share more of their thoughts, ideas, and opinions.
Active listening helps you to understand the other person on a deeper level. You gain awareness of their point of view and can then respond with kindness and empathy. Active listening also facilitates trust, which is invaluable no matter if the relationship is with a spouse, child, friend, or coworker.
Active listening is invaluable in the workplace. It can eliminate (or at least greatly reduce) misunderstandings, clarify expectations, and improve problem-solving skills, thereby increasing your team’s productivity.
Active listening is a powerful skill that helps you to understand what someone else is saying. And not just on an intellectual level but an emotional one as well. This helps you to find common ground, reduce any tension or defensiveness that occurs with misunderstandings, and resolve conflicts more effectively.
Practicing active listening helps you to develop your interpersonal skills. You find yourself becoming more empathetic toward and respectful of other people. This makes you more approachable and you then find that people want to open up to you and share their thoughts and ideas. And as you gather so much important information, you become more knowledgeable yourself.
How can you begin practicing active listening? The following are some examples to give a try:
How many times have you tried to speak with your partner, child, or coworker and they weren’t even looking at you? And how did it make you feel? Most likely like what you had to say was not important.
Be sure to maintain eye contact with your conversation partner. This lets them know that you are fully paying attention. It also validates what they are saying and makes them feel heard.
Asking questions is a great way to dig and gain a deeper understanding of what someone has said. Don’t interrupt the other person to ask a question. Simply wait for them to pause, then ask.
Verbal cues help the speaker to know you are engaged in the conversation. You might try and offer something like, “I see what you mean, “ or “Yes, I understand.” Non-verbal cues can include making eye contact, smiling, and nodding your head. You can also lean forward in your chair to show how engaged you are in the conversation.
Active listening helps you to not only clearly receive another’s message but to also understand on an emotional level where they are coming from. By responding with empathy you show the speaker you value their feelings.
There are many instances where active listening will offer profoundly more benefits than passive listening. The following are some scenarios where active listening should be practiced:
If we took a poll of the world’s population, and everyone answered honestly, we would no doubt have confirmation that most people are passive listeners. That is they hear what other people are saying but they don’t actively engage in the conversation.
Passive listeners are often lost in their internal dialogue. They generally don’t ask questions to understand on a deeper level or offer any kind of feedback, but merely wait for the speaker to end so they can begin.
When we compare active vs passive listening, it becomes clear that passive listening offers no benefits and is marked by various limitations, including
When someone is not actively listening to another, it’s very easy for them to misunderstand information. How many romantic arguments, failed high school exams, and lost revenue can be linked to someone not fully paying attention to what someone else has said?
While many of us are guilty of not fully listening to others, we don’t particularly like it when others don’t listen to what we have to say. When leaders don’t listen to their teams and dismiss their opinions and differing viewpoints, it makes employees check out, phone it in and look for validation - and employment - elsewhere.
Networking is incredibly important for success. Through connecting with others we raise our professional profile, grow our brand, and gain access to novel ideas and strategies. But think of how many opportunities you miss by not fully listening to what others are saying!
How many of the following are you guilty of?
Do you daydream or let your mind wander while someone else is speaking?
Do you ask questions or offer any feedback? Do you paraphrase what the person has said to show comprehension, or do you just sit there, silent, waiting for them to finish so you can say something?
So many people seem unable to put their phones down for even 10 minutes. How often do you check your phone while someone else is speaking?
Are you guilty of interrupting or changing the subject before the speaker has even had a chance to finish?
Are you able to make and hold eye contact with the speaker to show you are paying attention, or do you let your eyes wander around the room? Do you have closed body language? For example, do you sit there with your arms crossed? This signals to the speaker that you are not interested in what they have to say.
Believe it or not, there are some scenarios where it is okay to use passive listening. In these scenarios, it wouldn’t be necessary for you to give your full attention to the speaker. However, it's important to understand the difference between active listening vs passive listening and when each approach is appropriate.
An example would be you are part of a group but the speaker is talking to one specific individual. Let’s say you are part of a tour group and someone from the group has asked a question that pertains only to their return flight home. You wouldn’t need to give your full attention to the answer they receive.
You may also be out to dinner with a group of friends and multiple people are discussing a topic you are not familiar with (or that interested in). It’s okay for you to take a few moments to focus on your food and have your private thoughts.
Remember, active listening vs passive listening is not a black-and-white dichotomy. Essentially any conversation you are part of where it wouldn’t be rude of you or where you don’t need to consume the information offered is one where passive listening would be acceptable.
You hopefully now understand the differences between active listening vs passive listening. Good communication builds trust and connections, and it can also increase productivity and empower people. Active listening is what enables good communication. It is the bedrock of effective communication. Passive listening, on the other hand, serves no real purpose. It is acceptable in certain circumstances but doesn’t offer any real benefits and should mostly be avoided.
The bottom line is, the choice between active vs passive listening ultimately lies in your hands. If you are interested in improving your relationships and setting yourself up for success both at work and in your relationships, practice active listening as much as you can!
When I was in school, online learning wasn't nearly as accessible or developed as it is now.
There was a time when taking online courses was viewed as a weak alternative to face-to-face learning.
With the advent of new technology in distance learning, this has changed irrevocably.
In fall of 2020, around 75% of all undergraduate students were taking at least one online education course.
However, even those who aren’t working toward a degree are increasingly preferring online learning due to its numerous benefits.
Here are some tips for learning online to deliver more value to your digital education.
If you’re taking an online class, you might be facing some unique challenges and might need tips for online classes. However, you need to remember that your efforts will pay off and deliver your desired destination.
Audo organizes online courses for people who want a positive change in their life and to acquire valuable knowledge for their future.
Here are 7 tips for learning online to help you get the most out of learning experience:
An online class can be just as real as an in-person class if you have the discipline to treat it as such.
This means being present and engaged in the class, with your camera on, not on your phone, and not skipping class just because you “don’t feel like going.”
The flexibility that online classes offer is a blessing and a curse. You can learn from anywhere, at any time, but you must discipline yourself to do so.
Treat an online course with the same respect you would an in-person course, and you will reap the benefits of this incredible tool.
One of the best tips for online classes is just take the responsibility for your journey.
When you’re a student in a traditional school setting, your parents and teachers set deadlines for you and require you to meet them.
However, if you’re seeking out coursework on your own, it’s up to you to hold yourself responsible for your work in an online course.
You also need to figure out if you are a degree or a certificate preferring person.
If you want to succeed in your course and get the most out of it, then you need to be responsible for your education.
Set deadlines for yourself to complete all assignments before they’re due. It’s vital to learn how to manage your time, stay organized and be disciplined.
The more effort you put into self-discipline, the more you’ll thrive with your online classes.
One of my best tips for learning online is the importance of building a routine.
Not everyone works best under the same circumstances, so you'll have to do a bit of work to find out what works for you.
Do you work best in the morning? Afternoon? Evening?
Do you prefer to study in small increments every day, or to schedule large chunks of time together once or twice a week?
The better you know yourself, the easier it will be to create your own personalized study routine.
Make sure you create realistic goals for yourself when you create your study routine.
It’s no use telling yourself you’ll study 2 hours a day if you’ve never managed more than an hour.
Start small and work your way up to build your confidence step by step.
Tips for online classes include productively is to check your progress systematically.
While it’s important to have a routine, it’s equally important to make sure that the routine you’ve created is actually serving you.
Don’t just obsess over doing your routine perfectly–take a moment to ask yourself what works and what doesn’t.
Have you been sticking to your routine? Where did you deviate? Did you make progress even if you didn’t achieve your goal?
As you work through these questions, try to be objective.
If you find that you’ve overestimated your potential, don’t beat yourself up about it.
Try recalibrating to see if there are changes you can make to help yourself get there. Or, perhaps the best thing to do is take a few steps back and be patient with yourself until you’ve grown a little more.
One potential downside of online learning is that the lines between work and play can become blurred.
It's important to take breaks when needed, so you can show up for your class without burning out.
Be kind to yourself when you don’t achieve your goals, and celebrate the times that you do.
This can be as simple as spending a night out with friends, which can itself act as a way to get you recharged and refocused on your goals.
Procrastination is the deadliest of all bad habits. It paralyzes us when we tell ourselves, "I'll do it tomorrow." Procrastination not only threatens your productivity and ability to achieve your goals but it also makes you stressed out and anxious.
Putting things off only lengthens the amount of time that you have to worry and stress out.
Make sure you tackle the tasks you hate the most first when you make your to-do lists.
This will give you the push you need to keep going rather than stand still.
If you’re tempted to procrastinate, create a reminder on your phone.
You can also use online Pomodoro Timers to balance out work and breaks.
You’ll force yourself to take breaks, and you will train yourself to switch between the two seamlessly.
Here we go with number one tip for learning online. You only have one life to live–surely you don’t want any of it to go to waste.
When you sign up for an online course, you’re taking a step towards an important goal.
Maybe you’re learning a new language for a trip you have planned, or picking up a skill to help you get a promotion at work.
As you pursue your goals, remember to take a moment to remind yourself of why you made this commitment in the first place.
If you can visualize what it is you want, it will be that much easier to give it your all.
Remember that lifelong learning is essential for good life quality.
These tips for online classes will help you get the most out of your online education, without the benefit of in-person learning.
Follow these tried-and-tested tips, and you’ll create a routine that brings out the best in you.
How to become an entrepreneur? Entrepreneurial thinking is the ability to spot a way to do something better than it's been done before, and then to make it happen.
Entrepreneurship has taken many forms, from the artisan shops of the Middle Ages to the multinational corporations of today. However, every entrepreneur has his or her own unique story.
While some entrepreneurs have been full-time business people, others have worked other jobs and used their skills as entrepreneurs at night or on the weekends.
Some entrepreneurs started companies that were intended to create only one new product or service; others were the founding patrons of entire industries.
Becoming an entrepreneur is all about building something out of nothing but an idea, and that’s a concept as old as time itself.
Most people don't understand what it means to be an entrepreneur. Many are even scared of the word, attributing to it negative connotations such as 'risk-taking' and 'failure.'
Here we’ll take a look at the very nature of entrepreneurship, from both a strictly factual perspective, and from a more personal perspective.
Deciding to be an entrepreneur does not make you one. Nor does being born into a family that encourages entrepreneurship or joining a startup immediately after graduating from college.
An entrepreneur is someone who organizes and operates a business, taking on significant financial risks to turn their dream into a reality.
Entrepreneurship can be a deeply fulfilling, liberating and empowering way to live.
Starting a company and growing it from a seed of an idea to a thriving company, however, can be very difficult.
You need a lot of business savvy and skill in order to navigate the steps to becoming an entrepreneur.
While some people are born with the traits necessary to be entrepreneurs, others have to learn them through practice.
The good news is that, if you have enough drive and determination, you can learn how to be an entrepreneur.
Why become an entrepreneur? The benefits are many, but that doesn’t mean it’s right for everyone.
Here are a few of the main reasons you might find the answer on why become an entrepreneur and what changes it can deliver. Learn the steps of becoming an entrepreneur.
The main reason why most people choose to become entrepreneurs is because they want independence.
When you create your own company, you work for yourself.
You don’t have to report to anyone, get anyone else’s permission to make decisions, or be beholden to a schedule that you don’t set.
Entrepreneurship grants you a certain level of freedom and flexibility that most people don’t have.
You can build a schedule around your own needs, control your own salary, and grow your business as fast or as slow as you want.
Entrepreneurs often start their own businesses because they see an unmet need in the market.
If you stumble across a business opportunity that no one else has identified, you can find success by offering people something they cannot currently get elsewhere.
A strong desire to help other people provides many entrepreneurs with the motivation they need to succeed.
Passionate people who want to share their creative ideas with the world can make a difference in that way by becoming an entrepreneur.
Money should not be the primary motivating factor in your life, but it can be the driving force behind successful entrepreneurship.
With financial risk comes the potential for great financial gain, and founding a company can lead to high levels of income.
You may have the most business savvy, but that doesn’t mean you should rest on your laurels. Here are some skills to practice every day if you want to become a successful entrepreneur.
Communication is key to working effectively with other people. In order to be an entrepreneur, you need to know how to practice active listening.
Improve your communication skills by reading up on civil discourse and active listening, asking others for honest feedback, and proofreading all written communication.
Leaders know how to motivate, inspire, and guide the people they lead. Practice your leadership skills by taking on more responsibility, striving for discipline, and taking initiative.
A hunger to learn and challenge yourself will help build you into the leader you need to be.
Entrepreneurs can’t afford to take their eye off the ball. Hone in your ability to focus by setting goals for yourself every day.
Consistently check in with your progress and make a daily effort towards your goal. You’ll soon develop a stronger sense of focus that will serve you well on your entrepreneurial journey.
The best entrepreneurs are curious people. The more interested you are in learning, the more you’ll grow. Use every challenge as an opportunity to learn.
The only person you’re competing with is the person you were yesterday, so try every day to learn more than you knew before.
Routines help center us and keep us fixed on our goals. But life throws us constant curveballs, which is why flexibility is a must-have for any entrepreneur.
If you practice flexibility, you’ll be able to push through challenges without becoming derailed. Challenge yourself to adapt to new circumstances and practice humility by becoming willing to change when needed.
So, how do you become an entrepreneur? There are many tips that can help you get started on the path to creating your own business.
Here are a ten initiatives for an entrepreneurial plan:
The first step in how to become an entrepreneur is to come up with an idea for your startup.
A business is only as good as its ideas, which means that this is the single most important decision you’ll make in your journey.
Brainstorm on products or services your business can provide its customers; then do research to see which ones have the greatest potential for profitability.
It’s okay if your business isn’t entirely unique. Maybe you’re inspired by the variety of subscription box services popping up around the world and want to do something in that vein.
As long as you’re offering something that no one else is (or doing it in a better way) and you market yourself properly, you can take advantage of a surge in popularity around a certain area—and eventually grow beyond it.
Maybe you’ve been working in a coffee shop for years, and you’ve realized that there is only one bakery in your city that delivers gluten-free pastries.
Because the demand for this niche product isn’t being met, you could capitalize on it by starting your own bakery.
Always look for ways to improve the things people are already doing.
If you can find a way to create a better way to do something that’s already being done, that’s a valuable business idea worth pursuing.
Before you narrow your product focus, do your research on potential customers. The more you know about who your ideal customers would be, the better you’ll be able to serve them.
By researching data on who your ideal customers would be, you’ll be able to focus your time on qualified prospects and develop a product that meets their specific needs.
A minimum viable product (MVP) helps you to improve your product early on by receiving and integrating user feedback.
This gives you a plethora of information about your customers with very little effort.
It also allows you to release your product as quickly as possible, test it before committing to a larger budget, and improve it based on customer feedback.
Your business plan is the road map to your company's future.
Early investors want to see a formal business plan, so try to be as detailed as you can with it early on. You can always refine it and add to it over time.
If you have a minimum viable product, seek feedback from your customers to ensure that you’re creating something that solves their problems.
If you don’t have a minimum viable product, incorporate feedback into your work to make sure you’re best serving your customer’s needs.
Having a co-founder or two can help you run your business and take some of the pressure off.
It is easier to delegate work with someone else by your side who has different skills than you, and the stress of running a business will be lessened when there are more than one people sharing it.
Once you’re on the ground, you’ll want to keep learning new things about your business.
The more hands-on you are, the more you’ll understand how your business works and how you can improve.
Starting a business is not an easy task. It takes courage and risk. Some businesses succeed, and some fail.
You may think the challenges of starting a business are enormous. You’re right.
That’s why most people don't start a business, or taper off after the initial excitement and motivation fades.
If you want to become an entrepreneur, you need to start applying what you've learned in this guide, by adhering to the trends, and by being honest with yourself about your strengths and weaknesses.
You can be among the small minority of self-employed individuals who are successful in building companies they are passionate about.
Collaboration is the art of people working together to achieve a common goal.
It isn’t just about teamwork, but also about maximizing each member's unique expertise. And when you exercise collaboration skills in the workplace, you boost team productivity.
Over the last few years, I've been focused on building three purpose-driven startups, and I've seen the power and importance of collaboration among teams time and time again.
It offers different perspectives, advice and energy to keep a company growing. Collaborating can mean the difference between a good idea and great execution.
It gives your team access to a wealth of ideas, resources and connections that can help you get started or grow your business in new ways.
According to a 2023 workplace survey, 75% of employees believe team cooperation is crucial to the company’s success.
Interestingly, the same study found that 40% of the employees think their workplace lacks collaboration.
As a leader, you must fix this disconnect.
Collaboration at work is the key to unleashing the full potential of your employees.
You need to build a cohesive team that pools their resources and builds on each others’ expertise.
Here is a comprehensive guide to collaboration skills and how to foster them in your organization.
Collaboration skills are the soft skills that enable people to work together as a team.
They help you build strong relationships, work on complex situations, and make decisions that drive collective growth.
The stronger the team’s collaborative skills, the better it performs.
Here are some essential collaborative skills:
When a company is fully transparent in its communication, employees are able to collaborate and work together more effectively.
Focus levels increase, leading to greater productivity and fewer information swaps within the team.
Flexible thinking allows you to consider different ways of approaching the same situation.
When your team is open to hearing diverse ideas, they’ll develop innovative solutions to effectively move towards the company’s goal.
When employees are able to relate to how their colleagues feel, it helps them improve the team's overall efficiency.
Due to empathic communication team members feel for each other helps create an environment of collaboration and respect.
Leaders should foster to improve collaboration skills in their teams to create a growth-oriented work environment.
A team that collaborates well is more likely to deliver innovative results and create new opportunities for growth.
Here are the four best ways to develop collaborative skills at the workplace:
When you use ambiguous language at the workplace, it can be confusing and detrimental to productivity.
Each person on your team will have unique views and biases; they might misinterpret your words if you don’t communicate clearly.
That’s why you must give clear instructions without resorting to jargon.
Challenge your team with difficult projects.
This will encourage them to grow and help you and your organization become better versions of yourselves.
It will also strengthen the team’s collaboration as they navigate the choppy waters together.
Encourage your employees to share their knowledge with others.
This way, they can move past the obstacles faster and achieve quicker results.
Just be sure to make sure that you set guidelines as to what they can share in order to avoid any security risks.
Civil discourse provides a safe space for your team to freely share their views without fearing judgment.
People are more likely to say what they think, when they are not afraid of getting in trouble or being belittled.
Civil discourse creates a sense of openness and encourages people to speak up.
In a world where the best innovation is happening in collaboration, collaboration is the new imperative.
It may be the only way to accelerate innovation, improve agility, increase adaptability and cut costs all at once.
But building a collaborative culture is not always an easy transformation for the traditionally independent entrepreneur.
I’ve had to learn to trust the abilities of others to execute on my vision, and I’ve found that the true power of collaboration skills lies in how well you communicate.
How to improve collaboration skills in the workplace? Open communication is the key to fostering true workplace collaboration.
Here are the four criteria with examples of collaboration skills you must meet to achieve this:
Focus on what the other person is saying rather than waiting for your turn to speak.
Strive to understand the underlying intent in people’s speech. Ask questions if something isn’t clear.
Your writing should be clear and concise and convey your intended message.
It should be comprehensive, tie up loose ends, and leave the reader with clear takeaways.
Use descriptive language that every team member can grasp.
Frame your sentences in a way that doesn’t make you sound confrontational.
What you say is as important as how you say it. Your body language, gestures, tone, and facial expressions speak louder than words.
Maintain eye contact while speaking, keep your tone polite, and nod on points you agree with.
If we want to succeed in business, and in life, we must all collaborate. It’s a big part of how we work today. But it’s important to evaluate how you and your people collaborate on a regular basis.
It’s not enough to simply hire talented individuals. As a leader, you must build a collaborative team that’s greater than the sum of its parts.
Each member must align their efforts to achieve the collective goal. Honing your effective communication skills is the key to fostering collaboration. You need to put conscious effort into adapting it to your demeanor.
Hi everyone,
As the holiday season comes to a close, and the new year is in sight, I find myself feeling both grateful and overwhelmed.
It's a time of year when my primary goal is to be present with my family and take a break from my daily routines, but I also have a growing list of priorities and deadlines to tackle. It can be a bit of a balancing act moving a startup forward while making time for holiday activities, so I'm trying to embrace the concept of ichigyo-zammai, a Japanese philosophy of channeling your focus on one thing at a time.
This week, I'll continue tackling a few high-priority items that many of my fellow founders may also be focused on: reducing burn, goal planning for 2023, and clarifying a vision for the future – especially with so much uncertainty in the market.
Most of all, I’m grateful for all the lessons of this year and to finally reap some fruits from the seeds that were planted all year long.
So, without further delay, I want to update you on some exciting news to come, and happenings across the board.
AUDO’S MVP IS LAUNCHING IN LESS THAN A WEEK!
Audo’s MVP opens the doors of our A.I. Career Planner where our proprietary AI asks you questions to identify your goals, skills, and interests to match you with the best courses and certificates to reach your desired career outcome.
For $39 a month, you get unlimited access to over 15k courses created by some of the largest companies and employers. With each course completed, our AI then matches you with job opportunities available anywhere on the internet. Affordable education, personalized to the user, powered by job market availability.
I’m obsessed with creating an alternative to college for Zoomers (Gen Z) and future generations. I believe that the A.I. we’re building will soon be powerful enough to help anyone pivot their career, or rejoin the job force based on their needs.
Making money on the internet is easier than ever. Digital skill acquisition is more affordable than ever. But a college degree is more expensive than it’s ever been. During this current market downturn, many of our beta users have been prioritizing upskilling with us because they need to find work before graduating high school and help support their families affected by layoffs. I know there is a better way to approach career navigation, and we know these gigs exist online.
Audo can help people on their way to consistent income through freelancing and upskilling.
The validation of our concept by real users has been encouraging. We’ve been generating 100 new signups a day and have over 12,000 registered and waitlisted users since we began our Beta in September.
All I’m going to say is that this MVP has been a lot of blood, sweat, and tears to ensure we don’t lose momentum. While the day we push this release will be exciting, what’s more exciting is the momentum we’ve built going into the coming year.
Cheers to an amazing team and especially our users above all else.
MY FIRST BOOK IS COMING OUT!! AH!
I’m Just Saying: A Guide to Maintaining Civil Discourse in an Increasingly Divided World will publish in the first half of 2023 and is available for pre-order now. Wow, that feels good to say: my first book is almost done!
I’m Just Saying draws from history, popular culture, and personal anecdotes from my own life to explore the concept and practice of civil discourse, an essential part of democracy and civilized society that is becoming rare in today's digital age. (As I’m sure you’ve noticed!)
Why would my publisher be interested in the hot take of a 23-year-old, privileged, tech-founder on the ancient practice of civil discourse? This one for me is personal. From my days at Colorado College to founding Nota (formerly known as The Doe), the anonymous publishing site I launched, to managing multiple remote teams across continents, I’ve witnessed such a massive breakdown in civil discourse during a time of hyper-scrutiny and cancel culture.
It’s worth noting as someone who loves tech that this book doesn’t exist to negate the amazing value technology has brought so much as it exists to analyze technology’s impact on civil discourse in society.
Do not get me wrong, I love A.I, and I love efficiency, but the truth is that we’ve lost the art of micro relationships and basic connections made through our conversations with both people we love and those we only encounter briefly. I’ve spent years reflecting on this, studying this, and working to scale civil discourse.
I also intended this book to be helpful to fellow founders and builders who want to lead their increasingly remote and global teams by leveraging the power of civil discourse. (It really makes a difference, trust me!)
You’ll be hearing much more about the book in the coming months. But for now, you can help me out by putting in some pre-orders, here!
SENTIMENTS FROM GUIN AND NOTA
A quick update from the two other companies I founded, but stepped away from as CEO this year: Guin and Nota.
Guin Records, helmed by Misha Kordestani, has spent all year “storming and norming,” refining processes, exploring tech solutions to fill gaps, and preparing for a year of newly structured deals and a new tier of artists. We have a new website we’re excited to launch in the first quarter, and a tech product baking in Figma that we hope might eventually scale some of the basic record label functions we know artists will need most in this challenging industry.
On the Nota front, we’ve fully pivoted to our new product offering launching in 2023 under the direction of CEO Josh Brandau. There’s a lot of low-hanging fruit to build tech solutions to help the digital publishing industry that has long been bleeding. In the age of free information and social media, we’re on a mission to create a marketplace and streaming economy for journalists, writers, and digital publishers. That’s our long-term vision, but today, we’re building with AI to make content more accessible for consumers, and give publishers an edge to ensure their information reaches the masses before misinformation does.
This starts with AI text-to-video, AI SEO automation for entire article libraries, and more. We’re currently fielding feedback and inquiries from publishers interested in pilot partnerships of our beta, and finding ways to bring the larger vision to life as fast as possible.
SEE YOU IN THE NEW YEAR.
Friends, that’s all I’ve got for this rainy winter day.
Here are some words I'm using to anchor my coming year: iterate, automate, delegate, learn and balance.
I’m a big fan of mantras. One of my favorites this time of year is, “Rome wasn’t built in a day, but they were layering bricks every hour.”
Let me know what kind of goals you’re focused on for 2023. I’d love to use this monthly newsletter as an opportunity to hear your rants and learn from or reconnect with you.
Warmly,
Milan
Our lives are ever-changing. New technology is constantly being updated, skills that were valuable for us only a few years ago might no longer be relevant, and the speed at which this change occurs is increasing with each passing year.
Continuous learning is the best way to stay ahead of the curve. By continuously learning, you can develop your skills and grow in your career.
According to research, 54% of employees believe that continued training and new skills are essential to keep up with workplace changes.
Too often, companies fail to implement the training necessary to help their employees succeed.
Constant learners, however, take it upon themselves to learn new skills and stay relevant by doing so.
In this blog post I will cover everything you need to know about the importance of continual learning, how it can benefit your life, and what steps you can take to practice it with purpose.
Continuous learning is the continuous desire to keep learning, developing new skills and techniques, and refining your existing ones.
It is a pathway to not only developing the skills necessary to excel in your career, but also to grow and be a better person.
Unlike traditional schooling or on-the-job training, continually learning is something you take on yourself to grow and learn new skills.
You should never feel like you’re constantly learning without interruption.
Continually learning is about being willing to take opportunities to improve your skills and abilities over the course of your life. It is a lifelong learning journey.
There are no limits to the ways in which one can benefit from continually learning.
I owe much of my success to this practice, as I believe that my desire to grow and learn as much as possible played a major role in getting me where I am today.
Here are some of the ways in which you can benefit from being a continual learner:
The first and most important benefit of continuous learning is that it can help you learn new skills. 80% of people agree that learning new skills would make them more engaged, but only 56% of people actually go out and learn new skills.
When you make a habit of learning new things, you open up a world of opportunities. Even something as simple as taking an online course in programming can take your career to the next level. Get aware of how to learn new skills.
When you don't have the skills to do your job well, your mental health suffers just as much as your work does.
40% of workers with poor training decide to leave their companies within the first year.
This shows the importance of continual learning in building our confidence at work.
When you know you have the skills to do what’s demanded of you, you find out just how much a sense of confidence can help you achieve.
You may be perfectly qualified for a job when first hired, but if you’re not a continual learner, you’ll soon fall behind.
Technology changes rapidly, which affects almost every industry in the world.
As the world changes, so do the needs of business.
Accountants are switching from paper filing to digital, programmers have to learn new coding systems, and the real estate market is constantly shifting.
Continuous learning allows you to stay on top of new developments, learning new skills when necessary and adapting seamlessly.
People who take the initiative and go above and beyond in their work are rewarded.
If you take the reins of your own training, your superiors will notice your effort and reward you for it.
Taking an extra online class or two might make you eligible for a promotion or provide you with an extra bargaining chip for a raise.
If you stay stagnant and don’t try to learn, however, don’t be surprised when you’re still working the same job after 15 years.
To get something different, you have to do something different. Continuous learning is the key to getting you where you want to go in your career.
Continually learning is not limited to your career. Continuous learners embrace growth in every area of their life, making them more well-rounded people.
Pursuing personal development goals will make you a more likable person and improve your social and professional relationships.
By practicing mindfulness, you can become more emotionally adept.
Learning to play a new instrument can also help you become more cultured and enrich your life through new hobbies.
If you want to become a continuous learner, you’ll have to make a concerted effort to practice it with purpose. Here are a few ways you can create a culture of continuous learning:
The goal of continually learning is to create a habit of growth, so that you can keep growing throughout your life.
The more you embrace growth as a way of life, the easier it will be to welcome opportunities instead of turning them down.
If you cultivate a mindset of constant growth, you’ll be amazed at the opportunities that present themselves.
For example, you may notice a poster advertising a dance class or start researching online courses to find one that seems interesting.
When you choose to remain open to growth, continuous learning becomes a way of life.
It’s difficult to be a continual learner if your desires are vague. Sure, you may have a desire to learn Italian, but what exactly does that look like?
Do you want to be fluent by a certain date? Take a certain number of classes in a year? Prepare for a upcoming trip to Italy?
If you set concrete goals for yourself, these goals can provide the necessary motivation to keep showing up for the learning process.
Growth is impossible without feedback. Without feedback from people who know what they’re talking about, you risk standing still.
Seek out feedback wherever you can in order to identify opportunities for growth.
Ask your boss at work to identify areas in which you could improve and then check in with him or her regularly to see how you're growing.
Find people who have the skills you want and ask them what they did to obtain them.
Feedback will give you an objective gauge of where you are in the learning process, so that you can accurately measure your progress.
Learning is a lot more fun when you are doing it with other people.
A great way to motivate yourself to learn new things is to join groups of people who share your common interests.
By taking online courses you can find new opportunities, advice and camaraderie in a new environment.
Online platforms can be particularly helpful by putting you in touch with other people taking the same online courses as you.
To keep up your motivation to keep learning, take a look at how far you've come.
Check in with yourself regularly to see the ways in which you've grown. What new skills have you gained?
What courses have you completed? What changes have you seen in your life since you started?
Writing these things down can help you see just how beneficial continuous learning has been in your life.
Never let a new skill go to waste. Put it to use in whatever way you can, even if it’s just a little bit, to keep yourself sharp.
If you’ve learned to play the piano, incorporate it into your life by booking a concert series with friends.
If you’re learning a new language, plan a trip to another country to practice speaking with the locals.
This will cultivate inspiration and drive in you to continue developing your skills and finding new skills to pursue.
If you want to continuously learn, online platforms can help you do so. If you're interested in adopting continuous learning, then career building destinations like Audo can connect you with helpful courses that teach you valuable new skills.
One of my goals with Audo is to provide a space for people to discover new skills, gain knowledge and experience life-changing moments.
With Audo, you’ll get specific course recommendations based on your own unique interests and skills.
You’ll start seeing the benefits of continuous learning right away as you join the marketplace, where you can put those skills to use.
If you consider yourself not missing an opportunity of learning, get tips for online learning to make the process more valuable.
Continual learning requires a growth mindset, an unwavering thirst for knowledge and a dedication to change.
If you embrace continual learning, you push yourself to a higher level of potential than you ever realized possible.
I encourage you to follow these tips and become a lifelong learner. It may take some work, but the results will be well worth it.
How to learn new skills has always been one of the most popular questions during all the courses of time.
However, it gained more popularity due to the entry of novelties and new industry demands.
Learning new skills is an enriching, rewarding experience that shouldn't be confined to universities or corporate training sessions.
Being a skilled person means having a large toolkit of various skills. That allows you to solve a wider variety of problems in your life than someone with just one or two very specific skills.
But accumulating new skills is difficult. You can't just read a book, implement and repeat. That won't make you good at anything, or let you hold your own in the long term.
According to research, 80% of people agreed new skills to learn would make them more engaged. Despite this figure, only 56% of people actually go out and make the effort to learn new skills.
You can improve the quality of your life and career by learning new skills. Read on to find out how to get started and keep building upon the new skills to learn.
Whether you’re looking for a job or trying to advance in your career, the skills that you have are what set you apart from your fellow employees.
Not changing with the times is fatal for any sort of work. Of course, we're all given skills training at universities. But it's not enough to have taken a course in spreadsheet programming.
It is a lifelong learning experience. How to learn new skills? Surely, you have seen that new programs are coming along every day, so you have to know how to use each one.
If you focus on new skills to learn that are the most useful for your growth, you can impress potential employers and build a strong resumé.
Let’s say you want to be a graphic designer; by taking an online learning course to learn how to use Photoshop, you open yourself up to higher-quality graphic design jobs.
New skills and knowledge open doors to many different career possibilities.
For instance, if you take a programming class and discover that you have a knack for IT work, you can use this information to your advantage when looking for jobs.
Trying to learn everything at once can be overwhelming. In order to start the journey of new skills to learn quickly and completely, build a strategy to do so. Follow these tips on how to learn new skills quickly and effectively:
To move forward, you need to know where you’re going. Ask yourself what your goals are. A promotion at work? A change of career? Increased social connections?
Once you have a sense of what it is you’re trying to achieve, you’ll be able to identify the new skills that will get you there.
For example, if your goal is to get promoted to a management position, then you may want to take online courses that help you gain the soft skills needed to excel in that position, such as time management and conflict resolution.
While we may want to be good at everything, it usually doesn’t work that way. It’s better to build upon our strengths instead of focusing solely on our weaknesses.
A great way to identify useful skills to learn is to ask yourself which skills you already have.
Are you good at working with people? Skilled with technology? Talented with language?
For instance, if you have excellent people skills and want a position that requires managing other people, what other skills do you need?
Maybe you have the people skills down but lack some of the technical knowledge required for the position. Online courses or training can help you become a perfect candidate for your desired position.
It can also help to break down big skills into little skills. If you want to be more disciplined, break down your goal into smaller skills.
Time management, motivation, and accountability are all useful skills that will help you achieve your larger goal.
Once you have identified the smaller skills that make up the larger skill of discipline, you can focus on learning each of them one at a time.
Before thinking on how to learn new skills, you need to know that learning is challenging. There will always be an obstacle standing in your way.
It may be money, or time, or simply a lack of willingness. Whatever the obstacle is, you need to identify it. You must overcome it if you ever want to learn the skill in question.
For each new skill you want to learn, write a list of the obstacles in your way. Maybe you want to learn to speak Spanish, but you have no extra money for classes and little free time to learn.
To help yourself overcome these barriers, write out another list of all the benefits you’ll receive from the new skill.
Maybe learning Spanish will help you take on even more clients at work or take that trip to Spain you always dreamed of. Look at this list for inspiration whenever an obstacle is convincing you to give up.
A great way to stay motivated while learning new skills is to set up a rewards system for yourself.
When you've successfully gained a new skill, how will you celebrate? It can be as big as taking a trip abroad or as small as going out to a favorite restaurant.
Rewarding yourself for your efforts can help you create a positive association between learning and rewards.
Once you've gotten started learning new skills, it takes time, patience, and determination to keep going. Here are some suggestions for mastering new abilities:
You won’t become a master overnight. Be realistic with what you hope to accomplish and give yourself a break if you’re moving slower than expected.
As long as you stay consistent, none of your efforts will have been wasted.
Getting better at a new skill is hard, but it can be even harder when you don't have the right motivation. Take a moment to check your progress at regular checkpoints.
What have you been doing lately to learn new skills? What have you accomplished? How far have you come?
This will help you remember the effort you’ve put into learning something new and encourage you not to give up.
The path of new skills to learn is an ongoing process, with some skills you learn once and that’s it, but others require practice to grow.
Keep practicing the skills you’ve learned and find new ways to incorporate them into your life. This will keep you sharp, and you’ll go from novice to master with time.
When you define new skills to learn with other people, you get a lot of benefits you wouldn’t get when learning alone. If you take an online course, reach out to the other people in your class to connect.
You can tap into a wealth of advice and opportunities by connecting with other learners in the same boat as you. They can provide invaluable feedback that will help you improve even more!
While most skills are learned through trial and error, it can be helpful to take classes or join a group dedicated to teaching that skill.
If you like the idea of continuous learning, here are tips for online learning to help you boost your potential.
Look for resources that teach some of the skills you’re interested in acquiring. For instance, if you want to become a web developer, research coding bootcamps and other online courses in that field.
You can even attend conferences dedicated to programming to network with other people in the industry.
If you’re trying to learn new skills, an online learning platform makes learning easy and convenient. I created Audo to help Gen Z and Millennials gain career-relevant skills to set them up for success.
Unlike other online learning platforms, Audo takes into account your skills, experience, and passion to help you find which courses best suit your needs.
Now that you know the most effective strategies to learn new skills, there’s no reason not to get started.
Following these tips will help you get started on this learning journey, and don’t forget to stop every once in a while to appreciate all of the useful new skills you’ve acquired to make your life better.
Active listening is a skill that many people lack because it's not something that we are accustomed to practicing.
Body language helps to spot when someone has poor communication skills like poor eye contact, uninterested facial expression, inattentive body posture, or talking over another person.
But active listening is harder to identify because it's a combination of only two things: paying attention and making it clear that you are paying attention using nonverbal communication.
If you aren't aware of how others are demonstrating their ability to give good active listening, you may feel like you're doing a good job of actively listening when, in fact, you aren't even close.
Active listening is the process of paying close attention to the other person's body language, tone and choice of words.
The goal is to communicate, understand people and build trust. If it's done well, you can use these techniques to really connect with someone - even strangers or new contacts.
This may mean paying attention to their body language to help interpret their words–it also may mean verbally acknowledging what they say and replying with relevant comments.
According to the University of Missouri, 45% of communication is listening, and yet the average person remembers around 25-50% of what they hear.
That means that when you’re venting to a friend, having a meeting with your boss, or chatting with a customer, most of what you say goes in one ear and out the other.
The difference between active and passive listening lies in your reaction.
While passive listening means not reacting at all, active listening usually involves verbal or physical reactions to encourage the speaker to continue.
These reactions show you’re listening to what’s being said without interrupting the speaker with your own thoughts.
Active listening will help you in almost every area of life, from being an awesome friend to being a more effective and mindful leader.
It’s also an essential part of civil discourse: you must listen in order to share a discursive space.
When you listen actively, you respect the person you're communicating with and gain the information you need to be a better friend, better leader and colleague.
The three A’s of active listening are:
1. attention
2. attitude
3. adjustment
So, what is active listening? Attention requires you to be fully in tune to everything the speaker communicates, including their words, gestures, and facial expressions.
Eliminating distractions and maintaining eye contact are vital components of paying close attention to the speaker.
When actively listening, you need to have a positive and open-minded attitude.
A scowl or an eye roll can shut down the other speaker and make them less willing to be honest with you.
Lastly, you need to be able to adjust your gestures and body language in order to react to what you’re hearing.
Nobody wants to talk to a blank wall, which is why it’s important to show you’re receiving the information being given to you (without being too over-the-top).
There are a few tips and techniques you can use to become an active listener in civil dialogue.
If you practice these techniques regularly for self-improvement, you’ll become a better communicator.
You can boost your productivity in the workplace, and improve relationships in and outside of work via accurate collaboration skills.
So, what exactly are the active listening skills you can learn? Here are 8 tips for how to be a better active listener:
It’s impossible to be an active listener when your mind is elsewhere. In order to take in everything that’s being communicated to you, avoid distractions, communication barriers and pay attention.
Mute your phone, make eye contact with the person speaking to you, and wait to formulate a response. If you find your thoughts wandering, gently bring yourself back to the conversation.
It can be tempting to jump in with helpful advice or anecdotes, but avoid interrupting at all costs.
Wait until the person has finished speaking to make sure that you fully understand what it is they’re trying to say.
If you interrupt, you run the risk of cutting them off before they give you all the relevant information.
If you feel as though you have something you need to say, make a mental note to bring it up later and display respect for other opinions.
We can’t make an accurate judgment of what we’re being told before we know everything.
Defer judgment until the conversation is over to avoid polluting your understanding of the speaker’s message.
If you do find yourself making a judgment, try to avoid interrupting with judgmental comments or leading questions.
Be ready to change your mind at any moment based on new information and find common ground.
Your body language might be saying something even if your words aren’t.
If you’re closed off and making gestures or facial expressions that express judgment or discontent, this is just as bad as interrupting.
Make sure you’re remaining open and interested in what the other person is saying.
Make affirmative body movements by nodding, smiling, or peppering in a few comments that encourage the speaker to keep going.
Active listening is primarily about accurately receiving all the information you can and how to show respect.
If you find yourself confused about what’s being said, ask follow-up questions to clarify the speaker’s points.
Make sure you understand what’s actually being said without allowing your own assumptions to fill in the gaps.
Practicing civil discourse is a great way to sharpen your active listening skills.
Be mindful of your body language, listen carefully even when you disagree, and ask questions to help understand different perspectives from your own.
Sometimes the best way to clarify what’s being said is to repeat it back to the speaker.
Try using sentences like “What I’m hearing is…” and “So you’re saying…” to make sure you understand what they are saying.
As humans, we’re wired to make quick judgments about things.
It’s important to refrain from jumping to conclusions, however, as this can cause you to tune out what’s being said.
Active listening is easy to recognize, even if it takes some work to do.
To train yourself to become an active listener, check out this example of active listening:
Jeff: Hey, do you mind if I talk to you about something that’s been on my mind?
Rachel: Sure! Let me just put my phone on silent so you have my full attention.
Jeff: Thank you. I just need to vent about something that happened at work.
Rachel: Of course. Tell me more.
Jeff: My boss is always breathing down my neck, which makes it hard to concentrate. I’m always afraid of making mistakes.
Rachel: That must be really difficult to deal with.
Jeff: It is. Then today he criticized me in front of everyone in a meeting.
Rachel: How did that make you feel?
Jeff: It was humiliating. I feel like quitting. But I really love this job, and I don’t want to let this get in the way of that.
Rachel: I understand. I bet you could use some time to think about what you want to do.
Jeff: Yeah, I think so. Thank you for listening, I think I just needed to tell someone about it.
Be a better communicator, leader and listener by following these tips.
It won’t happen overnight, but if you stick with it consistently over time, your communication skills will improve.
Pretty soon, you’ll find yourself in every conversation focusing on the other person and what they have to say.
Self regulation skills are essential for great performance at work. When your sense of self-efficacy guides you to meet challenges, you can promote better health, productivity and creativity in yourself.
Effective self regulation skills enable you to perform the most important tasks on time and produce quality results, regardless of what you do or who you're doing it with.
Self regulation skills allow you to have a healthy balance between controlling your emotions and expressing them effectively, enabling you to be assertive without being aggressive.
Research shows that the more self-control you have, the better your relationships and interpersonal skills will be.
It also shows that people who are good at self-regulating statistically have higher grade point averages, better self-esteem, and more optimal emotional responses than those who don’t.
I’ve picked up a few self-regulating techniques in my journey for entrepreneur motivation rise, which I’ll share with you in this article.
Read on to find out more about self regulation, its meaning, and how it can help you become a mindful leader.
What is self regulation? It is the ability to control your behavior, emotions, and thoughts. It’s a critical component of emotional intelligence and a valuable tool to advance in life.
In order to be successful, we have to be willing to adjust to what life throws at us. We all go through times when we want to lash out, doubt ourselves, or give into the temptation to quit altogether.
But the hallmark of a successful person is knowing how to self-regulate our complex emotions so that we can push through them.
Self regulation and self-improvement are vital to your success in all areas of life. It helps you grow professionally as well as your personal life, making it a valuable tool for anyone to learn.
When you learn how to self-regulate, you’ll gain:
When you lack confidence, it's easy to lose hope when confronted with obstacles.
If you learn to control your emotions, stay calm in stressful situations and stand up for your beliefs you’ll see just how strong you really are.
Pushing through communication barriers and overcoming obstacles is a powerful way to increase self-confidence.
We can gain esteem by doing things that are valuable and useful for other people.
The only way we can act in a way that aligns with our values, however, is if we learn to manage our emotions through self-reflection.
Fear and anger can make us act in ways we normally wouldn’t, damaging our relationships and self-esteem.
Regulating our emotions helps us get benefits and have productive conflict, learning to turn disappointments into new opportunities for growth.
Handling stress well is a skill many people lack, and if you are able to perform well under pressure, your composure can inspire others.
Self-regulation allows you to handle stress in a way that makes you appear confident and composed.
We can all feel frustrated when things don’t go our way. But when you know how to self-regulate, you don’t let frustration derail your goals.
When we self-regulate, we accept and let go of our frustrations so that we can focus on what we do have control over.
Rigidity can hinder even the most talented leaders.
A good leader knows that life is a series of unexpected twists and turns, but instead of complaining about adversity, they adapt to their surroundings as a master of conflict avoidance.
Self-regulation skills are vital to enable us to manage our disappointment and adjust to our new reality.
Developing self regulation skills is a matter of practicing a few simple techniques on a regular basis.
These techniques will help you manage your emotions and behavior so that you can succeed both in and out of the workplace.
In order to deal with your emotions, you must first be aware of them. Self regulation doesn’t mean ignoring how you feel, but accepting it and moving past it.
To be free from the tyranny of your emotions, you must first become aware of what you’re feeling and accept it.
It’s how you pay attention in the present moment—without judgement—that brings about this awareness.
Once you’ve given yourself that space, you can then make a decision knowing that you’re not simply reacting with blind emotion.
Our emotions often manifest themselves in our physical body. When you feel a strong emotion, take a moment to monitor what’s happening in your body.
Are your palms sweaty? Heart racing? Teeth clenched? Notice what’s going on and then take steps to calm yourself down.
Practice deep breathing and use a stress ball if you find yourself needing a way to release tension.
Meditation is an excellent practice that helps you stay focused on the present moment. Even if you start small with only five minutes a day, you’ll train yourself to become more mindful.
You can then turn to meditation in the moment you feel strong emotions to calm yourself and encourage self-awareness.
Our physical health plays a huge role in determining our mood.
If you incorporate regular exercise into your life, you strengthen your body and your mind. Self-regulation is much easier when our physical and mental health is at its strongest.
While self-regulation skills can help you in every area of life, many of these skills are especially useful in the workplace. These include:
We communicate poorly when we let emotions cloud our judgment. By practicing self regulation, we can avoid listening barriers and improve communication skills with others without lashing out or shutting down.
Self regulation helps us to deal with conflicts in a constructive way. Instead of sticking to our guns out of spite or resentment, we will listen with an open mind to opinions that differ from our own.
It's only possible to have civil discourse when we're able to regulate our emotions and respect the people we're speaking with, which means refraining from judgmental comments, not interrupting other people, showing respect to other opinions, and listening fully before formulating our own response.
Negative emotions often keep us from making the best choices for ourselves.
When you are able to self-regulate, you’re better able to adapt and consider all your options when tackling problems.
It can be tough to manage our time well when we cut and run at the first sign of trouble.
Self-regulation combined with time management enable you to push through obstacles and show up for your commitments and deadlines.
It is only through mastering self regulation skills at work that you can thrive in the workplace and make sure that you are making the best use of your time and energy.
If you aim to improve yourself, you will find it much more fulfilling than trying to improve other people.
Using these strategies outlined here, take a few minutes each day to reflect on your goals and values and ways that your behavior needs to change, and then make an effort to put your plan into effect.
In time, you’ll find that mastering the art of self regulation will make you a better leader, partner, and friend.
There are countless books, articles, and practices designed to help you take charge of your life and be your best self.
There is one thing that almost all of them have in common: the need for self-reflection. In order to overcome our weaknesses, play to our strengths, and achieve our goals, we have to know ourselves.
Without regular self reflection activities, we may stay in a job we hate or a relationship that isn’t right for us.
Self reflection gives us the opportunity to learn from our mistakes and identify our desires.
Self reflection has been my greatest asset as an entrepreneur. Personal reflection helped me realize the kind of differences I wanted to make in the world.
I knew I wanted to help young artists with Guin Music, to restore civil discourse in the world with Nota.
Self reflection was the key that helped me find the mission behind my businesses and put them into action.
To help you learn how to self-reflect, I’ll define self-reflection and how it can benefit your life.
What is self reflection? Self reflection definition is the ability to dive in yourself to better understand your thoughts, behavior, and emotions.
Most of us struggle with self-awareness, but personal reflection gives us time to look back at our patterns of behavior and interpret the underlying causes.
We can analyze how we cope with difficult emotions, what brings us joy, and what it is we truly desire.
Self reflection gives us the ability to course correct when we find our actions straying from our value system and value conflicts.
Self reflection can be a powerful tool for enhancing relationships, achieving goals, and finding personal satisfaction and standing up for our beliefs.
However, too much time spent in self-reflection can lead to unhappiness and self-obsession.
We reflect on situations where we wished we had behaved differently so that we can learn from our mistakes, not beat ourselves up about it.
Self-judgement is not the point of personal reflection–rather, we simply wish to learn more about ourselves so we can improve our lives.
If you want to learn how to self-reflect, you need to work on three essential skills. The first skill is the ability to maintain an open mind about ourselves and the world.
Everyone has their own biases, but you must become aware of them if you wish to keep them from clouding your judgement. The second skill is the ability to be a neutral observer.
You have to learn how to observe yourself and the way you act with the same distance and lack of judgement you would offer a friend. Lastly, you must learn to be objective.
You must learn how to separate negative thoughts and feelings from who you are as a person.
Your identity is not defined by how you act or feel in any given moment, but by the culmination of all of your experiences.
If you want to know why reflection is important, simply look at the myriad ways it can benefit your life.
The benefits of self reflection range from the internal (personal fulfilment and satisfaction) to the external (achieving goals and improving relationships).
Here are the benefits of self reflection you need to know:
One of the greatest benefits of self reflection is the opportunity to learn from your mistakes.
By examining the way we act and feel in certain situations, we can learn what works for us and what doesn’t.
Let’s say you realize you do your best work first thing in the morning, but you’re hopeless in the late afternoon.
Self reflection can allow you to cater your schedule to prioritize the most important tasks early on.
This way you can maximize your efficiency and avoid falling into the same trap again and again.
Self-awareness is an important tool for living our best lives.
When you know what inspires and motivates you, you can accomplish more at work.
When you know what makes you frustrated or anxious, you can avoid or overcome these negative emotions.
If you feel great anxiety around meeting work deadlines, then self-reflection can help you realize the benefit of finishing projects a day or two ahead of time.
This can lessen the stress in your life and help you get ahead of your anxieties.
One of the biggest benefits of self-reflection is the ability to regulate our emotions.
How many times have you reacted out of emotion and then immediately regretted it?
When you engage in frequent self-reflection, you learn to anticipate your emotional reactions to things. This gives you time to equip yourself with tools to deal with the emotions instead of letting them get the better of you.
Self reflection is not only good for us, but the people around us as well.
Regular self-reflection makes us more self-aware, empathetic, and kinder people.
We choose healthier responses to things and change our behaviors when they don’t suit us.
This allows us to be better friends and coworkers as we show up for our responsibilities and our friends.
The personal growth you achieve as a result of self-reflection will help you achieve incredible goals.
Whether you want to switch to a new career, gain a promotion, or learn a new skill, self reflection can help you get there.
It can help you become more efficient, overcome obstacles, and silence your inner critic.
When you practice self-reflection, you get a better understanding of yourself. You become aware of your biases, triggers, and blind spots.
This makes you better equipped to handle difficult conversations without losing your temper or shutting down.
Because the goal of civil discourse and civil dialogue is to talk and share ideas and opinions without arguing, self-reflection is invaluable in the process.
By engaging in regular self-reflection, you strengthen your ability to have meaningful conversations with people who have different viewpoints than your own.
To help you get started on self-reflection, here are a few questions you can ask yourself:
Hopefully you’ve been able to find what self-reflection means in your life.
Keep an eye out for self-reflection examples in your life as you start your journey to greater self-awareness.
For today's consumers, it's not enough for companies to just sell a quality product.
Many consumers have an expectation that the companies they buy from are working towards meaningful change.
As companies grow and evolve, many want to make a social impact while others are content to pay lip service towards philanthropy without reaping much benefit.
As a purpose-driven entrepreneur, social impact is at the forefront of my mission.
For me, fulfillment comes from doing work that consciously, systemically and sustainably serves or attempts to solve a local or global community need.
Let’s discuss what it means to be a social impact company, and how you can make meaningful change the centerpiece of your business.
Social impact is any change that addresses or solves social injustice and other challenges.
Social impact businesses or organizations achieve these goals through conscious and deliberate efforts in both their operations and administrations.
Many companies incorporate philanthropy to various degrees, but in order to be considered a social impact company, social impact must be your primary goal which can be developed through social skills.
Social entrepreneurship enjoys a number of benefits not limited to the positive social change they choose to pursue. They are better known, attracting customers and employees who want to support worthy causes.
Most companies want their goods or services to help people, but social impact companies go above and beyond to help create a better world and build solutions to real problems in the world.
Companies with social impact can influence positively in a number of different ways.
Vivid social impact examples may be providing people with clean water and sanitation to fighting climate change, there’s no limit to the positive social changes a business can choose to pursue.
The United Nations has set a total of 17 Social Development Goals (SDGs) that call all countries to action in a global partnership.
These can act as a guide in choosing what kind of social impact you want to make.
A recent study showed that more than a third of consumers across the world would pay more for products or services that are making conscious efforts toward sustainability and creating social impacts.
Although it’s impossible for one person or organization to meet all 17 of these social impact goals, you can maximize your level of impact by choosing one goal and creating a detailed plan of steps to help you achieve that goal.
When viewed in their totality, social impact companies are important because they take profit-driven business models and make them sustainable.
Companies with social impact are not the complete solution to global challenges, but they are a step in the right direction.
That still requires significant shifts in public awareness, policy, and economic practices. But the rise of such organizations shows that businesses can be part of the solution.
People are increasingly interested in social impact companies that aim to tackle social issues through their business models. As long as those issues continue to exist, you have a sustainable business model and revenue.
When companies with social impact have a strong purpose that serves the greater good, it motivates employees to give their best.
A clear purpose, vision, and mission can motivate your leaders and team.
The more employees know about the company's goals, the more they will be able to work together to achieve success.
Setting measurable goals and tracking progress will encourage everyone to contribute his or her best effort.
In addition to generating more fulfilled, inspired employees, social impact companies are also attracting investors.
Impact investing is growing at a rapid pace. Investors want to generate environmental and social positive impact and financial returns.
Businesses that strive to serve, add value and create impact in the world will be rewarded by the marketplace.
Even businesses built around other models can incorporate social impact into how they operate.
Purpose and profit are no longer mutually exclusive concepts: It's time for companies to understand that doing good for society makes business sense.
Social impact can take many forms, such as eradicating poverty, providing clean water and sanitation, and using clean energy to create affordable innovations.
Companies that put an emphasis on social impact not only achieve lasting impact by helping to make society a better place to live, but also gain a competitive edge over other firms that aren't focused on similar goals.
Consumers are looking to buy from companies with purpose and investors are looking to make social issues central to their strategy and operations.
The only way for companies to outperform in this new era will be for them to go above and beyond their competitors, measuring and communicating their superior performance in the process.
Our global society faces enormous challenges, but boldness and strategic thinking will reward companies that address those issues.
How to improve time management? If you're like me, you never seem to have enough time in the day.
Despite scheduling everything down to my morning meditation on my calendar, some days I still feel like I can't get it all done.
Whether you’re a self-motivated entrepreneur or a high school student, it can be tough to find an effective time management practice.
In fact, research shows that 82% of people don’t know how to improve time management at all.
One of the most important lessons I've learned while building companies is that practicing time management can save you a tremendous amount of stress.
Time is a precious commodity. Entrepreneurs who are busy growing their businesses need to maximize every moment of their day.
Read on to find out more about the importance of time management and get effective time management tips to have better performance and increase life quality.
How can some people get so much done during the day?
The answer isn’t that time works differently for them—it’s that they have mastered time management.
Time management is the process of planning and delegating a specific amount of time to spend on certain activities.
Rather than spending "as long as it takes" on each individual task, you create a schedule in which you decide ahead of time how long to spend on each area.
If you want to know how to improve time management, you need to know, that it takes practice to make positive changes.
In order to stay motivated in your time-management efforts, you should learn about the benefits that successful time managers gain by consistently practicing their techniques.
Here are a few benefits for practicing effective time management:
People who don't manage their time well miss out on opportunities that are available to those who plan effectively.
Proper time management means less time wasted on non-essential activities, which can open you up to opportunities to engage in meaningful experiences that help advance your career.
Whenever we find ourselves running up against the clock, stress ensues.
When you can manage your time properly, you’ll find you meet deadlines with plenty of time to spare.
This will help you avoid the stress of letting your responsibilities slide, which can lead to tense situations with coworkers.
The better you manage your time, the more you can accomplish.
During the time you would otherwise waste, you could do any number of things–take an online course to learn a new skill, spend time with family, or even take on additional projects at work.
People know who they can rely on, and who they can't.
You want to be the person that others turn to for help, advice, and assistance.
With the right time management strategies, you can establish a reputation as someone dependable and trustworthy.
Burnout can come from taking on too much work and not enough rest, but it often finds its roots in poor time management.
While time management can help you become more efficient, it also requires that you schedule in the necessary amount of downtime to ensure you’ll be mentally and physically healthy enough to carry the burden.
You can be busy without being productive. When you lack time management skills, you may find that the busier you are, the less you actually achieve.
Struggling with time management is associated with higher levels of stress, insomnia, depression, and other mental health issues.
You’ll need to learn how to improve time management if you want to avoid burnout and inefficiency.
Here are some of the best time management tips I’ve learned on how to improve time management, building a more organized schedule, and achieving your goals:
Setting regular goals for yourself will provide you with direction and motivation throughout the day.
It’s easy to languish when you don’t know what you’re doing, but if you set specific and achievable daily goals, each new accomplishment will serve as a reinforcement.
Time management isn't about doing everything at once.
It's about prioritizing your activities and making choices that will help you achieve the outcome you want.
This is one of the most essential time management tips you need to apply in your lifestyle.
Prioritize your activities from highest to lowest priority, then divide out the amount of time spent on each accordingly.
I always schedule breaks into my day, a practice that prevents me from burning out.
If you schedule a short break between each activity—even if it’s just a 10-minute walk—you won’t get overwhelmed and decide to break from your schedule.
Scheduling out your day can keep you focused on what's important.
I use Google Calendar, but there are lots of ways to manage your time and tasks.
Experiment with different systems and find one that works for you.
The act of crossing things off the list can be a powerful motivator to keep going when you want to quit.
Decide how much time you'll spend on a project—and then do your best to stick to that amount of time.
If you're ahead or behind schedule, adjust accordingly.
Once you get used to estimating how long something will take, you'll be less likely to take on tasks that are too much for you.
Time is a precious commodity you don’t want to waste.
If you find that you’re spending a large chunk of each time on something unnecessary, it’s in your best interest to cut it from the schedule.
The more of these tasks you rid yourself of, the more time you’ll have to achieve your goals.
If you leave time management until the last minute, it becomes that much more difficult to stick to a schedule.
Plan ahead by writing out a loose schedule for yourself at the beginning of the week and refining the next day’s events the night before.
Mastering how to improve time management can be quite hard.
You need to practice daily and apply correct time management strategies if you want it to become second nature.
Just as you must practice civil discourse and other social skills, you’ll need to practice time management on a regular basis if you want to enjoy its numerous benefits.
Conflict comes from many sources, but nothing fuels conflict like a misunderstanding.
When you fail to understand people, you experience conflicts, embarrassing social gaffes, and frustrating emotional upheavals.
The skill of understanding people is an important part of being an empathetic person, and it will take you far in every area of life.
In order to help you develop the skill of understanding others, I’ll explain what it really means to understand another person and what tips will help you become more understanding of people.
It can be incredibly difficult to appreciate and accept those who are different from us, but our relationships with others will always be more authentic and fulfilling when we continue understanding others.
But what does this mean, exactly?
Truly understanding people requires mindful listening.
It requires you to give your full attention:
1. To listen not just to what they say, but to watch their body language.
2. To shelve your own assumptions and maintain an open mind.
We as a society have recognized the need to understand the people we disagree with, but few people are skilled at putting this into practice.
If you struggle to make sense of your surroundings, it doesn’t mean that you are a highly flawed person.
Everyone experiences mental hurdles that make it difficult to understand people, which is why practice is necessary in order to develop social skills.
Our brains have a tendency to dismiss anything they don’t understand and change others' words into our pre-existing worldview. In order to change, we must practice and dedicate ourselves.
I've learned many valuable and interesting things that help me make sense of the world around me.
But with this knowledge always comes the temptation to make assumptions, and you know what they say about assumptions.
I work regularly at being present, mindful, and attentive in order to keep my skill of understanding others sharp.
Understanding others, means mastering certain skills. Here are eight tips to help you develop those skills:
Understanding people can be difficult. Like any skill, it takes time and effort to achieve.
Before every interaction, take a moment to ground yourself and remember your desire to understand the other person rather than simply to be understood.
The assumptions we make can seem like harmless fillers for the blanks in our knowledge, but they can also obscure our view of reality.
Ask questions to seek more information; it's better to clarify something the other person has said than to wrongly assume a different meaning.
Remember to focus closely on whomever you’re talking to and pay attention to their body language.
Watch for clues about their stress level and posture, which can reveal important information about what they are saying.
If someone seems nervous or stressed, ask follow-up questions to get more information.
Our minds wander all the time, but when you’re talking to someone, try to stay present.
If you don’t pay attention, you could miss words or gestures that lead to confusion later on.
Focus on what the other person is saying instead of rehearsing what you’re going to say next.
Mindfulness is a practice that can help you be more present. Try incorporating meditation into your daily routine to give yourself time each day to slow down and be aware of your body.
You can practice these techniques before important interviews or meetings to ground yourself and make it easier to pay attention.
The key to understanding is to listen carefully and with an open mind. Civil discourse allows you to have conversations about sensitive topics without losing your cool or shutting down.
When you’re engaged in a conversation about a heated topic, try to set aside your judgment and listen with an open mind.
Refrain from interrupting the other person and try to listen for the content of what they’re saying.
People perceive the world in different ways, and the way that you operate may not be the same way that your colleagues operate.
When interacting with someone who is behaving in a way you don’t understand, try to evaluate their personality type. Are they introverted or extroverted? Type A or type B?
If you see their way of doing things as different rather than wrong, this can help you to set aside assumptions of malice or incompetence.
We all make mistakes from time to time. When we’re the ones making the mistake, we know that we didn’t mean any harm.
But when others make mistakes, it’s easy to rush to judgment. We need to forgive others and slow down before rushing to judgment ourselves.
Understanding people is not just a gift for them; it also benefits you. The better you understand other people and their motivations, the more genuine your relationships with them will be and the less likely you are to feel resentment or discord.
If you make an effort to improve your skills at understanding others, then you’ll give yourself the opportunity to grow on a personal level, build more fulfilling relationships with others, and boost your self-esteem.
We often underestimate the impact of body language. The things we convey through our nonverbal communication can be more influential than the words we speak.
Sure, we can tell our boss we’re more than happy to work late on a Friday, but our frown and slumped shoulders reveal that we’d rather be at home.
Our body language reveals what we’re really thinking, whether it’s intentional or not.
When polled, most experts agree that 70-90% of communication is nonverbal.
How we use our bodies when we talk can have a big impact on how others perceive us, how receptive they are to our thoughts and ideas, and how willing they are to converse with us.
Read on to find out more about how the way you move helps or hinders communication, and what you can do to improve the body language.
Body language encompasses any of the nonverbal signals that we use to communicate.
This can be a physical behavior such as crossed arms as well as a facial expression such as a grimace.
It can even be certain mannerisms that we don’t even know we’re making, like a twitching eyelid or shaking hands.
We all know the importance of body language in something as important as a job interview, but what about conversations with our friends? Parties? Networking events?
Do we pay enough attention to other people’s body language, or even our own?
Think about the last time you were on a first date. Did your hands shake?
Did you find yourself reaching for your glass over and over, taking sips of water to quell your nerves?
Were your arms crossed in a defensive posture to help you subconsciously feel safe? All of these body language examples express what our words may not.
Anyone who is well-versed in body language will be able to read between the lines.
As human beings, we’re naturally curious. We want to know what other people have to say, especially if they don’t want us to know what they’re thinking.
To that end, the ability to read body language is a powerful asset in achieving your goals.
People who are good at reading body language can foster better relationships, collaborate well with others, and shine in their careers.
When you can read other people’s body language, you might be able to:
If you struggle with body language, there’s no need to worry.
There are many ways to learn how to improve body language through practice and a bit of effort.
How to improve the body language? It is important to learn how to read other people's body language, and it is equally important to understand your own.
If your body language does not match what you are saying, you run the risk of creating distrust.
Some people are innately able to read body language, but others have to learn it as they would any other language.
Body language is one of the keys to effective communication, so becoming an expert in it is a worthwhile endeavor.
Here are a few steps you can take to improve your body language examples and tips to improve your communication skills:
One of the first tips for body language is to practice having more self-awareness.
We all have subconscious habits that we don’t even realize we’re doing: nail biting, finger tapping, teeth grinding.
But in order to improve your body language, you need to be aware of what your body is signaling to other people.
The next time you’re in a conversation with someone, keep an eye on what your body language is doing.
You’ll learn what your habits are and which ones you may need to curb.
A straight back and relaxed shoulders signal that you’re open, calm, and interested. If your shoulders are slumped and your back curved, people may think you’re tired or worn down.
If your shoulders are raised, then this sends signals that you’re nervous and stressed.
If you find yourself doing any of the above, focus on straightening your back and relaxing your shoulders to put forth an air of calm control.
We can’t control when we feel nervous, but we can control how we react to it. When we’re nervous, our breathing often becomes shallow.
This can cause us to feel even more nervous and enter fight-or-flight mode. If you find yourself feeling nervous, take deep breaths to calm yourself down and bring yourself back to center.
A good guide for deep breathing is to breathe in for four seconds, hold it for four seconds, breathe out for four seconds, and hold it for another four.
Then repeat this as many times as needed until you feel calmer.
Mindful listening will help you train yourself to practice more open body language.
If you’re focused on being a mindful listener, then you’re engaging in eye contact with the other person and using body language to show that you’re listening.
This means nodding, smiling, and doing other things that encourage the other person to keep speaking.
When you’re focused on these behaviors, there’s no room for negative body language to get in the way.
Oftentimes our body language becomes negative when we experience unwanted emotions.
Engaging in civil discourse allows you to tackle tough conversations without letting your emotions get the better of you.
This means listening without judgment, allowing the other person to finish speaking before responding, and speaking honestly in a neutral tone.
When you make civil discourse a way of life, you become fluent in controlling your body language. This is true no matter how emotionally charged the topic of conversation.
We often learn best by mimicking other people. Whenever you meet someone who you think exudes confidence, take a look at their body language.
What nonverbal communication is giving off a sense of confidence and calm? Is it their posture? Their facial expression? Unwavering eye contact?
Try and practice those same nonverbal gestures to improve your own body language.
This body language tip is one of the more nuanced tips on the list. Smiling too much can appear inauthentic, but not smiling at all is a surefire way to turn off the other speaker.
Smile whenever you’re introduced to someone for the first time, and continue to smile at regular intervals during the conversation.
In addition to nodding and small verbal encouragements, a smile is the perfect way to show that you’re engaged in the conversation.
Body language is as complex and nuanced as any other language.
It can be used to communicate, to express our thoughts, feelings and emotions. Apply the tips for body language in your daily life to have better performance.
But we often don’t recognize the messages our bodies are sending out.
By following these body language tips, you’ll improve your own body language and become better at reading everybody else’s.
Think constantly how to improve the body language as it requires a lot of efforts.
Once you’ve mastered your body language skills, you’ll be surprised what a difference it will make in your life.
Leadership used to mean a powerful presence and the ability to inspire others. But today, in the age of collaboration and transparency, leadership is also about building trust among your team members. It means sharing your own vulnerabilities as well as demonstrating vulnerability by listening closely to others' ideas. And it’s not only about achieving results—it's about helping others achieve theirs.
My journey as a founder has led to me being in leadership positions for a variety of teams, and I’ve had to learn hard and fast just how much of an impact a leadership style can have on employees. The emotional and empathetic leadership style of a social leader focuses on building strong relationships within the team, which has a direct impact on their collaboration and communication skills.
With a focus on social leadership, I’ve learned that we can create a positive work environment by utilizing emotional intelligence to create trust and respect among employees.
Today's workforce is changing, and the traditional leader is being replaced by a new type – the social leader. The type of leadership we're talking about here doesn't rely on position or title; instead it's about emotional intelligence, relationship skills, and service-oriented behaviors. Leaders who lack these qualities will struggle to motivate their employees in today's workplace, where people are looking for meaning and purpose from their job.
Social leaders have a vision for where their company will go. They don't force their team members to follow orders, but instead listen and question people's methods to help them perfect their approach. As a social leader, you focus on the bigger picture and track all departments to know where you're heading as a company. You create a better tomorrow for yourself, your employees and customers.
Dedication to the cause: All social leaders have a genuine desire to help others. They are willing to invest in their community and give everything they have in order to make a difference. They also tend to be motivators, who inspire others with their passion for their work.
Successful social leaders exhibit some common characteristics.
They care. Social leaders are focused on the people around them. They create an environment where employees feel valued and supported. A great social leader has a strong desire to help others succeed, while also helping their business achieve its goals.
They communicate. Social leaders know that great communication is vital to driving engagement, and therefore, the success of their team. They are excellent communicators and are able to build rapport with their team members. They know how to separate important topics from non-essential ones and ensure that everyone is on the same page.
They collaborate. While your team may come from different backgrounds and cultures, we all share the goal of doing great work. Without teamwork, our efforts would not be possible. Social leaders know the importance of teamwork and are always looking for ways to improve team dynamics. They understand that no one is an island and know how to get the best out of their team by working together.
They’re self-aware. As a social leader, you know that what you do determines the people you lead and the culture of your team. In order to understand and develop yourself in an ongoing way, it’s important to have a clear understanding of your strengths and weaknesses. Managers who are serious about growing their leadership skills set aside time to ask themselves questions like, ‘What do I need to work on?’, ‘Is there someone else who can help me with this?’ and ‘Do I really want this job?’ It can be hard at first, but asking yourself these tough questions often leads to positive change!
They’re people-oriented. Social leaders see their business as a family, not merely a corporation. Because they focus on the people, not just tasks or goals, social leaders understand that strong relationships are the key to a successful team. They work hard to build trust and rapport with their employees so they can get great results from people who actually enjoy working together.
They’re vulnerable. Vulnerability is a sign of strength, not a sign of weakness. While this might seem risky, it's actually a great way to build trust with your team. By being open and honest, you'll create a more open, honest working environment that allows for all ideas to be heard and understood.
Leading with civil discourse is a way to create open and informed dialogue. It allows for candid discussions, which support innovative thinking and acceptance. It ensures that everyone can be heard.
Social leaders can leverage the tenets of civil discourse to promote their leadership style by:
If you want to keep your team motivated and engaged, you need to help solve its conflicts in a civil manner. By practicing civil discourse, you can resolve just about anything and everything related to workflow and productivity.
The traditional workplace is on its way out. In today's market, social corporations are paving a new way forward with people-first leadership practices. These companies are built on the social skills that make their employees happy, productive, and innovative. Social leadership is the difference between an average workforce and a high-performance team.
It’s easy to write off new entrepreneurs from unlikely places, and we as a society have trained ourselves to forget about those condemned to prison and correctional facilities. Yet the resilience shown by many prisoners, eager to reintegrate into society in productive ways, is the exact type of tenacity necessary to succeed in the unpredictable world of startups and freelancing. Non-profit Defy Ventures has been tapping into that previously untouched potential, setting the stage for inclusive entrepreneurialism. Finally, investors and business leaders are beginning to take notice.
Defy Ventures is a non-profit that challenges society’s perception of incarcerated individuals by viewing them as Entrepreneurs in Training (EITs)—full of untapped potential. This shift in perspective is more than semantics; it represents a profound change in how society perceives incarcerated individuals.
By providing hands-on training and traditional educational resources to inmates seeking career development, Defy helps overcome the lack of access to resources faced by inmates. The organization upgrades participants with leadership development, personal growth training, and startup incubation. Defy’s focus extends beyond startups to include gig workers, digital nomads, handymen, HVAC technicians, and freelancers, supporting small business owners with essential tools to kickstart their careers and make a meaningful impact in their communities.
The non-profit’s impact is far-reaching, providing a powerful solution to reduce recidivism rates. According to the report dated 2021, Defy Ventures has a three-year recidivism rate of less than 15% (compared to the national average of 39%), and 84% of Defy graduates who were seeking employment found job placement. Defy is changing the lives of EITs and reframing the narrative of what an entrepreneur can look like, where they can come from, and the environments in which they can thrive.
Defy’s narrative of transformation demonstrates that the spirit of resilience and the passion of prisoners—combined with education, new opportunities, and support—translate into successful entrepreneurship from a segment of society too often brushed aside.
As an entrepreneur and volunteer, I was honored to participate in a Defy Ventures pitch competition and attend Defy’s graduation ceremony in a California prison. I went in with many misconceptions about the program and the participants, but my experiences with Defy rewrote those expectations. I learned that it takes nine months of rigorous study, examinations, and focus on personal growth, which prevents the faint-hearted and less resilient individuals from making it onto the EIT graduation list. Defy challenges participants and finds those with the tenacity and adaptability that any business leader knows are so vital in today’s tumultuous job market.
I believe that it is crucial to avoid romanticizing this journey or overlooking the past mistakes of the EITs. Instead, Defy’s aim is to recognize the current potential in each of them and provide them with the tools and opportunities to nurture that better future. Some of the most successful entrepreneurs came from troubled backgrounds and have overcome personal struggles, reinforcing that adversity often breeds resilience and innovation. Defy’s graduates embody this energy and possibility.
Inclusive entrepreneurship is the idea that all people, irrespective of their demographic, socioeconomic, or personal characteristics, should have equal opportunities to become entrepreneurs, start their businesses, and contribute to the economic development of their communities. As investors and business leaders, we can further this cause by considering how our portfolios can diversify and thus encompass ventures, freelancers, and entrepreneurs that break traditional molds.
Investors and business owners can consider collaborating with organizations like Defy Ventures and others that provide training and support to marginalized groups such as the incarcerated, immigrants, veterans, and refugees. Often non-profits eager to team up with hiring partners, these organizations have a deep understanding of the unique challenges faced by marginalized individuals and can help develop their entrepreneurial skills. Collaboration can be a quick shortcut to finding untapped pools of freelancers and gig workers.
By investing money and support in these programs, you contribute to their sustainability and enable them to continue their valuable work, essentially lengthening the alternative entrepreneur’s runway through education and mentorship. There can also be tax benefits for supporting these organizations financially. When hiring, consider utilizing such non-profits as a starting point for due diligence and skill verification. They can provide insights and recommendations about the skills and potential of their graduates, helping you make informed decisions and identify talented individuals who may bring diverse perspectives and experiences to your team.
Another crucial step is to encourage your own HR teams to broaden their pool of applicants for both traditional employment positions and freelance or gig work. Leaders can encourage teams to request certain new hires or contracting positions be filled with alternative freelancers who will bring valuable and unique insight from their unique experiences. Consider implementing strategies such as storytelling screening processes, skills-based assessments, and targeted outreach to underrepresented communities to ensure a more inclusive and equitable hiring process.
By actively working with organizations that train marginalized individuals, supporting them financially, and widening the scope of applicants for gigs, financial leaders and business owners can embrace inclusive entrepreneurship. By doing so, they not only contribute to social impact but also unlock untapped talent, drive innovation, and create a more diverse and resilient business ecosystem.
The work of Defy Ventures and similar organizations serves as an inspiration for both young entrepreneurs who are seeking to make a difference and investors keen on partnering with organizations that promote inclusive entrepreneurship. The journey Defy Venture’s graduates embarked upon is about more than starting a business. It is about reclaiming prisoners’ lives, defying the odds, and breaking cycles of negativity. For the EITs, inclusive entrepreneurship is not just a vocation but a lifeline.
When I was in school, online learning wasn't nearly as accessible or developed as it is now.
There was a time when taking online courses was viewed as a weak alternative to face-to-face learning.
With the advent of new technology in distance learning, this has changed irrevocably.
In fall of 2020, around 75% of all undergraduate students were taking at least one online education course.
However, even those who aren’t working toward a degree are increasingly preferring online learning due to its numerous benefits.
Here are some tips for learning online to deliver more value to your digital education.
If you’re taking an online class, you might be facing some unique challenges and might need tips for online classes. However, you need to remember that your efforts will pay off and deliver your desired destination.
Audo organizes online courses for people who want a positive change in their life and to acquire valuable knowledge for their future.
Here are 7 tips for learning online to help you get the most out of learning experience:
An online class can be just as real as an in-person class if you have the discipline to treat it as such.
This means being present and engaged in the class, with your camera on, not on your phone, and not skipping class just because you “don’t feel like going.”
The flexibility that online classes offer is a blessing and a curse. You can learn from anywhere, at any time, but you must discipline yourself to do so.
Treat an online course with the same respect you would an in-person course, and you will reap the benefits of this incredible tool.
One of the best tips for online classes is just take the responsibility for your journey.
When you’re a student in a traditional school setting, your parents and teachers set deadlines for you and require you to meet them.
However, if you’re seeking out coursework on your own, it’s up to you to hold yourself responsible for your work in an online course.
You also need to figure out if you are a degree or a certificate preferring person.
If you want to succeed in your course and get the most out of it, then you need to be responsible for your education.
Set deadlines for yourself to complete all assignments before they’re due. It’s vital to learn how to manage your time, stay organized and be disciplined.
The more effort you put into self-discipline, the more you’ll thrive with your online classes.
One of my best tips for learning online is the importance of building a routine.
Not everyone works best under the same circumstances, so you'll have to do a bit of work to find out what works for you.
Do you work best in the morning? Afternoon? Evening?
Do you prefer to study in small increments every day, or to schedule large chunks of time together once or twice a week?
The better you know yourself, the easier it will be to create your own personalized study routine.
Make sure you create realistic goals for yourself when you create your study routine.
It’s no use telling yourself you’ll study 2 hours a day if you’ve never managed more than an hour.
Start small and work your way up to build your confidence step by step.
Tips for online classes include productively is to check your progress systematically.
While it’s important to have a routine, it’s equally important to make sure that the routine you’ve created is actually serving you.
Don’t just obsess over doing your routine perfectly–take a moment to ask yourself what works and what doesn’t.
Have you been sticking to your routine? Where did you deviate? Did you make progress even if you didn’t achieve your goal?
As you work through these questions, try to be objective.
If you find that you’ve overestimated your potential, don’t beat yourself up about it.
Try recalibrating to see if there are changes you can make to help yourself get there. Or, perhaps the best thing to do is take a few steps back and be patient with yourself until you’ve grown a little more.
One potential downside of online learning is that the lines between work and play can become blurred.
It's important to take breaks when needed, so you can show up for your class without burning out.
Be kind to yourself when you don’t achieve your goals, and celebrate the times that you do.
This can be as simple as spending a night out with friends, which can itself act as a way to get you recharged and refocused on your goals.
Procrastination is the deadliest of all bad habits. It paralyzes us when we tell ourselves, "I'll do it tomorrow." Procrastination not only threatens your productivity and ability to achieve your goals but it also makes you stressed out and anxious.
Putting things off only lengthens the amount of time that you have to worry and stress out.
Make sure you tackle the tasks you hate the most first when you make your to-do lists.
This will give you the push you need to keep going rather than stand still.
If you’re tempted to procrastinate, create a reminder on your phone.
You can also use online Pomodoro Timers to balance out work and breaks.
You’ll force yourself to take breaks, and you will train yourself to switch between the two seamlessly.
Here we go with number one tip for learning online. You only have one life to live–surely you don’t want any of it to go to waste.
When you sign up for an online course, you’re taking a step towards an important goal.
Maybe you’re learning a new language for a trip you have planned, or picking up a skill to help you get a promotion at work.
As you pursue your goals, remember to take a moment to remind yourself of why you made this commitment in the first place.
If you can visualize what it is you want, it will be that much easier to give it your all.
Remember that lifelong learning is essential for good life quality.
These tips for online classes will help you get the most out of your online education, without the benefit of in-person learning.
Follow these tried-and-tested tips, and you’ll create a routine that brings out the best in you.
How to become an entrepreneur? Entrepreneurial thinking is the ability to spot a way to do something better than it's been done before, and then to make it happen.
Entrepreneurship has taken many forms, from the artisan shops of the Middle Ages to the multinational corporations of today. However, every entrepreneur has his or her own unique story.
While some entrepreneurs have been full-time business people, others have worked other jobs and used their skills as entrepreneurs at night or on the weekends.
Some entrepreneurs started companies that were intended to create only one new product or service; others were the founding patrons of entire industries.
Becoming an entrepreneur is all about building something out of nothing but an idea, and that’s a concept as old as time itself.
Most people don't understand what it means to be an entrepreneur. Many are even scared of the word, attributing to it negative connotations such as 'risk-taking' and 'failure.'
Here we’ll take a look at the very nature of entrepreneurship, from both a strictly factual perspective, and from a more personal perspective.
Deciding to be an entrepreneur does not make you one. Nor does being born into a family that encourages entrepreneurship or joining a startup immediately after graduating from college.
An entrepreneur is someone who organizes and operates a business, taking on significant financial risks to turn their dream into a reality.
Entrepreneurship can be a deeply fulfilling, liberating and empowering way to live.
Starting a company and growing it from a seed of an idea to a thriving company, however, can be very difficult.
You need a lot of business savvy and skill in order to navigate the steps to becoming an entrepreneur.
While some people are born with the traits necessary to be entrepreneurs, others have to learn them through practice.
The good news is that, if you have enough drive and determination, you can learn how to be an entrepreneur.
Why become an entrepreneur? The benefits are many, but that doesn’t mean it’s right for everyone.
Here are a few of the main reasons you might find the answer on why become an entrepreneur and what changes it can deliver. Learn the steps of becoming an entrepreneur.
The main reason why most people choose to become entrepreneurs is because they want independence.
When you create your own company, you work for yourself.
You don’t have to report to anyone, get anyone else’s permission to make decisions, or be beholden to a schedule that you don’t set.
Entrepreneurship grants you a certain level of freedom and flexibility that most people don’t have.
You can build a schedule around your own needs, control your own salary, and grow your business as fast or as slow as you want.
Entrepreneurs often start their own businesses because they see an unmet need in the market.
If you stumble across a business opportunity that no one else has identified, you can find success by offering people something they cannot currently get elsewhere.
A strong desire to help other people provides many entrepreneurs with the motivation they need to succeed.
Passionate people who want to share their creative ideas with the world can make a difference in that way by becoming an entrepreneur.
Money should not be the primary motivating factor in your life, but it can be the driving force behind successful entrepreneurship.
With financial risk comes the potential for great financial gain, and founding a company can lead to high levels of income.
You may have the most business savvy, but that doesn’t mean you should rest on your laurels. Here are some skills to practice every day if you want to become a successful entrepreneur.
Communication is key to working effectively with other people. In order to be an entrepreneur, you need to know how to practice active listening.
Improve your communication skills by reading up on civil discourse and active listening, asking others for honest feedback, and proofreading all written communication.
Leaders know how to motivate, inspire, and guide the people they lead. Practice your leadership skills by taking on more responsibility, striving for discipline, and taking initiative.
A hunger to learn and challenge yourself will help build you into the leader you need to be.
Entrepreneurs can’t afford to take their eye off the ball. Hone in your ability to focus by setting goals for yourself every day.
Consistently check in with your progress and make a daily effort towards your goal. You’ll soon develop a stronger sense of focus that will serve you well on your entrepreneurial journey.
The best entrepreneurs are curious people. The more interested you are in learning, the more you’ll grow. Use every challenge as an opportunity to learn.
The only person you’re competing with is the person you were yesterday, so try every day to learn more than you knew before.
Routines help center us and keep us fixed on our goals. But life throws us constant curveballs, which is why flexibility is a must-have for any entrepreneur.
If you practice flexibility, you’ll be able to push through challenges without becoming derailed. Challenge yourself to adapt to new circumstances and practice humility by becoming willing to change when needed.
So, how do you become an entrepreneur? There are many tips that can help you get started on the path to creating your own business.
Here are a ten initiatives for an entrepreneurial plan:
The first step in how to become an entrepreneur is to come up with an idea for your startup.
A business is only as good as its ideas, which means that this is the single most important decision you’ll make in your journey.
Brainstorm on products or services your business can provide its customers; then do research to see which ones have the greatest potential for profitability.
It’s okay if your business isn’t entirely unique. Maybe you’re inspired by the variety of subscription box services popping up around the world and want to do something in that vein.
As long as you’re offering something that no one else is (or doing it in a better way) and you market yourself properly, you can take advantage of a surge in popularity around a certain area—and eventually grow beyond it.
Maybe you’ve been working in a coffee shop for years, and you’ve realized that there is only one bakery in your city that delivers gluten-free pastries.
Because the demand for this niche product isn’t being met, you could capitalize on it by starting your own bakery.
Always look for ways to improve the things people are already doing.
If you can find a way to create a better way to do something that’s already being done, that’s a valuable business idea worth pursuing.
Before you narrow your product focus, do your research on potential customers. The more you know about who your ideal customers would be, the better you’ll be able to serve them.
By researching data on who your ideal customers would be, you’ll be able to focus your time on qualified prospects and develop a product that meets their specific needs.
A minimum viable product (MVP) helps you to improve your product early on by receiving and integrating user feedback.
This gives you a plethora of information about your customers with very little effort.
It also allows you to release your product as quickly as possible, test it before committing to a larger budget, and improve it based on customer feedback.
Your business plan is the road map to your company's future.
Early investors want to see a formal business plan, so try to be as detailed as you can with it early on. You can always refine it and add to it over time.
If you have a minimum viable product, seek feedback from your customers to ensure that you’re creating something that solves their problems.
If you don’t have a minimum viable product, incorporate feedback into your work to make sure you’re best serving your customer’s needs.
Having a co-founder or two can help you run your business and take some of the pressure off.
It is easier to delegate work with someone else by your side who has different skills than you, and the stress of running a business will be lessened when there are more than one people sharing it.
Once you’re on the ground, you’ll want to keep learning new things about your business.
The more hands-on you are, the more you’ll understand how your business works and how you can improve.
Starting a business is not an easy task. It takes courage and risk. Some businesses succeed, and some fail.
You may think the challenges of starting a business are enormous. You’re right.
That’s why most people don't start a business, or taper off after the initial excitement and motivation fades.
If you want to become an entrepreneur, you need to start applying what you've learned in this guide, by adhering to the trends, and by being honest with yourself about your strengths and weaknesses.
You can be among the small minority of self-employed individuals who are successful in building companies they are passionate about.
Our lives are ever-changing. New technology is constantly being updated, skills that were valuable for us only a few years ago might no longer be relevant, and the speed at which this change occurs is increasing with each passing year.
Continuous learning is the best way to stay ahead of the curve. By continuously learning, you can develop your skills and grow in your career.
According to research, 54% of employees believe that continued training and new skills are essential to keep up with workplace changes.
Too often, companies fail to implement the training necessary to help their employees succeed.
Constant learners, however, take it upon themselves to learn new skills and stay relevant by doing so.
In this blog post I will cover everything you need to know about the importance of continual learning, how it can benefit your life, and what steps you can take to practice it with purpose.
Continuous learning is the continuous desire to keep learning, developing new skills and techniques, and refining your existing ones.
It is a pathway to not only developing the skills necessary to excel in your career, but also to grow and be a better person.
Unlike traditional schooling or on-the-job training, continually learning is something you take on yourself to grow and learn new skills.
You should never feel like you’re constantly learning without interruption.
Continually learning is about being willing to take opportunities to improve your skills and abilities over the course of your life. It is a lifelong learning journey.
There are no limits to the ways in which one can benefit from continually learning.
I owe much of my success to this practice, as I believe that my desire to grow and learn as much as possible played a major role in getting me where I am today.
Here are some of the ways in which you can benefit from being a continual learner:
The first and most important benefit of continuous learning is that it can help you learn new skills. 80% of people agree that learning new skills would make them more engaged, but only 56% of people actually go out and learn new skills.
When you make a habit of learning new things, you open up a world of opportunities. Even something as simple as taking an online course in programming can take your career to the next level. Get aware of how to learn new skills.
When you don't have the skills to do your job well, your mental health suffers just as much as your work does.
40% of workers with poor training decide to leave their companies within the first year.
This shows the importance of continual learning in building our confidence at work.
When you know you have the skills to do what’s demanded of you, you find out just how much a sense of confidence can help you achieve.
You may be perfectly qualified for a job when first hired, but if you’re not a continual learner, you’ll soon fall behind.
Technology changes rapidly, which affects almost every industry in the world.
As the world changes, so do the needs of business.
Accountants are switching from paper filing to digital, programmers have to learn new coding systems, and the real estate market is constantly shifting.
Continuous learning allows you to stay on top of new developments, learning new skills when necessary and adapting seamlessly.
People who take the initiative and go above and beyond in their work are rewarded.
If you take the reins of your own training, your superiors will notice your effort and reward you for it.
Taking an extra online class or two might make you eligible for a promotion or provide you with an extra bargaining chip for a raise.
If you stay stagnant and don’t try to learn, however, don’t be surprised when you’re still working the same job after 15 years.
To get something different, you have to do something different. Continuous learning is the key to getting you where you want to go in your career.
Continually learning is not limited to your career. Continuous learners embrace growth in every area of their life, making them more well-rounded people.
Pursuing personal development goals will make you a more likable person and improve your social and professional relationships.
By practicing mindfulness, you can become more emotionally adept.
Learning to play a new instrument can also help you become more cultured and enrich your life through new hobbies.
If you want to become a continuous learner, you’ll have to make a concerted effort to practice it with purpose. Here are a few ways you can create a culture of continuous learning:
The goal of continually learning is to create a habit of growth, so that you can keep growing throughout your life.
The more you embrace growth as a way of life, the easier it will be to welcome opportunities instead of turning them down.
If you cultivate a mindset of constant growth, you’ll be amazed at the opportunities that present themselves.
For example, you may notice a poster advertising a dance class or start researching online courses to find one that seems interesting.
When you choose to remain open to growth, continuous learning becomes a way of life.
It’s difficult to be a continual learner if your desires are vague. Sure, you may have a desire to learn Italian, but what exactly does that look like?
Do you want to be fluent by a certain date? Take a certain number of classes in a year? Prepare for a upcoming trip to Italy?
If you set concrete goals for yourself, these goals can provide the necessary motivation to keep showing up for the learning process.
Growth is impossible without feedback. Without feedback from people who know what they’re talking about, you risk standing still.
Seek out feedback wherever you can in order to identify opportunities for growth.
Ask your boss at work to identify areas in which you could improve and then check in with him or her regularly to see how you're growing.
Find people who have the skills you want and ask them what they did to obtain them.
Feedback will give you an objective gauge of where you are in the learning process, so that you can accurately measure your progress.
Learning is a lot more fun when you are doing it with other people.
A great way to motivate yourself to learn new things is to join groups of people who share your common interests.
By taking online courses you can find new opportunities, advice and camaraderie in a new environment.
Online platforms can be particularly helpful by putting you in touch with other people taking the same online courses as you.
To keep up your motivation to keep learning, take a look at how far you've come.
Check in with yourself regularly to see the ways in which you've grown. What new skills have you gained?
What courses have you completed? What changes have you seen in your life since you started?
Writing these things down can help you see just how beneficial continuous learning has been in your life.
Never let a new skill go to waste. Put it to use in whatever way you can, even if it’s just a little bit, to keep yourself sharp.
If you’ve learned to play the piano, incorporate it into your life by booking a concert series with friends.
If you’re learning a new language, plan a trip to another country to practice speaking with the locals.
This will cultivate inspiration and drive in you to continue developing your skills and finding new skills to pursue.
If you want to continuously learn, online platforms can help you do so. If you're interested in adopting continuous learning, then career building destinations like Audo can connect you with helpful courses that teach you valuable new skills.
One of my goals with Audo is to provide a space for people to discover new skills, gain knowledge and experience life-changing moments.
With Audo, you’ll get specific course recommendations based on your own unique interests and skills.
You’ll start seeing the benefits of continuous learning right away as you join the marketplace, where you can put those skills to use.
If you consider yourself not missing an opportunity of learning, get tips for online learning to make the process more valuable.
Continual learning requires a growth mindset, an unwavering thirst for knowledge and a dedication to change.
If you embrace continual learning, you push yourself to a higher level of potential than you ever realized possible.
I encourage you to follow these tips and become a lifelong learner. It may take some work, but the results will be well worth it.
How to learn new skills has always been one of the most popular questions during all the courses of time.
However, it gained more popularity due to the entry of novelties and new industry demands.
Learning new skills is an enriching, rewarding experience that shouldn't be confined to universities or corporate training sessions.
Being a skilled person means having a large toolkit of various skills. That allows you to solve a wider variety of problems in your life than someone with just one or two very specific skills.
But accumulating new skills is difficult. You can't just read a book, implement and repeat. That won't make you good at anything, or let you hold your own in the long term.
According to research, 80% of people agreed new skills to learn would make them more engaged. Despite this figure, only 56% of people actually go out and make the effort to learn new skills.
You can improve the quality of your life and career by learning new skills. Read on to find out how to get started and keep building upon the new skills to learn.
Whether you’re looking for a job or trying to advance in your career, the skills that you have are what set you apart from your fellow employees.
Not changing with the times is fatal for any sort of work. Of course, we're all given skills training at universities. But it's not enough to have taken a course in spreadsheet programming.
It is a lifelong learning experience. How to learn new skills? Surely, you have seen that new programs are coming along every day, so you have to know how to use each one.
If you focus on new skills to learn that are the most useful for your growth, you can impress potential employers and build a strong resumé.
Let’s say you want to be a graphic designer; by taking an online learning course to learn how to use Photoshop, you open yourself up to higher-quality graphic design jobs.
New skills and knowledge open doors to many different career possibilities.
For instance, if you take a programming class and discover that you have a knack for IT work, you can use this information to your advantage when looking for jobs.
Trying to learn everything at once can be overwhelming. In order to start the journey of new skills to learn quickly and completely, build a strategy to do so. Follow these tips on how to learn new skills quickly and effectively:
To move forward, you need to know where you’re going. Ask yourself what your goals are. A promotion at work? A change of career? Increased social connections?
Once you have a sense of what it is you’re trying to achieve, you’ll be able to identify the new skills that will get you there.
For example, if your goal is to get promoted to a management position, then you may want to take online courses that help you gain the soft skills needed to excel in that position, such as time management and conflict resolution.
While we may want to be good at everything, it usually doesn’t work that way. It’s better to build upon our strengths instead of focusing solely on our weaknesses.
A great way to identify useful skills to learn is to ask yourself which skills you already have.
Are you good at working with people? Skilled with technology? Talented with language?
For instance, if you have excellent people skills and want a position that requires managing other people, what other skills do you need?
Maybe you have the people skills down but lack some of the technical knowledge required for the position. Online courses or training can help you become a perfect candidate for your desired position.
It can also help to break down big skills into little skills. If you want to be more disciplined, break down your goal into smaller skills.
Time management, motivation, and accountability are all useful skills that will help you achieve your larger goal.
Once you have identified the smaller skills that make up the larger skill of discipline, you can focus on learning each of them one at a time.
Before thinking on how to learn new skills, you need to know that learning is challenging. There will always be an obstacle standing in your way.
It may be money, or time, or simply a lack of willingness. Whatever the obstacle is, you need to identify it. You must overcome it if you ever want to learn the skill in question.
For each new skill you want to learn, write a list of the obstacles in your way. Maybe you want to learn to speak Spanish, but you have no extra money for classes and little free time to learn.
To help yourself overcome these barriers, write out another list of all the benefits you’ll receive from the new skill.
Maybe learning Spanish will help you take on even more clients at work or take that trip to Spain you always dreamed of. Look at this list for inspiration whenever an obstacle is convincing you to give up.
A great way to stay motivated while learning new skills is to set up a rewards system for yourself.
When you've successfully gained a new skill, how will you celebrate? It can be as big as taking a trip abroad or as small as going out to a favorite restaurant.
Rewarding yourself for your efforts can help you create a positive association between learning and rewards.
Once you've gotten started learning new skills, it takes time, patience, and determination to keep going. Here are some suggestions for mastering new abilities:
You won’t become a master overnight. Be realistic with what you hope to accomplish and give yourself a break if you’re moving slower than expected.
As long as you stay consistent, none of your efforts will have been wasted.
Getting better at a new skill is hard, but it can be even harder when you don't have the right motivation. Take a moment to check your progress at regular checkpoints.
What have you been doing lately to learn new skills? What have you accomplished? How far have you come?
This will help you remember the effort you’ve put into learning something new and encourage you not to give up.
The path of new skills to learn is an ongoing process, with some skills you learn once and that’s it, but others require practice to grow.
Keep practicing the skills you’ve learned and find new ways to incorporate them into your life. This will keep you sharp, and you’ll go from novice to master with time.
When you define new skills to learn with other people, you get a lot of benefits you wouldn’t get when learning alone. If you take an online course, reach out to the other people in your class to connect.
You can tap into a wealth of advice and opportunities by connecting with other learners in the same boat as you. They can provide invaluable feedback that will help you improve even more!
While most skills are learned through trial and error, it can be helpful to take classes or join a group dedicated to teaching that skill.
If you like the idea of continuous learning, here are tips for online learning to help you boost your potential.
Look for resources that teach some of the skills you’re interested in acquiring. For instance, if you want to become a web developer, research coding bootcamps and other online courses in that field.
You can even attend conferences dedicated to programming to network with other people in the industry.
If you’re trying to learn new skills, an online learning platform makes learning easy and convenient. I created Audo to help Gen Z and Millennials gain career-relevant skills to set them up for success.
Unlike other online learning platforms, Audo takes into account your skills, experience, and passion to help you find which courses best suit your needs.
Now that you know the most effective strategies to learn new skills, there’s no reason not to get started.
Following these tips will help you get started on this learning journey, and don’t forget to stop every once in a while to appreciate all of the useful new skills you’ve acquired to make your life better.
As industries continue to evolve and the nature of work becomes more dynamic, lifelong learning is becoming increasingly essential to stay competitive.
More and more, people are realizing that education is a lifelong process, not something limited to the years of formal schooling.
Lifelong learners continue to study, learn new skills, and try new things. They’re curious, open-minded people who continually adapt to change.
Lifelong learning became a requirement for me early on. As an Environmental Studies major who decided to build companies in the publishing and music industries while in college, it quickly became clear to me I needed to pursue learning opportunities beyond the classroom in order to make an impact.
I'm a big believer in seeking out new skills and using the digital resources we have at our disposal today.
So, what does lifelong learning look like? The truth is that there are many ways to engage in it. The beauty of learning continually throughout your life is that you get to choose what, when, and how you learn.
Here are some examples of lifelong learning to get an idea of how you might learn:
Don’t let your education come to an end once you’ve finished high school or college. Lifelong learning means taking advantage of opportunities to learn about a topic that interests you, whether it’s through an in-person or online course.
It could be a course to learn a new skill for work, to learn a new language, or to improve your creative writing skills. Online courses are an excellent way to keep learning on your terms.
Everyone learns in different ways, but it's common for people to learn a new skill by taking classes or trying it out themselves.
Some skills, like salsa dancing and playing the piano, have official classes you can take, but plenty of other skills, like baking crème brûlée, can be self-taught through trial and error.
If you have an interest in something, you can take it upon yourself to learn more about it.
You might be a fan of the Golden Age of Cinema and decide to read up on old filmmakers.
Or maybe you’ve just found a podcast that covers financial tips for dummies. You can learn outside a classroom if you’re willing to go looking for it.
Plenty of jobs require you to use complex technology or software applications. Playing around with new tech can help you get a handle on it so you can take advantage of all it has to offer.
When you invest in new technology and learn how to use it, that's an example of lifelong learning.
One of the best examples of lifelong learning is having a hunger to know ourselves better.
When you pursue things like meditation, self-discovery, and even therapy, you’re engaging in the process of learning more about yourself and how you work.
This is a worthy area of study that can never be fully explored.
Lifelong learners experience countless benefits that those with closed minds do not. These include:
The more open you are to learning, the better your career will be. Lifelong learners continually gain new skills, improve their performance and learn from everyone around them.
Strive to treat every experience as a learning opportunity and a chance to grow.
Learning something new can have a profound effect on your health. Not only does it help your mind stay sharp, but it can improve your mental wellbeing and self-confidence.
It also keeps you mentally (and sometimes physically) active, which improves both your energy levels and your overall wellness.
The more you learn, the more skills you acquire.
As a result, lifelong learners are constantly improving, overcoming obstacles and fearlessly taking on new challenges.
They’re building themselves into the people they want to be, which allows them to tackle whatever life throws at them with self-confidence.
Lifelong learning gives you new skills that can change your life for the better.
You’ll become familiar with a wide range of topics, more adept at using technology, and more cultured. You’ll gain hard and soft skills that help you navigate work and social life.
Whether these skills are for personal pleasure or professional gain, they will enrich your life and expand your social circle.
Many people wander through life without truly understanding who they are and what they want. It’s difficult to find out what motivates us, inspires us, and strengthens us.
Lifelong learners discover the things they like and the things they don’t.
They also gain a greater understanding of what interests them, what nourishes them, and what they need to do to succeed with self-awareness.
Being out of touch with the rest of the world is one of the worst parts of having a closed mind.
You’ll struggle to keep up with new technology, feel excluded from many conversations, and find yourself overtaken at work by people with up-to-date knowledge.
Being a lifelong learner allows you to stay current, educating yourself with the latest innovations to make sure you keep up at work and in life.
If you’re interested in becoming a lifelong learner, just know that it's worth it and learn the true benefits of lifelong learning. There are a few tips you can follow to get started.
These tips and examples of lifelong learning can be practiced daily to help you make continuous learning a habit, helping you get through the temptation to quit when you face obstacles.
The best way to see what interests you is to try new things. Indecision can paralyze us, so it’s best to move forward even if you aren’t sure of the outcome.
If you want to learn to speak a new language, find a class that seems interesting and take it. Even if you decide in the end that learning a new language isn’t for you, you’ll learn more about yourself than if you had simply done nothing.
Having an open mind is key to being a lifelong learner. When new opportunities present themselves to you, don’t ignore them.
Ask questions, be curious, and feel free to explore. When you choose to be curious in the unknown, you open yourself up to new opportunities to learn and expand your horizons.
To make sure that you’re continuing to learn new things, set regular goals for yourself.
Maybe you want to spend a certain number of hours a day learning a new skill, or take a certain number of classes by the end of the year.
If you have measurable and achievable goals, it’s easier to show up for your dedication to learn.
It’s a lot more fun to learn something when you’re doing it alongside other people. If you take an online course, get in touch with other members who have the same passion as you.
This can help you find new courses or groups from which you can learn even more.
Your fellow learners can also share their knowledge and advice on their own learning journey, which can inspire you to keep growing.
I believe that people should be able to pursue courses that match their personality and interests rather than be forced into a narrow set of educational options.
That’s why I created Audo, an online learning and career-building destination that connects people with the resources to discover their passions and the courses they need to get ahead.
Audo guides you in the learning and self exploration process, using A.I.-driven recommendations to help you find which online courses are the best match for you and your goals.
Audo rewards lifelong learners by giving individual and effective examples of lifelong learning to acquire new skills and start earning money.
Learning throughout your life can help you improve your wellbeing and mental health, build new relationships, and more.
By committing to lifelong learning, you open yourself up to new opportunities and the chance to create a better future for yourself.
Gen Z'ers are leading the trend in freelance work. Freelancing used to be viewed as a risky endeavor, a break from the security of a 9 to 5 job that wasn't always guaranteed to pan out. But as employees are increasingly less willing to stick to a traditional work routine, freelancing is skyrocketing in popularity and feasibility. The number of freelancers in the US boomed from 57.3 million in 2017 to 70.4 million by 2022. That number is expected to keep growing, with estimates of 90.1 million freelancers in the US by 2028.
So what does this mean for anyone looking to set off on their own? Freelancing and the gig economy is a viable option worth considering. There are numerous avenues for people to find freelance work, as I’ll explain in this article. Read on to find out more about the ins and outs of a freelance career.
So what is freelancing? Freelancing is the act of performing specific work for clients while not being employed full-time by any one organization. One of the most attractive benefits of freelancing is that you are essentially your own boss, working for yourself instead of an employer. Freelancers can work for multiple clients at a time, whereas employees are typically committed to one company.
Freelance projects come in many shapes and sizes. While freelance jobs are generally short-term in nature, satisfied clients often request follow-on work from the same professionals again and again. Freelance professionals are available across a wide range of skills, including copywriting, programming, engineering, and marketing.
Freelancing comes with the freedom to work in the capacity of your choice, but how do you determine what niche to focus on and prepare yourself for success as a freelancer?
Freelancers have a wide variety of job opportunities available to them, including writing, graphic design and dog walking. Freelance job portals can help you find work in your preferred field.
One of the most important attributes of a freelancer is discipline. As your own boss, you’ll have to hold yourself accountable for your actions. You won’t be able to rely on a fixed income as a freelancer, so you’ll need to work hard at finding new opportunities if one falls through. This can be difficult at times, but there are plenty of people out there who have managed it. You may have to keep hustling for a while, but if you have the drive and persistence to keep going, you'll earn enough to see yourself through the various ups and downs.
Freelancing gives up the comforts of a full-time job, such as healthcare and retirement benefits. While you do have to pay your own health insurance, and you don’t get paid time off, you also gain freedom to set your own boundaries around work. You can work for whomever you want, whether it's multiple clients or just one. Your salary is up to you and your skills—in some cases, your salary can be comparable with or better than what a regular job earns.
The median annual personal income of freelancers has increased significantly over the last few years. Between 2014 and 2018, the percentage of freelancers earning over $75,000 a year leapt from 17% to 31%. The more time you spend freelancing, the more clients you will attract and the higher your earning potential will be. Gen Z and Millennials have found that freelancing is a lucrative and rewarding career option.
Becoming a freelancer isn’t as hard as it looks, and it’s easier than you think. Simply go to any website that offers freelancing jobs and assignments, and apply for them. Working on a freelance basis can be slow-going at first, but you can build up a client base and earn higher rates as you go.
Freelancing sites can help you find work or clients to work with. Here are some websites where you can find freelance jobs:
Fiverr is a valuable resource for freelancers of any kind. You can create a gig for pretty much anything, from creating graphic designs to writing online articles and content. You set your own rates, and clients find you through Fiverr’s search feature.
99Designs is a graphic design company where you can create logos, websites, book covers, and more. Depending on your niche, you can offer any graphic design service under the sun to interested clients through a secure and trustworthy platform.
Upwork is similar to Fiverr, although it’s the freelancer who seeks out the client rather than the other way around. This makes it easier to get started, however, as you can submit detailed applications to gigs that fit your qualifications.
Audo.com is a career-building ecosystem that uses AI to recommend which skills you need to succeed in your career. I founded this company to provide Gen Z with the tools they need to learn skills and earn money at the same time. All you have to do is fill out your interests, abilities, and experience, then watch as Audo provides you with a personalized skill path towards making money. Once you’ve completed coursework, you can use your new skills in our marketplace to earn money as you continue to learn more skills.
Freelancer.com is another site that works similarly to Upwork. Freelancers can create a profile and bid for projects with their own pitches that explain why they’re the best person for the job. Freelancers will work out an agreed payment amount with the buyer, which will then be delivered to them through the site.
Like any career, freelancing has its benefits and drawbacks. Before you go down that path, make sure you’re willing to assume the risks that come with freelancing. While it offers you professional independence, it can also come with insecurity and the danger of failure. But the more you’re willing to take risks in order to follow your professional ambitions, the more opportunities you’ll have to establish your brand and reputation as you achieve your goals.
Certificate vs degree has become a question of many arguments. Going to college and getting a traditional education used to be the surest way to open up career opportunities for your future, but that’s no longer the case.
While traditional education is still considered the norm, it is no longer the only option for achieving career success, and more effective and attainable options are available today.
The number of people enrolling in certificate programs to gain a greater understanding of their industry, obtain vital skills, and become more valuable employees is increasing year over year.
According to a recent report, about 51.3% of American adults have a college degree, certificate or industry certification.
Degrees or certifications can expand your career options, but the path you choose should be the one that is right for you.
This blog will cover everything you need to know about certificate vs degree, so that you can make a more informed decision about which one is right for your career.
So, get entirely aware of all advantages and disadvantages to end up making smart decisions for the benefit of your career. Are you a certificate or a degree person?
A certificate is a document that verifies you have completed a specific program of study within an industry.
Certificate programs usually offered by colleges, universities, or private companies.
While a degree offers a wide range of knowledge and expertise, a certificate program usually provides training for technical or skill-based jobs. Examples include:
A degree is an academic title that you receive after graduating from a university.
A degree vs certificate entails much more than the basic knowledge you need to work in a certain field, and can in fact prepare you for several different roles depending on your focus.
Degrees can be divided into four categories:
An associate degree is higher than a high school diploma but not as intensive as a bachelor’s degree. It takes around two years for a student to complete.
Associate degrees can include:
To get a job in many fields, some employers will ask for a bachelor's degree. A bachelor's degree takes about four years to complete and includes general education classes in addition to courses pertaining to your specific major.
Bachelor’s degrees can include:
A master’s degree is a post-baccalaureate program consisting of more rigorous classes within a specialized field of study. Programs usually take between two-three years to complete.
In addition to degrees within specific niches, the three basic master’s degrees include:
A doctoral degree is the highest degree you can obtain, and it certifies your expertise in a particular field.
The types of doctoral degrees include:
So, do you need to go for degrees or certifications? What's the difference: certificate vs degree?
Some people believe a degree is more valuable than a certificate, and some think the opposite.
The difference between a certificate and a degree usually involves the time and cost to earn them.
Here are the main factors you need to know about certificate vs degree to choose your option:
Certificates are usually less time-consuming to obtain than degrees. A degree can take between two to four years to complete, while a certificate can be obtained in just a few months.
This is because certificates require fewer courses and can be taken according to your schedule.
Another difference between a certificate and a degree is the requirements for enrollment.
Because most degree programs require a high school diploma or GED, they are often more viable options for people without either of these qualifications.
Certificates teach you about a single topic. Degrees, on the other hand, allow you to explore a wide range of topics in depth.
This can be useful to people looking for comprehensive knowledge, while a certificate can be useful for those looking for specific knowledge.
The cost of a degree vs. certificate is based on the number of courses you take.
Because degrees require many more courses to complete, the cost of a degree is much higher.
However, both certificates and degrees offer financial aid options that can help.
If you want to get a specific job, then a certificate might be enough to help you land that particular position.
But if you want your education to make you eligible for a wide range of jobs, then one degree can get your foot in the door in many places.
In order to choose whether certificate vs degree, consider factors like your job ambitions, time constraints, and financial resources.
Here are a few questions you’ll want to ask yourself before deciding:
You may find that, while a degree would be ideal, it’s unrealistic for you to afford the time and money necessary to obtain one.
However, you may find that obtaining a degree is a long-term goal worthy of pursuing through online and night classes.
Many personal factors need to be considered to think over degree vs certificate and come up with the right decisions.
There are plenty of ways you can get certificates through online or offline self-learning. These can help you upgrade your skills and even explore new careers.
One of the most difficult steps in starting along a path of education is choosing what to pursue. My company, Audo, aims to address that very problem.
Audo is a career readiness and management platform using AI to tailor data-driven career paths by integrating paid gig work into the learning experience.
Our AI-powered assessment maps your passions and interests to the careers that are right for you.
You can level-up your skills, earn certifications and turbocharge your career by taking courses and earning credentials from our education partners.
Do your research before embarking on programs offering degrees or certificates. Have a clear picture in your head about where you’d like to be in five years.
Do you want to be working your way up in the industry of your choice? Freelancing while pursuing a master’s degree? Starting your own business?
The path toward your goals will come into clearer focus if you can get a clear picture in your mind of where you want to be.
And if you want some assistance in creating that picture, take the Audo Guide assessment.
We’ve been hearing about 5G for a while now, even though the vast majority of consumers still can’t access it. Currently, 5G-ready devices are priced pretty high, and ISPs are each scrambling to market themselves as “the” leader in 5G coverage — just like they did with 3G and 4G. While 3G brought us basic mobile web browsing and 4G brought us high-speed mobile internet and streaming, 5G technology promises to kick things up a notch.
Thus far, consumers and media outlets have mostly focused on the promised speeds that will come with 5G — and for good reason. Theoretically, 5G could be up to 10x faster than 4G, though some reports indicate that people might get speeds nearly 100x faster than what they have now. To put this in real-world terms, this means you could be able to download a 2-hour, 4K Ultra HD movie in a matter of seconds.
However, the true potential of 5G isn’t the potential speed — it’s the accessibility. If you’ve ever traveled beyond the realm of your home Wi-Fi network (as I’m sure you have), you’ll know that wireless mobile signals vary drastically. This is especially problematic in rural towns, states, and even regions, where ISPs have invested very little in the way of infrastructure.
While people in rural areas should have the same speeds as everyone else, it’s hard to blame ISPs for their priorities; they simply can’t get the same return on investment setting up mobile internet towers in Cheyenne, Wyoming (population ~65,000) as they can in New York City (population ~8.42 million). Fortunately, 5G will make leaps and bounds in terms of high-speed mobile internet access for everyone — not just big-city dwellers.
A big problem with 4G is network congestion. Sure, you can watch a movie on the train ride to work, but when thousands of other people are trying to do the same thing, you’ll often find yourself with a blank loading screen — even when you’ve got full bars. This is due to the fact that 4G has, by and large, reached its data-processing limits. As 4G became the norm for billions of people around the planet, it also showcased the technology’s inability to quickly transfer increasingly large amounts of data across blocks of spectrum. With 5G, this is no longer an issue.
5G will open the door for ISPs to control more spectrum, thereby allowing more people to use the same network simultaneously without reduced speeds. On top of that, 5G tech is inherently built to deliver faster speeds, lower latency, and greater bandwidth by default. In other words, 5G will make everything you do online faster and easier.
But again, I’m doing the same thing that everyone else does — talking about speed when I should be talking about ease of access. Detractors have already tempered expectations about 5G’s capabilities in rural areas, which are mostly served by low-frequency towers. Since 5G is designed to function at mid-to-high frequencies, it will have less of an impact at the outset. However, the greater efficiency of 5G technology means that it could still provide less congestion and nominal speed improvements in rural areas.
Moreover, this is just what we can expect over the next 2 or 3 years. Beyond that, 5G infrastructure will likely make accessibility to higher-quality mobile (and home) internet even better. Plus, there’s another important factor that people need to keep in mind. In rural areas, most people are accustomed to unstable internet and mobile networks that deliver paltry speeds at best. Even a small uptick in average speeds and network access could make a huge difference to billions of people in underserved areas all over the world.
There’s a reason why many young entrepreneurs leave behind their small hometowns and move to the big city to start their business endeavors. While it may be the “chic” thing to do, it’s also a sound business decision. Nowadays, most businesses are completely dependent on the internet. As a result, entrepreneurs need access to high-speed internet whether they’re working from home or just checking emails on the go. This means that mid-size and large cities are home to the vast majority of new businesses.
While this may just sound like the cost of doing business in the modern world, it also means that there’s a huge barrier to entry for entrepreneurs in rural areas who don’t have the funds to relocate to more expensive cities. Not only does this force many people to abandon their dreams, but it also robs the world of great potential. The next Bill Gates could be living in a small village in Africa, but without access to high-speed internet, he or she may never be able to show the world their true potential.
This is exactly why I’m excited about 5G. Sure, it stands to give the average consumer access to better quality mobile and home internet service, but it really means so much more than that. Once 5G infrastructure grows and 5G-ready devices become the norm (as opposed to the latest high-priced phones), billions of people across the planet will have the power of high-speed internet wherever they are, opening the door for almost limitless innovation. It may take a few years before we see the full effects of 5G, particularly in rural areas, but for many new and existing entrepreneurs, it will be well worth the wait.
It’s crazy to think that we, as humans, have been expressing our creative side for thousands of years. The oldest cave paintings (that we know of) date all the way back to the Prehistoric Age. Now, human-produced AI and algorithms are capable of creating their own art. Thus, the creators of art have now become the creators of the creators of art. However, there are still many things that AI simply cannot do. Even with how quickly automation and other AI tech are advancing, I sincerely believe that they will never fully replace human beings in the realm of art.That said, I’m a huge proponent of further research & development in AI. I even use AI to better some of my businesses. At The Doe, we conduct cutting-edge evaluations through AI; by utilizing natural language processing (NPL) and other technologies in our user quizzes, we help our readers better understand differing values and perspectives. However, just because AI is useful doesn’t mean it offers a solution to every problem. After all, if I want to hear a great song, I don’t ask Siri to sing something for me.
I don’t want to offend any bots that might be reading this, but art has always been something created by (and for) sentient beings. Humans (and maybe even a few other species) have the unique capacity to feel emotions and produce things with intent. That is to say, we can make things not just out of necessity, but also out of desire. More often than not, it is the desire to make something of beauty.Whether it’s a poem, a song, a painting, a digital NFT, or something else entirely, humans have the unique ability to create things with intention. We want to enjoy them. If we produce art for the sake of others (as is often the case), then we want them to be enjoyed, or at the very least, appreciated.As a writer and music producer, I have a special place in my heart for my fellow scribes and musicians. Writers use their linguistic abilities to create beautiful prose, informative articles, entertaining scripts, and profound stories. On the other hand, musicians use a combination of senses to create intricate melodies and harmonies, beats that seem to reach directly into your soul and make your body move, as well as completely new sounds that have never been heard before. While technology may help many artists practice their craft, it’s hard to imagine an algorithm producing Sylvan LaCue’s “Clam Chowda” or penning David Mitchell’s Cloud Atlas.
As it stands now, Artificial Intelligence really has no ground to stand on when it comes to creative intent. We currently have no formal way to measure sentience, but since humans created AI tech and we know (with near certainty) that it does not have a consciousness, we can conclude that an AI robot is not sentient — at least, not under current definitions of the term.Thus, AI is only able to replicate human intelligence and behavior. A robot can appear to feel sad, but that does not mean that it actually feels sad. Similarly, a robot can be programmed to create a beautiful work of art, but in this instance, who is the real artist? The human who wrote the algorithm or the robot that carried out the directive according to a specific formula? I would say the human, as the robot is merely a tool in the artistic process, rather than the creative mind behind it.
In any case, there’s no doubt that AI is constantly evolving and improving, so how can I be so sure that AI will never fully replace human-made art? Let’s say, for argument’s sake, that AI evolves to the point that it is virtually indistinguishable from human beings. By all accounts, we have created a sentient robot with the capacity to feel, think, react, and create things from scratch with vision and intention. In short, I’m imagining a future in which AI can create art on its own, without any help or guidance from human beings.Even in this hypothetical future, human-made art would still remain distinct from AI-produced art. This is because every human consciousness is its own entity; we may have collective qualities and properties as sentient beings, but we are all individuals living our own little lives. Thus, human art will always be a reflection of human creativity that is unique to each person, and to our species as a whole. AI tech may evolve to produce its own art forms, but they will exist separately from what we create.So, even as fearmongers worry about robots writing news articles or algorithms creating hit songs, human art will always have its own space. We may not always be able to tell the difference between human and AI creations, but this fact is largely irrelevant. As long as humans never lose our capacity to exercise creativity and produce things of beauty, no robot will be able to take that away from us.
In many ways, the transition to remote work in the wake of Covid-19 has helped redefine existing conceptions of “company culture.” Even the term itself seems rather outdated; it conjures up images of bustling offices of decades past, with daily meetings, memos and synergetic pep talks. Though some organizations still function in this way, much modern-day business is done with teams spread out all over the world. Many entrepreneurs — myself included — now have to juggle multiple time zones and communication platforms, as well as differences in both language and culture.I’d like to make it clear that I am in no way complaining. In fact, I find the environment of remote workplaces exhilarating. That said, there’s no denying that we have entered an era in which traditional ways of developing and nurturing company culture no longer exist. Consequently, we have to find ways to build and promote cooperation, camaraderie, innovation and productivity — perhaps without ever meeting most of our coworkers face to face.
With the knowledge that work culture has evolved in a remote environment, many startups must spend a great deal of time considering and implementing various ways to strengthen the community from within. It may sound tedious to those entrepreneurs who are, frankly, just concerned with making payroll. You may wonder, who has the time to focus on company culture when there’s a never-ending to-do list? But when the “boss” is physically separate from everyone else, building strong professional relationships is essential.It’s not about monitoring people’s every move or badgering them for constant updates. Instead, it’s about developing a relationship built on mutual communication, trust and understanding. I seek to understand all of the people I work with — and do my best to make myself understood by them. Even when there is a clear hierarchical structure within the business, I want to let everyone know that they are heard and respected.While this may not be completely revolutionary, it is somewhat unique, even in the ever-growing world of remote work. Now that employees are no longer working under the noses of management, there’s a tendency in many companies to over-enforce policies that ensure productivity. In my opinion, this almost never has the desired effect. Instead, it results in more adversarial relationships, where business owners distrust their remote staff and remote employees resent their overbearing bosses.At my companies, most team communication takes place over Slack, email, Zoom or one of the productivity tools we use like Asana and Jira. Small nuances become important when much of our communication is no longer tied to facial expressions or body language. The need to over-communicate so that everyone can understand my tone and intention quickly becomes rather important. For this reason, I think one-on-one meetings allow us to understand each other on a deeper level. I never want to dictate; I prefer to collaborate.This is where I believe the future of remote company culture is heading. Rather than a series of top-down directives, objectives and policies meant to guide employee behavior, remote workplaces should be built on mutual trust and respect. This all begins with having the right people, in the right roles, who are crystal clear on their responsibilities and expected output.
While I personally like to communicate in writing, I’m not blind to the fact that many people are visual or auditory learners. So, in getting to know the people I work with, I also come to learn the most effective ways of communicating my ideas to them. While I may not prefer to brainstorm or think out loud on a call — as opposed to brainstorming in private and coming back with written thoughts — I recognize the importance of doing so in some cases. Sometimes people need to feel heard and seen, even if you’re reading everything they’re sending you. This helps facilitate an environment in which open dialogue is not only encouraged — it’s just the way we do business.Take one of my startups as an example. The first product we launched was our publication: It’s entirely stories from people’s lives. We simply tell stories that are not being told in other places. While we do verify authors and their stories, we publish them anonymously to ensure their ideas are considered fairly by the public. However, this also gives a voice to those who don’t yearn for the attention their story could bring them. I would be a hypocrite if I didn’t organize my businesses using the same foundational concepts. Everyone involved — from part-time freelancers to junior employees — has a voice. While we may not always agree on the same strategy or idea, it’s up to me to listen to them all.Even if they aren’t physically by my side, I know that I can depend on a network of people all over the world to help turn our mission and aspirations for the world into a reality. We all work closely together, exchanging ideas and information — often on a daily basis. In doing so, we ensure that no one’s ideas are disregarded, and everyone understands that they are contributing to something bigger than themselves — even when we’re thousands of miles apart.
While many of us may be using many of the same tools — Slack, Zoom and so on — the difference lies in how you use them to build relationships. I believe in maintaining a safe and professional working environment for everyone, myself included, but I’m not afraid to get personal. In fact, my businesses depend on it. By building trusting relationships with all of your remote teams and network of associates, you can ensure that you’re cultivating a company culture that is built for everyone.Originally published on Forbes.
The music industry is changing rapidly, with new avenues arising for both creators and consumers every day. This begs the question: What will the music industry look like in the future?As the cofounder of an indie record label, I’ve watched many of the most recent changes happen in real time. Despite only working in the business for a few years, we’ve had to constantly adapt to new trends — both in music creation and consumption. While musicians can largely continue creating music as they have for years, the way in which they market their music and reach their audience is always changing.It’s easy to see how the music industry is evolving at an ever-increasing speed. Though SoundCloud has been around for more than a decade and is still one of the biggest players when it comes to discovering new, emerging artists, TikTok has emerged as a popular application for both creators and consumers. First introduced in 2016, the video-centric social media application has taken the music world by storm. Many new artists have gained huge followings on the application and, despite the Trump administration previouslyattempting to ban TikTokciting national security concerns, it has remained one of the most popular avenues for free music distribution, particularly among Gen Z consumers.In a sense, this is the future of the music industry. Whether you look at it from year to year or month to month, the ability to adapt back-end strategies is a must. However, one aspect of music marketing that has become increasingly relevant in the late 2010s and early 2020s is what I like to refer to as the “scandal factor.” You can create great music and garner a following as musicians have done for decades, but if you want to make it big in such a fickle and ephemeral landscape, you have to turn the dial up to 11.What does this actually mean in practice? It not only means doing something that no one else has done — it means doing something that shocks, polarizes and ultimately shifts the download and streaming data in your favor.Lil Nas X provides a perfect example of a musician where controversy has garnered attention and helped build his musical brand. He first turned heads by teaming up with Billy Ray Cyrus to create the highly popular and oddly catchy “Old Town Road,” a mixture of traditional country and modern rap that exploded on Twitter. The following year, Lil Nas Xpublicly came outin 2019, which in and of itself, shouldn’t have been controversial. However, it made him a mainstream gay male rapper — a rapper with a country hit who has attained international success. Lil Nas X capitalized further on this “controversy” with hismusic video for the hit single, “Montero,” which evoked images of the Garden of Eden before showing a fictionalized version of Lil Nas X twerking on Satan’s lap. While many saw it as an ode to the freedom of sexuality, manyconservatives decried it as blasphemous. However, regardless of how you felt about it, the controversy only put more money in the rapper’s pocket.This desire for increasingly shocking material doesn’t just exist in the music industry, either. The old modes of building brands — from political campaigns to retail shops — are falling by the wayside, with new players driven by clicks, streams, downloads, retweets and so on. Social media, particularly TikTok, Twitter and Youtube, might be the primary facilitator (for now), but the desire for controversy and virality are what underpin modern success. To be noticed, you have to do something worthy of people’s attention — which often means doing something completely unexpected. I learned this first hand by building the first completely anonymous publication. By allowing people to write for us anonymously, we get juicer, much more “controversial” perspectives. We’ve seen how the “scandal factor” of the narratives we publish on The Doe can lead to virality on social media like Instagram.Some artists may not like this data-obsessed way of creating, but there’s nothing inherently new about it. Musicians — and their labels — have been motivated by profits, usually above all else. Now, profits are largely calculated using algorithms and data provided by online platforms. Therefore, the environment for music creation and consumption may have changed, but the underlying drive to create new, interesting and profitable media remains the same.
My advice to young artists? Don’t feel that you have to cheapen or somehow betray your passion for music just for shock value. That said, if you want to reach a larger audience, you have to find ways to use your unique talents to create something worth talking about. There are millions of artists out there, so the key is figuring out how to make your music loud enough to be heard above all the other noise.This is why I like to tell artists to treat their music like a product and less like an art form if they want to succeed. That means every time they put music out, they should be treating their fans or listeners, no matter how small that group is, like a focus group they can garner feedback from. The fans may not always know what they want until they hear it. But they do decide what happens to your career, so being arrogant about knowing what’s “the best art” is probably not going to work out for you. Purpose-driven artists can build their careers by understanding how they can market or portray their unique art — even if it means pushing the current boundaries of artist comfort.Originally published on Rolling Stone.
Arts and music are the most expressive industries. The spotlight they cast on artistic output is the death of many talented and upcoming artists. Contractual idiosyncrasies in the music industry offer several benefits, but also several distinct disadvantages. The mounting pressure to write, produce, and perform great music takes a toll on the artists, if not properly monitored. Although the current music industry offers many artists an opportunity to succeed, many times the artist will work themselves into a very unhealthy state. The creative process, and the pressure to remain relevant, exposes them to strong responses of depression, morbid public meltdowns, mental issues, and ultimately, may lead to their death.
On a similar note, the tantalizing premise of streaming services has led to success stories for a number of artists. As a consequence, music streaming services have resulted in a generation of single songs that have more impact than albums. At the same time, streaming has inexorably altered the music industry, which habitually notes the ‘death’ of artists, and many become tagged with the label of being one-hit wonders. However, as Paula Mejia wrote:
While streaming continues to evolve at a breakneck pace, the system through which artists are paid for the music being listened to hasn’t evolved in tandem — meaning that, as dissenters note, many artists are still paid little, after services and labels take their respective cuts.
Because of this new impact of streaming on artists, it is imperative to address the hot topic on the minds of many people — the literal and metaphorical death of artists due to mental health struggles, and the impact of streaming gatekeepers.
The wider cultural shift across the music industry, beginning with the advent of streaming, has introduced new types of gatekeepers. The industry is no longer siloed into discrete functions, such as promotion, publishing, talent management, and royalty collection, as it was in past decades. Streaming has changed music consumption and distribution, which has significantly altered popularity characteristics. The data used to evaluate the popularity of music and the artists, is obtained from streaming services in various classifications or charts. For instance, the Billboard’s Hot 100 includes weekly figures of the most popular songs across multiple regions and genres. It also ranks songs by radio airplay impressions, sales data, and streaming activity.
The digital vetting process filters through songs, separating dubs and creating songs/singles that chart for only one week, known as “one-week wonders.” Digital songs are considerably more likely to plunge from modern digital vetting processes and disappear from the charts into oblivion. As Jerry Lao and Kevin Hoan Nguyen wrote in their article:
The end result is that digital songs are significantly more likely to fall off the chart in the first week compared to CD songs, but the effect moderates over time as the digital songs are scrutinized and only the good songs remain.
Moreover, the processes favor established artists who often regularly dominate the weekly charts. The digital platforms increase the avenues and frequency of music evaluation, as well as the speed with which singles from less established but talented artists peak and disappear — a one-time spotlight phenomenon.
The bedrock structure used by modern streaming services is disproportionately biased against emerging and midsize artists. The unfavorable model guts the musical career of many upcoming artists. Popular streaming services, including Apple Music and Spotify, use a “pro rata” model to determine how revenues are distributed. According to Mejia, the meaning of pro rata is that:
Rights-holders are paid according to market share; how their streams stack up against the most popular songs in a given time period. The people who hold the rights to the most listened-to tracks, then, stand to make the most.
This model is vastly critiqued as unreasonably privileged because it prioritizes and benefits the services themselves, followed by top artists and labels.
As a result, emerging and midsize artists have little chance to earn a decent living. In addition to money considerations, there is a shift toward purpose and mood-driven playlists, instead of full album plays. This pattern is mainly adopted as an advertising tool that functions on the basis that more value is derived from people listening more. Therefore, singles are pushed and popularized to the extent they matter more than artists or full-length albums.
Music has a powerful positive impact on listeners’ mental health, yet many artists are subject to a negative impact, as they struggle with dire mental health issues. Sudden fame, and a lifestyle revolving around music creation and live performances, can intensify mental health challenges, including substance abuse and other psychological issues. In a tangential way, the quest to enter and rise to the peak of the music industry can massively impact an artist’s emotional health. Artists report despair and suicidal thoughts after repeatedly being turned away while trying to rise to fame.
This rejection reflects the brutal competitive nature of the industry, as only a few achieve a successful career. Several aspects trigger these problems, including lack of confidence, anxiety due to rejection and failure, negative influence of others, and the impact of exploitation. The callous nature of the music industry is evidenced by the peak in record sales immediately upon the death of an artist. Mental health struggles are a real menace in the sector that continue to steal big talents, and numb shining stars; as co-founder of Guin Records, our mission is to provide better support to artists
The music community produces significant pressure and stressors. Artists often experience high-pressure situations, including gigs and live shows, attended by thousands of eager and expectant people. Artists are human, and the body is pre-programmed to respond in different ways under stress, which includes various physical and psychological states. Hence, musicians can either perform well due to the heightened awareness from adrenaline rushes, or suffer panic attacks or even memory loss, which cause long-term anxieties. Several artists have reported instances of stress-related breakdown that trigger unhealthy habits such as drinking and drug abuse.
Demi Lovato, for instance, has been admitted in hospital for drug overdose in the past. Before this incident, Lovato was and is still among the most vocal artists on mental health awareness within the music community. Anxiety struggles are also prevalent among several high-profile artists. Such debilitating issues cause much exasperation, necessitating the need to address them publicly. If left unaddressed, issues arising from high-pressure music industry may rapidly deteriorate to feelings of severe depression and suicidal thoughts.
It is paradoxical that music and musical communities and events foster a supportive environment to relax and have fun, yet artists suffer behind the scenes. The music industry is often a smoke and mirrors business, where artists may be portrayed as figureheads who have greater fortitude than others. Media and even artists foster these perceptions and encourage misconceptions about the magnitude of financial success. Nonetheless, they conceal the dire health conditions, and even worse financial outcomes that often occur.
The industry provides a brief window of opportunity for an artist to peak, but is all too often the death of many aspiring artists. Although streaming is arguably an engine driving the music industry to new heights, it is a black spot for those labelled as one-hit wonders. The sector is characterized by monsters, including mental health disorders, depression, and the death of artists and talent.
Unfortunately, the most powerful impact of mental health issues in the music industry arises after the death of an artist. This issue is reflected in the deaths of major acts such as Avicii, who reportedly committed suicide after struggling with thoughts about the meaning of life, and Michael Jackson, who struggled with painkiller drugs addiction for years before dying from a combination of drugs. Artists are perceived (by fans) and portrayed (by the media) as having fun, ‘living the time of their lives’, and as people with superhuman fortitude. With this increased attention, artists often become influencers, and the demand for them to share their personal opinions and become subjected to the pressures of scrutiny, become even higher.
Instances of depression, mental breakdown, and even death show a different side of the lives of musicians. This situation shows the complexity and skewed perceptions about the subject of mental health issues in the context of the music industry. Unlike the easily relatable and understood cases of depression and anxiety such as schizophrenia, mental disorders and associated death within the music community is a major menace. The morbid public meltdowns, depression, and mental issues and ultimate deaths of artists continue to intrigue people — but sadly, just not enough to take action.
Originally published on Thrive
Lao, Jerry, and Kevin Hoan Nguyen. “One-Hit Wonder or Superstardom? The Role of Technology Format on Billboard’s Hot 100 Performance.” 2016, web.stanford.edu/~xhnguyen/BillboardandTechnology.pdf. Accessed 15 July 2020.
Mejia, Paula. “The Success of Streaming has been Great for Some, but is there a Better Way?” NPR, 22 Jul. 2019, www.npr.org/2019/07/22/743775196/the-success-of-streaming-has-been-great-for-some-but-is-there-a-better-way. Accessed 15 July 2020.
The practice has gained much more prominence over the last two decades. Since the advent of the Internet, millions of 9-to-5 workers have put their extra time and resources toward making money through side hustles. According to a Bankrate survey, nearly half of full-time workers take part in some form of “side hustle” outside of their traditional job.
These activities can range from starting a fashion blog to working as a freelance delivery driver — and everything in between. When my co-founder Sabine and I pivoted Dormzi from being a service-based network to a marketplace powered by young people, our vision was to help students lean into their side hustles. One of the challenges we’ve been seeing since doing so is that many aspiring entrepreneurs believe that they would have to completely drop their 9-to-5 job or schooling to turn their side hustles into thriving businesses. Fortunately, this is frequently not the case. To show how to turn your side hustle into a full-time business, let’s look at a few real-world success stories:
It’s a common misconception that your side hustle cannot become a successful business unless you dedicate 100% of your time and money to it. While it’s true that you cannot just expect a side hustle to become something more without any effort on your part, you can turn a side hustle into a full-time business without quitting your day job. How exactly can you do this? By regularly funding your side hustle with a portion of your 9-to-5 paycheck.
It sounds too easy to be true, right? The fact is that many side hustles remain side hustles because people don’t put additional funds into them. For example, if you provide writing services, you could pay to develop a website that markets your services and makes you look more professional. Without a website, you’ll likely struggle to gain new clients and turn your side hustle into a long-term business venture.
So, to refute the naysayers, let’s take a look at some entrepreneurs who invested in their side hustles and now run extremely profitable businesses:
Before founding JotForm in 2006, Aytekin Tank worked as a senior web developer for a large Internet media company in New York City. During his five-year tenure, Aytekin Tank was frequently tasked with creating tools with which editors could create unique forms, like surveys. However, Aytekin Tank often found the existing tools on the market wholly insufficient.
Thus, JotForm was born. While Aytekin Tank toiled away at his day job, he spent his free time developing what would become one of the most popular online form builder tools in the world. His work as a senior web developer provided enough additional funds to turn his ideas into a reality. Over time, Aytekin Tank put away a small fraction of his paycheck until he was ready to launch JotForm. Then, he had the funds to hire a team, grow his start-up into a full-time business, and become one of the dominant forces in his niche. Today, JotForm has over 2 million subscribers and counting!
While Andrew Mason working toward a Public Policy Degree at the University of Chicago, he started developing The Point, a platform that introduced the “tipping point” concept of donating funds towards a particular cause. With The Point, users could collectively fundraise in support of a common goal. However, if the goal did not reach a certain number of supporters or a minimum monetary amount, no one would be charged and the goal would be abandoned. This “tipping point” concept would later form the basis of Andrew Mason’s subsequent endeavor, Groupon, with partners Brad Keywell and Eric Lefkofsky.
Andrew Mason and his partners put a great deal of time and effort into The Point, which proved to be a failed idea, due in part to its lack of focus. However, they found that one aspect of The Point was particularly popular: collective buying power with group deals. Thus, in 2008, Groupon was born.
Andrew Mason worked as a server and a series of other odd jobs to pay his way through college and put aside funds to create The Point. Additionally, he was able to launch The Point with funds from his future Groupon partners. Even once The Point turned out to be a bust, Brad Keywell and Eric Lefkofsky stuck by Andrew’s side. The trio turned their initial failure into a massive success, creating a company that is now valued at more than $2.4 billion!
In the mid-2000s, Eren Bali worked as a freelance web developer based in Turkey. While working for various clients, including the now-defunct Speeddate.com, Bali was putting his extra time and funds toward his own passion project. In 2007, he developed software for a live virtual classroom. He saw a lot of potential in his new creation, so he saved up the funds to move his base of operations to Silicon Valley.
Once in California, Eren Bali met up with Oktay Caglar and Gagan Biyani to found Udemy, an open online course provider. The site launched in 2010 with minimal funding. In fact, Eren Bali and his partners tried and failed 30 times to gain the interest of investors. However, the early success of the platform allowed them to raise $1 million in just a few months. Later, Groupon investors Eric Lefkofsky and Brad Keywell would help raise more capital for the burgeoning company. By early 2020, Udemy was valued at approximately $2 billion!
It’s easy to look at success stories and feel that these side-hustlers-turned-business-owners just got lucky. While there is a certain amount of luck involved in every entrepreneurial endeavor, there are actionable steps you can take to turn your side hustle into a successful full-time business. Based on the examples above, you can reverse engineer their experiences to find a process that works for you. So, let’s take notes from successful entrepreneurs like Aytekin Tank, Andrew Mason, and Eren Bali!
In all three examples above, the founders of successful side-hustle businesses had ideas that they put into action. Often times, these ideas combined their existing skills or passions with a gap in the market. For example, let’s say that you are an excellent communicator and have expert knowledge in a particular niche. You could begin consulting for businesses in that niche. From there, you could set aside funds from your job to market and grow your side-hustle consultation services into a full-time business! This brings us to the second important step…
Most people begin side hustles to make money. However, to turn a side hustle into a business, you’ll need some starting capital. As a result, you’ll likely need to dedicate a small portion of your paycheck toward building your side hustle. This may sound counter-intuitive, but it’s actually a sound business strategy.
Think about it; if you quit your job just to focus on your side hustle, you greatly reduce your income and risk putting all of your eggs in one unpredictable basket. Alternatively, if you regularly set aside funds from your job (or your side hustle) to build your business, you’re essentially investing in your future without taking on any additional risk. Over time, this nest egg could be enough to get your business up-and-running. If you still need more capital, you could always look for investors or take out a small business loan to get things moving!
It may seem like an unimportant distinction, but a side hustle becomes a business once you identify it as such. Side hustles are essentially part-time, temporary work to make extra cash; businesses are long-term investments with the potential to grow and create much larger returns. So, once you officially launch your business as an LLC or similar entity, you’ve taken an important step in your transition from side hustler to business owner!
As illustrated in the stories above, side hustles are generally low-risk. You spend a little bit of extra time and money to (hopefully) make more money or develop a unique idea. However, launching a business entails much more risk. When Aytekin Tank formed JotForm, he struggled to pay and manage his ever-growing staff. Andrew Manson’s first business launch, The Point, turned out to be a momentous failure, though it led him to develop a much better and more profitable website. Finally, Eren Bali and his business partners failed dozens of times to secure funding before finally getting the capital they needed to grow their business. In all three examples, these entrepreneurs launched their side-hustle businesses in spite of the inherent risks.
Turning a side hustle into a big business doesn’t mean you need to quit your day job. In fact, a day job has allowed hundreds of entrepreneurs to routinely fund their side hustles, eventually transforming them into full-time businesses. Up-and-coming entrepreneurs sometimes argue that leaving their much-hated nine-to-five jobs to focus on a full-time business will increase their chances of success. While there is validity to the point that you can’t just “set it and forget it,” you don’t need to completely upend your financial life or career to build your business. Instead, routinely fund and dedicate extra time to your side hustle until you’re ready to launch your business venture.
Originally published on Entrepreneur.
Today, small time farmers across the United States are stuck between a rock and a hard place due to unfair and unjust pressures put on these family run farms by mega corporations. This pressure has made it harder and harder for farmers to make ends meet to properly care for the health and wellbeing of their livestock. Unfortunately, nearly all farmers have to choose between, either, treating their animals humanely and making a small profit, or signing with a mega corporation to inhumanely raise livestock for a slightly larger profit. Poultry farms throughout the United States serve as a great example for how hard it is to compete with these corporations.
The reality is that these mega corporations came in and changed the age-old standards of ethical farming. When looking at poultry farms, the price of meat and eggs has remained too low for too long for smaller farmers to compete and make a difference. Therefore, the poultry farmers have to make a tough choice between selling at the farmers’ markets, or signing deals with mega corporations for a better profit.
Factory farming, which is controlled by big businesses and corporations, are notorious for their inhumane treatment of animals. Poultry farmers, most of the time, have to compete with these mega corporations that find nothing ethically wrong with packing chickens into crates so small that they cannot move, failing to care for the medical needs in order to raise a bird bigger, faster, and cheaper. By completely neglecting any concern or care for the chickens, and placing these animals in horrific, unsanitary, and tortuous environments, big corporations are able to mass produce more eggs and poultry products at a discounted price. In exchange for money, they opt to torture animals.
This, in turn, drives down the price of poultry and eggs, considerably. Today, most farmers only make pennies per bird, due to the mass corporations that can afford to only obtain a marginal profit per animal because they own so many. Put in simpler terms, to make a $100, a mega corporation might only need to make 10 cents per chicken, since they have 1000 chickens. However, a small time farmer, who only has 100 chickens — but keeps them humanely, cares for their needs, and feeds them real food that is not genetically modified — would need to make $10 per chicken. This means that a small time farmer simply cannot compete with larger corporations that specialize in poultry.
Ultimately, they, either, have to raise their productivity and, in doing so, sign a contract with a mega corporation, or remain small and sell at the farmer’s markets. Either way, the end result is the unfair treatment of poultry farmers and the continued mistreatment and abuse of chickens.
Not surprisingly, many smaller chicken farmers are reporting feeling extremely disgruntled and downright depressed over the current state of the whole enterprise. They remember the days, in decades past, when they could care for their chickens in an ethical and humane manner and still turn a profit because it was just them selling along with other farmers who grew for their towns. Now, you can buy the same brand of chicken all over the country. Because of this, fewer and fewer farmers are able to act ethically and earn enough to stay in business.
But there is hope. You as a consumer have the power to help these marginalized farmers and their animals who, ultimately, suffer the most. It is vital for all Americans to petition their governments — local, state, and federal — and demand that stricter laws and regulations be put into place in order to protect animal rights. Stricter laws will accomplish one of two goals: either, factory farmers will be driven out of business, or factory farms will be forced to treat their animals humanely and ethically. It is essential to keep in mind, that these larger corporations are lobbying lawmakers and petitioning to have their agendas upheld and undermine the legitimacy of truly dedicated and just farmers.
If factory farms shut down completely, then smaller farms will be able to thrive and prosper without having to succumb to barbaric practices. On the other hand, if these farms do abide by the laws and regulations which protect animal rights, then poultry farmers will be able to work in a humane setting and not be expected to abuse and mistreat animals in order to turn a profit.
Either way, the farmer and the chickens will win and the corporations, which exploit farmers and torture innocent animals, will be thwarted in their nefarious actions.
Originally published on HuffPost.
One trait that applies to most new entrepreneurs is hopeless optimism. While many entrepreneurs and startup owners keep their feet on the ground when it comes to budgeting and business management, they may not be so level-headed about media criticism. In fact, most startup owners expect to receive nothing but praise and cheers when their products or services hit the market. Unfortunately, this is almost never the case.
However, every dark cloud has a silver lining. Rather than throwing in the towel when you get negative feedback, you should leverage media criticism to your advantage. When it comes to leveraging media critiques, there are essentially two schools of thought. One approach is the “P.T. Barnum Pro-Criticism” technique; the other is Eric Reis’ “Adaptive Learning” strategy. Though both methods are very different, they offer you two ways to turn negative media criticism into a useful tool to grow your business and ultimately stand out from the competition.
It may sound like a no-brainer, but many first-time entrepreneurs assume that any kind of negative feedback qualifies as media criticism. In fact, there’s a huge difference between consumers leaving your business bad reviews on Yelp and a journalist criticizing your startup in a respected publication. So, let’s evaluate the differences between consumer criticism and media criticism.
Consumer criticism refers to any kind of negative critique of you, your product, your service, or your business by a patron or customer. For example, let’s say you run a business that provides digital marketing services. A client uses your services, feels unhappy about their experience, and decides to write a negative review of your business.
This is a prime example of consumer criticism. It is simply a form of negative feedback from a customer or client. More importantly, the customer or client is not a public figure, nor do they hold any sway over a larger audience. However, their feedback will likely be in the public view, so it does have the power to negatively affect your business and possibly deter future clients.
Alternatively, media criticism refers to negative feedback from a public and/or authoritative source. Sometimes, consumer criticism can also be media criticism. For example, if a prominent Youtube star makes a purchase from your startup and creates a negative review video for their Youtube channel, this would be a form of both consumer and media criticism.
In any case, media criticism generally comes from individuals or organizations that have a large audience or have the ability to sway public opinion in a substantial way. Here are a few common examples:
Needless to say, there can be many different sources of media criticism. When many new startup owners are faced with media criticism, they may feel the urge to crumble under the pressure. After all, being the target of public criticism from a popular or authoritative source can be painful. So, how can you get over the initial hurdles and leverage media criticism to your own advantage?
As previously mentioned, there are two unique approaches to leveraging media criticism. The first approach is the “P.T. Barnum Pro-Criticism” method. This is a rather famous — and perhaps infamous — strategy implemented by world-renowned New York Showman and founder of the Barnum & Bailey Circus, P.T. Barnum. So, let’s take a closer look at the notorious showman’s strategy for using media criticism to grow his entertainment empire.
Though P.T. Barnum dabbled in a wide variety of ventures — from politics to journalism — he is most remembered for his traveling circus and widely publicized hoaxes. He became highly successful due to his keen observation that media criticism can be a good thing. In fact, many historians attribute the famous quote, “there’s no such thing as bad press,” (sometimes quoted as “there’s no such thing as bad publicity”) to Barnum.
One of Barnum’s most famous hoaxes was the “Feejee Mermaid,” which was the corpse of a monkey sewn to the tail of a fish, with paper-mâché to craft certain parts of the head and body. Despite its highly questionable authenticity, thousands of people flocked to Barnum’s New York-based museum to see the exhibit. In this instance, Barnum used controversy and negative media attention to grow his empire. This was further exemplified with his second most popular hoax, “General Tom Thumb.”
As part of his touring circus, Barnum employed several dwarfs and little people, one of whom he dubbed “General Tom Thumb.” The young boy began performing at the age of 4, with Barnum claiming that he was “The Smallest Person That Ever Walked Alone.” The act was so popular that Barnum took it to Europe, where Queen Victoria was both entertained and saddened by the young entertainer. His appearance before royalty — and the subsequent media frenzy — led to a hugely successful European tour.
So, how can these stories help you as an entrepreneur? The fact is that there is some truth to Barnum’s media criticism theory. Press — whether good or bad — provides exposure for you and your business. In short, it makes more people aware of your brand. For example, my business, The Doe, is a digital publication for anonymous contributors. Since we strive to encourage conversation and differing viewpoints, we have faced media criticism in the past. Most recently, we experienced backlash related to an article that argued against voting in the 2020 election due to the lack of quality candidates. Some of our more prominent followers took to social media to deride the article’s viewpoint, but as the founder and CEO of The Doe, I decided to lean into the criticism. Rather than ignoring, however, I always choose to respond to our critics, as often those conversations can be the most enlightening as a founder.
In his much-lauded book, The Lean Startup, American entrepreneur Eric Reis puts forward a method for handling media critiques as a startup owner. Part of this process is a practice that Reis calls “Adaptive Learning.” As the name implies, entrepreneurs must analyze feedback so that they can adapt and learn from past mistakes. In short, it takes the same process that startups can use with consumer criticism and implements it with media criticism.
However, the ideas behind Adaptive Learning are far more complex than simply learning from one’s mistakes. In fact, Reis promotes a three-step process that every startup owner can use to their advantage. The illustration below provides a broad overview of Reis’ process:
As you can see, every startup must begin with a vision. This step defines the goals of your startup. To get to the next step, you must identify actionable steps that can get your startup up and running. Once you’ve identified these elements, you can start seeing how your business operates and how it is received. Are you able to profit right from the start? Is consumer feedback positive or negative? How about media critiques?
If you’re getting any negative feedback or taking note of metrics that could be improved, this is the moment to adapt and learn. This process of building, measuring, and learning is the foundation of Adaptive Learning. As you can see from the illustration above, you can continue through this process multiple times to improve your business and leverage media criticism to your advantage.
At one point or another, media criticism is an inevitability for every startup owner. Whether it’s a blogger who doesn’t like your product or a journalist who thinks your practices are questionable, there will always be media critiques of your business. Remember, you shouldn’t see media criticism as a reason to give up; you should see it as a reason to improve and build your business. Whether you use the P.T. Barnum Pro-Criticism approach or Eric Reis’ Adaptive Learning method (or even a combination of the two), you have an actionable path to success. You simply have to use your ability to leverage media criticism so that your business can grow and get ahead of the crowd!
Hi everyone,
As the holiday season comes to a close, and the new year is in sight, I find myself feeling both grateful and overwhelmed.
It's a time of year when my primary goal is to be present with my family and take a break from my daily routines, but I also have a growing list of priorities and deadlines to tackle. It can be a bit of a balancing act moving a startup forward while making time for holiday activities, so I'm trying to embrace the concept of ichigyo-zammai, a Japanese philosophy of channeling your focus on one thing at a time.
This week, I'll continue tackling a few high-priority items that many of my fellow founders may also be focused on: reducing burn, goal planning for 2023, and clarifying a vision for the future – especially with so much uncertainty in the market.
Most of all, I’m grateful for all the lessons of this year and to finally reap some fruits from the seeds that were planted all year long.
So, without further delay, I want to update you on some exciting news to come, and happenings across the board.
AUDO’S MVP IS LAUNCHING IN LESS THAN A WEEK!
Audo’s MVP opens the doors of our A.I. Career Planner where our proprietary AI asks you questions to identify your goals, skills, and interests to match you with the best courses and certificates to reach your desired career outcome.
For $39 a month, you get unlimited access to over 15k courses created by some of the largest companies and employers. With each course completed, our AI then matches you with job opportunities available anywhere on the internet. Affordable education, personalized to the user, powered by job market availability.
I’m obsessed with creating an alternative to college for Zoomers (Gen Z) and future generations. I believe that the A.I. we’re building will soon be powerful enough to help anyone pivot their career, or rejoin the job force based on their needs.
Making money on the internet is easier than ever. Digital skill acquisition is more affordable than ever. But a college degree is more expensive than it’s ever been. During this current market downturn, many of our beta users have been prioritizing upskilling with us because they need to find work before graduating high school and help support their families affected by layoffs. I know there is a better way to approach career navigation, and we know these gigs exist online.
Audo can help people on their way to consistent income through freelancing and upskilling.
The validation of our concept by real users has been encouraging. We’ve been generating 100 new signups a day and have over 12,000 registered and waitlisted users since we began our Beta in September.
All I’m going to say is that this MVP has been a lot of blood, sweat, and tears to ensure we don’t lose momentum. While the day we push this release will be exciting, what’s more exciting is the momentum we’ve built going into the coming year.
Cheers to an amazing team and especially our users above all else.
MY FIRST BOOK IS COMING OUT!! AH!
I’m Just Saying: A Guide to Maintaining Civil Discourse in an Increasingly Divided World will publish in the first half of 2023 and is available for pre-order now. Wow, that feels good to say: my first book is almost done!
I’m Just Saying draws from history, popular culture, and personal anecdotes from my own life to explore the concept and practice of civil discourse, an essential part of democracy and civilized society that is becoming rare in today's digital age. (As I’m sure you’ve noticed!)
Why would my publisher be interested in the hot take of a 23-year-old, privileged, tech-founder on the ancient practice of civil discourse? This one for me is personal. From my days at Colorado College to founding Nota (formerly known as The Doe), the anonymous publishing site I launched, to managing multiple remote teams across continents, I’ve witnessed such a massive breakdown in civil discourse during a time of hyper-scrutiny and cancel culture.
It’s worth noting as someone who loves tech that this book doesn’t exist to negate the amazing value technology has brought so much as it exists to analyze technology’s impact on civil discourse in society.
Do not get me wrong, I love A.I, and I love efficiency, but the truth is that we’ve lost the art of micro relationships and basic connections made through our conversations with both people we love and those we only encounter briefly. I’ve spent years reflecting on this, studying this, and working to scale civil discourse.
I also intended this book to be helpful to fellow founders and builders who want to lead their increasingly remote and global teams by leveraging the power of civil discourse. (It really makes a difference, trust me!)
You’ll be hearing much more about the book in the coming months. But for now, you can help me out by putting in some pre-orders, here!
SENTIMENTS FROM GUIN AND NOTA
A quick update from the two other companies I founded, but stepped away from as CEO this year: Guin and Nota.
Guin Records, helmed by Misha Kordestani, has spent all year “storming and norming,” refining processes, exploring tech solutions to fill gaps, and preparing for a year of newly structured deals and a new tier of artists. We have a new website we’re excited to launch in the first quarter, and a tech product baking in Figma that we hope might eventually scale some of the basic record label functions we know artists will need most in this challenging industry.
On the Nota front, we’ve fully pivoted to our new product offering launching in 2023 under the direction of CEO Josh Brandau. There’s a lot of low-hanging fruit to build tech solutions to help the digital publishing industry that has long been bleeding. In the age of free information and social media, we’re on a mission to create a marketplace and streaming economy for journalists, writers, and digital publishers. That’s our long-term vision, but today, we’re building with AI to make content more accessible for consumers, and give publishers an edge to ensure their information reaches the masses before misinformation does.
This starts with AI text-to-video, AI SEO automation for entire article libraries, and more. We’re currently fielding feedback and inquiries from publishers interested in pilot partnerships of our beta, and finding ways to bring the larger vision to life as fast as possible.
SEE YOU IN THE NEW YEAR.
Friends, that’s all I’ve got for this rainy winter day.
Here are some words I'm using to anchor my coming year: iterate, automate, delegate, learn and balance.
I’m a big fan of mantras. One of my favorites this time of year is, “Rome wasn’t built in a day, but they were layering bricks every hour.”
Let me know what kind of goals you’re focused on for 2023. I’d love to use this monthly newsletter as an opportunity to hear your rants and learn from or reconnect with you.
Warmly,
Milan
Hi Friends,
I’m back with the monthly memo. And I’m going to start this one by asking y’all to take a deep breath, because it’s been a long 40 days since I began this newsletter. But I’m not alone in the sentiment of being a bit more tired than usual, it’s been a lot of really long days.
When I read that letter again, part of me feels the same as I did then: there are glimpses of fatigue along with a healthy level of founder optimism. But my sentiment in the last letter about battening down the hatches was no joke. The 6 am wake-ups and 14-hour work days haven’t quite let up, and while it does feel like I’m moving at lightspeed, there’s still a feeling of “hurry up and wait.” This letter, in large part, is for my fellow founder friends who are continuing to build amidst a financial winter unlike we’ve seen before.
All that said, if you’re going to stick with a startup during an economic downturn, I strongly believe in the importance of – as a founder – outperforming and inspiring those around you. In truth, that can be a very difficult thing to do when you’re young and everyone you work with has more experience than you.
That means you’ll have to figure out what your “secret sauce” is in order for you to stay ahead of the pack. I’ve found that nobody can prescribe the right sauce to any person, because the value we bring to our respective startups differs from one to the other. In my case, my “secret sauce” is my obsession with productivity and capturing information that can be leveraged later. I try not to let a single plausible idea – or concept that could improve my life or help me achieve my goals – go undocumented. This isn’t productivity for work I’m talking about, but a personal life management system.
For you, your secret sauce might be communicating the most outrageous concepts in the simplest of ways. Or maybe it’s showing up on time for people, something I haven’t been very good with recently. Whatever your secret sauce, use that each morning to deliver your unique value to whatever vendetta you’re building against. Focusing on one vendetta at a time keeps the stress levels down :)
But if you’re young, now is the time to be pulling all-nighters and risking it all to change the world. Stick with me as I tell you about the last 40 days since I wrote y’all... and apologies for the delay. Here we go!
This month I’ve been meeting with lots of different investors, from venture funds to angels. The feedback and interest in what we’re building is strong: it’s never been so obvious how terrible of an investment college is for Gen Z. Our challenge is straight up ambitious: use AI to tailor online education to get you employed in under 3 months. As we head into the holiday season, we’re focused on our beta users currently taking courses, and driving towards our MVP to open our doors to the internet.
We’ve made some exciting progress this month onboarding beta testers for Audo Learn, pushing the limits of what our beta can handle before our MVP opens in January. But even that statement feels like a blessing when I think back to the beginning of this year when we didn’t even know if the concept would resonate (we did tests, but ya never know). I’ve been doing live walkthrough onboardings with some of our beta testers, and it’s been really helpful to get that user feedback in real-time.
I was planning on telling everyone how many career tracks we’d launch with in January. But we may have a surprise in the works
Audo is hitting the road, and we’ve applied to some of EdTech’s biggest opportunities:
I also had the pleasure of speaking on a couple of podcasts and Yahoo Finance to get the word out about Audo, which were really cool. I’m just a verbose dude, and am working on refining my answers, because I love rabbit holes. Conveniently located here to peruse:
Man. This one is tough. As I spoke about in my last letter I’ve taken a step back from Nota (Previously named The Doe), to allow Josh Brandau the new CEO of Nota to bring the organization some much-needed focus.
That much-needed focus also came with a lot of innovative ideas, and a lot of questions around building a sustainable technology company in a struggling publishing industry. The problems are nuanced, but I’ll start with this: it’s very difficult to watch something you’ve built for so long come screeching to a halt, as we evaluate the most viable route forward.
All that to say, the Nota team has made it past many of the “rough times,” and momentum should begin to pick up soon with more clarity on what we’re building. But it took some time to get here. I don’t have much more to share at this point, but I’m hopeful that we’ll have some really exciting updates about Nota by the end of the year.
The Guin team has been growing significantly lately. We’re now a family of about 20 people, and proudly a 90% black-employed organization.
With our growing team also comes an evolution of concept. Beginning this year, Guin has focused on creating sustainability for the label, and we’ve made major moves toward ensuring that this happens. We’ve fleshed out our revenue model, and the label itself has undergone a huge in-service operation: everyone’s jazzed for 2023.
We have big dreams for Guin, and Misha is chipping away at all of them daily. Imagine a Guin studio in every major city. Imagine an incubator focused on artist development for aspiring artists who are financially disadvantaged. Imagine transparency at the core of every deal we do.
There’s a lot that’s been cooking in the oven that we’ll start to share slowly, but October was a temperature check on the dream, and it’s strong!
Across the Board
Culture has been a big focus of mine recently. It’s the driving factor of success for a startup, which is why I’m grateful to highlight an amazing culture being built at Guin. Misha has done an amazing job of driving cohesion among an ever-evolving team against a new pivot. But culture ebbs and flows. Across my organizations, we’ve had to let people go as we’ve made aggressive pivots and evaluated what the organizations best need to be successful. We’ve also seen amazing moments where we’ve gained explosive growth at Audo, meeting our goals, only to see the goalposts move into arenas like fundraising or team growth: which inevitably weaken culture. The startup game can be frustrating, but I also believe that building sustainable companies that employ many, and drive obvious solutions to industry-wide problems, is the greatest use of my drive and time.
At Guin, I’m seeing glimpses of a really amazing culture. At times, artists will tear into staff, but our team is learning how to deal with it. We are learning when to own up to a fault or hole in our startup processes and to recognize the moments when it’s not our fault. It’s amazing to see this growth in Guin under Misha’s leadership.
At Nota, the team and culture have suffered a lot. I’m grateful that all the team members we let go, or chose to leave during our pivot, have all managed to gain employment and make the next moves in their careers. That’s the best outcome you could hope for as a founder who will inevitably make mistakes. In my case, it was seeing hockey stick-like traction without building proper monetization strategies. To the team members who have moved on, thank you for trusting in me for so long. I’m proud of the work we did and proud of you all for keeping the drive and finding new opportunities to work: I can’t wait to cheer you on on your new paths.
For the folks still at Nota, I think we understand how daunting the challenge we’re tackling is, but I also think we’ve figured out how we’ll be able to operate and build. I know you all will love what we release next.
It’s been a tough month. I think most of my fellow entrepreneurs are changing their expectations of what the end of this year would look like. The hours have gotten longer and the work more extensive. I’m sure I’m not the only founder who’s been facing 14-hour days with no lunch.
But I don’t want you to think it’s all doom and gloom.
This past month has been a lesson on the importance of building connections and keeping an open mind, even under the intensity of building and raising. From chats with investors, to dinners with fellow founders, there’s truly no better way to get a perspective on what you’re building than by hearing other people’s stories. It re-motivates and re-excites you about the path you’ve chosen.
You never know what kind of insights or opportunities will come out of a conversation – and you are more likely to find them when you are receptive and present.
I attended an event on the Future of Work this month, intending to connect with VCs and find opportunities to pitch Audo. Surprisingly, though, the best connection I made wasn’t with a potential investor; it was with another founder. His company is creating tech that can quickly recognize patterns in large data sets. In connecting, we were able to follow up with meetings, learn about their technology, and develop new ideas that will save my team hundreds of man-hours. Had I been narrowly focused on networking with VCs, I would have completely missed out on that learning opportunity.
When you're building, staying laser-focused on your MVP and fundraising can be tempting, but there's a lot to be said for staying impartial and open-minded. In fact, the early building stage might be the most important time to remain objective and open. Remaining malleable and adaptive as a company culture will result in more effective pivots that keep you on track, rather than breaking you.
George Bernard Shaw said it best: “Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything.”
I mentioned I’d talk about productivity in these newsletters, but really I’ve just been building out my life on Click-Up more than ever these days. So for now, here are some contact management apps to help you improve the relationships in your life. It’s been a very interesting, niche, craze. And there are so many options from Dex, to Clay.Earth, Contacts+, and more.
Book Update
In January, I shared that I got a publishing deal for a book proposal on civil discourse. I’m excited to say that the final manuscript has been submitted to the publisher, and we’ve approved the first set of proofs. On the long road of publishing a book, we are within sight of the finish line!
We’re 5 months away from our publishing date, so expect to see more on this soon. I’ll likely do a cover reveal in November!
Hi friends! Welcome to the first installment of my monthly memo. I'm excited to share some news and updates with you, as well as insights from the blog, and a few other things on my radar.
It's been a busy year, and summer... I began this year with the intention of creating self-sufficiency for the three startups I founded over the last few years.
To focus my time, I've taken on full-time responsibility as CEO of Audo (formerly Dormzi), while taking a step back elsewhere.
I have hired the previous CRO of the LA Times (Josh Brandau) to take over and evolve The Doe, and I've taken a step back from Guin, confident in my sister and co-founder Misha's leadership as sole CEO of Guin Records.
I support both Misha and Josh as much as I can in my free time, sharing learnings from Audo and other companies across my portfolio to ensure learning and progress from mistakes and wins are made at each venture.
On a personal note, Summer has been less relaxed than in previous years, with "building" being the focus on my mind.
Whether it's been increasing the amount of time and priority I put on family-time this summer, or the late nights and early mornings spent fundraising for Audo, I've been blessed to be busy!
But if you're feeling like this summer has been a quiet and heads-down period for more than just yourself, there's some logic there! (Keep reading)
I've been fortunate to learn a lot over this summer, and to put a significant emphasis on increasing productivity, increasing clarity in everyone's roles and responsibilities, and doing my utmost to drive these impact-focused teams.
But, at the risk of repeating what you all already know, the markets are down; beyond the global implications, from an early-stage founder mindset, the dial has been turned up for all of us to ensure sustainability in what we're building.
Fundraising is no longer dependent on who makes the most noise, but now, who has a real solution for a large enough market that can be monetized in your first 2-3 years of operating.
I'm confident I'm building solid companies, but this summer was a lesson in long-term strategy.
I'm learning that patience is a founder's best asset in a bear market and everything takes a little longer in a downturn.
Patience coupled with a realistic roadmap to product-market fit is the way through. That means being able to see the vision beyond the excitement of early stages, and being mentally prepared for years of testing, feedback and product iterations that will lead to a monetizable solution.
Young founders, myself included, tend to be impatient, wanting to build the products that solve massive problems and grow into empires.
But Rome was not built in a day, so patience has been the biggest skill I've been developing most this summer, along with all the fundraising lessons I've been learning on the job. Amazon started by selling books, before selling everything you can think of.
Audo's beta is officially live!
In case you missed it, my college startup, Dormzi, has recently pivoted and rebranded to Audo - A career-building ecosystem that uses an AI-powered assessment to generate a personalized upskilling path and connect you to careers in today's increasingly volatile market.
We believe that there are tons of powerful courses online, and tons of amazing job opportunities at the entry-level, but users are not being matched well to either.
We're building the ecosystem to bridge digital education with gig-style work and earning potential. A "get paid gigs, as you learn", kind of thing.
We've partnered with Coursera, EdX, and Path Unbound to provide ample variety in courses for us to stitch together personalized curriculum.
The only question at hand, is how can we close the gap between higher education and job placement?
Well, it starts by ensuring it's offered at an affordable price that breaks the chokehold of student debt and the 4 year commitment typically expected by traditional education institutions. We're in the exciting stage of beta testing Audo Learn, and we're prioritizing collecting as much feedback from our early users as possible so we can adapt to their needs.
If you or someone you know is interested in being a beta tester, they can sign up here.
Say Hello to Nota-the next stage of evolution for The Doe!
The Doe began as a solution providing a place online to authentically tell meaningful stories through anonymous publishing.
However, over the years, we've recognized we cannot do this alone. To do more, our vision must grow and pivot.
Enter: Nota.
With Nota, our dream is to build an ecosystem for journalists and media consumers by, finally, bringing technology solutions to the journalism industry that improve the content creation process for writers, increase revenue for publications, and rebuild trust in publications from consumers.
We want to return people to the center of publishing. We're focused on empowering the writers and storytellers who fuel the publishers we trust most, with the intent to improve the publishing experience for all those involved: publishers, writers, and consumers.
Nota will continue to serve marginalized voices as the internet's leading anonymous publisher, while expanding our focus to a grander mission: improving the way consumers interact with news and how publishers source and distribute that content.
A lot has happened at Guin in the past 6 months.
Like the other two, Guin has also been very focused on sustainability. Misha and I have focused on how Guin can continue to grow towards becoming the leading artist-friendly label in music.
The mission is ambitious and challenging, but we know the only way to get there is by listening to what our artists and the greater artistic community are asking for.
This has involved looking at the data of what it takes for a label, which in the modern day operates like an early stage venture capital fund, to break an artist.
We've also been analyzing what the weighting of factors should be in the decision making of which artists we sign and how to better construct those deals to incentivize artist growth.
As always, Misha and I have leaned on what we know best to make this happen: recruiting talented team members to collaboratively give this mission the best opportunity for success.
While our progress this year has been exciting, it hasn't come without its fair share of headaches either.
Signed artists are like founders: there never seems to be enough money, somehow the fund is always blamed for lack of growth, and while building a successful artist career is like building a business, artists sometimes don't see it that way.
Nonetheless, like any fund focused on the "early stage," it's our job to guide, mentor, and shepherd these young artists towards a mindset of partnership.
Misha and I continue to work closely to dream up what Guin can become and what the appropriate milestones will be along the way.
I'll continue to provide updates as we flesh that out. But for this year, beyond all of the amazing music releases we've had, I'm most proud of the team we've grown into: a team focused on setting and driving against goals in the next year, a team focused on process and efficiency to ensure nothing slips through the cracks, and a team focused on culture and mental health.
We're intentionally signing artists we believe we can work with closely to develop their work through our partnership, and avoiding artists who want to treat us like the label that doesn't care.
Because, believe me - this team cares so much, they put the lives of the artists ahead of their own. I couldn't be more grateful for the team we've built, and for Misha showing up day in and day out to build a music empire and family that artists are proud to be a part of.
As Guin keeps building, I'll continue to share updates here; and in the meantime, here are some of our newest releases!
Guin new releases:
From the Blog
What Is The Role of A Record Label In Today’s Music Business?
Record labels play an important role in artist development, fostering a body of work while maintaining a focus on profitability and data-driven results.
Human language, problem-solving, and morality originate in our imaginative ability to reflect on different situations and our deep-seated drive to connect with others.
How to Break Out of the Social Media Echo Chamber?
If you find your content consumption pattern one-sided and constantly bashing the other side, it's time to break free of your filter bubble.