The Legacy and Works of Lu Xun

The Legacy and Works of Lu Xun Lu Xun (é ² Ã¨ ¿â€¦) was the pen name of Zhou Shuren (å‘ ¨Ã¦  â€˜Ã¤ º º), one of China’s most famous fiction authors, poets, and essayists. He is considered by many to be the father of modern Chinese literature because he was the first serious author to write using modern colloquial language. Lu Xun  died on October 19, 1936, but his works have remained prominent over the years in Chinese culture. Early Life Born on September 25,  1881, in Shaoxing, Zhejiang, Lu Xun was born into a wealthy and well-educated family. However, his grandfather was caught and nearly executed for bribery when Lu Xun was still a child, which sent his family tumbling down the social ladder. This fall from grace and the way once-friendly neighbors treated his family after they had lost their status had a profound effect on the young Lu Xun. When traditional Chinese remedies failed to save his fathers life from an illness, most likely tuberculosis, Lu Xun vowed to study Western medicine and become a doctor. His studies took him to Japan, where one day after class he saw a slide of a Chinese prisoner being executed by Japanese soldiers while other Chinese people were gathered around happily taking in the spectacle. Appalled at his countrymen’s apparent callousness, Lu Xun abandoned his study of medicine and vowed to take up writing with the idea that was no point in curing diseases in Chinese people’s bodies if there was a more fundamental problem in their minds that needed curing. Socio-Political Beliefs The beginning of Lu Xun’s writing career coincided with the beginning of the May 4th Movement, a social and political movement of mostly young intellectuals who were determined to modernize China by importing and adapting Western ideas, literary theories, and medical practices. Through his writing, which was extremely critical of Chinese tradition and strongly advocated modernization, Lu Xun became one of the leaders of this movement. Impact on the Communist Party Lu Xun’s work has been embraced and to a certain extent co-opted by  China’s Communist Party. Mao Zedong held him in very high esteem, although Mao also worked hard to prevent people from taking Lu Xun’s sharp-tongued critical approach when it came to writing about the Party. Lu Xun himself died well before the communist revolution and it’s difficult to say what he would have thought of it. National and International Influence Widely recognized as one of China’s best and most influential authors, Lu Xun remains strikingly relevant to modern China. His socially-critical work is still widely read and discussed in China and references to his stories, characters, and essays abound in everyday speech as well as academia. Many Chinese people can quote from several of his stories verbatim, as they are still taught as part of China’s national curriculum. His work also continues to influence modern Chinese authors  and writers around the world.  Nobel-prize-winning author KenzaburÃ…  Ã…Å'e  reportedly called him the greatest writer Asia produced in the twentieth century. Noted Works His first short story, â€Å"A Madman’s Diary†, made a huge splash in China’s literary world when it was published in 1918 for its clever use of colloquial language juxtaposed with the stilted, hard-to-read classical language that â€Å"serious† authors were meant to write in at the time. The story also turned heads for its extremely critical take on Chinas dependence on tradition, which Lu Xun uses metaphors to compare to cannibalism. A short, satirical novella called â€Å"The True Story of Ah-Q† was published a few years later. In this work, Lu Xun condemns the Chinese psyche through the titular character Ah-Q, a bumbling peasant who constantly considers himself superior to others even as he is relentlessly humiliated and ultimately executed by them. This characterization was on-the-nose enough that the phrase â€Å"the Ah-Q spirit† remains widely used even today, nearly 100 years after the story was first published. Although his early short fiction is among his most memorable work, Lu Xun was a prolific writer and he produced a wide variety of pieces including a large number of translations of Western works, many significant critical essays, and even a number of poems. Though he only lived to be 55, his complete collected works  fill 20 volumes and weigh over 60 pounds. Selected Translated Works The two works mentioned above,  A Madman’s Diary† (ç‹‚ä º ºÃ¦â€" ¥Ã¨ ® °)  and â€Å"The True Story of Ah-Q† (é˜ ¿Qæ ­ £Ã¤ ¼  )  are available to read as translated works.   Other translated works include  The New Year’s Sacrifice,  a powerful short story about women’s rights and, more broadly, the dangers of complacency. Also available is  My Old Home,  a more reflective tale about memory and the ways in which we relate to the past.

Brain Food for the ACT 11 Best Exam Snacks

Brain Food for the ACT Best Exam Snacks SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips Looking for the best snacks for the ACT? You should be! Snacks are an underrated yet crucial part of planning for the ACT. Good snacks will help you succeed on the ACT, giving you the brain boost you need, while bad snacks can suck your energy and make you more hungry. In this article, I’ll address why snacks are important, the qualities of the best ACTsnacks, and give you snack options. I’ll also give you some tips to succeed on test day. Why Are Snacks Important? Snacks keep your stomachfrom grumbling during the test.The ACT is difficult enough without any added distractions.Eating snacks to avoid feeling hungry and unfocused.However, you need to make sure that you choose a snack that will satisfy you and fuel you without causing an energy crash or making you crave more food.Good snacks will help you succeed on the ACT while bad snacks can worsen your ACT performance. To make sure you feel full and fueled during the test, bring two good snacks (or one snack that you have three portions of).That way you can have one snack for each break (since there are two breaks during the ACT). The Qualities of Good ACT Snacks While sugar and simple carbs are tasty and give you a quick boost, they also can lead to an energy crash.A crash means you might lose focus and feel sleepy, which would be killer during the ACT.Furthermore, these empty carbs can make you crave more food, so try to avoid foods that are made up of only simple carbs, sugar, or corn syrup. What is a great snack?One that is packed with healthy fats or protein.Healthy fats make youfeel full, so there won’t be any grumbling.Also, healthy fats and protein help your brain function, boosting your power and helping you succeed. The best snacks will also be convenientto transport, so you caneasilyeat them at the test center. Yum! The Best ACT Snacks If you're looking for brain food for the exam, try one of these delicious(and portable!) snacks. #1: Jerky Jerky is a tasty and easy grab and go snack that’s loaded with protein to keep you going.It doesn’t matter what jerky you choose: beef, pork, turkey, salmon are all good choices.Choose whatever kind you enjoy! #2: Nuts Nuts are fabulous because they’re packed with protein and healthy fat, yet low in carb.They will keep you satisfied while fueling you.Any nut is great: almonds, cashews, walnuts, macadamia nuts, etc. However, try to choose plain nuts or nuts and dried fruit trail mixes instead trail mixes that add in chocolate or candies.The added sugar could cause a crash and make you feel sleepy. #3: Veggie/Corn Chips and Guacamole This is a great option for those with allergies since there are no nuts, wheat, dairy, or eggs involved.Additionally, guacamole is a tasty source of healthy fats.You can pick up single serving packets of guac by Sabra or Wholly Guacamole at your local Target, Walmart, or another grocery store. I suggest eating your guac with corn or veggie chips since they’re healthier than potato chips, but potato chips are a decent substitute. #4: Carrots/Celery Sticks and Nut Butter For picky eaters like me, this is a tastier way to eat nuts.I don’t like raw nuts, but nut butter is delicious and just as nutritious as nuts.Nut butters will satisfy your hunger and fuel your brain. Try to choose a nut butter that is natural rather than one with added sugar and/or corn syrup, but if you can only find one with added stuff, that's okay. A spoonful of peanut butter helps you ace the ACT! #5: Carrots/Celery Sticks and Hummus This snack makes another great option for students with allergies or intolerances since you can avoid dairy, eggs, wheat, and nuts.Also, this snack is yummy and satisfying. However, I’d suggest you only eat this for one of your two snacks since this snack is not as satisfying as the other on this list.Balance this one with a higher fat packed snack such as the veggie chips and guac to make sure you stay full and fueled throughout the test. #6: Cheese Cheese is an awesome snack for picky eaters because who doesn't like cheese?Also, there are several easy to transport and eat cheese options such as string cheese and Babybel.Cheese is loaded with fat and protein to keep you feeling full and to power you to ACT success. You won't want to share! #7: Apple/Banana and Nut Butter Another yummy snack for the picky eaters out there.As I said in the veggie sticks and nut butter section, you should try to choose a natural nut butter over a processed one with sugar and/or corn syrup, but if the processed is all you have, that’s fine. #8: Dried Fruit Dried fruits are full of nutrients to give you the extra boost you need.If you can, try to pick dried fruit with no added sugar.If you only find dried fruit with added sugar, then you should try to mix them with nuts to create a trail mix that offsets that sugar with healthy stuff. If you don't mix the dried fruit with nuts (whether due to allergies or a dislike of nuts), only eat dried fruit for one of your two snacks; it’s not as filling as other snacks on this list.Select a fat and protein packed snack such as the veggie sticks and nut butter as your other snack. #9: Seeds Seeds are a treat usually reserved for the baseball field, but they make an excellent snack anytime.Seeds are full of the healthy fats that will keep you focused during the ACT.Choose any seeds you like: pumpkin seeds (aka pepitas), flax seeds, sunflower seeds, etc. Another option is to mix different seeds with nuts to create a nutritious trail mix.No matter how you choose to eat them, seeds are easy to transport snacks that will satisfy your cravings and help you maintain your focus. Don't plant them! Eat them! #10: Fruit and Nut Bars These bars are delicious, and that’s coming from a very picky eater.Check out KIND or Larabars because they contain only natural ingredients.Made up of mostly dried fruit and nuts, these bars are loaded with healthy fats and nutrients. Choose a flavor without chocolate since you don’t need any added sugar.Also, only use this for one of your two snacks since the dried fruit have some sugar.Offset it with another snack on this list such as cheese. #: Water Okay, water isn’t really a snack per se, but you must bring water with you to the ACT.Dehydration can cause you to lose focus and potentially lower your ACT score.Bring one bottle of water with your two snacks. Hey, Dora, won’t there be a water fountain at my test center?Well, there might be, but you can’t count on it.Also, you don’t want to wait on a line to drink from the water fountain during your short breaks. Note: it’s also important to avoid drinking too much water because you don’t want to feel the need to pee in the middle of an ACT section.Split the one bottle of water you bring into two imaginary portions.Consume at most one portion (Â ½ of the bottle) at each break. What Foods You Should Avoid You can definitely bring another snack that may not be on this list, but you should avoid sugar or corn syrup filled snacks such as candy and simple carbs such as potato chips.These snacks are neither satisfying nor nutritious.After eating them, you'll just want more food. Additionally, avoid coffee.If you don’t normally drink coffee, don’t try it on test day.If you normally are a coffee drinker, then only have one cup.Too much coffee will make you jittery and can cause an energy crash.If you want more caffeine, try green tea! Green tea is delicious and nutritious! 3 Tips for Test Day Success You want to go into the ACT feeling calm and prepared, so follow our three tips for test day success. Tip #1: Put all of your ACT materials in a bag the night prior to the test, so you're not running around the morning of the test. Remember to include your ACT admissions ticket, picture ID, calculator, extra batteries, pencils, eraser, pencil sharpener, watch, snacks, and water bottle. Tip #2: Get at least eight hours of sleep, which means go to bed early. You want to feel well-rested. You also want to feel awake for the test, so wake up at least an hour before you need to leave for your test center. By the time you get to the test center, you’ll feel very awake. Tip #3: Eat a large, healthy breakfast before the test. Eggs, greek yogurt, and oatmeal are all great choices. Also, while you eat, read the newspaper to get your brain going. Take our advice, and you'll be well-rested, calm, and ready to rock the ACT. What’s Next? Preparing to take the ACT? Learn how you should spend the night before the ACT. Also, check out the rules and regulations for the test, so you don’t make a mistake. Do you know what your dream college is? Find out what ACT score you need to get in! Learn about what is important to colleges. Not sure where you want to go to college? We will help you find your target schooland help you figure out what your ACT target score should be. Want to improve your ACT score by 4+ points? Download our free guide to the top 5 strategies you need in your prep to improve your ACT score dramatically.

Integration paper Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 2

Integration paper - Assignment Example The first tool used to formulate an investment strategy is the feasibility of making concentrated purchases (Fabozzi, F., Focardi, S. & Kolm, P. 2010, 22). Concentrated purchases simply entail the buying of shares or stocks at times when the industry that a firm is operating in has been hit by economic meltdowns. Often, investors or firms cogitate on this tool before formulating an investment strategy. This is because equity markets are believed to yield good returns in the long run. Thus, making concentrated purchases can give a high probability that an investor or firm will earn good returns in the long run when the economy stabilizes (Russell, C. 2006, 34). The second tool is value investment, which involves stock purchases at a cheaper price that is lower than its intrinsic value (Götze, U., Northcott, D. & Schuster, P. 2008, 56). The purchase of stocks at such rates reflects the future value of the stocks to rise as opposed to the present value. The last tool is risk assessm ent, which generally engrosses the evaluation of the possible risks associated with an investment venture. Before the formulation of a strategy, a firm must always recognize the financial perils exposing themselves to so that they can avert potential risks (Russell, C. 2006, 56). The link between investment strategies of a firm and its environments cannot be dismissed. To begin with, a firm highly depends on the financial markets for profitability when it has invested, say, in shares (Herbst, A. 2002, 29). The dynamics of a financial market within which a firm operates, determine the profit margin that it gets. When the financial markets are selling shares at reasonable prices, a firm can quickly buy them. However, when a market needs to sell its shares and the market price is low, it will end up making losses (Russell, C.2006, 61). Thus, the financial market within which a firm operates is a key determinant of its profitability. This implies that

Self-assessment instruments Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Self-assessment instruments - Essay Example I tend to be accommodative when faced with a conflict. I find it best to put the needs of the other party above mine for quick resolution. I also try to reach compromises with the other party in conflict. Compromising is an effective method as both parties get a chance to air their views. This relieves tension in a significant manner. If the conflict is over a trivial matter, I would rather avoid it all together. I see no point in making a tremendous fuss over petty issues. My main avoidance strategy is withdrawing from the conflict all together. I am not confrontational and competitive in conflicts. I prefer that they get resolved as soon as possible. Quick resolution of conflict allows me peace of mind. b) The Type A assessment cast me as a hardcore Type A person. I disagree with this analysis. A hardcore Type A person has traits such a rushed lifestyle, impatience and is prone to stress. A Type A person enumerates success and, therefore, tries to do as much as possible in the least possible time frame. Type A people measure success by how much they are able to do. I have a slightly rushed lifestyle. I also am achievement oriented. However, other assessment tools showed that I can work in a team quite well, one trait that Type A personalities lack. I also pay attention to quality rather than quality. I do not think that I should be worried of getting a heart attack due to my personality. Another discrepancy with how I perceive myself is my low score in the leadership test. I feel I have better leadership skills than the assessment revealed. The area of task concern had an alarmingly low score. I believe that if I am a Type A individual, task concern should not be a problem. These areas offered conflicting results. The hardcore Type A individual should measure success by the number of tasks completed within a time frame. If I am a Type A person, task completion should be my primary goal. I should have, therefore, scored lower in people concern

Free

Free Will and Responsibility Essay Responsibility is being able to acknowledge and recognize that an outcome happened because of a choice. Responsibility is also accepting accountability for a particular choice. Once a person learns self-control, and can take blame rather than place blame, he or she can become a happy and successful person. Usually, everyone is capable of being responsible for his or her choices. As much as we might often see responsibility as a burden, it is one of the most important character traits in life. In most cases, there is no other person to blame for what your life is beside yourself. One example of being responsible is going to bed earlier so that I’m rested for school or work. Responsibility involves self-discipline. In order to get to school and work on time, I have to make sure that I go to bed on time. Being irresponsible is easier, less time consuming, and less challenging. Placing blame on others is always the easiest way out of any situation, and it never fixes a problem. When you allow others to be responsible for you, you give away the power to control your life and the freedom to be who you want to be.When I allow myself to stay up late and talk on the phone, I am not fully rested and often late to school. When I am working as a lifeguard in the summer, not being rested can cause me to not perform my duties to the best of my ability. I am less alert, which puts peoples lives in danger. Imagine how great the world would be if everyone would take on one more ounce of responsibility for themselves and for their community. As Eleanor Roosevelt said, â€Å"In the long run, we shape our lives, and we shape ourselves. The process never ends until we die. And the choices we make are ultimately our own responsibility.†

Constitutional Convention Essay -- essays research papers

May 25, 1787   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Fifty five delegates from twelve of the thirteen states met in Philadelphia today. Rhode Island is the only state of the thirteen that chose not to attend the revising of the Articles of Confederation. Though, after the delegates reviewed the articles, they agreed that they were not worth saving.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The delegates agreed to make a new document, a constitution, that would bring an entirely new type of government. Since they decided to create a new constitution, the meeting is to b e called the Constitutional Convention. The delegates of the Constitutional Convention were not ordinary American people. They were all professionals and businessmen, and they were all white men. More than half of the delegates are under 40. ...

Eulogy by Willy Loman Essay

Dear Father, I stand here before your grave, I came alone. I wish I gave your eulogy in front of others while you died from old age but no one came to your funeral., while reflecting on the past few days that I’ve spent here at home. I have prepared my speech hopping to express the pain I am in. Firstly I am ashamed and disappointed that my own father would do such a thing. Mum told us that you have tried to take your life many times before but it never occurred to us that you would actually succeed to do so. You’re a fool! You were always so delusional, thinking back at the night when I told you that I am not as perfect as you thought I was, no one is. Here I stand, above you in so much grief. You thought it will all get better. We haven’t touched any of the insurance money mum has just left the stack and hid it in order to pay for the house expenses. Despite what you would’ve thought. I don’t want an office job, clearly I am meant for the field so I am returni ng back home. The reality is father you never really understood, did you? Looking back on your ideals that you’ve taught us success is not achieved by being liked. Playing football, encouraging us to lose weight†¦ Where you kidding with us? Honestly if you only put a bit of effort to actually trying to be a better salesman, maybe things would’ve turned out differently. You were never confidence, determination, hard work, pride†¦ qualities which should’ve come with your job description. Obviously you weren’t the person started with the clothes on his back and ended up with diamond mines. You told us that we didn’t need to work hard, in fact I clearly remember you telling Ben that its â€Å"It’s who you know and the smile on your face and contacts† with others that are important in life. Guess what, father? The insurance money can only pay for so little. You’re a fool. Why did this matter to you so much. You were caught up so much in your ideas about success and wealth that you ignored all the other things in life like our happiness, our family. By what you did you only made us more disappointed. I hate you for what you did, you as a father were meant to guide us to the right path, support us through our troubles, you failed father even when you think you haven’t as you lie under this piece of dirt thinking that you won back your pride by providing us fanantical support, you still have not  succeeded. But still rest in peace; this will be my last and only goodbye. I will never come back here again as I go off to another place where I could go. One thing for sure though, I will not let you down, I will work hard at my job with sweat, endless determination and finally without using the insurance money which is stained.

Status Quo

Developing and retaining highly qualified teachers continues to be a critical need (Berry, 2004; Darling-Hammond & Sykes, 2003). As more teachers retire and school populations continue to grow, an increasing number of schools, universities, and states are implementing programs to ease induction, develop quality teachers, and inform educational practices. Therefore, many educators are now turning to action research to achieve these goals. The purpose of Grogan, Donaldson, & Simmons (2007) article Disrupting the Status Quo is to make an argument that unlike traditional research, action research encourages school personnel to systematically develop a question, gather data, and then analyze that data to improve their practice. The article addresses the key question to the appropriateness and relevance of educational leaders undertaking action research projects as the capstone of their doctoral studies (Grogan, Donaldson, & Simmons, 2007). The most important takeaway in this article is that traditional educational preparation programs and the hierarchical structure of public schools tend to perpetuate compliance and maintenance of the status quo. Furthermore, there is a need for transformative learning to help leaders deconstruct conformity to the many social and cultural canons, which have permeated U. S. schools to the detriment of our students. The authors believe that an action research dissertation and mentoring is an essential component in any educational leadership curriculum that aspires to foster the critical, reflective learning that is the hallmark of human and organizational transformation. Gilles & Cramer (2003) supports a combination of appropriate coursework and mentoring help new teachers transition quickly into solid, thoughtful, and strategic teachers. The key concept we need to understand is that action research and the fact that the Ed. D is a professional degree does not minimize the rigor or prestige in comparison to a Ph. D. Since the research, focus of an Ed. D is different from that of a Ph. D, action research focuses on generating knowledge that is workable, make sense, and is credible in more than one setting as opposed to acquiring knowledge for its own sake (Grogan, Donaldson, & Simmons, 2007). The main assumption that the author is making is that there has to be a change in order to transform the learning process. If we take this line of reasoning serious then there should be no kid left behind. The new generation of educational leaders will also have the tools needed to think critically, identify and solve problems facing their institution of higher learning. If we fail to take this line of reasoning seriously, we could end up in worse economic and educational status. Berry, B. (2004). Recruiting and retaining â€Å"highly qualified teachers† for hard-to-staff schools. NASSP Bulletin, 88(638), 5-27. Darling-Hammond, L. & Sykes, G. (2003). Wanted: A national teacher supply policy for education: The right way to meet the â€Å"highly qualified teacher† challenge. Education Policy Analysis Archives, 11(33). Retrieved [22 July 2011] from http://epaa. asu. edu/epaa/v11n33/v11n3 Gilles, C. & Cramer, M. (2003, April). The impact of school-university partnerships on classroom teachers and their teaching. Paper presented at the meeting of the American Educational Research Association, Chicago, IL. Grogan M. , Donaldson, J. & Simmons J. (2007, May 19). Disrupting the Status Quo: The Action Research Dissertation as a Transformative Strategy. Retrieved from http://cnx. org/content/m14529/1. 2/.

T. S. Eliot essays

T. S. Eliot essays T.S. Eliot was an extremely private individual, leaving little behind for biographers. During his lifetime, Eliot earned a respected place in the literary world and his poetry is considered to be some of the most influential of the twentieth century. Born Thomas Stearns Eliot on September 26, 1988 to one of the most distinguished families of St. Louis, Missouri, Eliot was related to both Nathaniel Hawthorne and Henry Adams (Pettingell pg). He spent the first eighteen years of his life in St. Louis and then attended Harvard University, earning both undergraduate and masters degrees, then in 1910 left the United States to study at the Sorbonne in Paris (T.S. pg). He then returned to Harvard and earned a doctorate in philosophy, then in 1914, Eliot returned to Europe and settled in England, becoming a British citizen in 1927 (T.S. pg). He married Vivien Haigh-Wood the following year and began working as a teacher, the later for Lloyd's Bank in London (T.S. pg). While in London, Ezra Pound took notice of Eliot, recognizing at once his poetic genius and became a great influence in Eliot's life (T.S. pg). Pound assisted Eliot in the publication of his work in a several magazines and most notably, The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock' in 1915 (T.S. pg). In 1917, Eliot's first book of poems, Prufrock and Other Observations,' was published and instantly established him as a leading poet of the avant-garde (T.S. pg). In 1922 when The Waste Land' was published, his reputation grew to mythic proportions and by 1930 and for the next three decades, Eliot was the "most dominant figure in poetry and literary criticism in the English speaking world" (T.S. pg). His poetry transmuted his affinity for the English metaphysical poets of the 17th century, such as John Donne, and the 19th century French symbolist poets, Baudelaire and Laforgue, "into radical innovations in poe...

3 Uncommon Ways To Get Team Buy In Every Time

3 Uncommon Ways To Get Team Buy In Every Time You probably already know a few of the tips and tricks to getting team buy in to new ideas, processes, or change. When it comes to influencing your peers, though, it can be a delicate dance. Because you lack positional authority, you cant pull the, Well, thats the way were going to do it, card. (Not that you ever would 😉) But these three off-beat tactics Im sharing will work for you. Today. Well lay some groundwork first. But if you wanna jump ahead, be my guest. Each strategy will work for peer or team buy in. Table of Contents: The Problem: Why We Resist Change? The Solution: What Does Leading Change Look Like? Step 1: Take the Marketing Cholesterol Test Step 2: Start With the Problem Step 3: Script the Critical Actions Required3 Uncommon Ways To Get Team Buy In Every Time via @ Did Isaac Newton Already Figure Out Why We Resist Change? Neurologically, were hard wired to maintain things as they are via our ingrained habits. Were comfortable in the rut of status quo. And any threat to it is perceived as discomfort - which humans avoid tooth and nail. Said psychologist Ralph Ryback: Inertia, or a tendency to do nothing or to remain unchanged, is at the headwinds of any change that we make in our lives. Wildly enough, Isaac Newtons principle of inertia applies to our psychology as well as the world around us. One of the best places to validate this is in the world of software - in both simple and complex ways. Remember when Spotify changed its hue of green a few years ago? Millions of us were used to their funky green. It wasn’t beautiful, but it was normal. Then, they warmed up the color in favor of the vibrant lime green. Thousands of users whined at the ugly new color scheme. I’ll admit, I didn’t like it at first either. Oh yeah†¦ then there’s the Snapchat UI updates that just about broke the internet. People hated the updates so much, there were riots in the streets! Okay, not quite that bad. But, the backlash was so intense, 1,257,640 users signed a petition on Change.org to get the old UI back. On a societal scale, people are change averse. We often have negative initial reactions to both functional and visual changes. This means â€Å"different† is often perceived as â€Å"bad.† The perception that different = bad often blocks positive organizational change. Learn how toThis isn’t simply a mob-mentality issue, either. It’s a human phenomenon at scales both large and small. As Mark Twain famously quipped: Im in favor of progress; its change I dont like. What Does Leading Change Look Like For Marketers? In user experience design, this is known as change aversion: Change aversion is the negative short-term reaction to changes in a product or service. This happens in the non-digital world, as well. And is a force we marketers have to battle when leading change (especially within our own companies). Now, lets learn how to go out with the old and in with the new. One of the most important changes marketers should make is killing makeshift marketing. Makeshift marketing has become the normal way marketers do things today. Its the pain of using one tool for social media scheduling Another tool for analytics A spreadsheet for tracking Endless email threads for collaboration and communication A task management tool (or multiple ones if everyone on your team uses something different) We get caught in a mess of using tons of different productivity tools that end up strangling our output rather than boosting it. Another force at work is that complicated tool stacks are actually celebrated with awards. To bring it a little closer to home, lets ask a question. You’re executing marketing today How’s that going? Staying organized is really hard. You’re missing deadlines, your team is disgruntled, your boss is wondering what’s happening, and stakeholders like your sales reps are constantly asking where their projects they requested three months ago are at. You can’t blame them. If you worked with another team, you’d expect things to roll forward smoothly, too, right? The thing is†¦ if you don’t change anything, you’ll keep experiencing these same side effects of â€Å"good enough-ism.† And that means†¦ You’ll continue to be frustrated†¦ You’ll continue making your peer managers frustrated†¦ You’ll burn yourself out with the trivial minutia of consistently missing deadlines Overcoming Change Aversion In Your Team However, everyone is used to the way things are. So, if youre going to overcome the forces allied against you as a leader, youve gotta be armed with the right strategies. So lets tackle three off-beat ways to overcome change aversion. Obliterate the status quo. And become a more influential leader while youre at it. #1. Take The Marketing Cholesterol Test To Get Team Buy In To start, you might need to prove that change is actually required right now. When you create urgency, at least people can agree that, We need to do something. One ingenious assessment for your organizations need to change appeared in the Harvard Business Review, and is called the Corporate Cholesterol Test. You can check out the original test in the article Change For Changes Sake. But heres an adaptation for us marketers to use. The tests purpose is to assess how well your teams (or team members) are working together. Thus Measuring how high your collaborative cholesterol is 😠· How high is your marketing cholesterol? Find out what that means and learn the answer viaTo do this, you can use Google Forms  to create a survey. Each of your peer managers should get the questionnaire to fill out. The test starts the buy-in process by helping your peer managers see for themselves if change is needed. Youll create three sections. Each with three yes or no answers. How well do we communicate? How well do we work together? How are our collective results? Pro Tip: To get honest answers, you can nix requiring first and last name. And simply make answers anonymous! Section One: How well do we communicate? In section one, youll ask these three yes or no questions: Do our teams interact only with people in their own group? This questions identifies the presence of silos.A silo mentality occurs when several departments or groups within an organization do not want to share information or knowledge with other individuals in the same organization.Basically its a problem of key info staying stuck in one group rather than shared with others it could help. Are there breakdowns in communication caused by silos? If there are silos, this will be a big fat yes 😕This is a great opportunity to understand it as a source of frustration. And you can position your change as a cure. Has fluid collaboration between our teams decreased over the past 6 months? This is an easy way to gauge how well your teams have worked together. If this is a Yes, its another sign that the winds of change should be blowing! How can marketers know theyre influencing positive organizational change? Find out via @Section Two: How well do we work together? In section two, youll ask these three yes or no questions: Are any people on your team uncomfortable with change? Now, admittedly, this question is a double-edged sword âš”ï ¸ After all, change is uncomfortable for pretty much everyone. But, as Sujan Patel writes, this is crucial to success.The crux of this question is to bring to mind the proverbial roadblocks to changeThe people on their team whose automatic answer is, No. Do we have processes, workflows, and tools that align with one another? I know this is buried in the middle of the survey But its my favorite question.This digs into the heart of a central problem for marketers today. We call it makeshift marketingand think of it as the temporary, sub-optimal solution for getting your marketing sh*t together. This is not #fakenews.I cant tell you how many marketers Ive met whose solution for â€Å"keeping their sanity† involves spreadsheets organizing spreadsheets.Who’ve decided endless meetings to â€Å"get on the same page† is par for the course.Who’ve succumbed to â€Å"on the fly† project management because that’s just the nature of the job?!And who’ve settled for a cobbled mess of one-trick tools becausewell†¦?Thats just how marketing works 😠¢In fact, this is one of the biggest problems solves (you can snag a free 1-on-1 demo to learn how it can help you do this!).Teams pay a HUGE productivity tax for misaligned processes, workflows, and tools.If this is a yes, its a red flag 🚠© Do your teams resist collaborative projects with other teams? Heres a newsflashIf people on your peer managers team resist collaboration, its prolly not because theyre bad people. Or employees.Did you know that 85% of most workers time is spent in email, meetings, and being on the phone?So maybe they resist working with other teams because they have so freaking much to do and not enough time!^^^ Sound familiar to you?If this is the case, its time to get efficient and make better use of peoples time.After all, who would resist: Here, would you like less stress while getting your time back and feeling more valued?If youre leading the right change, this can be exactly what youre giving them.What if collaboration could be a source of excitement and growth rather than a drain? Section Three: How are our collective results? In section three, youll ask these three yes or no questions: Has your team hit 80% or more of its KPI goals in the past 3 months? Simply put, if teams arent hitting their goals for more than 3 months in a row - somethings gotta change.This is a chance to highlight how your suggested change can help everyones tide rise. Have your teams collaborative projects proven positive ROI? This is an interesting one. Because some of your peer managers might say, What collaborative projects?Again, this could stem from silo issues Or signal a breakdown in teams working together.For instance, nearly every modern marketing teams should be working with developers (who are often outside their team) regularly.Next, if they have worked with other teamsWell, has it worked?Are there more dollars, email signups, or whatever else they were looking for because of the joint venture? Does anyone on your team (including you!) experience significant stress or anxiety when executing a new project? I absolutely love this question.While there is always *some* amount of stress kicking off a new project - it shouldnt be consistently significant.Scientifically, we know significant stress reduces productivity. It also promotes negative behaviors like procrastination. So if new projects give your team a panic attack, something major is broken.Now is the time to fix it. How To Score Your Marketing Cholesterol Test (In GIFs) Alright, heres the final reveal Score your test responses as follows: 0–2 yes answers Youre good and probably rock at getting your peers to buy in. 3–7 yes answers Right now is the perfect time for change! Saddle up and get it done. 8–9 yes answers Panic. It was time to change yesterday but today is good too. You got this  Ã°Å¸ ¤Ëœ #2. Start With The Problem To Get Team Buy In Next,  to overcome change aversion with your peer managers, start with the problem you’re trying to solve and the benefits your solution offers to them. Yes I’m encouraging you to market change to marketers. #inception Software has more to teach us, here. Intercom recently revamped the design of their products inbox - a place their customers spend a lot of time in. The new interface looks like Evernote and Intercom had a baby And its one cute baby. They got ahead of change aversion by focusing on problem their change was geared at solving. Often, change is resisted with statements like this: We dont need to change for changes sake! If you begin with the problem, though, you sidestep this as an issue altogether. When theres a genuine problem to be solved, you arent changing for changes sake. Your changing for growths sake. Huge difference. Trying to influence positive change within your marketing department? Start with the problem first. Start With The Problem First, specifically outline the problem you want to solve and the harm its causing. Outline the problem as specifically as you can: Right now, were using six different tools to manage our marketing. Because of the constant shuffle, details are getting lost, were dropping balls, and not hitting deadlines. Outline Your Solution Propose your solution, address the cost of switching, and focus on the benefits: If we consolidate our tools, these problems will evaporate. We each lead talented, competent teams. So its a simple thing to give them a better way to do their jobs. Yes, this will mean adapting our workflows to a fresh way of doing things. And it will mean a new way of collaboration among our teams. But the gain in productivity and organization will pay dividends in results, reduce stress, and improve communication. When you focus on the problem, your proposed change isnt the focal point. Admittedly, Im assuming the change you want to lead is truly an issue. If it is, you can position any resistance to be against the benefits your solution offers. This keeps the conversation focused on, How do we solve this  real problem. #3. Script The New Actions The Change Requires To Get Team Buy In A third way to  get your peer managers to buy in comes from Chip and Dan Heaths fantastic book,  Switch: How To Change Things When Change Is Hard. Its a way to get ultra-specific about what needs to happen next. The catchphrase analysis paralysis turns out to be a real thing. It even happens to LeBron James. When people are presented with too many options, we get stuck. When people are presented with too many options, we get stuck.Analysis Paralysis Is A Real Thing In the book  Switch, the authors share how this same phenomenon happens to doctors. A medical doctor and a psychologist devised a test to see how well the average doc make choices. The test involved two similar groups asked to make a decision on the same case. The only difference was that Group A made a choice between two options. While Group B had three. Check out the scenario The patient in the test was an older gentleman with hip trouble. Group A had to decide between a hip-replacement surgery and a simple medication that hadnt yet been tried. Almost 50% of the doctors from Group A chose the non-surgical path. Group B had a similar choice. Only instead of one non-surgical option, there were two. Thats it. That was the only variable. These doctors had to decide on surgery, medication 1, or medication 2 Logically, two non-surgical options seem even better than one, right? Well, only 28% of Group B docs opted for the non-surgical option. ^^^ This is analysis paralysis at work.

Relationship Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Relationship - Essay Example All of us, more often than not, have been subject to peer pressure in workplace. So, through this topic I wanted to explain some of the stages that many people like me have to go through to develop a good relation with a coworker who is intent on degrading you. I would be telling about the starting of our relationship, the enmity and back-stabbing challenges, the effect it had on both our lives and then the friendship. A new job just like a new relation bring excitement with it. But that balloon of excitement is punctured when you make an enemy on a very first day, either by choice or coincidence. There would always be someone in the workplace who would not exactly appreciate you. Similarly there was this person who was a few months senior but pretending to be my boss. I always thought he appreciated my work that is why I used to get ‘a lot’ of work but soon I realized he was bullying me into doing his work. I confronted him and it got loud. A point to remember is that insulting someone always put a huge negative pressure on a relation. So then it started him making fun of me in front of everyone or anyone. And me messing with his work, but one day I went too far and almost got him fired. That brought me back to my senses and as an ‘I am sorry’ present I did a particularly hard project for him as he was having some personal issue. I did it out of remorse but it touched a vital cord in his heart. And from then onwards all enmity and jealousy ceased to exist. So, the journey from enmity to a lifelong friendship made me realize that workplace stress due to peer pressure is something we can help if we try. My coworker and I became lifelong friends not because I helped him in need, but because we made an effort to stop the enmity, jealousy and back stabbing for a more comfortable environment. So, I rephrase my first question,

Investment Risks Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Investment Risks - Essay Example This refers to the poor earning reports, legal actions against the company, management ineffectiveness, or potential bankruptcy related issues that might keep an investor from investing in the company’s securities and stocks. Credit risk refers to the possibility that the company will not be able to meet its obligations and pay off its debts as and when these become due. If this situation arises, this could have a drastically negative effect on the company’s performance and its perception into the minds of potential investors. This might also result in a decline in stock prices and may ultimately lead to solvency problems for the company.This refers to the situation where movements in exchange rates adversely affect the investments for an individual or the company. The exchange rates may move in favor of or against the investments for people. If exchange rates are decreasing, an investment in a security becomes attractive as other investment models, like foreign currenc y, becomes unattractive due to exchange rates being reduced. However, if exchange rates show an increasing trend, an investor might not be willing to invest in a company’s securities until the return from the investment in securities is more than the return from investments in foreign currency. In addition, for multinational companies or for those who try to diversify their portfolio by investing in foreign currencies, exchange risk might be a very critical element to take into account before making the investment.