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srm1984-blog · 5 years ago

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Welcome to Djibouti

Just over two months ago I landed in Djibouti following a fast-paced couple of weeks of packing, moving, and cleaning, selling my car, and visiting loved ones. I am here with with Resource Exchange International (REI - not that REI, a different one - we do not sell outdoor gear :) )-Djibouti, the NGO I work for. REI-Djibouti partners with the Djiboutian government to promote and increase English language programs here, as there is increasing demand for this language in education and workforce development initiatives. In my role with REI-Djibouti I work both at the International School of Djibouti (ISD) teaching English, Social Studies, Science, and Art to 5th-7th grade students, advising a high school student who's completing an independent study program, and facilitating some of the after-school activities; and also also work with staff from the Ministère de l'Education Nationale (Ministry of Education) as part of their program administering education programs in two of Djibouti's three refugee camps - my focus is currently on curriculum revision initiatives for this program. The school and the initiatives with the Ministry of Education are two of several education projects REI-Djibouti is involved with.

The journey here was in and of itself an adventure, which got off to a great start as I got to have a brief reunion at the Boston Logan airport with a dear friend whom I'd met when we were both studying abroad in Chile during our college years, and whom I hadn't seen in over a decade. After that it was on to Doha, Qatar, but due to the plane sitting on the runway in Boston for a long time I missed my Doha-Djibouti flight and ended up spending a night and part of the following day in Doha. Although I was disappointed to miss the first two days of the new staff orientation that had gotten underway in Djibouti, I did enjoy the opportunity to get a brief taste of Doha. The highlight of my time there was wandering through the Souk Waqif, a sprawling market organized into sections that each contain different types of goods, including spices, textiles, jewelry, perfume, and birds, among others. Strolling through the narrow, winding, mud-walled, wood beam-covered corridors felt like taking a step back centuries in time, though the plastic souvenirs sprinkled in amidst the more traditional items served as reminders that we were indeed still in the 21st century. I had planned to also take a walk along the Corniche, Doha's waterfront district, but the incredible heat (even in the morning - this was around 9:00 a.m.!) caused me to alter that plan taking an air-conditioned taxi ride along the Corniche, from which I enjoyed views of traditional dhow boats in Doha Harbor and the many museums, gorgeous parks full of public art, stately palm trees, and shiny high-rise hotels and office buildings lining the waterfront. From Doha I continued on to Istanbul, where I had a long layover and became well-acquainted with the airport, enjoying people-watching the very diverse crowd of people passing through this corner of the world that lies at the convergence of many different cultures. The last leg of the journey to Djibouti was uneventful, and I arrived in this city just before sunrise. Rachel, a member of REI-Djibouti's leadership team, picked me up at the airport and brought me to the house I share with Sami, another new staff member. Sami is also from the United States, but was living and working as a teacher for the past two years on Chuuk, an island in Micronesia. The other new staff here this year are teachers Kayla and Tammy, who are also from the States - though Kayla has been living in Kenya for the past two years - and assistant teacher Anja, who is from Germany and is here for an internship through her university. We are joining returning staff: program directors Tom and Rachel, who've lived in Djibouti for the past 17 years; accountant Kirk, who is also from the States; and assistant teachers James, who is from Kenya, and Mariam, who is from Djibouti. The student body is also a mix of roughly half returning and half new students. The long-term goal for the school is to serve primarily Djiboutian and refugee students - Djibouti is home to many refugees, primarily from Somalia, Yemen, Ethiopia, and Eritrea – but due to a number of factors the student body currently has a greater ethnic mix of students, including large numbers of students from Djibouti, France (Djibouti is a former French colony and there is a large French military base near the school) and the States, plus smaller numbers from several other countries. This ethnic diversity allows for benefits ranging from students getting exposure to many different languages, to a really interesting range of perspectives in class discussions, recess periods in which students get to play games, share snacks, and listen to music from around the world.

The first couple of weeks here were a whirlwind of activity, beginning with a new staff orientation session. Near the end of orientation we took a break and went on to Khor Ambado, a beautiful beach that is the reward you get to enjoy if you are lucky enough to know someone who has the necessary courage, plus a car equipped for driving over what I believe may be the the road with the biggest bumps and potholes I've traversed up to this point in my life :) As a bonus, we encountered a herd of camels along with two herders crossing the road on the outskirts of the city as we drove out towards the beach road. Other tasks we initially focused on included setting up our classrooms (mine was still under construction at the beginning of the school year so Tammy graciously let my class take over her ESL classroom for the first week of school) and planning for the student and family welcome event and the first week of classes, along with cleaning, furnishing, and facilitating repairs in our home. Our apartment had been unoccupied for months and in the hot desert climate here it doesn't take long for dust and sand to accumulate, paint to peel, air conditioners and fans to break, plaster and caulk to disintegrate, and ants and other insects to congregate, so much of our first two weeks were spent addressing these issues, with lots of help of Tom, who knows who to call about and where to buy supplies to address the various tasks we were trying to accomplish.

It's good to, after this initial settling in period, now feel like the basics are in place at home and work, and to be able to dive into work, focus more on building community - I've been able to connect with members of the local and expat community through work, church, volunteer opportunities, an expats group, and Tom and Rachel, who have developed an extensive network in their many years living in this corner of the world. I have also begun to pick up the pace with learning French (French, Somali, Afar, and Arabic - along with English - are all widely spoken here but since French is the language most commonly used in professional settings that is the language I'm mostly focusing on for now), and am slowly but surely getting to know the city through both going to meetings, running errands, and meeting people in various areas as well as sometimes simply walking around to explore different areas and points of interest. Signing off for now - thanks for following along on this new chapter of my life!

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angeltriestoblog · 6 years ago

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Second sem (and freshman year) recap

It’s pretty hard to believe, but another chapter of my college journey is finally over and done with. Since I had ended the first half of the school year in such high spirits, I didn’t really believe upperclassmen when they warned that things were only going to get harder from there. In fact, I even thought I’d be the one to prove them wrong! I mean, with a class schedule that looked like this, how would I run out of time for all the things I both needed and wanted to do? My Tuesdays and Thursdays were practically free, save for that one Math class I had to attend in the morning that I surprisingly never cut.

For the most part of the semester, I was in a chill state compared to everyone else. I claimed that I had successfully adjusted to the demands of higher education to the point where I found what once was an unreasonable workload to be manageable. I was able to make time for my home org’s activities and devote enough attention to the only project I was deployed to, which I touched on a bit in my first recap blog post (linked here in case you want to jog your memory). As previously mentioned, I was assigned as one of the Documentations Heads under the Information Management department of the Career Building Program, a three-phase event that gives its participants a glimpse into the corporate world. We kicked things off with a resume writing workshop that I was lucky enough to join. The facilitator assigned to me gave useful insights that I was able to apply in the creation of my own curriculum vitae, which I am keen on using when it’s my turn to apply for internships and jobs in the future. I obviously don’t have much on it yet, seeing as I’m just a freshman, but the idea of filling it up with more experiences over the years is exciting me in ways I cannot explain.

Our group was even given the opportunity to explore the studio of the country’s biggest network, where we were briefed by executives in communications and IT and toured around the sets of our favorite shows. We even ran into Luis Manzano while he was filming Minute to Win It! Unfortunately, I wasn’t scouted by any representative from Star Magic and spontaneously put in a love team with Donny Pangilinan, but I guess that’s alright.

I also went to Talent Night with some friends (not in pictures: Gela's boyfriend and ICA barkada), which is shocking since I’m honestly not the type to attend parties like this. I’ve always been the girl who stayed home and binge watched YouTube videos on a Friday night. But, I guess the drunk confidence of those I was with rubbed off on me and I managed to pull through! It was also a plus that Timmy Albert was one of the performers: I do pass him by along the corridors quite frequently, but it’s just different seeing him sing and play an instrument in front of a crowd, especially since I’ve loved Roses and Sunflowers even before I got into Ateneo.

One surprise that I definitely did not see coming was participating in Daloy, our annual program that revolves around corporate social responsibility. This year, we decided to shed a light on how this could be seen in the Philippine clothing industry, so it seemed fitting to hold some talks featuring prominent figures in this field, as well as a fashion show to exhibit the collections of local brands that advocated sustainability. I was really interested in the concept when I first heard of it, and initially wanted to go as a mere audience member - little did I know that I would be tapped by the committee to model! To this day, I don’t know how or why I was chosen: from what I know, there were even screenings held a week prior to the event to determine who would get to walk the runway. But, I was messaged three days before and in that short span of time, I had to fit clothes, find pieces in my closet to match them and perfect my walk (which took several tries on my part, given the fact that when shy, I’m stiff as a board).

Agreeing to join was a huge step out of my comfort zone - the closest I’ve ever come to strutting on a catwalk was back when family members would ask me to “walk like a fashion model” as a kid during reunions. So, the fact that it had all paid off in the end, and that I was even complimented for the way I looked and performed beyond what was probably expected, was definitely a huge confidence boost for me. I couldn’t have done it without Nelly, Daloy’s project head who patiently guided me through the entire process before the show.

Shoutout as well to the other ACTM upperclassmen who were so friendly to me this school year. We may not have any pictures together, but you deserve a spot on this post nevertheless: Gella, my "boss" (hehe) who was always so patient when I asked questions and even went out of her way to say such kind words about my writing; Sam Que who made me feel like we had already known each other for so long even if we had just talked for the first time, and Ysagab who constantly reassured me that I was doing a good job even if I was looking like such a rookie.

My presence in events wasn’t limited to those of ACTM, though. I also went to the Loyola Film Circle’s Under the Stars, where I was able to see the live performances of OPM acts and watch one of my favorite chick flicks beneath the beautiful night sky. Since it took place the day after Valentine’s, I was surrounded by Ateneans and their significant others (who didn’t hold back at all when it came to publicly displaying their affection), but I didn’t even mind since I was content in the company of both my college constants and high school friends.

I dropped by Sulyap as well, which was the culminating activity of the Ateneo Heights Writers Workshop and the launch of the chapbook of their fellows. It was one of the busiest Fridays of the school year, but I still made it a point to go, because I wasn’t about to pass up the opportunity to be a part of something organized by my dream org, Ateneo’s premier literary publication. As much as I love my course and the people in it, I have to admit that I haven’t been able to exercise much of my creative side. So being in a room full of like-minded individuals and hearing them speak lengthily about their works and the process that brought them to life was a refreshing experience, a much-needed break from the usual routine. My personal favorite was Unica Hijas by Mikaela Regis, which revolved around a lesbian couple trying to make their relationship work despite the fact that they study in a conservative, all-girls high school - a setting which is all too familliar to me.

It’s also worth noting that I was sorta able to tick a particular item off my freshman year bucket list. And I say sorta, because… well, you’ll see. It’s been a dream of mine ever since to watch a UAAP basketball game live, show up to the arena in a bright blue shirt, cheer as loud as I can when a player makes a point and raise my fist in the air while Song for Mary plays in the background. But, even if I’m consistently in school by 6am, I was never able to get tickets - I couldn’t match the efforts of some fans, who would camp overnight just to get their hands on them. But, just when I thought there was no more chance for me to show my school pride at a match, my friend Mika offered me a free ticket to the Ateneo Lady Eagles’ volleyball match against FEU at the Filoil Arena one Wednesday. We weren’t really on speaking terms before because we were from different cliques, but after bonding over K-Pop, I saw how nice and chill of a person she actually is. So, I didn’t want to turn her down even if I was hesitant to go at first. You see, I was never a fan - in fact, I didn’t know how the game went despite the PE lessons I had back in Grade 5. (Ms. Abella, if you see this, I’m sorry.) But, it didn’t take a lot of convincing for me to agree and I ended up enjoying way more than I thought I would. Fortunately, I was able to catch on when it came to the rules of the sport: the energy of the crowd was contagious as well, and the performance of the players was way too good it was impossible not to shout either out of triumph or frustration. Once we made it to the finals against UST, I even found myself waiting for announcements on where to buy tickets. I didn’t get any though, because they were either sold out due to the ever-increasing demand (ALE fans don’t play around) or there was a conflict in schedule (hi, Enlit play).

Despite this, I streamed the last game and screamed like I was actually in the venue myself. Apologies to all our neighbors, who probably thought someone was getting killed in the house beside theirs. I was so proud when they brought home the championship after three years, I even bought a Team Ateneo shirt (it’s not that hard to guess whose name is on the back) and went to the bonfire with my friends Gwen, Julia and Lou. I had hoped to meet and take a picture with the players, but they were already far too wasted when I arrived. Like, seriously. I saw Maddie Madayag chug a whole bottle of Mule right before my eyes.

So, you could say that it was all fun and games (quite literally) for me until hell weeks eventually rolled in. Plural form intended. I found out that all my professors were just holding back every major requirement until the very last stretch of the semester. Suddenly, my schedule was chock full of presentations and final papers, comprehensive exams and extra classes that put my time management and endurance to the test. I spent many days in Matteo Down just like before, but also started going to the floor above it in case I wanted to suffer in the company of more people. The studying would only continue once I got home: I’d pull all-nighters despite my brain’s and skin’s desperate cries for help, as manifested in my worsening acne. I don’t think I’ve ever felt that stressed in my life, and it’s scary to think that that’s only the tip of the iceberg in the Ateneo.

Coping mechanisms I’ve picked up to help me deal with these unavoidable circumstances would be trying every restaurant along the Katipunan area whenever I had free time (which I will elaborate on more extensively in another blog post, so do watch out for that!) and eventually discovering Pancake House’s corned beef hash, which I love so much I once had it thrice in the span of a week. Another one would be the addition of yet another emotional support K-Pop boy to my collection. After watching My ID is Gangnam Beauty over Holy Week break, I fell in love with Cha Eunwoo and his god-tier visuals, mild demeanor, impressive English skills and heartfelt determination. This led me to binge watching reality show episodes and furiously putting the entire discography of Astro on loop. If you look at my Last.fm, you could see how Crazy Sexy Cool easily climbed to the top of my most played songs, sitting prettily at the #1 spot with over 300 plays in just a little over two months.

Although I constantly had to bear the pressure and stress on my shoulders over the past academic year, I am eternally grateful to Ateneo for equipping me with lessons both within and beyond the realm of academics that have helped me grow into someone I never imagined, but am happy to have turned into anyway. When my naive and starry-eyed self first entered college, I had such high hopes for what my experience would be and proceeded to map out the next four years of my life in accordance with the vision I had in my head. Having just broken free from the metaphorical chains of my previous school, I found it to be the perfect time to transform into a student who excelled academically, had a long and winding list of extracurricular activities and easily built a vast network of connections thanks to her pleasing and magnetic personality. If I got lucky, maybe I’d have one of those so-called “college blooms” and even get myself an actual boyfriend!

This isn’t something unique to me, I bet a lot of people entered this new stage of their lives with the same mindset so I wasn’t the only one in shock upon realizing that it doesn’t always play out that way in real life. Because of these ridiculous expectations we have implanted in our heads, that basically state that we have to be successful in everything we do and fast, we subconsciously keep ourselves from enjoying the process. In our desire to aim high and aspire for perfection in all that we do, we could end up failing to acknowledge the small yet equally important wins we gain along the way: the friend we make outside of our block despite the sheer discomfort we experience in meeting new people, or the answer we gave in class that impressed our most intimidating professor could appear minuscule when placed beside our goal of being straight-A student who’s active in seven orgs. In addition, we deprive ourselves of the allowance to make mistakes, stray from taking the detours and breaks we need to remain functional human beings and often drive ourselves to the point of fatigue and burnout. And when we are still not flourishing and thriving as planned, we fall prey to toxic comparison: we pit ourselves against others who don’t have the same background or circumstances as we do and question why our progress doesn’t match with theirs.

This is obviously such a toxic way to go about things. Talk about sucking the fun out of what’s supposed to be the four most enjoyable years of our lives. Thankfully, over time, I did some growing up, if you will, and channeled the power of acceptance - both of what I am and what I am not, and the will of God (or whichever supreme being you've placed your faith in) who meticulously planned out what’s ahead of me before I was even old enough to know what school was. I now work to the best of my ability, confident that all I have to do is put in my share of the hard work and see where it takes me, and am also more gentle with myself when I make mistakes.

On a somewhat lighter note, I’ve also been able to form my own opinions about very controversial issues on campus: an example of which would be what I think is the best CR - the answer is definitely Arete. You can’t go wrong with its triple killer combo of aircon, bidet and strong WiFi connection. The only possible downside could be the fact that there are usually a lot of people, so it’s not the best option if you’re planning on being loud and… um, smelly. The secluded and fragrant Leong Hall and ever-reliable New Lib restrooms come in second and third place respectively, while honorable mentions include the 2F Kostka CR (but only from 6:00-7:00am, when no one else is around) and this one specific stall in the Socsci building that's spacious enough that I can bring all my belongings inside with me.

Another point for discussion would be the superior place to eat on school grounds: this might cause an uproar, I’m aware, but I still believe it’s JSEC, despite the stark price difference compared to other cafeterias on campus. I was set on trying something from every stall before the school year ended, but I was too fixated on my top picks: I don’t have any regrets though. In fact, I wish I had more of the beef salpicao with calamares on the side from Casa Paella, the Superbowl from Blendabowls and The Coop fries with garlic aioli served on the side. Besides the fact that the food served is satisfying beyond measure, I enjoy the chit-chats I have with the ates and kuyas manning the stalls, who never fail to ask me how I am and tell me about the cute chinito boys they see on campus that they think I might like.

Although I can’t completely rule out Gonzaga, because of this particular stall with quality liempo and a kuya who always gives me a five peso discount. (I’ve been told he does this with girls he finds cute, but I have yet to confirm that). Also, it’s the only place on campus that I know of that sells fresh fruits by the kilo - perfect for those days when I try to convince myself to go on a diet before I relapse and binge eat at Pancake House.

A lot of people do say that ISO sisig is worth the cross-campus walk it’ll take to get there (e-jeep rides are more recommended! An experience in itself! Especially if you’re seated in the back, where there’s a constant feeling of being sucked in a vacuum! But, I digress) - it might just be a matter of preference, but I think it’s overrated. A destination that deserves more attention is the Cervini Hall cafeteria just by the university dormitories. I’ve only been there a grand total of two times so I don’t exactly have any specific favorites on the menu that I recommend, but I’d definitely still go for the homey ambience.

As for superior study places, Matteo Down has been tried and tested several times: I do prefer getting a place opposite to the entrance though, because it does get distracting having to see people enter and go out the door so often. What was supposed to be a study session often ends up becoming a game to see how many people are wearing a striped shirt today. I usually spend time on the fourth floor of the Rizal Library, and get the couch as often as I can because of the comfort (and charger) it provides.

Of course, I wouldn’t have been able to power through this year without the help of my closest friends: Sevi, Gwen, Raya and Christine. I always had this nagging fear in the back of my head that I wouldn’t be able to find a tight-knit group once I got to college, but thank you for proving me wrong. Thank you for letting me be my true self, for entertaining even my most random thoughts and for accepting all the kalat that comes with being my friend. I sincerely hope that we stay together and have more Gino’s dates in the future along with Chloe!

To Gela, Jill, Shar (and Dom, but we don’t have any pictures together except for the last one HAHAHA) - I didn’t expect at all that I’d be writing about you guys. I was so intimidated by all of you at first, because I felt like we were so different in terms of our upbringing and environment. But after getting to know you, I came to realize that you are seriously some of the most down-to-earth, chill people ever. Thank you for always providing quality chismis, volunteering to find me chinito boys to date and giving me apps to make my IG stories look cuter.

To the rest of X1, we weren’t exactly the most united and we knew that - it’s just that we were probably the most diverse out of all the groups in our batch, and with that comes clashing personalities and differing opinions and interests. But, nevertheless, I am content with the time we managed to spend together, where I was able to get to know all of you!

To the friends that I made outside of my block (and even my course), thank you for laughing at my jokes and telling me that I'm fun to talk to. Hopefully, we get to hang out more and maybe even have common classes in the future hehe

To my Enlit section, we barely spoke to one another during the first semester so I fell under the impression that you were all stoic and no fun to be with. But, I was proven wrong eventually. I wish I was able to talk to more people in LL, but to the classmates I was closest to (Dootie, Cyrah, Czarina, She and Jessa), I will never forget our side comments and mini-rant sessions. I heard we’re having another English subject come sophomore year, and I really hope I end up with you guys again.

All in all, there is no other word that could sum up the experience that was my freshman year in college better than “adventure”. It was every single emotion on the spectrum All At Once, but I wouldn’t trade it for the world - in fact, during the first half of the semester, I admit that I’d entertain thoughts of alternate universes where I’d be an Iska/Lasallista/Tomasino out of sheer curiosity, but now I just can’t imagine myself anywhere else. Anyway, enough with all that drama. I’m going back to school in three weeks to start my summer term, which we fondly (lmao) refer to as intersession. So, there’s technically nothing to miss.

Hope the rest of you enjoy the summer break that I unfortunately will not be able to experience until I graduate from college! Wishing you nothing but love and light, always.

Angel

#life update #angeltriestoblog #life dump #angel crawled her way thru freshman year!!!!#COULD U BELIEVE #angel is now a sophomore #that's disgusting

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stellarmoonandstars · 4 years ago

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Me and my Insecurity

I am 18 years old Kiara Buban from The City of fun and adventure, Legazpi city. I was born on March 15 in the year 2002 at exactly 3 am in Aquinas Hospital. When I was a child, I was known by my nickname “Piglet” because I love the cartoon character so much and by my jolly and mood maker personality, which my family and relatives like about me. But when I reached the age of 15, I was known as the shy, quiet, and happy-go-lucky person as what they said. I met a lot of friends in my past nursery and kindergarten schools, where I learned to speak basic English, Chinese, and Spanish At a young age.

Then I got accepted to Bicol University. I was young at that time when I had an interview with one of the Teachers or facilitators of the agenda. I am glad that I got accepted to Bicol University since I know that my mom had a family-oriented heart that she chose to also help our relatives and the children of her brothers to have a better educational life until they graduate college and at least I don’t burden her with so heavy tuition fees. When I was in Elementary, I didn’t participate in any club and extracurricular activities since the only thing in my mind is to graduate in Elementary and apply for any job that I can find, since I was confident and sure that being independent is easy, and I want to be away with my family here in Legazpi. But when I reached grade 5, I started to feel insecure. I feel insecure about my appearance, my talents, the relationship I had with my family and some of my friends. That year, I also became afraid of criticism to the point that if someone did that to me, I will degrade myself even more. My confidence in everything and socializing with people started to fade bit by bit.

When I reached high school and spent my first year, it is when I realized that I have to dream big and I have to get out of my comfort zone and be confident in everything I do just like the old days. Then I realized that the person that could help me overcome this is only myself. So I planned to do it slowly. For me to slowly get out of the thick bubble that I made, I started participating in school activities like pep squad, cheer dance during Intramurals, and other literary and art contests inside the school to try out my skills in writing, and helping in doing art projects to test if I have talent doing art. When I feel like I’m slowly being comfortable in socializing and being around people, I started to join some organizations that I find interesting. I managed to socialize and practice my leadership during my junior high school years, by being a club officer with different year-level representatives. I joined DLC in grade 7, and become a grade 7 representative officer in RCY until grade 8. And in Grade 10, I was encouraged by my friend to join the Communication arts club and got nominated as a Grade 10 Representative for the club. It was very new to me and some of the members were very intimidating. But not too long, I adjusted and had fun experiencing how a club and organization works and what they do. Until I reached Grade 11, where I experienced being a Muse which I never expected would happen. My insecurity got triggered that time when someone laughed when I got nominated. I don’t know what to do at that time. My hands started shaking and my heart started pounding faster like more than 200bpm. It was a very unexpected moment of my life at that time. But nonetheless, I enjoyed every moment of my time experiencing how to be an officer and how good I can be a leader somehow. I enjoyed attending seminars and decorating bulletin boards for our club. Getting out of the thick bubble that I made and gaining self-confidence is not that easy. I have to deal with anxiety and panic attacks whenever I have to speak in front of a group of people and even having to order in a fast-food chain. But I used my courage to slowly face the things that I have to face. I started from being a no-one to a representative of our batch to a club, to a classroom officer. Who would have known that I can do that?

Getting out of my thick bubble, and facing my fears slowly, helps me to know more about people. It makes me feel that being a human doesn’t mean you’re alone and people will not always criticize you for how you look, what you wear, and what you love to do. And I’m proud of myself for being like this now. I’m slowly going out of the thick bubble that I was stuck in for a very long time. During half of my Journey of Me and my insecurity, I learned that in order to deal with it, you have to forgive the past and accept every little detail about yourself. And I know to myself that I will improve, learn and grow more on the path that I’m taking when I graduate High school and before going out to the real world.

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juniperpublisher-ph · 5 years ago

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American Indian Tribal College Student’s Knowledge, Attitudes and Beliefs about Recreational and Traditional Tobacco Use-Juniper Publishers

Juniper Publishers- Juniper Online Journal of Public Health

Introduction

American Indians (AI) have a multifaceted relationship with tobacco. For many AI, tobacco is a sacred plant used for ceremonial and spiritual purposes. It is well-documented that some tribes, particularly tribes located along the Eastern seaboard, Great Plains and Great Lakes areas, used tobacco for medical purposes to heal the mind, body and spirit [1-4]. Tobacco smoke cleanses, purifies and blesses and is often used as a gift [3-5]. Some AI believe that tobacco was given to their people as a means of establishing a direct communication link with the Creator and the spiritual world [4,6] and therefore should be used in a respectful manner. Uses and frequency of use of traditional tobacco varies among tribes [1,2,4-6] some AI use traditional tobacco daily, others use it a few times per year [6].

Today, it is not uncommon to see commercial tobacco substituted for traditional use [1-4] and, in many cases, imparted with its meaning [5]. Federal policies and practices aimed at exterminating or assimilating AI prohibited individuals from performing traditional ceremonies and rituals [3,6,7]. During this time, the cultivation and use of traditional tobacco was both difficult and dangerous [3,6]. Commercial tobacco was a practical alternative and allowed many AI to continue traditional and spiritual practices undetected [3,6]. Some believe that the repression of traditional and spiritual practices and resulting substitution of commercial tobacco for traditional tobacco may have played a part in the high prevalence rates of recreational tobacco abuse among AI [2,3,6].

While some strides have been made toward decreasing smoking among AI youth, even in adulthood, AI still have high rates of recreational smoking (31.5%) [8]. Leading to a disproportionate level of tobacco related illnesses. Despite disproportionate prevalence rates among AI, little is known about the impact of tribal college students’ knowledge, attitudes and beliefs about traditional tobacco use on their recreational cigarette smoking behaviors. As a portion of a larger longitudinal study [9,10]. We sought responses from AI tribal college students to understand better ways to target cessation efforts.

Go to

Methods

Study Participants

Eight individual interviews and 12 focus groups were conducted with tribal college students (N=101) in the Midwest. Eligible participants included men and women who were enrolled in federally recognized tribes, were at least 18 years of age, and able to give written consent. Recruitment, led by AI research assistants, was done via word-of-mouth, emails sent through the college email system, posters/flyers, and social media blasts on facebook™. Participants received a $25 gift card and a meal for their time and participation. All study protocols were approved by the University of Kansas Medical Center’s Human Subjects Committee and the tribal college’s institutional review board.

Measures

To assess their knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs about traditional and recreational tobacco use, college students were asked questions relating to traditional use of tobacco, recreational use of tobacco, and the differences between the two. Each session was conducted by an AI research team member to assure culturally sensitive interaction. A moderator’s guide, consisting of semi-structured open-ended questions (Table 1), was developed by the entire research team in partnership with our community advisory board and based on information gained from our previous research [1,11,12].

Procedures

This study was originally intended to be a focus group study, however due to circumstances out of our control (i.e. finals and class schedules), some students were unable to attend a scheduled focus group time. Eight individual interviews were conducted because we felt these participants offered useful insight to our study and we wanted to ensure their opinions were heard. Sessions were held on campus at multiple times to accommodate students with various schedules. Prior to each focus group or interview, participants were consented privately and asked to complete a brief demographic survey.

Following the moderator’s guide created by the research team, the moderator facilitated the session while the assistant moderator attended to other tasks, such as consenting latecomers and taking notes. Participants were encouraged, but not required, to respond to each question. The moderator expanded upon the responses if needed to encourage group discussion or responses from the individual interviews. The duration of each focus group was between 60 and 75 minutes and each interview last approximately 15 to 30 minutes.

Analysis

Focus groups and interviews were digitally recorded and transcribed verbatim. Following a community-based participatory research (CBPR) method developed by the team [12], codebooks were developed from the transcripts. Both researchers and community members, blinded to each other, coded the initial transcripts. Coders identified preliminary themes which were then combined into thematic statements and agreed upon by the entire research team, including community representatives. Here, we present those themes for which wereached theoretical saturation. All exemplary quotes were identified by community members who were alumni of the tribal college to ensure fair representation.

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Results

A sample of 101 AI tribal college students who self-identified as smokers or non-smokers participated in this study. All participants were enrolled in a federally recognized AI tribe and were in one of their first three years of college. Full demographic information is available in (Table 2). Three predominant categories in the areas of recreational smoking and health behaviors, smokeless tobacco, and traditional tobacco emerged from the data.

Recreational Smoking & Related Health Behaviors

Many students believed that recreational smoking affects various health behaviors. Participants often discussed a connection between smoking and poor health choices, including the impact of smoking on eating habits, physical activity, and alcohol consumption. Participants discussed students who smoke in an effort to aid in weight loss or prevent weight gain. A female non-smokers stated, “I’ve had friends in high school that smoke so that they don’t eat.” Another female non-smoker recounted her personal experience with smoking and weight loss, “Last semester I picked it (smoking) back up when I was too lazy to work out. I thought well I know when I smoke I lose about ten pounds, so I just picked it right back up. And it worked, but it’s horrible.”

These groups, particularly smokers, also agreed that smoking decreases physical activity. One individual focused on the way smoking affects a student’s physical activity, “If you smoke you get problems like trouble breathing. And you don’t want to work out if you have that kind of problem. A lot of athletes and people who work out every day then they don’t smoke as much or hardly smoke.” Furthermore, students spent time discussing the impact of smoking on health, as one student explained, “I can’t breathe. I know it’s bad for me. You know, I’m taking something out of a box and putting it in my mouth and setting fire to it. And right on the box it says, these things will kill you, basically. But I do it anyway, don’t that seem kind of stupid to you? It seems stupid to me, but I do it anyway. I don’t know.”

Drinking alcohol was seen as a facilitator to smoking. Participants spoke about how alcohol lowers a person’s inhibitions and makes them more likely to smoke. One student stated, “a lot of times when you go out drinking there’s people smoking around you and when you’re in an inebriated state you kind of are like, yeah, I want to try that.” Another student agreed, “I know non-smokers who smoke when they drink, but that’s the only time they smoke.” Additionally, participants discussed how alcohol inhibits quitting smoking, “I had a friend who quitsmoking and didn’t smoke for like a month and got drunk one night and smoked a whole pack. So drinking definitely influences [smoking].” Another student added, “You take a cigarette and you forget, you know, become more susceptible to falling off the wagon.”

Smokeless Tobacco

AI tribal college students saw the use of smokeless tobacco as different from smoking. Participants commonly discussed perceptions associated with smokeless tobacco use and the use of smokeless tobacco as a substitution for smoking. Female smokers and non-smokers alike generally had negative perceptions about smokeless tobacco use and agreed that use is more common among men. A female non-smoker described smokeless tobacco use as a disgusting habit, “They carry it with them and sit it (spit container) down somewhere and it’s like oh my God, that’s so gross.” Discussions among male non-smokers surrounded the difference in nicotine potency and the accessibility of smokeless tobacco. On participant stated, “I used to chew for a long time. It was nice to get that nicotine kick. There’s more nicotine in a dip than two, three cigarettes easily.” Additionally, about half of the male non-smokers had tried or used smokeless tobacco, most citing family and friends as the reason for their initiation. “Got it from buddies, peer pressure and just did it to hang out and chat with them and stuff.”

Male smokers on the other hand focused more on how smokeless tobacco users miss the social aspect of smoking, “It’s not as social and I think that’s the biggest aspect of [it] around here at the college. When you can’t smoke indoors or anything like that, everybody has to go outside and meet… if you’re going to chew or dip or anything like that, you can do it in your room with an empty bottle.” Additionally, male smokers focused on the ease of replacing cigarettes with smokeless tobacco in situations where smoking bans were in place, “I use a company truck so I can’t smoke in the vehicle, so I resort to chew…”

Traditional Tobacco

Participants with experience or knowledge of traditional tobacco use differentiated between traditional and recreational tobacco despite varying use among their tribes. In particular, intentionality as well as the ceremonial and spiritual aspects of traditional tobacco resonated with these students. One student commented, “I think it’s all in the intent of how you’re using it. If you’re using it for spiritual and healing purposes, only then is it acceptable.” Another student added, “Well I know my tribe, we use it to pray with. When we’re going to gather food; it’s like giving thanks or blessing.”

Several students also acknowledged a distinct difference in using tobacco for traditional purposes and its impact on addiction. One student shared, “Recreational smoking… it’s more like an addiction; smoking for recreation (can) cause you (to) want to smoke all the time. Traditional is letting go, in ceremonies…That’s not addicting.” A male smoker spoke Furthermoreabout the spirituality of traditional tobacco, “Talking to God. Its (referencing tobacco) not harmful to your body, it’s actually healthy for you. You can’t use it for recreational purpose, it’s sacred.”

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Discussion

Tribal college students face culturally-specific challenges addressing tobacco use and related health disparities. This study specifically explored the possible impact of traditional tobacco use on recreational smoking behaviors. Our focus group participants indicated that individuals may smoke for weight loss. This is consistent with data reported in the literature. For example, studies suggest that college aged women smoke for weight loss and body image reasons [13-18]. However, it is unknown how AI college students may use tobacco for those purposes. More research is needed on this topic. In addition, our focus group participants spoke about physical activity and associated health outcomes in relation to smoking. It has been reported that physical activity decreases when young adults transition into adulthood; in particular, men who entered college experienced the most significant decline of physical activity [19]. Alcohol consumption and drinking frequency are correlated with smoking experimentation and established use [20]. In our sample of AI tribal college students, participants described the experience of quitting as more difficult because of alcohol use. Other U.S. college population studies have reported that parties and group smoking and drinking are associated with higher rates of drinking and smoking [21-24]. Our results are consistent with other findings that support this association [20,24-26] and the notion that smoking may be more acceptable in certain contexts [27].

Even though the general discussion of smokeless tobacco use was negative, descriptions by both males and females about males using smokeless tobacco were largely positive or neutral and referenced to rural and/or reservation living. Images and associations were accepted in certain contexts and perceived as normal behavior. An interesting contrast among smokeless tobacco users and smokers is that smokers claimed smokeless tobacco users miss out on the social aspects of using tobacco. Unlike smokers, it was believed that smokeless tobacco users did not reap the benefits of a shared, social experience, except for those who used smokeless tobacco in areas where smoking was prohibited (such as dormitories or workplaces). These individuals saw the beneficial aspects of smokeless tobacco in that it could be concealed. Thus, people could still get nicotine into their system when otherwise it was not feasible.

Smokeless tobacco use, therefore, presents a certain kind of functionality for those who wish to smoke but cannot due to regulations. This is an important finding because it could mean that we will see rising prevalence of smokeless tobacco use as tribal colleges institute smoke-free and tobacco-free policies on campus, particularly given the high rates of smoking in this population. We are exploring this issue in our larger longitudinal study, as well as in a smokeless tobacco cessation study currently underway. Strong differentiations between traditional and recreational tobacco use were seen among participants. Emphasizing this distinction in tobacco cessation intervention programs may prove to be beneficial. It has been reported that elders associate positive traits with traditional tobacco (spirituality, respect, and humility) versus commercial tobacco (lack of respect for one’s self and others, sickness, and death) [5]. Having a sense of cultural pride and connectedness to these beliefs is a protective factor for recreational smoking [28]. In fact, it has been shown that those who attempt to quit recreational smoking and use tobacco for traditional purposes are more successful compared to those who do not use tobacco traditionally [28]. This needs to be better articulated in educational and prevention programs.

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mailplate3-blog · 5 years ago

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Desmos Pre-Conference 2018 Recap

This is a quick blogpost that I’m using to recap just some of the information from the Desmos Preconference before TMC18. I was dealing with some other stuff when I returned from TMC, and then I had to take a short few-day jaunt to see my parents/aunt/uncle. Now I’m finally home and starting to do things like write college recommendations and think about my new class for next year (Algebra II). But I’m afraid if I don’t take the time to reflect on some of what I took away from the conference, I will not end up using it. But at the same time, I feel like it’s so much stuff that to do it comprehensively, it will take too long and that’s keeping me from starting. So here’s my pledge: I’m just going to do what I can, and not worry about being incomplete, and then I’m going to #pushsend.

Tonight, I’m going to #pushsend on the desmos preconference day.

I went to one session, led by Heather Kohn, David Sabol, and Mary Bourassa. These three desmos fellows shared how they use Desmos in the classrooms. Here are a few gems:

Heather often creates handouts to accompany activities. For example, for Will it hit the hoop? she has a spreadsheet for kids to fill in (e.g. “Predict, Screens 5-11” “Analyze, Screens 12-19” and “Verify, Screens 20-26”).

I shy away from doing cardsorts (or even short activities) on desmos because I tend to have some groups finish way earlier than others. But this would happen even for paper cardsorts! So here are some tips. First, just so all groups start at the same time, you can pause the activity on the first screen (which you can have be an introductory screen). When everyone is ready and logged in, you can then unpause the activity which allows everyone to start at the same time. More importantly, you should create a slide after the cardsort/activity which links to another activity or has some extra practice for those kids to work on. And for extra fun, you can have this slide be a “marbleslides challenge.” But one tip is to use the teacher dashboard to pace the activity to the slide before the challenge, so that you can make sure kids aren’t rushing. (You can check in with the first group done and ask them a few questions to make sure they’re getting things.)

You can do a Which One Does Belong on Desmos (example: go to https://student.desmos.com and enter 5CK W7N). Have kids vote on which one doesn’t belong. You can then display how they voted! If no one picks one, after they finish and you discuss, you can have them go back and everyone has to pick the one that wasn’t picked… and then explain why that last one might also “not belong.”

David was worried about how kids will access desmos activity knowledge later. There’s a lot of digital work and verbal work in class, but then things aren’t archived. So here’s a great example of how David deals with this. He used Andrew Stadel’s “Math Mistakes with Exponent Rules.” On day 1, he used the first day PDF to have kids work the problems in class. Then on day 2, he screen grabbed the second day PDF and made a desmos cardsort (sorting them into true/false) and used the dashboard to showcase wrong answers and have class discussions. Also, after the cardsort, he had a screen that said: “Make a FALSE statement that a classmate may think is actually TRUE.” Then that night he created — using what kids wrote for their false statements — a paper copy with all these FALSE statements (sometimes there’s a true statement that a person wrote!) where kids had to identify the errors!

A great question in a desmos activity is to show a lot of work/visualizations/etc. and write: “What would you tell this student to reinforce what they know and correct their errors?” If the student work has some nice thinking and some subtle not-so-good thinking, this often will lead to solid class discussions.

Mary uses Desmos occasionally for assessments. There were only a few questions, but they involved deeper thinking (e.g. given a graph of part of a parabola, can you come up with the equation for the parabola?). The presenter asked her kids to do all their written work on paper handed out for the test. Yes, students could revise their work/answers based on what they saw on Desmos, but that had to be reflected in words/notes/changes on the written paper. So a student guessing-and-checking on desmos with no supporting work will not garner credit. (For students who finish early, put a screen with marbleslides challenge.) One big note: make sure that at the end of the test, every kid goes to a blank last screen, and then PAUSE the activity. That way kids can’t come back and rework problems or show other students particular questions on the assessment.

Rachel K. (attending the session) said that she often had kids project their laptops up to the airplay and lead the class through something they found/built/figured-out on the Desmos calculator, or will have one kid lead a desmos activity on the big screen.

I often worry about how to lead effective discussions on activities that kids are doing. For pre-existing Desmos built activities, there are “teacher tips” that help teachers figure out what to focus on and how to facilitate conversations. But more importantly, whether Desmos built or random-person built, every activity has a teacher PDF guide (Click on “Teacher guide” in the top right hand of the screen for the activity.) You can print this out and use this to help you come up with a specific list of things you want to talk about, and stop at those places (e.g. questions, places to pause, etc.)

After the session, I talked with Heather about this feeling I had when doing long activities with Desmos. Although I was constantly checking the dashboard, and walking around listening for conversations, I often felt useless and bored and like I was doing something wrong because I wasn’t … doing much. She let me know that she also feels this, but that’s part of it. Letting kids engage. But I realized that some of my best classes (without desmos) have me circulating and listening but not doing too much beyond that. I was “being less helpful.” So I think I just have to make sure that when I’m not doing much, it’s because kids are doing good things mathematically and conversationally, and that’s because I’ve orchestrated things to be that way.

As an interlude to this wall of text, here’s my favorite nerdy math picture from the day.

Yes, indeed, you see a 3-4-5 right triangle, and a visualization of the oft-taught “Pool Problem.” In Starburst. My kind of math manipulative!

For the remaining two sessions, I worked on playing with Computation Layer and refamiliarizing myself with it (I spent 3 days earlier this summer spending huge swaths of time on this… a huge shoutout to Jay Chow who helped immensely with this). Having CL experts in the room and granting myself three hours to play with CL was amaaahzing. I first reacquainted myself with some of the basics (a lot of which I had forgotten, but it came back fairly quickly) and then I decided to start trying to “desmosify” this calculus optimization activity.). I didn’t get too far in, and so far this is no better than the paper version of the activity, but I am proud of what I was able to do with my CL chops! (You can see what I made here.)

The keynote session was given by Robert Berry (the new NCTM president) and he gave an overview of the recent NCTM book Catalyzing Change (which I have bought but haven’t yet read!), talked about some big picture NCTM things (advocacy, membership, financial health), and then told us what has been happening on the ground level. He ended his session talking about technology and what excites him about that. He said that “Technology that supports and advance mathematical sense-making, reasoning, problem solving, and communication excites me” and that “Competence is about being participatory in mathematics – with each other, with the teacher, and with the mathematics.” He then said technology can be used for good or evil based on how technology affects the following things in the classroom:

Positionality [how students engage with each other, their teacher, the curriculum, the technology, etc.]

Identity [how students see themselves]

Agency [how students present themselves to the world? how do we create structures for that to happen?]

Authority [“shared intellectual authority”]

His latest NCTM President’s Message is precisely on this. Also, Robert is a totally awesome guy.

That’s me on the left, him in the middle, and friend and TMC keynote speaker Glenn Waddell on the right.

Lastly, Eli (founder of Desmos and super nice guy) showcased a new desmos feature for teachers: SNAPSHOTS. You can read about it here, but what I love is that it allows teachers to facilitate discussions more thoughtfully in line with the 5 practices. (I’d love any help finding or coming up with problems at the high school level that work well with the 5 practices… Most examples that I’ve seen are at the middle school level so it’s been hard to wrap my mind around how to find/create problems for a precalculus or calculus class that might make this approach work super well.)

My favorite slide of his was:

Eli keeps things simple, which allows me to read slides like this and think: “wait, in what ways does my teaching do that?”

And with that, it’s time to #pushsend.

Source: https://samjshah.com/2018/08/04/desmos-pre-conference-2018-recap/

#read more #see more #check it out #interesting #learn more

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robertsfichi · 6 years ago

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2018. personal retrospective.

March 21st UPDATE: The first words of this letter had been written in January 2019. As I’ve got to the final part of the text I started asking myself if I should share it. I’ve got to the conclusion that writing with a public in my mind constrains my thoughts and I’ve started to write what someone might want to read instead of the truth I felt I needed to spill out. So I did not share it until the moment I was truly convinced that it'd reached the final form.

I have recently made some decisions that changed the way I live on a daily basis. What are the motives of these decisions?

Beside the fact that I want to become the best version of myself (obviously, I think everyone does), I want to get to the point where I will provide for my family & close friends and, along this road, I will create some sort of a get-together space where hard-working people could meet and share ideas/a meal. Like a group-crew-gathering-hub-coworking-space.

Nevertheless, the biggest long-term goal I want to achieve is building a school that will facilitate education for romanian students, offering them the opportunity to grow both intellectually and in spirit.

In order to get all this done, I am forced to find a way to gain financial power & develop meaningful relationships with great people activating in various environments.

After doing some soul searching and spending part of my spare time (last 2 years) learning about web development and web design, I’ve decided that I will become a full-stack web developer. I’ve been thinking about it for at least 2 years but I’ve never had the guts to start doing it as I was feeling as an impostor in the world of informational technology, although I really enjoy reading and talking with people about everything related to what a great impact technology had and will have on humanity. Of course, I know that I’m not a scientist and I will never be, but I’ve spent the last 5 to 6 years studying advertising, marketing & videography and I feel pretty confident that these areas will offer me some kind of advantage in the web development space.

In the short-term, I need to find out what am I currently doing that’s helping me become the person I want to become and what am I currently not doing that could improve the process of getting there. The next part of this text is inspired by Nate Green and will show the answers to the problems stated above.

QUESTION 1: What’s working? What did I do right? What am I proud of?

Started some kind of physical training: Crossfit.

Started reading more insightful books: Sapiens by Yuval N. Harari, Deep work by Cal Newport, Grit by Angela Duckworth, The hard thing about hard things by Ben Horowitz etc.

On January 1st 2018 I challenged myself to shoot and share one photo per day trying to find out if I truly enjoy photography & if I can make it by 31st December 2018. Being one of the most serious quitters I know, this has been pretty difficult for me. (Probably sounds stupid, I know, but I need to emphasise the fact that if a simple task like this one seems so difficult to me, it will probably be much harder trying to do more meaningful work.) Also, this task helped me realise Instagram is one of the most toxic environments you can spend time on. So, naturally, this led to the next point.

Quit social media: facebook & instagram.

Quit the job that I didn’t find meaning in anymore.

Started developing a business plan for my future career.

Beside those presented above, I really enjoyed visiting new places that I’ve never travelled to before, like:

Berlin, Germany

Oslo, Norway

and managed to see Kendrick Lamar in concert for the first time. Brilliant man, great show, tough crowd.

QUESTION 2: What’s not working? What could be improved? What are my biggest opportunities for growth?

I don’t have a pre-made daily schedule. Most of the time I lose energy and a lot of minutes/hours trying to figure out what is the best action that I should take next in order to get closer to what I thought were the goals I was pursuing.

I am currently finding myself in a financial crisis. I don’t know how much money I spend monthly. I have never kept any kind of budget. I have very little money saved and by August 2019, I will run out of it (In addition to this, I feel I have to share the fact that before quitting, I had a serious talk with my parents [happens not so often as you would think] and they told me that if I am in need of financial help, they will be there for me. This does not mean that I will get advantage of this situation but it does mean that if all goes to sh*t I will not be homeless. Nonetheless, living and working in Romania is pretty demoralising and in 5 to 10 years my parents won’t be able to deploy as much work as they do now and I definitely want to help them live a better life.)

The points mentioned above are on my mind since the beginning of 2018 but I thought that by ignoring them and trying to keep myself busy all the time, I will manage to get to a point where it will all work out. Needless to say these thoughts developed into more serious issues that affected both my personal and professional life.

Although I started attending Crossfit training approximatively 3 months ago, I still don’t have any kind of schedule set for this activity and in the last 50 days I’ve found myself skipping most of the classes. Of course, part of this can be forgiven (holidays) but a lot of the time was wasted.

QUESTION 3: How can I fix what’s not working? What specific things can I focus on next time?

Creating a yearly-monthly-daily plan. In order to get things done I will make a plan that will simplify the decision-making I will have to do every day. I need to:

Define clearly, as specific as possible, what the goals are.

How much time will it take me to get there? As in, what is the exact date I assume that “X” will happen?

Start reverse engineer the process.

Set specific daily steps -> monthly steps -> yearly steps -> GOAL.

Stop bleeding financially. Get to financial freedom. In order to get to the point where I will provide for my family and friends I first need to take care of my financial problems. I will create an excel sheet where I’ll put all my monthly expenses. After I find out what is the total sum of money I owe, and how much do I need to live a decent life, I will work as hard and as organised as I plan in order to:

Pay off my debt. Normally, I would describe this as the second step but as I don’t really owe that much money and as I don’t like being in this kind of situation, I will take care of it first.

Start saving for an emergency fund. 1000$. start small. I’ve never done this before so I expect to find it very difficult.

Start saving 6 to 12 months of expenses. This, like the emergency fund, represent savings that I will only access if I will get through some tough times like not finding any new clients or projects that I could take.

Start saving for retirement. as I will get done with the previous steps I should start looking for an efficient retirement fund/investment method. I expect this to happen at least 3 years from now so, for the moment, my focus will be on the first 2 steps.

Organising time. The difference between being able to reach my goals in 10 years vs. 30 years is crucial and I think that those 20 years can be saved by creating and, more importantly, STICKING TO a daily schedule. Most of the time I lose myself in the process of finding the best tool to keep track of the process. This time I will try to keep it as simple as possible. Beside the big picture excel sheet, I will use pen & paper to write the tasks for the next day.

Start attending Crossfit training at least 3 times/week. Go +1 day when available.

I haven’t lived very much but, up until this point in my life, I’ve met a lot of great humans that helped me develop into what I am today. From that crowd I can name 7 people or less that, whenever I’m in need, will put their best interest behind and help me succeed. One of these people is my girlfriend. As I’ve previously said, in 2018 I’ve had a lot on my mind and this reflected on my professional life, as well as on my personal life. I took the advice Elon Musk shared last year (“The reality is great highs, terrible lows and unrelenting stress. Don’t think people want to hear about the last two.”) and I’ve never really talked to anyone about what was troubling me. Not even to the person I’ve spent the most time with. And that’s not because I didn’t think she could help me, but I didn’t want her to worry about some issues that we’re not even hers to deal with, in the first place. This miscommunication led to some other issues and tension started to develop between us. Nonetheless, we’ve always managed to get through the problems we’ve faced and I hope that we forever will. To keep adding value to this relationship I will:

Spend more valuable time together.

Have more patience. Listen more.

Speak my mind more often. Be clear on what makes me feel uncomfortable.

Give more than I take.

In order to take the best decisions every day, start meditating consistently. 10 minutes/day. Don’t need to keep track. Just add it to your everyday schedule and DO IT EVERY DAY.

I am aware of the fact that these are not some very pretentious goals. The goal of this letter is not to impress anyone, but to document what I think and how do I feel about these thoughts. Also, all opinions are my own, and may or may not be shared by my family, friends, or my future self.

Thank you!

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aiimaginesbts · 8 years ago

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House of Cards: Chapter 1 (M)

Taehyung x Reader, with Jungkook

Genre: Smut, angst, fluff

Warning: Infidelity. Please avoid if this is not for you.

Word count: 2,778 words

Chapter 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 (Final)

Disclaimer/Copyright

How many love stories start this way? And just how many of them become this messed up?

You were just another student in high school who had developed a crush on one of the seniors. And not just any senior. No, you fell for the most popular student in school – Kim Taehyung. He was one of the top students, actively participating in various sports, and his good looks didn’t hurt his reputation any. Needless to say, he had dozens of fans and admirers constantly vying for his attention. Obviously he never gave you the time of day, considering he never even noticed you. How could he have known that you exist when you were the shy wallflower who ducked her head every time his gaze even strayed in your direction?

You admired him from afar, like the majority of the female population in school, lacking the courage to go up and talk to him, all the way to his graduation ceremony. He graduated too soon for your liking – you wished you were his age so you could have spent more time in school with him – but at least after he left all the fuss died down and you could concentrate more on your studies instead of planning how to watch him in between classes and after school. Thoughts of him visited you less frequently since, he was just a crush after all, but you never quite forgot him.

No one else caught your attention after that. Although you gained more confidence to mingle with your peers and became more active in school, you were studious and managed to make it into one of the top universities in the state, making your family proud. It was a little far from your parents’, but you didn’t mind it. Actually, you were quite relieved to have some space of your own away from your family – even if it meant having to board with the other students – especially when you were herded with the other new students into the main hall on your first day of orientation and you saw him.

Yes, it was Kim Taehyung, smiling in greeting towards the fresh batch of youngsters having their first glimpse of the university’s large hall. He was one of the senior students who volunteered to facilitate with the orientation process. Naturally. After words of welcome from the students’ representative, you were divided into smaller groups to get to know each other, and a senior student was assigned to each group to keep things organised and answer any questions that the fresh intake might have. Taehyung headed towards your group sitting in a circle, and your heart beat just a fraction faster when he approached and sat across from you.

It was stupid of you to hope that he recognised you, because why would he? Marshalling all your powers of concentration, you focused on the discussion and tried your best not to gawk at him. His attire was simple and casual – an oversized white sweater, washed-out blue jeans and sneakers – but he looked as handsome as ever, and you noticed that you weren’t the only one sneaking glances at him. His boxy grin and resonating voice had garnered the attention of the other girls in your group as well. This is going to be high school all over again, you thought to yourself, swallowing a sigh before paying more attention to what the guy beside you was saying.

After he finished, it was your turn to introduce yourself. Midway through, you hesitated, then thought, why not? and informed the group of the name of the high school you graduated from. Satisfaction filled your chest at Taehyung’s surprised reaction at this tidbit. Finally, after all these years, you had his regard, but you wanted to kick yourself when your cheeks started to flush as he gave you his undivided attention.

You lingered after the session ended, giving him a chance to approach you. You bit your lower lip to contain your excitement when he did just that. He was surprised and impressed that his junior managed to make it to the university; it was not easy to get in, and the conversation just flowed from there. He felt an obligation to look after you as his junior and you used that to your advantage, approaching him with questions, asking him to show you around, and his excitement at a chance to show you the ropes only made you bolder, daring you to strike conversations about other topics unrelated to your studies. He seemed to enjoy your company, too, an easy friendship developed between you and after a while, he asked you out.

The fact that someone who used to be the most popular student – still was one of the most popular, actually – was dating you was surreal. At least that was what you thought. Turned out that the idea wasn’t so far-fetched to everyone else, including Taehyung. Not long after you agreed to being his girlfriend, you asked him why he asked you out.

“Someone like you?” His brows furrowed in confusion. “Why would you ask something like that? You’re bright, confident, pretty and you can carry a great conversation, which is more than I can say for most of the girls here. Most of the guys, even.”

Somewhere along the way, without realising it, you had shed your quiet, wallflower personality. You were still shy, but you had learnt to work past it to become more outgoing, to socialise with more people, not just the tiny band of friends you had when you were younger. Your eyes had flicked up in a silent thanks to God that your sense of fashion had also matured to what it was now.

There was no hiding your shyness from Taehyung though, not when he was your boyfriend and you spent a lot of time together outside classes. It rarely showed compared to how timid you were in school, but Taehyung didn’t mind, especially when you were in bed. He found it endearing, and was surprised to find that you were still a virgin. Frankly it wasn’t unexpected, but he didn’t know just how reserved you were in school, and even after you gained more confidence in yourself, after crushing on him so hard, no guy gained your interest. You gave him everything, because he was your everything. You were aware that he probably didn’t feel as strongly about you as you felt towards him, but he loved you, and that was all that mattered.

Of course it was foolish of you to expect your luck to run its course forever. Someone like you could never measure up to a person as perfect as Taehyung. Not only was he smart, good-looking, friendly and athletic, he was also the heir to a big company, and his relationship with you would not offer his family any benefits. He had barely graduated and taken his position in the company when he relayed to you the bad news: He was to marry a woman from a prestigious family to help the company expand its market overseas.

You didn’t even stop yourself from crying, you had been together for 2 years by then, so you didn’t hesitate showing him your pain. He pulled you into his arms, holding you tight, and it was a while before you realised that his body was also wracking with silent sobs, his tears falling on the top of your head as you were soaking the front of his crisp shirt, now crumpled from your desperate grip on it.

Both were unaware of how much time had passed, but even an eternity would seem like a fraction of a second before you had to let each other go and accept the bitter reality. He had to leave eventually, and you had to deal with the world crashing down on you. Neither of you contacted each other after that, it would only make it harder to let go, but you heard that his engagement was extremely short and in no time, he became a married man. You were thankful that he did not invite you to the wedding, because even the sight of his invitation might make you burst into tears.

However, you were strong, you’ve made it so far in life, so after a few months of wallowing in your sorrows you decided that it was time to pick up the pieces and try to move on. It was not easy. Every day was a struggle, every day without hearing his voice or receiving his texts, wishing you luck for an exam or simply telling you that he needed you was difficult, bordering on impossible, and you wished that you could just give up.

And then one day your phone rang. You had deleted his number, but you should have known that your brain would never allow you to forget the familiar digits. Fingers curled in a hesitation that only lasted for a second before you picked up.

Why am I doing this? How did I let this go on for so long?

It didn’t matter how many times you asked this of yourself, because you knew just a word from him would cause you to give in to him. You could not resist Taehyung any more than he could resist you.

“It’s late. Wouldn’t you get into trouble with her?” You asked despite yourself. His answer was a groan reverberating deep inside his chest as his length sunk into your warm mouth. Looking up at him gripping the hotel room bedsheets, unable to answer your question, made you grin around his cock. In fact, it took him several deep breaths and another groan as you swirled your tongue around the head before he could even utter a word.

“She’s on a company trip,” he gave up trying to keep his hands at his sides, one of them releasing the sheets to grab your hair as he guided you slowly up and down his length. “God, I missed this so much.”

You lifted your head up to look at him, his dick escaping your mouth with a loud pop. “After all this time, she still doesn’t do this for you?” You knew the answer but you asked him anyway. Nothing boosted your ego more than him admitting that you were better than the woman he was expected to spend his lifetime with, to love until death did them part, and he had no qualms about giving you that.

“She is horrible at giving blowjobs. I don’t know how she manage to make it so uncomfortable that I just ask her not to do it,” he said with a whine of protest at the loss of contact. “Why are we talking about her anyway? I don’t want to think about her now. Hell, I don’t want to think about anything other than your wicked mouth wrapped around me,” pushing your head with his hand, he directed you back where he wanted you to be. “You’re so fucking good at this.”

You returned your focus back on him, taking as much of him as you could without gagging, bobbing your head up and down his shaft, your right hand moving up from the base, making up for what your mouth couldn’t take. Your left hand snaked between your legs, finding your clit and rubbing hard on it. His hips bucked against you, and you knew that it wouldn’t be long before he stopped you. It was not often that he could see you, at least, not as often as either of you would have liked, so he always wanted to get inside you before he came. Your moans vibrating against his cock was the last straw, his hand in your hair tightened to pull you up, your tongue dragging along from his base to the head, giving him a show of you flicking his precum with your tongue into your mouth.

“Don’t move,” he said in a low tone that never failed to arouse you, and you obeyed, only lifting your chin to follow his movements as he slipped up from under you. He grabbed your hips and turned you around so that you were facing away from him, on all fours with your ass in the air. His hands moved from your hips down to cup your ass cheeks, spreading them open so your wet, pink entrance was in full view.

“Mmm, so wet for me,” his words made you moan softly in excitement and embarrassment at the same time, and it only got louder when he dropped down to taste you. It was your turn to clench the bedsheets as your walls clenched on his tongue. His fingers continued your work earlier, slowly rubbing your clit in circles before pinching the sensitive nub, making you scream his name.

He got on his back and pulled you down so you were sitting on his face and started to work you to an undeniable high. He licked your slit up to your clit, where he settled to circle the nub while he inserted his index finger into you. He had just started, but you were already squeezing on his finger, your moans coming forth unbidden, growing louder in volume when a second finger joined his first. Never having any partner other than Taehyung, even after his marriage, your fingers and vibrator were the only things keeping you company on lonely nights, but nothing compared to his fingers, his tongue, his cock. You closed your eyes in mortification at the lewd sounds your pussy is making as his fingers moved faster, urging you to come, and you did. He knew your body best, and he could make you come in record time.

Gently pushing you up, he positioned you back on your elbows and knees, caressing your back as you came down from your high, using the opportunity to rub the tip of his throbbing cock at your entrance. Your breathing had just started to slow down when he pushed himself into you, making your heart race again, feeling him stretch you out impossibly as he filled you to the brim.

“God, you’re so fucking tight, y/n,” he breathed, his nails digging into your ass in an effort not to come right then and there. You lacked the strength to reply, simply pushing your hips back against him in a silent request for more. Taehyung was more than happy to oblige, using his grip on your hips as an anchor as he rammed himself into you repeatedly. He hit you hard and deep, making both of you feel good, and for a while the only sounds echoing inside the small room were your laboured breaths and moans, accompanied by the lascivious noise of his hips meeting yours.

Just when you thought you could take it no more, he paused and pulled out of you. Ignoring your whine of protest at the sudden emptiness, he picked you up and laid you on your back before quickly returning back into you, his gaze intent on the sight before him as he fucked you missionary style. Your hands reached up to clutch his lean arms, your back arched in pleasure, mesmerising him with the view of your breasts bouncing with every thrust, driving him wild.

You could tell that he was close, his steady rhythm breaking as his hips moved faster, panting hard, and finally slowing down when he felt you clench around him, your legs trembling as his name escaped your lips. With a few more thrusts, you felt him filling you up, his body almost crushing yours, his face buried in the crook of your neck, his grunts filling your ears. You wrapped your arms around him as the two of you caught your breaths before he swiftly slid off and out of you, bringing you with him to lay on his side.

It only took a few moments for him to regain his composure. “We should get cleaned up,” he tried to tug you into the shower, but you pulled your hand away.

“Go ahead. I want to rest for a bit first.”

He smiled at you, shaking his head. “Okay, but don’t take too long. I’ll wait for you to join me.”

You nodded and watched him step inside the bathroom. We should stop doing this; another useless thought that was promptly pushed out of your head at the thought of hot water hitting his body, and you got up to join him.

#bts scenarios #taehyung scenarios #v scenarios #taehyung smut #v smut #bts smut

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kendrixtermina · 8 years ago

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Extra Typology Vol #2 - 26. The types as Babies

Disclaimer/ Caveat

First of all the book amply cautions against fast conclusions because taking the wrong approach based on a mystype could be disastrous, but most of all, because our parenting should adjust to our children & their signals, rather than trying to adjust our children to us -

and even outside the concept of typology, such attitudes are IMHO the root of a sizeable percentage of the suffering on earth - As a parent you’re there to facilitate your child’s growth & compensate for their inexperience, children are not your possesion - If you try to get to know them rather than force your fantasies of an ideal family onto them you might spare yourselves a lot of suffering.

Though the book and I are in agreement that at least the “raw material” of personality inborn (and nurture & personal choice determine your level of functionality or what given ‘version’ of your type you become), it is indeed important to remember that small kids can circle through a lot of interests.

But if you wanted to type your crotchfruit, just out of curiosity & with no actionistic plans, how would you do it? Well...

First Signs

Usually, it is easier to determine if you’re dealing with a thinking, feeling or doing type in general than the exact type itself:

A tiny Moving Type: Quite simply ‘moves’ more than other children - their hands are busy. They crawl/walk easier than other types and often have better movement skills. When they want something, they reach out, try to move/crawl/walk to it; They often cry or make noise and frequently throw their toys. If this sounds like your kid or sibling, they might grow up to be a Mars or Mercury type (Good luck!)

A tiny Intellectual Type: Tends to cry less than other children. From the moments their eyes can see with some relative precision, they entertain/amuse themselves by discovering/examining things. They also master speaking and reading before their peers. If this sounds like your kid or siblings, you might have a Lunar or Saturn type on their type.

A tiny Emotional Type: Always wants to be in the company of “mommy” or people in general; they are often better natured and meeker than other children and seem to ‘want’ less. They are usually graceful and feel more of a natural comfort just ‘being in their bodies’ than other types. If this sounds like your kid or sibling, then congrats on your new Venus or Jupiter family member.

The middle one does indeed sound like baby!me and this seems in line with my theories about diverse family members, most of them already grown up.

Both books seem in agreement that the rough line for distinctly discerning essence type tends to be roughly 7/ school age.

So, one you or your relatives have sucessuly grown a grade schooler, we can check them out further. See if you recognize your junior in any of the following:

Futher Sorting - Style of play

Lunar: Will fail to consider their neat clothes bfore getting involved physically. Lose themselves in imagination. Create elaborate fantasy stories. [Yup. This may actually have been discernable from age 5 onwards.]

Venus: Those rare kids who actually care about staying neat. Complicated loyalty/friendship/rivalry patterns. Prefer one-on-one playing.

Mercury: Play involves going places. May have a number of friends for different activities. Natural organizers of team sports. Will leave equipment, lothes & toys wherever they go

Saturn: Try to outwit computer games. Develop esoteric interests to which much attention is given. Given the chance, they will explain rules and philosophy/psychology of games to others

Mars: athletic, dominate the playground group. Will form ‘gangs’ and compete with others for dominance

Jupiter: Will be alert to make sure everyone feels included, looks out for other children and animals; Play will involve situations where one child can care for another (Doctor, house, school etc. )

Futher Sorting II - Childhood Worldview

Lunar: The world is magical and wondrous, the shape of a flower is delight - yet life is also terrifying and confusing, and the child is easily overwhelmed. Will benefit the most from having things explained to them. May be easily scared by scary stories or vilenceTV programs

Venus: The world is full of color and beauty, as well as many pretty things one can own. Friendships are important and central. Need their perception of the primacy of emotional well-being reinforced.

Mercury: The world is movement. Seeing as much of it as possible is a major goal and gives them a sense of personal worth

Saturn: The world is fascinating. Everything needs to be questioned. Sustained pondering on big issues and ideas involved in living. They need to have their child-seriousness valued and respected [I actually allingned more with this one to be honest; Born nerd.]

Mars: The world owes the child a proper living - “Since I’m alive, what are you going to do to make it worth my while?” The world is a battleground and they are always ready for a fight. Or pick the fight themselves.

Jupiter: The world is in great need - Terrible things happen and I am somehow culpable. I must do what I can do to make things better for those around me “Perhaps I can send my pocket money to a poor children?”

Of course some of this will depend on the circumstances the child encounters, which can be good or bad, but even so, how they respond will be filtered through type - for example, neglect may prompt escapism, people-pleasing, combative rebellion or attention grabbing behavior depending on the child’s natural temperament.

Further Sorting III - Even Hybrid Types were kids once

And they should be raised with care.

Lunar-Venus - Their trusting, attentive and unbashed nature can easily get them into trouble, so as a parent, you would do well to start nurturing a sense of responsibility early on.

Venus-Mercury - Although described as a ‘busy’, ‘fun-loving’ type, these tedencies will not necessarily manifest as stereotypical ‘party animal’ behavior - each individual will arrive at their own expression of ‘fun-loving’, particularly if they’re more on the Venusian sideand emphasize the emotional over speed. A given individual’s expression of their type characteristics may well be to go into endurance sports, turn to the priesthood or spend endless hours pouring over computers.

Mercury-Saturn - The parents may be concerned that this type is spreading themselves too thinly with all their activities, commitments and friendships - they will not thank you for limiting their activities, but they can still benefit if we remember their tendency for speed over depht - and help them to balance their lives, and to place their effort and senseof worth in more deserving areas.

Saturn-Mars - Will likely be frustrated until they find an arena big enough to contain and promote them. Peer jealousy may cause them to become unpopular. It might help to encourage them to go quietly about learning what interests them, as well as reminding them that childhood is not forever, and that the frustration toleance they learn in those early years will serve them well in the adult world.

Mars-Jupiter - May experience great difficulty in childhood and adolescence because they clearly see the inequality and agony in the world, and are frustrated by their peers’ lack of interest. They may early on find ways to elevate themselves into the adult world - volunteering after school and being outstanding in general. However, due to various circumstances, it may also take them a long time to decide where they wish to place their worth, and spent the meantime floundering around in mediocricy and frustration.

Jupiter-Lunar - They display both dreamy fantasy and empathi, universal concerns. In childhood, they may find their more responsible side more valued than their sensitive one, and thrust into roles of responsibility that deprive them of the experinence of being looked-after (say, they’re the most well-behaved sibling..) As such, they can end up growing up with unexpressed, deep-rooted self-judgement and criticism; To avoid that, be aware that their early sense of responsibility may mask their own needs

Sorting Hat IV - Miscellaneous Observations

Lunars seem end up at the receiving end of bullying with some frequency [check...sigh] - on the other hand, if they are themselves the bullies, they can manage to look amazingly innocent & creatively talk their way out of it leading the adults to blame the other children. In general they’re less interested in what others thing about them

Venusians get satisfaction from influencing (or sometimes, manipulating) the feelings of others - some may be amired by other schoolchildren because they always seem to get what they want. Both emotional types are sensitive to the feelings of others and learn easily to read or empathise with them in ways others do not.

Mercurials are quick and direct, though not graceful like emotional types or powerful like Martials. They tend to collect a lot of information.

Saturn Types can end up providing great comic relief when they try to to reach out to become ‘graceful’, ‘popular’ or any other characteristic their not really inclined to, probably to cries of “NEEEEERD!” [I’d offer a high 5 but you guys might find this too silly.]

Mars Types are even, or especially agressive when they’re trying to help - which they often are, though sometimes because it gives them a sense of power - they have no concept that they’re still being perceived as rough or blunt

Jovians learn quickly how to get satisaction by adapting /influencing the feelings of others to make them feel better - they have an unique gift for comforting others just by being there. They may have trouble with other schoolchildren who may not understand or value their emotional subtlety and misread their concern as being fake.

#extraTypology #typology #12 type enneagram

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marlenefoust · 5 years ago

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In the digital age when computers and mobile phones have become ubiquitous machines and devices, typing has become an essential skill that one must learn and master. By definition, typing is the process of inputting text by pressing keys on a typewriter, computer keyboard, mobile phone, or calculator. This text can be in the form of letters, numbers, and symbols.

The development of typing has brought numerous benefits to humans. For one, it has increased the productivity levels of workers in various industries, particularly those who are working white-collar jobs. In the literary world, typing has also been quite beneficial – it has made the job of authors easier, and it has made the production of books easier and faster-paced.

Indeed, typing is such a powerful skill to obtain. There is an enormous power in typing. Power typing does not only make the jobs of humans easier and more convenient, but it also improves their mental capacity and well-being. To learn more about this topic, this article briefly discusses below how power typing enhances the human brain.

Power typing enhances memory

Power typing can enhance your memory because whenever you type, your brain is pushed to remember two things simultaneously: the spelling of the words you are typing and the placement on the keyboard of the keys necessary to form those words. By consistently trying to type correctly to get the spelling of those words right and to press the correct keys, your brain, particularly its memory department, is being exhaustively worked out. The continuous task of remembering two different sets of information at once helps strengthen the neural networks of the brain that control the memory. Hence, power typing indeed has the potential to enhance memory.

Power typing improves hand-eye coordination

Hand-eye coordination is a cognitive skill wherein the visual system of a person is able to coordinate the information it receives through the eyes to control, direct, and guide the hands in accomplishing a certain task such as catching a ball or handwriting. However, not everyone has a good hand-eye coordination. Some people struggle to play a game of catch or to write legibly because they have poor hand-eye coordination. Fortunately, there several ways to solve, or at least, improve this. Power typing, particularly, is one of the most powerful ways to strengthen the connection between eye movement and hand movement because it is a continuous action. The lack of pauses while typing greatly practices both the eyes and the hands in working together at once.

Power typing improves concentration

Since typing is a continuous task that needs the adequate attention of a person, it prompts that person to concentrate and focus. For this reason, it can be argued that power typing also has the ability to improve the concentration of humans. When you are typing, you tend to focus on getting the right spelling of your words, pressing the right keys, and typing what you want to type correctly. Doing all of these tasks simultaneously, of course, requires immense focus. Hence, subsequently, it tends to push your brain to thwart any distraction that may come your way.

Power typing allows smoother flow of thoughts

This benefit is especially important for authors and writers. When you type, particularly when you have already mastered the placement of all the keys on the keyboard, the flow of your thoughts tend to be smoother and more coherent compared to when you still need to write your thoughts down on a piece of paper. This is because power typing is generally faster than handwriting. Thus, the amount of time that you spend on finishing a single word when handwriting can already be spent on thinking and organizing your thoughts when you are typing.

Power typing strengthens the connections between hemispheres

Most people are either right-handed or left-handed. Whether one is right-handed or left-handed is largely up to the central sulcus – the part of the brain that determines right-hand or left-hand dominance. However, some people actually have the ability to use both of their hands simultaneously. Activities like playing the piano or power typing are great exercises that challenge the brain to fight against the dominance of either the right-hand or the left-hand because they require both hands to work together. Scientifically, experts have even found that the brains of pianists or typists, in fact, function differently than most people, as they tend to have a more symmetrical central sulcus.

Without a doubt, typing is a potent skill that brings numerous benefits to the way people think and do their jobs. In essence, power typing is a power. Having the ability to type fast without looking at the keyboard or the keypad is a skill that not everyone possesses, but is greatly advantageous for all. If you want to increase your work pace or if you wish to enhance the capacity of your brain, then power typing is something that you need start turning into a habit now!

Benefits of having Keyboarding skills

Computers are an ubiquitous machine. Their functions exist everywhere. Today, almost everything is practically done with the use of computers – communicating, designing, problem-solution, researching, writing, and more. Particularly, the inception of computers has made it easier to process and store information. Through keyboarding, people can now easily input information for processing and storage on a computer device.

By definition, keyboarding is the process of putting information into various kinds of equipment or device through the use of a typewriter-like keyboard. In other words, it is the activity of typing information into a computer or word processor. In a more specific sense, however, keyboarding is different from mere typing. Typing is just the act of writing individual characters to create text through a device. On the other hand, keyboarding involves not just typing with keys, but also other operations that use a keyboard.

Although keyboarding sounds easy, it can actually be confusing and time-consuming for others, especially for non-techy people. For this reason, many people take the time to practice, learn, and develop some keyboarding skills. Having keyboarding skills is not just all about typing right. There are plenty of benefits that people can get from mastering the keyboard. This article is especially dedicated to listing down the important benefits of having keyboarding skills.

Education Benefits

High school and college students do most of their work on computers nowadays. Commonly, they do internet research, essays and papers, excel reports, and group presentations through a computer device. All these things involve the use of a keyboard. For this reason, it is important for students to master keyboarding. Being an expert at keyboard keys and operations will practically make it easier for students to finish their tasks, especially at times when they are struggling to meet deadlines. More so, having keyboarding skills will allow them to focus fully on the tasks at hand. They will have more time to spend thinking about ideas and organizing their thoughts instead of wasting a few precious seconds on hunting and pecking. This, then, will largely improve the quality of the students’ output.

Career Benefits

Much like at school, keyboarding is also an essential skill at work. Regardless of whether one works an administrative or managerial job, he or she is most likely to do data entry, type up emails, write reports, work on electronic documents, and do pretty much everything that involves the use of a computer. Because of this, having keyboarding skills is a great head start for people who want to make it big in the corporate world. Generally, employers look for people who can do the job fast and easily because time is money and speed always counts. People who can type fast and finish their tasks in no time have better chances of getting hired compared to those who still have to hunt and peck. Moreover, workers with great keyboarding skills are most likely to get rewarded with more work or better-paying positions.

Social Functions

With the advancement of technology, communication has become more and more computerized. Today, people are already largely communicating via text message or the internet. They no longer need to write their letters on a piece of paper and travel to the post office. They can just simply type their message into a computer device and send it via the internet for the receiving party to get it in an instant. Indeed, mobile phones and the internet have undoubtedly taken over the communication process on a large scale. For this reason, people who are slow to adopt to these forms of communication may miss out on a lot of opportunities to communicate not just with their friends and families, but also with other people from many parts of the world. In order to take full advantage of these faster forms of communication, people should develop keyboarding skills that can match that of the rest. In the digital age, having great keyboarding skills is an important component of social development, especially for the young generations.

Learning Assistance

Aside from students and workers, keyboarding is especially important and helpful for people with physical impairments and learning difficulties. For example, for the blind and visually impaired, developing keyboarding skills is necessary because this allows them to navigate a keyboard without using their eyes. By doing so, they can also write quickly and accurately without the need to form letters by hand, whatsoever. For children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), on the other hand, keyboarding helps in breaking down tasks into manageable steps. Because keyboarding facilitates muscle memory, children with ADHD will be able to focus on the main task required of them without feeling overwhelmed by the tangential tasks.

Overall, having some keyboarding skills is important for various reasons: they help people finish their daunting tasks in no time, without breaking much sweat; they allow people to communicate faster; and they make learning more accessible to the less privileged. Indeed, having keyboarding skills is more than just typing right. It also makes people type freely, readily, and cheerfully. As computers and keyboards increasingly establish their significance, it is important that people acquire the skills necessary to master them.

#The Power of Typing: How Typing Enhances Your Brain

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bobskiii87-blog · 7 years ago

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Three Gun Violence Scholars on What Is Missing From America’s Gun Control Debate

Last week 10 people were killed at Santa Fe High School in Texas, just months after a shooter killed 17 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. This pattern has become all too familiar in the United States, which has suffered 102 mass shootings to date this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive.

Skeptics of post-massacre gun control efforts often point to the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary school shooting as a watershed moment in the left’s losing fight against the NRA and gun rights activists: If 20 small children being slaughtered in an idyllic Connecticut community can’t lead to change, perhaps nothing will.

But there is room for hope after Parkland. Since that tragedy, we’ve witnessed the birth of the #NeverAgain movement and the #MarchForOurLives, both of which have led to small policy changes. The Republican-led Congress recently voted to reinstate funding to the CDC for gun violence research; state governments like Florida have already passed laws banning bumpstocks while raising the age (from 18 to 21) for buying a firearm; companies like MEC have severed ties with brands that do business with the NRA; and multimedia giant YouTube recently announced that they would prohibit people from posting DIY gun-making videos. Even if these motions don’t lead to drastic reductions in gun violence, they represent small symbolic steps toward sensible gun control laws. They show that people on both sides of the aisle don’t want to sit idly and wait for another mass shooting to happen.

But, in spite of these developments, the conversation about gun violence remains narrowly focused on mass shootings, which account for about three percent of the annual homicides committed with firearms in the US. Lost in all of the news coverage is a sustained discussion about gun violence in black communities, who are disproportionately at risk of getting injured or killed in shootings. African Americans account for roughly 50 percent of the gunshot victims in the US, even though they only account for 12 percent of the US population.

This is a familiar omission, one that we see after nearly all mass shootings in the US. This disparity is shaped in part by the fact that scholars of color—who have been doing research on the frontlines of America’s gun violence epidemic—are often relegated to the sidelines of this conversation. This is a shame, as many of us have a lot to offer.

Luckily, two of my favorite gun violence scholars, Desmond Patton (Columbia University, Social Work and Sociology) and Joseph Richardson Jr. (University of Maryland, African-American Studies and Medical Anthropology) were up to chat more about this. The following is an abbreviated and slightly edited (for readability) version of a discussion we had.

Jooyoung Lee: So, to get things rolling, what do you think is the most critical part of your work that’s been ignored in media coverage of gun violence? Desmond Patton: When I listen to discussion about gun violence, they tend to gravitate towards immediate causes and outcomes. That is to say, why did this person commit this murder right now. And of course we want to understand why a specific shooting happened, but I think as researchers we need to also focus on pathways to violence. I’m usually very uncomfortable when we start talking about communities of colour because we seem to never talk about how institutions and policies shape violent contexts that may lead to violent behaviours. When we talk about Parkland, I hear a structural analysis that leads to additional resources and attentions. I don’t hear the same things when we talk about urban-based gun violence, in which communities that have some of the highest rates of gun violence go untreated. Parkland becomes the narrative we uphold which further marginalizes those communities.

Joseph Richardson Jr.: There is no discussion about structural violence regarding the preventable harm associated with gun violence that disproportionately affects black boys and young black men. We have to acknowledge that structural violence leads to interpersonal violence yet with black boys and black men we tend to blame the victim instead of the structures that reproduce violence.

I direct the Capital Region Violence Intervention Program, a hospital based violence intervention program at the University of Maryland Prince George’s Hospital Center. We are the second busiest trauma center in Maryland and treat on average 700 victims of violent injury per year, that’s almost two people per day. The overwhelming majority of survivors of gun violence we treat are black boys and young black men. If you spent a week in our trauma center with our trauma surgeons and nurses it would be crystal clear the gun violence is a crisis in the black community and for young black men in particular. Gun violence is the leading cause of death for black boys and young black men. It has been the leading cause of death for this population for decades. Not a few years but decades. But, imagine if gun violence were the leading cause of death for young white males for decades? It’s impossible to imagine because it wouldn’t have ever gotten that far.

The question America should ask itself is why so much attention to gun violence now?

Jooyoung: For me, the discussion has also veered away from taking on larger racist stereotypes about black men and other young men of colour—who, as we all know, are the most vulnerable to getting injured and/or killed in shootings. It’s great that the Parkland kids have reached out to young folks from Chicago and other communities of colour where gun violence is happening on a much more routine basis, but I haven’t really seen anyone in this movement taking on the larger stereotypes that shape how society sees gunshot victims from places like Chicago, St. Louis, Philly, Compton, and other communities of colour left out of the spotlight created by Parkland. Harmful stereotypes about African Americans still persist. There’s still this underlying belief that if you are black and you got shot, you must have been doing something to get yourself shot. This is something that John Rich shows brilliantly in his work and something that has stayed around even when the Parkland kids are being intersectional about their activism.

What about grief and the broader impacts of gun violence? How does your work address these issues that have emerged in the aftermath of Parkland? Desmond: I’ve been fascinated by the ways in which social media shows you how trauma impacts an individual’s life. Through posts, emojis, hashtags, images, etc you’re able to observe how a person moves through a grief cycle. For example, a person may describe how they’re not sleeping or that they remain in disbelief because of the loss of a loved one. As time progresses, it becomes clear that social media may also hinder their ability to move through through a grief cycle as others comment and interact with their grief; at times making upsetting or disrespectful comments.

In new research published in Digital Medicine my research team found a pathway to threatening and aggressive tweets that starts with responses to trauma and grief for gang associated youth and young adults in Chicago. In fact, there was a two-day window between a response to loss and an aggressive post. This tells us that social media can be used to cope with violence in a way that run counters to how young black youth are depicted in media.

Joe: We have neglected to address the effects of gun violence on caregivers. Our program provides counseling services not only for male survivors of violence, we also facilitate, caregiver support groups because the caregivers often suffer in silence. In fact, the vicarious trauma suffered by caregivers in many cases is more severe than the trauma suffered by the person who was injured. Everyone suffers. You cannot just inoculate the person who was injured by providing them with mental health and social support services and send them back to a network and environment where violence is contagious.

Jooyoung: And the other thing is, calls for more access to mental health care services forgets that many folks of colour don’t have the same relationship with formal therapy. In my work, I met lots of young people living with injuries who were skeptical about formal mental health care services that were available to them. Some thought they were going to get hypnotized and others were resistant to the idea of talking about their innermost fears and vulnerability with a complete stranger. So, part of the mental health picture requires a new way to think about social and emotional support as something that people find in their everyday relationships with family, friends, and even people who are in religious institutions.

What are key policy discussions that aren’t happening right now? And how does your work inform a more nuanced discussion on these issues? Joe: There are a number of policy issues. For example, Maryland (which is where we run our hospital-based intervention) is trying to pass a bill SB 122 that would provide significant funding for violence prevention across the state. However, that bill includes mandatory minimums and increasing prison sentences for various crimes. So on the one hand, you get violence prevention funding that is desperately needed, but at what cost? Sending more poor black Marylanders to prison who live in neighborhoods that have been impacted by structural violence literally decimated by high rates of unemployment and the effects of mass incarceration. As a gun violence researcher of colour, I cannot support that kind of legislation, despite the funding for violence prevention.

Desmond: I think we have to contend with the role of social media in gun violence. We’ve been quick to utilize social media to monitor urban areas and Black Lives Matter activists, but we’ve missed white mass shooters who have left dark messages on social media. We need to have critical discussions about the very real concern that what people say or do on social media may lead to offline violence.

Jooyoung: The other thing, to go back to Joe’s point, is that this movement hasn’t really addressed the ongoing problems of police shooting and killing black men and other folks of colour. We’re having a discussion about raising the age for people to buy firearms and encouraging people to give up their firearms, but many people don’t want to do this because guns represent a means for self-defence. This is where there’s a lot of overlap between people in communities like West Philly and those in red states who own guns and concealed carry. People get guns because they don’t feel safe and have lost faith in the police. So, there’s this terrible irony that we’re talking about regulating guns, which is important, but also not addressing the underlying reasons for why Stephon Clark is getting shot and killed by Sacramento Police. Police violence against black men hasn’t gone away and yet that type of police violence has been swept under the rug in this whole #NeverAgain moment.

Joe: What’s interesting to me is what determines when we decide as a nation what constitutes a public health crisis? In the 80s and 90s we criminalized crack by creating draconian drug policies that sent millions of black people to jail and prison. The irony is Joe Biden framed a lot of those policies yet he is the vice president of the first black president. Policies such as the Anti Drug Abuse Acts of 1986 and 1988 and the Crime Bill of 1994 under the “first” black President Bill Clinton devastated black inner-city communities and families for generations. We can even go further back to the 70s when heroin ravaged urban communities, it was criminalized. It’s how we arrived at the Rockefeller Drug Laws in New York which served as the blueprint for mandatory minimums. The gun violence that was associated with crack markets in inner-cities was criminalized as well. So the black community has been suffering from a drug and gun violence epidemic for a long time yet it was never considered to be a public health issue. There was no public health approach for crack or gun violence. The approach has been lock them up, build more prisons, hire more police.

Only recently have we discussed criminal justice reform, which is interesting now that crack use has waned considerably. Now that heroin and the opioid crisis is literally killing white Americans at extremely high rates, we have approached it as a public health crisis, which has commanded resources, research funding from NIH and the CDC and considerable media attention. Where are all the visuals of SWAT teams and DEA using battering rams on the doors of white middle class homes in the same way they barreled into crack houses? Clearly someone is selling heroin as well right, particularly if most drug transactions are intraracial this means that there are a lot of white heroin and opioid dealers out there killing a lot of people. But there is no discussion about a war on drugs now because the faces suffering from it are white.

Conclusion

Our conversation continued for the greater part of a half hour. As we talked, it struck me how we often go round and round about gun control policies in the aftermath of mass shootings, but almost always fail to address what Desmond refers to as “pathways” into violence, or what Joe calls “structural violence.” In all of the talk about gun control—which is a positive thing overall—we lose sight of the bigger picture, the root causes of violence that propel young people, and particularly black youth, into gangs, drug dealing, and other risky behaviours that amplify their risks of being shot and becoming a shooter.

Follow Jooyoung Lee and Desmond Patton on Twitter.

from VICE https://ift.tt/2kmsqVv via https://ift.tt/2hybfwu

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minnievirizarry · 7 years ago

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28 Powerful Facebook Stats Your Brand Can’t Ignore in 2018

What began as a way for college students to connect has grown into one of the world’s largest social networks. In turn, it has become one of the best marketing resources too. But in order to be successful on Facebook, you have to dig below the surface and familiarize yourself with the ins and outs of the platform and analytics.

Here are some important Facebook stats—broken down by multiple dimensions—to help guide your social media strategy. Click on the jump links below to skip to each section:

General Facebook stats

Facebook demographic stats

Facebook geo stats

Facebook usage stats

Facebook mobile stats

Facebook video stats

Facebook advertising stats

Facebook publishing stats

General Facebook Stats

First, let’s start off with some general Facebook stats to paint a picture of why the social network is so important:

1. Facebook Has More Than 2 Billion Daily Active Users

As of June 30, 2017, there are:

2 billion monthly active users on Facebook

Over 1 billion daily active users

Although many social media marketers assume this number will plateau, it’s probably safe to say that Facebook will continue to grow until they run out of new users to sign up. Only a couple more billion to go!

To put these numbers into context, here are the number of monthly active users on other top social media platforms, according to statistics from TechCrunch:

Youtube has 1.5 billion monthly active users

WeChat has 889 million monthly active users

Instagram has 700 million monthly active users

Twitter has 328 million monthly active users

Snapchat has an estimated 255 million monthly active users

Facebook Demographic Stats

Over 2 billion users is a lot of people. In order to get a better understanding of who you can potentially reach on the platform, here are some Facebook stats on their audience demographics:

2. 83% of Women & 75% of Men Use Facebook

Overall, Facebook’s gender demographics are pretty evenly split with women slightly more active. According to Pew Research, 83% of women use the network compared to 75% of men.

This is a clear indicator that no matter who you’re trying to reach, they’re likely active on Facebook.

3. People Aged 18-29 Are the Most Prevalent Facebook Users (65+ Is the Least)

The age groups on Facebook break down by use as such:

88% of those 18-29

84% of those 30-49

72% for those 50-64

62% for those 65+

Despite being the smallest age group on the platform, Facebook seems to be the best option for reaching older users on social media when compared to other networks. Here’s a breakdown of social media usage of 65+ year olds on other networks:

8% use Instagram

10% use Twitter

20% use LinkedIn

16% use Pinterest

Less than 10% of 50+ year olds use auto-delete apps like Snapchat

If your brand targets an older audience, make Facebook marketing a priority.

4. 82% of Facebook Users Have Attended at Least Some College

Facebook initially started as the brainchild of then-college student Mark Zuckerburg. Before it became the social network we know it as today, it was actually called “Coursematch.” It was developed to allow people to create profiles listing out which classes they were taking.

Perhaps because of this, it’s interesting to consider Facebook use in terms of the highest level of education of users. This use breaks down as such:

79% of users are college graduates

82% have taken some college

77% finished high school or less

Facebook Geo Stats

Facebook’s audience is diverse, which makes it perfect for global brands outside of North America. Here’s a look at some important Facebook stats your brand should know:

5. 85% of Facebook’s Daily Active Users Come from Outside the US/Canada

As some of the above Facebook stats have already hinted at, Facebook is huge internationally. In fact, 85% of Facebook’s daily active users come from outside the US and Canada. India, Brazil and Indonesia have the largest Facebook audiences after the US.

Use this as an opportunity to explore expanding your target audience outside of your core, if it makes sense.

6. More Than 70 Facebook Translations Are Available

In order to support its global audience, Facebook has more than 70 languages available thanks to a framework that lets community members translate text on the platform. At this time, more than 300,000 people have contributed translations for different languages and dialects.

Global brands need to take this into consideration. Use analytics to help you understand the demographics of your audience, and keep an eye out for where large fan bases live. From there you can target your Page posts by location or language.

For example, if you limit the language of your post’s audience to Spanish, it will only be visible to people who:

Have Spanish set as their language on Facebook

List Spanish as one of their languages on their profile

People who don’t fit one of those criteria won’t be able to see your post on your Page, their News Feed or search.

Facebook Usage Stats

It’s important to understand how people use Facebook. This data can inform your publishing behavior, ad targeting and other pieces of your strategy. Take a look at these Facebook stats related to how people engage with the platform:

7. 40% of Facebook Users Have Never Liked a Facebook Page

More than 60 million businesses have a Facebook Page. Additionally, 39% of users like or follow a Facebook page to receive a special offer.

Some other Facebook stats that related to Facebook pages include things like:

One-third (32%) of Facebook users engage with brands regularly.

5 billion comments are left on Facebook pages monthly.

42% of customer service responses happen during the first 60 minutes.

All of this data leads back to the fact that Facebook Pages are a useful tool for your business. This is especially true in getting the word out and providing quick customer service. People equate quick responses to good customer service, so plan your social media customer service strategy accordingly.

8. People Spend an Average of 35 Minutes on Facebook Each Day

According to data from Nielsen, Americans spend an average of 10 hours and 39 minutes consuming media across their devices. Specifically, five hours per day are spent on mobile devices.

While content consumption is on the up-and-up, it might surprise you to find that the amount of time spent on Facebook per day has actually decreased. The current average amount of time spent on Facebook is 35 minutes per day.

That number is down from 40 minutes recorded just three years ago. This is supported by findings by SimilarWeb, a marketing intelligence firm which claims that people are generally spending less time on social media now than they did before.

With less time spent on Facebook, you have to learn to make the most of every opportunity to get in front of your audience. Think carefully about what you post and have a purpose for all the content you share.

9. People Access Facebook an Average 8 Times Per Day

According to comScore, Facebook is accessed at an average of eight times per day, followed by Instagram (six), Twitter (five) and Facebook Messenger (three).

So while people may not spend as much time on Facebook as they used to, they do tend to check it pretty frequently. One way to maximize your exposure is to schedule your Facebook posts to publish throughout the day, at times when your audience is most likely to be engaged. Not sure when the optimal time is? You can use our ViralPost feature to automatically schedule your posts to publish at the times your followers are most active.

10. 400 New Users Sign up for Facebook Every Minute

Every 60 seconds on Facebook, there are:

317,000 status updates

400 new users

147,000 photos uploaded

54,000 shared links

Compared to data from other popular social networks, every minute there are:

448,000 Tweets

66,000 Instagram posts

29 million WhatsApp messages sent

The numbers don’t lie—Facebook truly is the largest social network around, especially because they own two of the aforementioned three companies. So while there have been reports of Facebook no longer being as valuable for marketers as other channels, the user base continues to grow.

11. Everyone on Facebook Is No More Than 3.5 Degrees Separated

Facebook’s own research found that everyone is no more than 3.5 degrees separated. This is far less than the proposed six degrees of separation originally set out by Frigyes Karinthy. As many people use Facebook to keep in touch with friends and family, it’s interesting to see how this use scenario has literally brought the world closer together.

The closeness of users is beneficial for marketers trying to overcome Facebook’s algorithm, which is notorious for slashing organic reach for brands. Instead of trying to get in front of every single user yourself, let your audience do some of the work. Ask people to share your posts with their audience or to like your content. This will give you exposure to their audience which increases your organic reach. If enough people share it, you could even create a viral effect.

Facebook Mobile Stats

It’s no secret that social media (and the internet in general) is primarily accessed on mobile devices. And if the Facebook stats below are any indicator, it’s time for brands to start thinking of content and marketing from a mobile-first perspective:

12. Facebook’s Messenger Has Over 1.2 Billion Monthly Active Users

Facebook’s standalone Messenger App has a cool 1.2 billion monthly active users. And on the topic of mobile data, as of December 2016, Facebook has:

74 billion mobile monthly active users

55 billion mobile–only monthly active users

15 billion mobile daily active users

What this means for brands is you need to get active on Facebook Messenger. The numbers show consumers are all-in, so you should be too. One creative way some brands are using Facebook Messenger is by creating chatbots to facilitate their social customer care efforts.

Not sure how to start? We created our very own Facebook Messenger Bot builder that’s integrated into Sprout Social. So you can create your own bot with ease, and without the need for any complex coding and development.

youtube

13. 19% of Time Spent on Mobile Devices Is on Facebook

As we alluded to earlier, the average consumer spends five hours per day on their mobile device. But what’s even more interesting is how that time spent breaks down. As you can see in the chart below, Facebook is the clear leader with 19%.

What is your brand doing to take advantage of the mobile trend?

You can start by creating a seamless mobile experience across all your web properties whether it’s Facebook, Messenger, your website or anywhere else online. Unless you have data to the contrary, you can anticipate most of your social media traffic will be from a mobile device, so prepare accordingly.

Facebook Video Stats

In the past five years, video content has seen tremendous growth. But it’s not just YouTube that’s experiencing an upward shift. Facebook has grown to become a video giant of its own. Here are some stats you need to keep in mind for Facebook video marketing:

14. 44% of SMB Marketers Plan to Spend Money Promoting Facebook Video Content in 2017

One of the most telling signs that marketers are getting serious about Facebook video is that 44% of SMB marketers plan to put money behind their Facebook video content in 2017.

If your brand isn’t invested in video on Facebook, there’s a good chance your competitors are, which puts you at a significant disadvantage.

15. Facebook Gets Over 8 Billion Average Daily Video Views

This Facebook stat illustrates exactly why you’re doing your brand a disservice by ignoring video on the platform. With over 8 billion average daily views and 100 million hours of video watched every day, Facebook has become a top player in the social media video landscape.

Greatist is a popular brand that uses video to boost organic engagement and stand out in feeds filled with text and images.

Follow in their footsteps and jump on the Facebook video train.

16. 85% of Facebook Users Watch Videos With the Sound Off

It would be remiss to end this discussion of Facebook stats without getting into details regarding the use of video on the platform, and how it’s shaking everything up. Some of the most important Facebook stats relating to video include:

85% of Facebook users watch videos with the sound off,

Captioned video ads can increase video view time by an average of 12%

80% of users are annoyed when videos auto-play sound, and it gives them a negative impression of your brand.

The takeaway here is make sure your videos don’t need sound in order to be understood. Taking a little time to add captions could mean the difference between whether or not your Facebook videos get viewed.

17. People Are 5 Times More Likely to Watch Facebook Videos on a Phone

Based on all the Facebook stats we’ve mentioned thus far, this shouldn’t come as a surprise. People are five times more likely to watch video daily on a smartphone than on desktop.

Ensure that your videos are optimized for mobile viewing. Take a look at our always up to date social media video specs guide to get the correct dimensions.

Always Up-to-Date Guide to Social Media Video Specs

Staying relevant and capturing your audience’s attention is a constant challenge for marketers. And now that brands rely on video Read More …

18. 20% of Facebook Videos Are Live Streams

With Instagram Live, Periscope and other services, live video has been bubbling for a while. In fact, 20% of videos are Live Broadcasts. And in June 2016, businesses were streaming six times more live videos on their Facebook Pages than they were in January when live video was first introduced.

Another important statistic to understand is the live element is what’s most appealing to viewers. After your broadcast is finished, the recorded video lives on your page. However, Facebook found that live videos are watched three times longer during the actual stream than the replay.

Facebook Advertising Stats

The key to Facebook’s tremendous growth over the years has been their advertising platform. Marketers spend billions every year to reach their target audience with Facebook Ads. Thanks to low costs and a huge database of user data, Facebook Ads is appealing to businesses of all sizes. Here are some stats to keep in mind for Facebook advertisers:

19. 93% of Marketers Use Facebook Advertising Regularly

Most people have a lot of questions about Facebook advertising. Getting it right can result in some of the best ROI in all forms of advertising. So needless to say—the stakes are high. These Facebook stats shed light on some interesting quirks of advertising on Facebook:

93% of marketers use Facebook advertising regularly, which translates to about 3 million businesses that use Facebook to market their business. Furthermore, 70% of these businesses are outside the US.

Facebook earned a cool $7.68 billion in Q1 of 2017.

20. Images Account for 75-90% of Facebook Advertising Performance

When it comes to Facebook advertising, in order to be effective, consider the following:

Images account for 75-90% of Facebook advertising effectivity/performance.

The most effective length for an ad title on Facebook is four words, and 15 words for a link description.

21. 47% of the Value of Facebook Video Ads Happens in the First 3 Seconds

While Facebook video ads can be very effective, you don’t have a ton of time to capture your viewer’s attention. In fact, research from Facebook discovered nearly half of the value from your ads is attained in the first three seconds of the video.

When you create videos for ads, try to capture the viewers attention immediately. That way they’ll be compelled to stick around and see your entire message.

22. 93% of Social Media Advertisers Use Facebook Ads

Facebook is by far the most popular social media advertising channel. According to Social Media Examiner’s 2017 Social Media Industry Report, 93% of social media advertisers use Facebook Ads. The next network that’s even close is Instagram with 24%, but that’s also a part of the Facebook platform.

This is just more proof of how popular and in-demand Facebook Ads are for B2B and B2C brands.

23. 20% of Facebook’s Mobile Ad Revenue Is From Instagram

As you saw in the previous Facebook stat, Instagram is contributing quite a bit to Facebook’s overall advertising numbers. In fact, it makes up 20% of Facebook’s mobile ad revenue, up from 15% last year.

As Instagram continues to grow, this number could potentially increase even more. If you’re currently running Facebook Ads on mobile, consider giving Instagram a try.

24. The Average CPC for Facebook Ads Is $1.72

Curious about whether or not you’re paying too much for your Facebook Ads? The team at Wordstream conducted research to reveal some benchmarks for Facebook Ads.

While other companies have attempted to gather this type of data before, we like Wordstream’s data because it’s broken down by industry. As you can see from the graph below, there are significant differences in CPC for different industries.

If your average CPC is much higher than your industry average, it could be a sign you need to make some tweaks to your campaigns. If you’re on the low end, you’re probably on the right path.

25. The Average CTR for Facebook Ads Is 0.9%

Wordstream also looked at the average CTR of Facebook Ads by industry. Overall, they found the average CTR to be 0.9%. But similar to CPC, you should look at your industry average rather than the overall.

Facebook Publishing Stats

If you want to improve your brand’s organic reach, a good place to start is by analyzing your publishing behavior. Here are some Facebook stats about publishing that’ll get you on the right track:

26. Organic Reach for Branded Facebook Pages Is 2% on Average

We’ve been hinting at it throughout this entire post—Facebook organic reach is not what it used to be. But just how bad is the situation? Well, one study found Facebook organic reach for brands is 2% on average. The key word being average. There are plenty of brands experiencing even lower levels of reach.

Use Sprout Social’s Facebook Analytics tools to get an idea of how much reach your posts receive. Once you know where you stand, you can take steps to improve it. Check out this article for tips to boost your reach and engagement.

6 Essential Steps to Increase Facebook Organic Reach & Grow Your Audience

Far too often, brands spend days devising a Facebook marketing strategy only to see their post go live and ultimately Read More …

27. Brands Post an Average of 8 Times on Facebook per Day

How many times should you post on Facebook per day? Well according to the SME report, brands post eight times per day on average. How does your posting frequency stack up?

If you’re not getting the reach or engagement you’d like, consider increasing your posting frequency a bit. The same SME report found that 39% of marketers planned to increase their Facebook posting frequency over the next 12 months. Just monitor your analytics to make sure posting more often is helping rather than hurting your brand.

28. The Best Time to Post on Facebook Is Weekday Afternoons

A burning question on every marketer’s mind is when is the best time to post on Facebook? With so many conflicting studies out there, we decided to roundup the data from as many credible sources as we could find and average out the data. Here’s a chart that outlines our findings:

As you can see, weekdays have a significantly stronger correlation than weekends. And afternoons between 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. tend to be the preferred times.

While this data gives you a great starting point, you ultimately need to rely on your brand’s own analytics. You can use our Facebook reporting suite to identify your most engaged posts and the time they were published. Then you can start to schedule more of your content to be shared around those times.

20 Powerful Facebook Stats Your Brand Can’t Ignore in 2017

Knowing how to use a platform is just as important as actually making use of it. By keeping these up-to-date Facebook stats in your arsenal, you’ll be better prepared to create an effective Facebook marketing campaign.

Are there any particularly interesting Facebook stats we missed? Tweet at @SproutSocial with your insights, and we’ll share the best ones!

This post 28 Powerful Facebook Stats Your Brand Can’t Ignore in 2018 originally appeared on Sprout Social.

from SM Tips By Minnie https://sproutsocial.com/insights/facebook-stats-for-marketers/

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a-shmeeb-abroad · 8 years ago

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On 2017 and the Entirety of Last Year

January arrived in a gust of stinging cold wind and brown vegetation covering the landscape, exactly as it did last year. Inspiration rolled in with it and I decided to revive this old website. So with that:

Good morning my friends and family. How are you doing? It’s been a while since I last checked in; in fact it’s been nearly a year if I remember correctly. I hope you and your families have been well and have spent 2016 in prosperity, comfort, and happiness. If you didn’t, it’s my utmost hope that 2017 brings about better circumstances.

I thought I would give a little bit of an update into what’s been going on in my life during this past year. As mentioned in my first blog post, if you can possibly remember back that far, I try to avoid the day-to-day report kind of blog and rather focus on important situations and details while further elaborating the importance of each. I’m going to do my best to keep up with that practice. Let me know how I do.

When we last left off, spring was just arriving into Kanoya in a rush of warmth. Though it hasn’t exactly begun yet, last weekend promised warm temperatures with clear skies. I’ll be taking advantage of that as soon as I can, as my boyfriend and I make a trip up to a small town called Kihoku to watch some stars. It’s known as one of, if not the best place in Japan to watch the stars, so I’m eager to have this experience. Living in the countryside allows for stargazing, and my current favorite location is at the shrine on the cliff overlooking the ocean, though it’s my understanding that “I haven’t seen nothin yet,” but I digress.

Immediately following my last post, I took on a new responsibility and kind of dove head first into community involvement in Kagoshima. I was elected to and accepted a position of Communications Coordinator in an organization called Kagoshima Association of JETS, or KAJET for short. As a group, it is our responsibility to facilitate and organize near-monthly events for the foreign communities across Kagoshima Prefecture, so that kept me busy for a while since we decided to revamp and redesign a website in the process. I’ll remain in this position officially until about April, when our new wave of KAJET members is sworn in after our election process. For any Kagoshima JETs reading this, apply. It’s a blast.

As 2016 went on, I became much more involved in my school and my students’ lives. I continued to run a weekly English club which has gained a few more part time members, much to my delight. During the staff switch in April – where teachers at the end of their tenure transfer to another school somewhere else in the prefecture – I found myself with a new ALT supervisor, who assisted me in changing my work hours so I could tutor students after school. Many of them took an English proficiency test called Eiken, which implements an interview exam. Thanks to my help (this is according to my vice principals and principal), our school had 37/39 students pass. This was a monumental achievement and I won’t lie, I’m still lowkey proud of myself. AND THEN IN ADDITION to everything, I’ve been given substantially more responsibility in planning lessons and teaching classes. Before, I would teach maybe 7 or 8 classes a month. These days I find myself planning for 3-4 lessons a day, teaching 1st, 2nd, and 3rd years alike, teaching full lessons with just the supervision of the Japanese Teacher of English, and even acting as a substitute teacher in some cases; when a teacher is absent, I will occasionally be asked to teach the entire class on my own.

Not everything was sunshine and rainbows, however. Early in the year, I found myself gaining a substantial amount of weight from stress, culture shock, and various “cultural activities.” What I didn’t realize upon arriving here was how powerful the drinking culture was and how many people partook. The enkai, or dinner and drinking party, is common in the workplace here, usually used to celebrate the beginning or the end of an important period or event. This leads to things like the end of the year enkai or the new year enkai, or even “the students just finished exercising for 8 hours during their sports festival and we as teachers are going to celebrate the end of that” enkai. And this doesn’t include the ALT hosted ones, or the visits to Kagoshima. So I guess in short, I went to a lot of them. And as much as they say you won’t be forced to drink alcohol, there were some cases where people commented outwardly if I chose not to have any so there were times when it became difficult to refuse. So of course, as we all know from seeing beer bellies and whatnot, alcohol makes you gain weight. I was not the exception.

Unfortunately, this led to some cripplingly awful issues with self-image and insecurity. I admit that I struggled daily, be it with a shirt fitting tighter than normal, or realizing my face was a little rounder than the week before. But it led to me making healthier choices in my life all around. I cut calories and made my own dinners. I began bringing lunch to work whenever possible. I weaned myself off sugar and have a dessert maybe once or twice a week at best. And most importantly, I cut out drinking alcohol to once or twice a month. In addition to everything, I enrolled in a gym (the process of which could take up an entire blog post on its own) and began training to return my stamina to its former glory. I’m thrilled to report that since starting this process, my skin is gorgeous and clear, I’m able to run full a full 10k at a steady pace without stopping, and I’ve lost nearly 10 pounds. My clothes are no longer snug, even with my layers of winter wear underneath them.

But beyond all these changes that have occurred throughout this year, the most important thing that has changed is my mindset and outlook on my life here. As my blog says on the top, I am a future bilingual nurse and to be honest, I planned to already be halfway to that point at this very moment. But things are different now.

I’ve absolutely fallen in love with my job and teaching high school students. At least for now, I think I will be remaining in the field of education and obtaining further certifications to enhance my experience and increase my opportunities in the future. As of this moment, I’m considering 3 years in total on the JET program and relocating elsewhere in Japan to continue my career. Perhaps my next location will be somewhere with trains and public transportation apart from busses and a ferry. But, as I have learned, plans continuously change so we will see if I have the same plan a year from now.

In order for this to happen, I will have to study my Japanese harder and harder every day. From where I stand, I can already see how drastically it has improved in such a short time. But the rate, in this situation, is not what matters; it’s the overall ability. So in preparation, I will be taking the Japanese Language Proficiency Test, or JLPT, for the N2 level in summer. N2 is the equivalent of professional business communication, while N1 is a native level of speaking.

Furthermore, and though I believe I’ve successfully done this up until now, my mindset of Japan must continually be changing and adapting. To successfully coexist in another society and culture means to efficiently discard all stereotypes and preconceived ideas of a place and people, and rely heavily on observation and respect of their customs and behaviors. I never came here with the mindset of “Japan is an anime dream land, and all my wildest weeb dreams will come true,” and to be honest, I believe anyone who does so will find themselves unsuccessful in building a life here. Rather, I’ve looked at it as simply relocating to a place that does things differently that what I am used to, and that I am now faced with the task of re learning how to act and why to do so. This is one of the main reasons I stopped writing my blog last year. I wasn’t looking at Japan as a place where I lived and worked, but as a kind of exciting adventure. I didn’t seriously consider establishing a life here but saw it as a gap year experience to improve my language ability and my knowledge of another culture. But as I spent my days living and working, interacting with my neighbors and coworkers, and doing my best to respect the mannerisms and practices of a rich and historical land, I realized that my outlook on this entire situation was completely wrong. I am not writing a travel blog, and even after my first post, I knew this. I realized that this blog was just an extension of my real life; I was essentially writing as I would have, had I still lived in America, by simply updating my family and friends on what I was doing during the day. The location was just…different.

I guess what I realized was that 2016 was a year of healing and change for me. I took many difficult and previously unsavory situations and mindsets, and I turned them around and made them work in my benefit. I’ve blossomed in my workplace, and I’ve done what I can to get involved in my community. I visited the US twice. I became healthy. I found gentle, kind love. As the first month of 2017 comes to an end, I know in my heart that only I can continue the improvement.

I don’t think I’ll stop writing my blog. There are bound to be more beautiful and eye opening experiences within the next few years, and I am eager to share those moments with you back home. Of course, if you ever have any questions regarding my posts or just my life in general, I welcome them and will be happy to answer to the best of my abilities. I’ll end my post now with a quote from one of my class comedians, as advice for your continued happiness in life: “Don’t think. Feel.”

Christine

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juniperpublisher-ph · 5 years ago

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American Indian Tribal College Student’s Knowledge, Attitudes and Beliefs about Recreational and Traditional Tobacco Use-Juniper Publishers

Juniper Publishers- Juniper Online Journal of Public Health

Abstract

Introduction: American Indians (AI) have the highest smoking rates of any racial/ethnic group in the U.S., in addition to low success rates of tobacco cessation. The substitution of commercial tobacco for traditional tobacco may have played a role in the prevalence rates of recreational tobacco use among AI. The present study explored the impact of tribal college students’ knowledge, attitudes and beliefs about traditional tobacco use on their recreational cigarette smoking behaviors.

Methods: Multiple methods were used to recruit participants attending a tribal college. A total of 101 AI tribal college students completed a demographic survey and participated in focus groups or individual interviews assessing traditional and recreational tobacco use.

Results: AI tribal college student’s recreational smoking has an influence on various health behaviors, including poor eating habits, decreased physical activity, and elevated tobacco use in association with alcohol consumption. Differences between the use of and motivation behind smokeless tobacco and cigarette use were seen. In addition, participants reported differences between using tobacco for traditional purposes such as in ceremony or during prayer in comparison to recreational tobacco use. Conclusion: These findings highlight AI students’ beliefs about recreational tobacco, smokeless tobacco, and traditional tobacco use. Differences related to behaviors associated with traditional tobacco use have important implications for future cessation efforts for AI smokers.

Keywords: Smoking; American Indians; Tribal College; Tobacco

Abreviations: AI: American Indians; CBPR: Community-Based Participatory Research

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Introduction

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Methods

Study Participants

Measures

Procedures

Analysis

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Results

Recreational Smoking & Related Health Behaviors

Smokeless Tobacco

Traditional Tobacco

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Conclusion

A limited number of studies of AI tribal college students have examined the relationship between traditional and recreational tobacco use. We believe the traditional use of tobacco affects cessation; therefore, capturing this information is critical to designing successful intervention programs. Limitations of this study include the self-reported smoking status and the small sample size. Results cannot be generalized to all AI given the number of tribes currently in the U.S. and the variability of both traditional and recreational tobacco use across the tribes. However, we were able to obtain a diverse sample and reach theoretical saturation. Therefore, we believe these results show us important trends and can be used to develop further studies.

This study is a good first step towards tailoring interventions that respect culture and tradition for tribal college students and has been used to assist in developing a culturally appropriate cessation program for these students, which is currently being tested. It is necessary for intervention efforts to pinpoint social and environmental cues among tribal college students that increase the likelihood of tobacco use. Based on specific health behaviors and traditional practices, educational approaches and interventions used in the U.S. college population may not be applicable to tribal college students. Rather, health promotion initiatives should include the development of new programs or modification of existing ones to better emphasize culture, traditional tobacco use, and specific barriers that tribal college students experience.

For more articles in Juniper Online Journal of Public Health please click

on https://juniperpublishers.com/jojph/index.php

For more Journals in Juniper Publishers

please click on https://juniperpublishers.com/index.php

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https://juniperpublishers.business.site/

#yoga #physiotherapy #yoga and meditation #physical therapy #meditation

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minnievirizarry · 7 years ago

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28+ Powerful Facebook Stats Your Brand Can’t Ignore in 2017

Here are some important Facebook stats—broken down by multiple dimensions—to help guide your social media strategy. Click on the jump links below to skip to each section:

General Facebook stats

Facebook demographic stats

Facebook geo stats

Facebook usage stats

Facebook mobile stats

Facebook video stats

Facebook advertising stats

Facebook publishing stats

General Facebook Stats

First, let’s start off with some general Facebook stats to paint a picture of why the social network is so important:

1. Facebook Has More Than 2 Billion Daily Active Users

As of June 30, 2017, there are:

2 billion monthly active users on Facebook

Over 1 billion daily active users

To put these numbers into context, here are the number of monthly active users on other top social media platforms, according to statistics from TechCrunch:

Youtube has 1.5 billion monthly active users

WeChat has 889 million monthly active users

Instagram has 700 million monthly active users

Twitter has 328 million monthly active users

Snapchat has an estimated 255 million monthly active users

Facebook Demographic Stats

Over 2 billion users is a lot of people. In order to get a better understanding of who you can potentially reach on the platform, here are some Facebook stats on their audience demographics:

2. 83% of Women & 75% of Men Use Facebook

Overall, Facebook’s gender demographics are pretty evenly split with women slightly more active. According to Pew Research, 83% of women use the network compared to 75% of men.

This is a clear indicator that no matter who you’re trying to reach, they’re likely active on Facebook.

3. People Aged 18-29 Are the Most Prevalent Facebook Users (65+ Is the Least)

The age groups on Facebook break down by use as such:

88% of those 18-29

84% of those 30-49

72% for those 50-64

62% for those 65+

8% use Instagram

10% use Twitter

20% use LinkedIn

16% use Pinterest

Less than 10% of 50+ year olds use auto-delete apps like Snapchat

If your brand targets an older audience, make Facebook marketing a priority.

4. 82% of Facebook Users Have Attended at Least Some College

Perhaps because of this, it’s interesting to consider Facebook use in terms of the highest level of education of users. This use breaks down as such:

79% of users are college graduates

82% have taken some college

77% finished high school or less

Facebook Geo Stats

Facebook’s audience is diverse, which makes it perfect for global brands outside of North America. Here’s a look at some important Facebook stats your brand should know:

5. 85% of Facebook’s Daily Active Users Come from Outside the US/Canada

Use this as an opportunity to explore expanding your target audience outside of your core, if it makes sense.

6. More Than 70 Facebook Translations Are Available

For example, if you limit the language of your post’s audience to Spanish, it will only be visible to people who:

Have Spanish set as their language on Facebook

List Spanish as one of their languages on their profile

People who don’t fit one of those criteria won’t be able to see your post on your Page, their News Feed or search.

Facebook Usage Stats

7. 40% of Facebook Users Have Never Liked a Facebook Page

More than 60 million businesses have a Facebook Page. Additionally, 39% of users like or follow a Facebook page to receive a special offer.

Some other Facebook stats that related to Facebook pages include things like:

One-third (32%) of Facebook users engage with brands regularly.

5 billion comments are left on Facebook pages monthly.

42% of customer service responses happen during the first 60 minutes.

8. People Spend an Average of 35 Minutes on Facebook Each Day

According to data from Nielsen, Americans spend an average of 10 hours and 39 minutes consuming media across their devices. Specifically, five hours per day are spent on mobile devices.

9. People Access Facebook an Average 8 Times Per Day

According to comScore, Facebook is accessed at an average of eight times per day, followed by Instagram (six), Twitter (five) and Facebook Messenger (three).

10. 400 New Users Sign up for Facebook Every Minute

Every 60 seconds on Facebook, there are:

317,000 status updates

400 new users

147,000 photos uploaded

54,000 shared links

Compared to data from other popular social networks, every minute there are:

448,000 Tweets

66,000 Instagram posts

29 million WhatsApp messages sent

11. Everyone on Facebook Is No More Than 3.5 Degrees Separated

Facebook Mobile Stats

12. Facebook’s Messenger Has Over 1.2 Billion Monthly Active Users

Facebook’s standalone Messenger App has a cool 1.2 billion monthly active users. And on the topic of mobile data, as of December 2016, Facebook has:

74 billion mobile monthly active users

55 billion mobile–only monthly active users

15 billion mobile daily active users

youtube

13. 19% of Time Spent on Mobile Devices Is on Facebook

What is your brand doing to take advantage of the mobile trend?

Facebook Video Stats

14. 44% of SMB Marketers Plan to Spend Money Promoting Facebook Video Content in 2017

One of the most telling signs that marketers are getting serious about Facebook video is that 44% of SMB marketers plan to put money behind their Facebook video content in 2017.

If your brand isn’t invested in video on Facebook, there’s a good chance your competitors are, which puts you at a significant disadvantage.

15. Facebook Gets Over 8 Billion Average Daily Video Views

Greatist is a popular brand that uses video to boost organic engagement and stand out in feeds filled with text and images.

Follow in their footsteps and jump on the Facebook video train.

16. 85% of Facebook Users Watch Videos With the Sound Off

85% of Facebook users watch videos with the sound off,

Captioned video ads can increase video view time by an average of 12%

80% of users are annoyed when videos auto-play sound, and it gives them a negative impression of your brand.

17. People Are 5 Times More Likely to Watch Facebook Videos on a Phone

Based on all the Facebook stats we’ve mentioned thus far, this shouldn’t come as a surprise. People are five times more likely to watch video daily on a smartphone than on desktop.

Ensure that your videos are optimized for mobile viewing. Take a look at our always up to date social media video specs guide to get the correct dimensions.

Always Up-to-Date Guide to Social Media Video Specs

Staying relevant and capturing your audience’s attention is a constant challenge for marketers. And now that brands rely on video Read More …

18. 20% of Facebook Videos Are Live Streams

Facebook Advertising Stats

19. 93% of Marketers Use Facebook Advertising Regularly

Facebook earned a cool $7.68 billion in Q1 of 2017.

20. Images Account for 75-90% of Facebook Advertising Performance

When it comes to Facebook advertising, in order to be effective, consider the following:

Images account for 75-90% of Facebook advertising effectivity/performance.

The most effective length for an ad title on Facebook is four words, and 15 words for a link description.

21. 47% of the Value of Facebook Video Ads Happens in the First 3 Seconds

When you create videos for ads, try to capture the viewers attention immediately. That way they’ll be compelled to stick around and see your entire message.

22. 93% of Social Media Advertisers Use Facebook Ads

This is just more proof of how popular and in-demand Facebook Ads are for B2B and B2C brands.

23. 20% of Facebook’s Mobile Ad Revenue Is From Instagram

As Instagram continues to grow, this number could potentially increase even more. If you’re currently running Facebook Ads on mobile, consider giving Instagram a try.

24. The Average CPC for Facebook Ads Is $1.72

Curious about whether or not you’re paying too much for your Facebook Ads? The team at Wordstream conducted research to reveal some benchmarks for Facebook Ads.

If your average CPC is much higher than your industry average, it could be a sign you need to make some tweaks to your campaigns. If you’re on the low end, you’re probably on the right path.

25. The Average CTR for Facebook Ads Is 0.9%

Facebook Publishing Stats

26. Organic Reach for Branded Facebook Pages Is 2% on Average

6 Essential Steps to Increase Facebook Organic Reach & Grow Your Audience

Far too often, brands spend days devising a Facebook marketing strategy only to see their post go live and ultimately Read More …

27. Brands Post an Average of 8 Times on Facebook per Day

How many times should you post on Facebook per day? Well according to the SME report, brands post eight times per day on average. How does your posting frequency stack up?

28. The Best Time to Post on Facebook Is Weekday Afternoons

As you can see, weekdays have a significantly stronger correlation than weekends. And afternoons between 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. tend to be the preferred times.

20 Powerful Facebook Stats Your Brand Can’t Ignore in 2017

Are there any particularly interesting Facebook stats we missed? Tweet at @SproutSocial with your insights, and we’ll share the best ones!

This post 28+ Powerful Facebook Stats Your Brand Can’t Ignore in 2017 originally appeared on Sprout Social.

from SM Tips By Minnie https://sproutsocial.com/insights/facebook-stats-for-marketers/

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