It’s been way too long since I’ve been out of the country, but with the Artist Retreat around the corner, I’m really getting excited. A few of the attendees (Are you one of them? Would you like to be? Contact me for more information!) asked me how to learn a language and learn it quickly. It’s a great question. That’s why I rounded up some great language apps that will help you kick your second or third language into high gear: Tweets: Twitter is understated as an educational tool. Twitter allows you to learn new languages and practice them a little bit. Click here a compilation of some “linguistic twitterers”. LiveMocha.com – Livemocha divides a language into courses, units, and lessons. Lessons are divided into four types of activities: learn, review, write, and speak. What’s nice is that you can also make flashcards from the content in the lessons, or you can make your own flashcards. There is even a chat feature, so you can connect with people learning the same language you are. Babbel — If you’re looking for something that you can use on both your computer and smart phone, Babbel fits the bill. It provides exercises and courses [...]
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Recently, I have been asked by my clients on how they can use Google Plus for their businesses while waiting for the business pages to be opened to the public. Here is my post for Overdrive Interactive giving my thoughts: In just one month Google+ has continued its exponential growth reaching 20 million users last week. A few days ago, Google removed several business accounts from Google plus (such as Ford and Sesame Street), but left other brands such as Mashable (because it transferred the brand to a person – Pete Cashmore) to play in beta. Though there has been an announcement that Google+ will be open to the public shortly, many businesses are wondering when they can create their own proper business page. Let’s explore the importance of preparing your brand for that eventuality and some things you can do in the mean time to prepare. The Importance of Google+ for Brands So why should your brand really care about being on another social platform anyway? Is this just another channel for engagement? Well, if you care about your company’s online reputation and its search ranking, consider these things: Google Plus VS. Facebook Facebook faces a major challenge from [...]
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Summertime can only mean one thing for me, sitting with family and friends in the wonderful weather sipping on a beer. After several lively discussions about our favorite beers, my family deciding to start a little competition: to see who makes the best beer. Of course, this is all in fun. My favorite beer is St. Bernardus, a Belgian classic, while my dad can’t get enough of stouts. During the course of this “competition”, I have discovered a few great apps that are centered around beer, and allow my family and me to learn about what we’re drinking. Here are my top five favorite beer apps: iBrewMaster — As an artist, I love to create, and brewing my own beer allows me to indulge in the tasty side of creativity. This app makes home brewing easy for a novice like me. It comes with 50 pre-installed recipes and instructions to ensure you don’t make any mistakes along the way and end up with the perfect beer at the end. onTap Beer App — After I drink a particularly tasty beer I’ll often want to make sure to write it down so that I can return to it again and again. [...]
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In just a few short weeks I will be traveling to Italy for the Artists Retreat. I can’t wait to join together with artists to be inspired, and work with others like myself who are making their dreams and ideas come to life. Being in Italy for a week is a dream, but even though I’ll be in a beautiful foreign country, I know I still need to be productive. Here are some tools and gadgets I use to make sure travel doesn’t stop me from being industrious even while overseas. Apple iPad — What a great way to have everything you need at your fingertips, while not straining your bicep muscles carrying all your luggage AND a heavy laptop. The iPad is incredibly versatile and will allow me to tweet, read, write, and stay in contact while I’m away. Apple MacBook Pro 13” — I have nothing against PCs or netbooks, but my MacBook and I have taken many successful trips together, so why mess with a perfect partnership? It’s not as small as a netbook, but just as convenient and is perfect for those times when I need more than what my iPad can give me, such as [...]
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Tagged 10 best apps, android apps, app reviews, best apps, freelancer mods, gmail apps, list of apps, productivity, sluggy freelance, the traveler, travel app, travel apps
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This weekend, I came across two articles that made me step back for a moment. The first was the Wall Street Journal’s blog post, “Addressing The Lack of Women Leading Tech Start-ups.” In the post, WSJ tries to address the question of “Where are all the women in tech?” They mention that there is no shortage of opinions about the issue but the core of the article isn’t really being addressed. It must be noted overall that equality has come a long way even in the short time that I have been in the professional world. Where the disparity seems to be is why there are so few women in the technology industry. The next article I came across was a TechCrunch response by Michael Arrington entitled, “ Too Few Women In Tech? Stop Blaming The Men.” In the article, Arrington tries to sympathize with the issue but is fed up with the blame game. Can you blame him? I don’t. Below is an infograph compiled by Socialcast.com that looks at a number of dimensions in the technology industry comparing male vs female ratios. A few key insights: According to Dow Jones VentureSource, 11% of U.S. firms with venture-capital backing in 2009 [...]
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Tagged definition of technology, epic win, gaming offline, managing teams, new technology, online gaming, science and technology, social influence, transmedia, transmedia storytelling, what is technology, women in science, women of technology, women quotes, women technology, womens rights, working women
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It’s been several months since the Our Revolution road trip, but the experience has stayed with me and often finds its way into my conversations with others. Although Our Revolution is about promoting social change with revolutionary ideas and actions to change perceptions in lives in communities, my friend Lucas asked me an intriguing question – “How did the experience change you?” I have to say that in retrospect, one of the most important takeaways I have from the road trip was an improved technique for coming up with innovative solutions. The technique is similar to what Eric Schmidt, CEO of Google, says, “We run the company by questions, not answers.” Innovation does not spring up out of nowhere. Innovative solutions and answers come first by asking the right questions. The Our Revolution road trip was full of questions that needed answers. How can we improve a situation? And when you ask a question, it stimulates conversation. It is out of these conversations that come innovation. To stimulate innovation within your team, you need to create a culture of questioning. Here’s how: 1. Set an Example – The behavior of team members always gravitates to the behavior of their leaders. [...]
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Tagged define innovation, definition of innovation, Innovation, innovation business, innovation technology, innovations, innovative solutions, innovator, new innovation, team building activities, technology and innovation, technology innovation, what is innovation
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“If I had seen further than others, it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.” -Issac Newton I’ve been down in D.C. for the week and have met a ton of interesting people, many of which are freelancers who are trying to build their businesses. Each of them wanted to know how what secrets I had for them. I have no secrets (expect be prepare to work your butt off and love it), but I can share what I have learned. Here are some items on How to Freelance: I. Fuel : Why Drinking Coffee is Great for You Before you begin, make sure you are energize and ready to take on the world. Here is a few reasons why coffee is a great way to start you day and get you ready to build your business. To read the article, click here. II. The Idea: How to Start a Million Dollar Business Every business, even a freelance one starts with an idea. Here are a few ways to find that idea and start a million dollar business. To read the article, click here. III. Freelancer Toolkit: 201+ Amazing Tools and Resources for the Freelancer Every freelancer and small [...]
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Tagged free lancer, freelance, freelance designer, freelance designers, freelance it, freelance writer, freelance writing, freelancer, freelancer jobs, freelancers, freelancers toolkit, freelancing, how to freelance, i freelance, it freelance, what is freelance, work free, workfree
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“My idea is that every specific body strives to become master over all space and to extend its force (–its will to power:) and to thrust back all that resists its extension. “ -Nietzsche My mother has been trying to quit smoking for years. She wants to quit and has tried a number of things-cold turkey, gum, the patch, you name it. She just does not have the willpower to do it. Do you know someone like this? And how about you? Is there something that you wish you could train yourself to do? Maybe you want to exercise more, eat better, or control your alcohol intake. Having the willpower to do all or any of these things is achievable, if it’s done correctly. Here are a few simple steps to train your willpower: I. Set the Stage: In order to truly master your willpower, set limits and parameters for yourself. Be specific about what you want to accomplish and by when. Lay out the road map for yourself, so you know what you’re trying to tackle. II. Start Small: Instead of rushing into things, ask yourself, ” What are my milestone goals as I work towards my end goal?” [...]
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Have you ever wanted to jump off a roof? You’re not alone. During parkour training, they teach you how to do it and successfully. What is Parkour? According to Wikipedia, Parkour is the non-competitive sport of traversing mainly urban landscapes by running, climbing and jumping. Participants run along a route, attempting to navigate obstacles in the most efficient way possible, using only their bodies. Skills such as vaulting, rolling, swinging and wall scaling are employed. Parkour can be practiced anywhere, but areas dense with obstacles are preferable and it is most commonly practiced in urban areas. Parkour Basics Watch this video to understand so basic positions and moves: Now, while using these basic principles, here is guide on how to jump off a roof: 1. Cue Motivation Music: Before you begin, get your ass-kicking soundtrack in place. Here are a few crowd sourced ideas: Meron Langsner’s pick: Emily Torres’ pick: Naomi Pierce’s pick: And of course, who could forget the song during the Ocean’s Twelve “Laser Dance”. 2. Run: In order to gain speed to leverage later, give yourself enough runway to get a running start. 3. Jump Forward: When jumping, jump forward. This will allow you to attain momentum [...]
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The following post is an article for Sparksheet, on brands and transmedia. Below is the extended version of the article. What is it about a great story that stays with us? In its simplest form, storytelling is an act of cultural preservation – from drawing on a cave wall to commenting on a friend’s Facebook status, the process of sharing information between two people is an innate part of being human. But in an age where the distribution and sharing of stories across multiple channels is increasingly accessible (and people’s attention spans even more divided as a result), how do organizations get their stories out to an increasingly fragmented audience? Enter Transmedia. A Transmedia refresher Transmedia storytelling, as explained by JWTIntelligence, “involves narrative threads tailored for different channels (from mobile to big screens, from social to traditional media) and audiences (gamers, readers, Tweeters, etc.)…For brand marketers, this means that rather than striving for consistency across multiple touchpoints, the goal is for different channels to communicate different things (within the overarching strategy), with an emphasis on putting the brand community at the center.” A popular example would be the companion media to 2003’s Matrix Reloaded. The Animatrix, an original series of [...]
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Tagged brand image, brand positioning, branding, branding strategies, emotional branding, importance of branding, marketing branding, personal branding, storytelling, the storytellers, trans media, transmedia storytelling, transmediterránea, what is branding
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