How To Use Content Marketing For Startups - CoSchedule

How To Use Content Marketing For Startups You’ve worked hard on your new startup. Launch day is here. Now what? Will anyone notice? Will the world be ready? What if you already had an email list of more than 5,000 engaged subscribers who were already interested in your company and product? What if you already had an audience to buy (or trial) your new thing on day one? This is exactly how we launched just a few short years ago.  We used content marketing to build a huge email list that contained thousands of potential customers who were already rooting for us when we finally opened our doors. To do it, we went  all in on content. In fact, we started creating content before we even started writing code! Heres why your #startup should be #writing blog posts before you even start writing code.Today, I want to share a bit of that story, but more importantly, I want to show you how you can use content marketing to launch and build your startup. I will outline the five key phases that we took to ensure that our product launched to a qualified audience, developed  a steady stream of new customers, and developed one of the most trafficked blogs in our industry- all using content marketing. I’ll start from the beginning and give you the step-by-step process you can use for yourself. Phase 1: Learn To Tell Your Story Startup phase = Minimum viable product; Content phase = Minimum viable blog Ever since I read Charles Duhigg’s book,  The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business, I have been uniquely aware of the need for simple habits that will eventually lead to consistently correct behavior. Its a core part of how I now approach leadership and team development, and it’s exactly how I encourage people to approach content marketing. In the beginning, all you need to worry about is building the habit of publishing at least one blog post a week. That’s it. All you need to worry about is building the habit of publishing at least one blog post a week.I found that the easiest way to do this was by telling the story once a week, one blog post at a time. Each week, I would post about our progress in development, share recent product wireframes, or share a problem we were experiencing to  get our audience’s feedback. Not only was it a valuable (and easy) way to generate consistent content, but it was a great way to  gather feedback and get ideas from our potential customers. This blog post asked for survey feedback. This phase of content marketing for startups is about finding your audience  and attracting people who  may be drawn to your company or product over time. Don’t let yourself get bogged down in strategy. Think of it like finding product marketing fit for your blog. You should also be using this time to build an email list and audience by sharing your content regularly on social media. Of course, can help with this. :) If you want to see some of our first blog posts, here are a few: Weve Got A Big Job To Do How Your Feedback Influences What We Build The Minimum Viable CalendarUse this time to build an #email list by sharing your content regularly on #socialmedia.Phase 2: Transition To  Strategy Startup phase = Product market fit; Content phase = Content audience fit The second phase of content marketing for startups is to begin steering your content toward the ideas and topics that fit your startups mission and product. This phase is really  all about converting your regular publishing habit into a true inbound marketing approach where you use helpful content to build trust with your audience. Steer your #content toward the topics that fit your #startups mission and product.This phase  assumes that you have been able to identify an early form of product market fit. Now is the time to start directing your content toward their needs and testing your hypothesis. If you create content that is helpful for them, do they respond? Do they show  interest in your company and product? There are a ton of ways to actually develop your topics during this phase, but keep it simple. Keyword Explorer in Moz In the beginning, I would use Google and the recommended search phrases to find topics that I felt our users would care about. You can also use SEO specific tools like Keyword Explorer in Moz  and SEMrush (two of our favorites) to find important keywords and phrases. Buzzsumo.com can also be a big help. Again, while this stage is about shifting toward a defined strategy, don’t go overboard. Youre still learning, so you need to be agile enough to make changes if things are working. Your product may also be changing at this point, so be prepared to adapt. Be agile enough to make changes if things arent working. #startuplifeLastly, at this time, its still not about writing the 100% greatest content on earth. This is the minimum viable blog phase. Do just enough to prove your theories about what your audience wants and needs, then build on your successes. This phase is also a great time to double down on your email list building and social media promotion. This is the minimum viable blog phase. Your content doesnt have to be 100% Recommended Reading: 5 Easy Lead Conversion Tips For Your Email Marketing Program 8 Social Media Best Practices That Will Save You 25.5 Hours In A 2-Week Sprint Phase 3: Seek Help Startup phase = Hiring a team; Content phase = Hand-off content creation As a founder, I have always tried to do the job we are hiring for before we actually do the hiring. It helps me get perspective on the skills and talents a new hire needs in order to be successful to be successful.  It also helps me define the scope of the position so we don’t give someone so much to do that they can’t possibly be successful. This is exactly what you need to do in the third phase of content marketing for startups. During phase two, you are essentially proving your hypothesis- can you generate consistent traffic and build an audience with content? And what  exactly do you need to do it? Phase three is about taking those results and starting to scale them. At , this meant hiring a Content Marketing Lead and doubling down on staff that could create compelling graphics and downloads. This phase is about scaling your ability to acquire an audience. By adding a full-time team member, you will make sure the day-to-day management of your content is handed off to someone other than a founder of the team. This should improve consistency and overall content quality. Make sure your #content is consistently converting visitors into #email leads.After all, at this phase, your time available as a founder will continue to be marginalized. (That’s a good thing!) You should also use this phase as an opportunity to make sure that your content is consistently converting visitors into email leads or social media followers. Tools like OptinMonster and LeadPages  are great for this. We cover a bunch of tools that are perfect for converting leads in our post: 5 Plugins Guaranteed To Help You Collect More Leads. One word of caution: Adding new team members shouldn’t necessarily increase the amount of content you are producing. Ease into it, and use this phase to develop a consistent voice, quality standard, and working model of what things work and which things don’t. Phase 4: Get Analytical Startup phase = Optimizing your funnel; Content phase = Turning content into science Up until this phase, I recommend only tracking two metrics for your content marketing: page views and email subscribers. In the beginning, most content marketing is simply about developing an audience, bringing eyeballs to your product, and seeing what sticks. There are so many things in flux at this time, that it just doesn’t make sense to focus on anything else. But, at some point, that has to change. You have to start digging into Google Analytics to  understand  what  content is performing the best and why that is. You need to start digging into the analytics to understand what content is performing best and why.Up until now, you should have been writing about a wider variety of topics, even if it felt a little random at times. That’s good. It should give you a wide spectrum of data to consider and compare. If you have a product youre selling online, you should be looking at how your content is converting your visitors into users. Which topics covert the best? Use this data to write the  best possible content for your audience. Ask yourself which topics are converting the best? #content A good example of this phase for us was the use of the word ‘calendar’ in our blog post headlines. We found that blog topics that included the discussion of a calendar generated 2 to 3 times more interest in our product than topics that didn’t. This was a key insight for us that allowed us to convert our data into instant results by increasing the frequency of posts that included topics about editorial calendars. Build massive traffic. #startup #bloggingAnother major change that we made at during this phase was the inclusion of a free download or â€Å"cookie† with every blog post. We learned that by including a content-specific download in each of our posts, we could dramatically increase the number of email subscribers from those posts. This became a snowball effect. As our email list grew, so did our traffic and referrals on social media. The goal here is still fairly simple- build massive traffic. The only difference is that you want to start making sure it’s smart traffic, not just traffic for the sake of it. Recommended Reading: How To Increase Blog Traffic: 5 Ways To Make Contagious Content Phase 5:  Scale Startup phase = Scale; Content phase = Scale At this point you should have a small team of writers, designers, and editors dedicated to content marketing. You should be a total ace at shipping high quality content consistently and converting your visitors into loyal email subscribers. Your traffic should be growing consistently, and your influence in the industry should be skyrocketing. There’s only one problem. All of the instructions for making it happen are locked in your head. This means that you have a scaling problem. How long does it take to train in a new hire? How can you continue to execute at a high level while maintaining your obviously high bar of quality? The is the part of content marketing where you need to start writing things down. At , this included an intense series of documents that outlined our entire process. At any time, our content team would be able to reference the checklist and stay on par with our expected level of quality. Start #writing down your ideas so that you dont forget them.We stay on track with these task templates. Once we developed the checklist, we were able to convert it into a killer task template inside of . It made sure we never missed a beat  and allowed us to start taking on new challenges. Like: Developing a series of ebooks targeted at key customer pain points. Shifting our content to a stronger â€Å"demand generation† approach. Getting nerdy with spreadsheets and starting to develop a literal formula for perfect content. Increasing our content publishing schedule with confidence that it would provide the right results. Focusing entirely on content that generates demand for our tools, not just traffic. All of these sound pretty great, right? The point is that scaling allows you to grow, but it also allows you to make the leap from audience to acquisition with ease. Once you know how to build, maintain, and grow a blog audience, you can do the exact same thing with customers and your product. Of course, if you have been doing it right, your content should have been converting customers all along. I can say with confidence that our blog has also been our #1 driver of new customers. Now you can squeeze every last drop of value from the audience you’ve worked so hard to build. Recommended Reading: Heres How You Can Double Your  Blog Conversion Rate Right Now How To Create Content That Converts By Writing Your Reader Happy How To Delight Your Marketing Target Audience To Boost Conversions Go Forth And Market Your Startup Good content marketing for startups isn’t necessarily easy. It takes a ton of work, and more importantly, commitment. Its important to recognize that good content marketing is a long-term strategy and not a short-term boost in the arm. Realize that every step of the process is designed to prepare you for what’s to come just as much as it should benefit you right now. With the right perspective, content marketing should become the best investment your startup ever makes. I can tell you that without it at , we never would have made it as far as we have with it.

4 Examples of Recommendation Letters You DONT Want From Counselors

4 Examples of Recommendation Letters You DON'T Want From Counselors SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips Since school counselors support students through all four years of high school, they can write some of the best, most personal letters of recommendations. At the same time, they have the added challenge of writing lots, often hundreds, of letters for all the college-bound students on their caseload. While almost all counselor references will comment positively on a student, there can still be bad ones that don't offer a whole lot to a student's college application. Let's look at examples that demonstrate the four most common reasons a recommendation letter is bad: it's impersonal and generic, it's repetitive, it gives no specific examples, or it expresses serious reservations about a student. Bad Recommendation #1: The Generic Letter A generic recommendation letter is probably the most common problem for counselors with large caseloads of students. The following example illustrates animpersonal recommendation letter. Dear Admissions Committee, I'm writing to recommend June for admission to your undergraduate program. I've been her school counselor for the past four years. She is a strong honors student and always does well in her classes. I've heard nothing but good things about June from her teachers. June is a responsible and involved student. She's active in a number of clubs at the school and has contributed positively to our school community. June challenges herself in her classes and gets along well with her peers. She's a motivated, reliable, and driven student who applies herself to all her endeavors. June has earned a 3.71 GPA. Her dedication to her academics has impressed all of us at the high school, and I'm confident that she will continue to demonstrate the same commitment at college. June balances her time well among her many responsibilities and is curious about a diverse range of subjects. I look forward to seeing her continue to explore her interests and delve deeply into her passions. In closing, I highly recommend June for admission to your college. She's intelligent, active, and curious. For any further information, please contact me atgeneralinfo@gmail.com. Sincerely, Ms. Smith So what exactly makes this letter come off asgeneric, and why is that so bad for a rec letter? The Break Down This letter doesn't really say anything unique about June. In fact, if you just plugged in a different name, checked your pronouns, and adjusted the GPA, it could be a generic letter aboutany number of students. Admissions officers can tell pretty easily if a rec letter seems like a form letter with only the student's name and a few personalizing details plugged in. While a letter like this technically fulfills the recommendation requirement, it doesn't fulfill its role in the application, which is toreveal something insightful and personalabout the student and differentiate her from other applicants. This letter uses boring, tired language and doesn't go beyond cliches. June is "responsible, involved, and active," but so might be all the other competing applicants.What makes her unique?What specific examples can her counselor give to impart a meaningful assessment of June's academic and personal strengths? Finally, this letter does little to hone in on specific interests of June's. While it's not uncommon for students to go into college undecided, it's still important to talk about their particularinterests and goals.June is "curious about a diverse range of subjects," but what moves her? What has she exceled in or pursued? What does she enjoy doing? Since this letter lacks impactful language, specific examples, and insightful personal details, itstays on the surfaceand reads like a generic form letter. This kind of letter won't stand out to admissions officers, and it doesn't suggest that June and her counselor had a familiar relationship. Admissions officers may not pay much attention to this letter, which is a serious drawback compared to another student's application with a glowing counselor rec. Another type of bad recommendation letter that comes off as impersonal is one that predominantlyreports facts and figures.While it may use more positive language, like in the following example, it still comes off as distant and unsupported by anything beyond the student's resume. Bad Recommendation #2:The Resume-Repeating Letter This next example may be complimentary, but notice how it mostly justturns the bulletpoints on the student's resume into full sentences.This type of letter could be written by anyone with a copy of Ben's academic and extracurricular record. Dear Admissions Committee, It's my pleasure to recommend Ben for admission to your undergraduate program. I've gotten to know Ben over the past four years as his school counselor. Having earned a 3.8 GPA, he has risen to the top 20% of his class. His excellence in academics and involvement in a number of clubs and sports has made him an asset to our school community. As a member of the National Honors Society, Ben has achieved strong grades throughout high school in a range of classes, including AP classes in World History, Chemistry, and French. As part of his community service, Ben helps other students improve their grades and study skills with one on one tutoring after school in the library. While Ben's a strong, hard-working student, he also achieves outside of the classroom. Ben has played on the soccer team since freshman year, earning the title of Most Valuable Player in th grade. While practice and games keep him busy, he is also active in French Club. A self-described francophile, Ben has won the French language award two years in a row and practiced his language skills on the class trip to France in 2013. After returning from the trip, he presented photographs at a show at the local library and won 2nd place for Best Landscape. All this while working part-time as a cashier at a local bookstore sophomore and junior year. Ben impresses everyone he knows with his accomplishments. I'm confident that he will continue to excel in college. He has my strong recommendation. For any further information, please feel free to contact me atjustthefacts@gmail.com. Sincerely, Mr. Sencillo Overall, I would say this letter leaves a better impression than the first one. At least it can't be applied to almost any other student. But it still falls short on a number of fronts. Let's break down exactly how this letter misses the mark. The Break Down This letter leaves a better impression than the initial generic one, but it doesn't go beyond what Bendoesto reveal who Benis.Admissions officers want to get a deeper glimpse into thecharacterof each applicant. They already know what a student does based on his application. They're hoping the recommendation will illuminate why he's made the choices that he has. A recommender could shed light on this by discussing a student'svalues, motivations, goals, and strengths. In this letter, Ben seems to have a special affinity for French culture and language. He also enjoys photography. Tomake the letter more personal,the counselor could talk about how Ben became a "francophile" and what this may mean for his future study and profession. Does he consider himself an artist? Does he love landscape photography as a way to express his admiration of the great outdoors? Ben sounds like an interesting, dynamic individual, but this letterleaves the reader wanting more.It should fill in the blanks and give a more holistic vision of Ben as a student and person. Someone reading this letter should have a much clearer sense of who Ben is, even without meeting him in person. One easy way to see that a letter probably has too much data and not enough real, deep assessment is by looking for numbers. Ben's relatively short letter includes a lot of numbers: 3.8 GPA, top 20%, th grade, 2013, 2nd place, for instance. These come off as data points. While they're accurate, theyconvey technical informationrather than meaningful examples of Ben's character. To truly communicate a holistic assessment of an applicant, a letter shouldgo beyond the facts.This next example actually has the opposite problem. It describes the candidate with glowing adjectives, but offers little to no evidence to back up its complimentary assessment. This writer seems to want admissions officers to just take her word for it. We're going to need to see some examples of your work. Bad Recommendation #3:The "Just Take My Word for It" Letter This letter uses more specific, powerful language than the first two to endorse the student. However, itgives few examplesto illustrate its points. Just as students need to dig below the surface in their personal essays, recommenders should give meaningful examples in their letters. This letter merely describes, when it also needs to demonstrate. Dear Admissions Committee, It is my pleasure to recommend Gina for admission to your college. As her school counselor for the past four years, I've watched Gina grow into a mature, compassionate, and dynamic young woman. I'm happy to give her my highest recommendation for this exciting next chapter in her life. Gina is an intelligent and hard-working student who has impressed her teachers with her curiosity and dedication. She's especially interested in literature and poetry and contributes her writing to the school literary magazine. Gina is interested in majoring in English next year and continuing to hone her craft. In addition to being a motivated student, Gina gets along well with others and is a caring friend. She has a kind nature and genuinely cares for those around her. She never has a bad word to say about anyone and is the first to lend a helping hand in a tough situation. Gina's open-minded, amiable personality makes her an asset to classroom discussions. She works and gets along well with others and has impressive interpersonal and social skills. In closing, Gina is a caring, motivated student and friend, and she has my highest recommendation. I'm confident that she will be a great success in her college community. Please feel free to contact me with any questions. Sincerely, Ms. Honey Ms. Honey seems to think very highly of Gina. Unfortunately, her letter might not go too far in boosting Gina's chances of admission. Let's go over why it's not so effective. The Break Down This letter represents the flip side of the "resume-repeating letter" in that it'sall assessment and few facts or examples.The writer calls Gina caring, compassionate, mature, curious, and open-minded, but she gives few examples to support her characterization. The only concrete piece of information that the writer gives is that Gina likes literature and writes for the school literary magazine. The writer should provide specific stories about Gina thatillustrateher compassion, maturity, or curiosity. When was she "the first to lend a helping hand"? What does she write about for the magazine? How has she shown her counselor her impressive interpersonal skills? This letter would be a lot more memorable, not to mention believable, if it described circumstances or observations in which Ginademonstrated these personal qualities.Without them, it loses impact and meaning and pales in comparison to more specific, supported recommendation letters. Finally, this last example suggests that the counselor had a lot of reservations about recommending her student. While recommenders should present a balanced assessment, focusing on the reservations without presenting sufficient strengths wouldn't be helpful for a student's application. Bad Recommendation #4:Recommended, with Reservations Admissions officers have a lot of experience reading hundreds or thousands of recommendation letters. They can read between the lines and pick up on subtleties. If a counselor usesa lot of loaded phrases that express hesitationabout a student, without balancing them out with a student's strengths, then the letter could come off as negative overall, like in the following example: Dear Admissions Committee, I am writing to recommend Charlie for admission to your college. As his school counselor for the past four years, I've watched Charlie come a long way after a rocky freshman year. I'm confident in his potential to apply himself at college and to continue to grow as a student. Charlie is motivated to continue his education next year. He's especially interested in the sciences and is considering majoring in Biology. His th grade biology teacher noted Charlie's effort and improvement over the year. Charlie is drawn to cellular biology and has expressed interest in working in a research lab. Charlie played drums in the school band in junior year. He enjoyed performing at school concerts. This year he's recommitted himself to focusing on his academics and sharpening his study skills to prepare for the demands of college. I'm impressed with Charlie's hard work and am confident that he will continue to grow and mature in the years to come. I recommend Charlie for admission to your program. He's a hard-working student with a tremendous amount of potential. Please be in touch with any questions. Sincerely, Ms. Collins It's not necessarily a bad thing to speak to a student's potential and room to grow in a recommendation letter, but where does this example fall short? The Break Down This letter focuses almost entirely on Charlie's growth in the future, without saying very much about what he's done so far. It does suggest growth and progress on his part, but theoverall emphasisis on how much further Charlie still has to improve. Ms. Collins talks about his potential so many times without presenting much that's positive about hiscurrent strengths.Even if he has struggled academically, she could talk about his personal qualities, character, relationships with others, or involvement at the school. Because she seems like she's grasping for things to say about Charlie, this letter barely fulfills its role as arecommendation. Instead, it comes off more like a word of caution. These four examples illustrate the most common reasons why a counselor letter of recommendation could miss the mark. Besides being generic, data driven, unspecific, or full of reservations, what other features can weaken letters of recommendation for college? What Else Makes a Recommendation Letter Bad? Some other features that would drag down a recommendation letter include, It's too short.Letters should be a full page. Any shorter than this wouldn't convey enough information, and it would suggest that the recommender wasn't motivated to put much time or thought into it. It's not proofread.Errors of grammar or spelling give that same impression of carelessness and lack of investment in helping the student. It's not customized to the college or program.Actually, a lot of teachers and counselors upload the same letter to the Common Application for students to send to all their colleges. However, if a student is set on a particular program or an especially selective college, like Harvard, then the recommendation letter could be strengthened by speaking specifically to the student's fit with that program or school. Some of these issues are easy to avoid. Proofread your letters to make sure there are no grammatical errors or inaccuracies. Brainstorm before writing to make sure you have enough material to provide a full portrait of the student. Rather than listing every accomplishment a student has ever made, a stronger letterhighlights a few key interests and goalsof the student's. That way it's focused and specific. Students should share detailed "brag sheets" and talk to their counselors to make sure their counselors have all the information. They shouldshare what would go into their ideal letter, like if they want their counselor to highlight their passion for community service, poetry, or engineering. As long as both counselors and students take the time toplan,reflect, and communicate, then bad letters like the ones above can be avoided. Instead, students will get memorable, outstanding, and insightful letters of recommendation for their college applications. What's Next? Are you working with students as a school counselor or college counselor?This in depth guide goes over the steps counselors should take to produce a high quality, outstanding letter of recommendation. Do teacher recs differ from counselor recs at all?Read about what teachers should include in their reference letters for their students. Now that you've read all these examples of bad letters, take time toread the good ones.Here are examples of strong recommendation letters written by counselors and teachers (coming soon). Want to improve your SAT score by 240 points or your ACT score by 4 points?We've written a guide for each test about the top 5 strategies you must be using to have a shot at improving your score. Download it for free now:

Structure and meaning in literary discourse Essay - 1

Structure and meaning in literary discourse - Essay Example As Robert E. Longacre declares, "a discourse revolution of some sort is shaping up in response to the demand for context and for greater explanatory power." (Longacre, 1) It is also relatable here that the current use of the term 'discourse' incorporates two areas of linguistic concern such as the analysis of dialogue and the analysis of monologue. Significantly, a workable discourse incorporates prominence and cohesion or coherence. In cohesion as well as coherence two basic components are included and they are surface structure cohesive devices and semantic and lexical coherence. The pre-eminence of a plot as a coherence device in a narrative has been generally recognised. Plot may be comprehended as notional structure of narrative discourse and there is correspondence between notional structural features and the surface structure. Embedded discourse has been a significant tool used in the plot and peak pf a literary piece in order to encode the inciting moments and developing conf licts in the notional structure as surface structure episodes. Charles Dickens' celebrated novel A Tale of two Cities has significantly several examples of embedded discourses and the novel marks the climax as well as the denigration as peak in its surface structure. ... both the climax and the denouncement as peak and peak' in its surface structure." (Longacre, 38-39) Therefore, there are several examples of embedded discourses in A Tale of two Cities and they relate to each other and integrate into the entire novel. The marking of surface structure peak has great implication in the literary discourse and it is important to recognise peak when embedded discourse is existent. There are several methods of embedded discourse like rhetoric underlining, concentration of participants, heightened vividness, change of pace etc. In rhetorical underlining, the narrator uses extra words when he wishes to keep the important pint of the story. Parallelism, paraphrase, and tautologies are some of the tools employed. The crowded stage has been recognised as the feature of peak. The notional structure climax or peak can be evidently found out in the novel A Tale of two Cities in the second trial of Charles Darnay. Heightened vividness is a major method which results from a nominal-verbal balance by way of tense shift. In the novel A Tale of two Cities one clearly finds a tense shift in one of the most important moments of the story. Thus, there is a tense shift to present tense in the novel following the trial a nd arrest of Sidney Carton instead of Charles Darney. The shift of the tense has importance in the story's development. The tense shift "adds vividness and excitement andmarks a peak' which encodes part of the notional structure denouncement of the story." (Longacre 40-1) Therefore, one may distinguish peak or climax from peak' or denouncement in the surface structure of the novel A Tale of two Cities. Change of pace is another method used by the literary discourse and its main devices are difference in the constructions and difference in

Education - Diversity and Inclusion Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Education - Diversity and Inclusion - Essay Example It will also influence how different stakeholders – parents, teachers, students, administrators, and central office personnel – act and are held accountable. Culture describes the things people create to help them live effectively in their world: language, gestures, tools, rituals, ceremonies, and music are good examples. So are art, music, and fashion. By developing these things in unique ways, people and groups create cultures and cultural identity (Queensland Government, 2008). Multicultural education seeks to reconcile the good things about cultural identity (unity, history, protocol, mutuality of goals) with the sometimes bad things about cultural identity (fear of different groups, resultant hostility, violence, and other poor treatment). Banks and Banks (1995) explain that multicultural education wants to provide a level field of opportunity for all students, from all racial, ethnic, social, and cultural backgrounds. It recognizes and embraces a pluralistic society, and teaches students skills they need to operate effectively in such a society. It recognizes groups that have been marginalized in the past, and challenges established ideas, theories, and content from traditional disciplines. Multicultural education can help address cultural differences and biases in our schools. This is because of its far scope: Gomez (1991) calls multicultural education â€Å"a perspective rather than a curriculum.† He implores teachers to consider students’ cultural backgrounds and to explore and refine their own thinking about cultural groups. Gomez suggests helping school members learn to identify when someone from a cultural group is being victimized because of their membership there. Enhancing the self-concept of members of cultural groups is important. Members of these groups must believe that cultural differences do not make them less valuable as members of the school community (Gomez, 1991). Also, attempts must be

Chapter one Essay Example for Free

Chapter one Essay The balanced scorecard was developed by Kaplan and Norton in the 1990s, according to published reports approximately 50% of fortune 1000 corporations have implemented the BSC system of business management. This discourse will examine the balance scorecard (BSC) business module and its potential fit on Pepsi Saudi Arabia. It will critically analyze the core elements of BSC, and why it could serve as the primary operating business engine for Pepsi corp of Saudi Arabia. This paper will reference data from other companies that  have adopted the BSC to evaluate the potential financial and operational advantage that Pepsi Saudi would stand to gain by using BSC. Even though there are inherent shortcomings in the BSC system of management, the paper will seek confirmation by using empirical findings and reports from other organizations that have already embraced BSC, Pepsi Saudi ought to benefit immensely from the system when it is fully implemented. INTRODUCTION: The Balanced Scorecard (BSC) was developed by Kaplan and Norton in the 1990s, it  is a management system designed to measure the entire performance of a company by measuring all relevant angles of the company’s operations. BSC requires the company to retain its core financial measurement, but it goes further and expands the measurement to other important business areas. The BSC looks at the entire business from four perspectives, the customer perspective, financial perspective, the internal business process and the learning and growth perspective. It collects and analyzes data relevant to the company. And it helps managers to get clearer more meaningful picture of their company, which in turn enables them to plan, improve and execute operational goals. The objective of this paper is to advocate the adaptation of BSC by Pepsi Saudi. The strength and economic advantages of BSC and why it would be beneficial to Pepsi Saudi will be extensively discussed in this presentation. PEPSI SAUDI ARABIA: The Pepsi company of Saudi Arabia is comprised of two key divisions based on the western region of the country, one the Saudi International Project Company (SIPCO)  and the other is Saudi Fruit Juice and Beverage Industry (SFJBI). This paper will look at this merger and how it could use the BSC methodology to elevate its entire operation and increase its profit margin. BALANCE SCORECARD (BSC). Developed in the 1990s by Kaplan and Norton, balanced scorecard is a business management system that uses measurement to verify strategic plans. It tries to align business operations to the strategies of the business, by measuring the performance of the business in relations to its goals, usually for a given time period. It relies largely  on the premise that a business principle or a business function that could be measured could also be improved upon. â€Å"What gets measured gets done†. If a company can establish a measurement system to analyze its performance, then that company can find a way to improve on its performance based on the result of the measurement. Experts generally agree that the companies that take the time to measure their own performance usually does better than the companies who do no possess the tools of measurement. Based on the outcome of a business measurement BSC encourages  managers to prioritize their efforts. The BSC does not focus on financial measurements alone, because financial measurement alone can not reveal all the important data needed for long term performance. The balanced scorecard incorporates such business elements based on the customers needs, employees, technology, and other critical elements that could help the company emerge stronger in the future. Essentially BSC takes stock of the whole business. It uses the â€Å"feedback loop† to pinpoint all problematic areas and then it develops solutions  for them. Managers and employees can then learn from those points that had been identified by the loop. It looks at the company’s current position then initiates the necessary strategies for correction. It uses learning, technical innovations and appropriate behavioral shifts and cultural identities to accommodate essential actions for the benefit of the company. BSC also sets aside time to study the applications that have been implemented, and then analyzes the results for effectiveness of those mechanisms or lack of effectiveness.

Slow Food Essay -- Nutrition

The trend of the Slow Food Movement has existed since the 1970’s but has recently been thrusted into the fore front of prominent world issues as the cause and remedy of environmental challenges, local economic circumstances, and the complexities with social norms. The Slow Food Movement can be considered a counter-trend to Fast food. It was created in response to the augmentation of fast food a culture, the diminishment of people caring where the food comes from, and the diminishment of local food traditions. After a close examination of these factors, a prediction is made of the future trends of Slow Food Movement, and how the Slow Movement concept will evolve to become a part of everyday life. The Oxford American Dictionary defines trends as â€Å"a general tendency or inclination, the general direction in which something tends to move† (1999) A trend analysis is defined as an examination of a trend to identify its nature, causes, speed of development, and potential impacts (Cornish, 2001, p.78). Trends at times arise as a response to other trends. The same deduction can be made about food trends. For example when the Atkins diet was popular, retailers responded with low carbohydrate food options. In 2006, Burger King offered bunless burgers wrapped in lettuce, to appeal to the dieters embracing a low, or no carbohydrate lifestyle. Additional fast food restaurants including Arbys, Hardees, Carl’s Junior, and Subway followed suit with bunless options. While the trend of no or low carbohydrate diets have diminished the low carbohydrate options continue to be available upon request. The trend illustrates the affects trends have on each other. The Slow Food Movement has similar roots of establishment. The Slow Food Movement can be... ...ustry's Parade toward Low-Carb Menu Items. . Knight Ridder Tribune Business News 1(1), Retrieved Jun. 10, 2011, from from ProQuest Newsstand. (Document ID: 524271311). Schneider, S. (2008). Good, Clean, Fair: The Rhetoric of the Slow Food Movement. College English, 70 (4), pp. 384-402. Slow Food International. 1989. Slow Food Manifesto Retrieved from http://www.slowfood.com/international/2/our-philosophy "Trend n. & v." The Oxford American Dictionary of Current English. Oxford University Press, 1999. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. August 2011 US Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service. 2008. U.S. Fertilizer Use and Price. Data set. Available atWeb site http://www.ers.usda.gov/Data/FertilizerUse/ (accessed 11 June 2011).

Byronic Hero

Byronic Hero – Romantic Hero – Tragic Hero – Anti-Hero During the Romantic Era, a hybrid of the Romantic Hero evolved out of the writings of Lord Byron and the combination tragic hero/romantic hero/anti hero characterization of many of the protagonists in Gothic Novels. Frankenstein is considered one of the Gothic Novels that developed out the the Romantic Era. The â€Å"heroes† in Frankenstein could fit into the Byronic Hero category or be classified as Romantic, Tragic, or Anti Heroes.Lady Caroline Lamb, a former lover of Lord Byron’s called him â€Å"mad, bad, and dangerous to know. † This epitaph stuck as a way to describe a Byronic Hero in literature as well. See if Victor Frankenstein fits the description of the Byronic Hero or if he embodies more of the traits of the other heroes. What about Captain Walton and the Monster? Characteristics of The Byronic Hero: †¢ high level of intelligence and perception †¢ cunning and able to adapt †¢ sophisticated and educated †¢ self-critical and introspective mysterious, magnetic and charismatic †¢ struggling with integrity †¢ power of seduction and sexual attraction †¢ social and sexual dominance †¢ emotional conflicts, bipolar tendencies, or moodiness †¢ a distaste for social institutions and norms †¢ being an exile, an outcast, or an outlaw †¢ â€Å"dark† attributes not normally associated with a hero †¢ disrespect of rank and privilege †¢ a troubled past †¢ cynicism †¢ arrogance †¢ self-destructive behavior Characteristics of The Romantic Hero: Birth and class are unimportant: the individual transcends society †¢ The battle is internal: it is a psychological war won by the â€Å"courage to be me† †¢ Moral codes are eccentric–heroes make their own rules †¢ Passions are outside of individual control †¢ Self knowledge is valued more than physical strength o r endurance (physical courage is de-valued) †¢ The hero is moody, isolated, and introspective †¢ Loyalty is to a particular project and to a community of like-minded others Characteristics of The Tragic Hero: †¢ has strong extraordinary character of noble birth (aristocrat or royalty) †¢ possesses a flaw in character which is his or her weakness †¢ Great Weakness (obsession, lust, greed, desire) leads to ultimate downfall †¢ has a moment of Tragic Choice which spirals into the downfall of hero †¢ Downfall always includes death in a traditional tragedy †¢ Downfall also brings about far-reaching catastrophe: many deaths, downfall of family, kingdom or society †¢ Tragic Hero has potential to turn into an Anti-Hero Characteristics of The Anti-hero †¢ foil to the mission or life of the hero possesses a sharp mind or cunning nature †¢ often possesses superhuman strength or power †¢ may be profoundly evil †¢ may be misunderst ood and have potential for good †¢ may have been wronged and bent on revenge †¢ may elicit no sympathy from reader †¢ may elicit some sympathy from reader †¢ may possess strong ambition to succeed or desire for power †¢ lives on fringes of society †¢ may be considered ugly or unattractive or possesses/obtained some physical scar, deformity or imperfection that may have lead to their evil behavior

Gender stereo type Essay

Gender stereo type is one of the problems facing gender issues in the world. Women performance in any science or mathematical subject has become wanting. This research paper undertakes to study gender stereotype in classrooms. The performance of mathematics will be looked at. This research paper undertakes to find out gender stereotypes as are in existence in regular classrooms and the conceptions of the same. This is a crucial research question for all students and teachers especially those involved in gender issues. Performance in classroom among women has been affect by the view of women themselves. Gender stereotype has been there for ages especially when the female and male find themselves in the same environment where their abilities are bound to be tested and a classroom is inevitably one of them. Gender stereotype Introduction Mostly ones performance in the classroom determines one’s area of specialization and this researcher set out to establish how gender issues are in relation to the classroom achievements. Women are said to have a preference for arts which are less challenging while men go for the mathematics which is tougher. The division does not end there because men are known to get involved in tough games too like wrestling for their leisure time while their female counterparts go for easy activities like picnics for their recreation time. Gender distinctions in the classroom come along way from the way the boys are brought up knowing that they are cut for the challenging careers – soldiers, pilots scientists while the girls are given the notion that they must always be neat and clean thus they opt for career prospects that can enable them to be’ ladish’ – secretarial jobs, nursing and utmost teaching arts. The war in the classroom is a conspicuous one as the boys openly live out the unnecessary arts and concentrates on the mathematics and science as a way of showing then macho as the tough gender. In a class the popular men are the one’s who have made great achievements like being the football captain or the best athlete while a lady wins by just being smart and showing the classic manners expected of a classic lady and the classroom feats come second or not at all. This research sets out to get an in look to this speculations which have always been there surrounding this subject to establish the truth behind it. The classroom stands out like a tornado that waits to explode and reveal its inner making when put in a stereotype context because the classes components are a people who are striving for a common goal but using different elements to get there – the choices made are done differently depending on the gender of the student in question. At least that is the mindset of most people regarding the classroom and this topic. Statement of the problem. I chose this topic for the research because it directly affects the performance of students and how they relate in regular classrooms. The student’s behavior, performance future ambitions and targets are determined by the perceptions of the gender they belong to. If a student creates a bad perception toward something because of her gender, then the future will be affected. However 3the removal of gender stereotype will set good goals that will create good future targets. There is a relationship between gender stereotypes in performance of some subjects on performance of subjects in class at large. When a student undertakes to create in her mind a mentality of gender stereotypes it becomes hard for him or her learn new things, new concepts, get new challenges, encounter obstacles, learn how to solve problems, learn to be independent and all these will enable to performance level a student to improve. Without gender stereotype a student will be confident and will learn more on his own. Objectives This research on gender stereotype in the classroom is a paper that is meant to clear the air on whether actually there gender related distinctions in the classroom. The extent at which the topic is popular in relation to the classroom will be delved in to and a solid finding brought forward by doing a research study in this institution. Determiners of the presence of the gender divisions shall be sought and the reasons behind these factors will be acknowledged at the end of this paper. The gender stereotype is a wide topic that brings with a list of implications; there is a need to establish whether it’s actually there in the classroom and its significances. This topic has affected the classroom and there is need to know whether positively or negatively. This topic is reference to women widely assumed stand about the arts and mathematics in the classroom, women are said to prefer arts while mathematics are left for men to it as an expression of their masculinity to show their strength. To establish the magnitude of its effect a thorough research would be necessary through interviewing women on their opinions regarding this topic and the end of the case study. This research does not have an objective to discuss feminism in the classroom but its out to establish the gender differences in picking subjects of study at school and go behind the issue to learn why the gender stereotype in the classroom is their and at what depth has it influenced the decisions made in the classroom by women. This research lays down the issues that are there about women and classrooms when it comes to making the choice of subjects they want to study – sciences and arts – with mathematics as the most conspicuous science in question. Research questions. Does gender stereo type really exist in the classroom or is it an assumption that has always been there? What are the causes of the gender distinctions in the classroom? What are the effects of the gender related divisions in the classroom? Is the gender stereotype here to stay in the classroom? Methodology There are two methods of research/ data collection in research papers: that is quantitative and qualitative. Quantitative method is applicable where the problem is known, the problem is based on theories and can be measured in numbers. The analysis can be done on tables, graphs, pie charts, gnat charts and other statistical theories and it relies on assumptions. There are a number of methods which are under quantitative methods. These include surveys, experiments and quasi experiment. Qualitative method is different from quantitative because it is used to measure human feelings, attitude and perception. The data for this research has been obtained from the ten articles forwarded. Key words. Social category, mathematics attitudes and women. A study was done on women, twenty in number with their ages ranging between 20 – 58 years with a mean age of 23 years. Literature review Introduction All the nine studies showed similar results that the personal, attitude of women in the classroom towards academic activities in the areas of arts and mathematics can be affected by gender categories with only one citing completion as the boost to a positive attitude towards mathematics. Gender stereotype Women who were associated with a clear conscious of being female express a greater liking for the arts while those who were associated with the male category did not connect with the arts and went for mathematics. The women’s attitude were based on their preferences and not influenced by other people’s choice. Murphy. M. C. , Steele C. M. and James J. Gross J. J. (2007) in their article they argue that the influence of the social category has not been established and is not is not easier to pin point the extent at which women attitude could change in a stereotype way using the stereotype category. They further argue that it clear that the changes in attitude among women are due to the stereotype reasoning about women’s ability in relation to men’s ability or a combination of both. Guimond S. and lydie Roussel L. (2001) have added that based on gender identity establishment it can equally affect women’s attitude towards mathematics: women who are made aware of their identity preferred arts while the other ones associated with male gender went for mathematics. Their choices were based on their own personal perceptions without an outward influence from other people who had similar perceptions to theirs. Another study was done by measuring the women’s hidden attitude towards arts and mathematics after reminding them of their gender identity or neutral identity. The results still showed that women’s attitude towards arts and mathematics was more stereotype- consistent when they were associated with the category female or the gender identity.

Sterilization in Nazi Germany

Sterilization in Nazi Germany In the 1930s, the Nazis introduced a massive, compulsory sterilization of a large segment of the German population. What could cause the Germans to do this after having already lost a large segment of their population during World War I? Why would the German people let this happen? The Concept of The Volk As social Darwinism and nationalism merged during the early twentieth century, the concept of the Volk was established. Quickly, the idea of the Volk extended to various biological analogies and was shaped by the contemporary beliefs of heredity. Especially in the 1920s, analogies of the German Volk (or German people) began surfacing, describing the German Volk as a biological entity or body. With this concept of the German people as one biological body, many believed that sincere care was needed to keep the body of the Volk healthy. An easy extension of this thought process was if there was something unhealthy within the Volk or something that could harm it, it should be dealt with. Individuals within the biological body became secondary to the needs and importance of the Volk. Eugenics and Racial Categorization Since eugenics and racial categorization were in the forefront of modern science during the early twentieth century, the hereditary needs of the Volk were deemed of significant importance. After the First World War ended, the Germans with the best genes were thought to have been killed in the war while those with the worst genes did not fight and could now easily propagate.1 Considering the new belief that the body of the Volk was more important than individual rights and needs, the state had the authority to do whatever necessary to help the Volk. Sterilization Laws in Pre-war Germany The Germans were not the creators nor the first to implement governmentally sanctioned forced sterilization. The United States, for instance, had already enacted sterilization laws in half its states by the 1920s which included forced sterilization of the criminally insane as well as others. The first German sterilization law was enacted on July 14, 1933 - only six months after Hitler became Chancellor. The Law for the Prevention of Genetically Diseased Offspring (the Sterilization Law) allowed the forced sterilization for anyone suffering from genetic blindness, hereditary deafness, manic depression, schizophrenia, epilepsy, congenital feeblemindedness, Huntingtons chorea (a brain disorder), and alcoholism. The Process of Sterilization Doctors were required to register their patients with genetic illness to a health officer as well as petition for the sterilization of their patients who qualified under the Sterilization Law. These petitions were reviewed and decided by a three-member panel in the Hereditary Health Courts. The three-member panel was made up of two doctors and a judge. In the case of insane asylums, the director or doctor who made the petition also often served on the panels that made the decision whether or not to sterilize them.2 The courts often made their decision solely on the basis of the petition and perhaps a few testimonies. Usually, the appearance of the patient was not required during this process. Once the decision to sterilize had been made (90 percent of the petitions that made it to the courts in 1934 ended up with the result of sterilization) the doctor that had petitioned for the sterilization was required to inform the patient of the operation.3 The patient was told that there would be no deleterious consequences.4 Police force was often needed to bring the patient to the operating table. The operation itself consisted of ligation of the fallopian tubes in women and a vasectomy for men. Klara Nowak was forcibly sterilized in 1941. In a 1991 interview, she described what effects the operation still had on her life. Well, I still have many complaints as a result of it. There were complications with every operation I have had since. I had to take early retirement at the age of fifty-two - and the psychological pressure has always remained. When nowadays my neighbors, older ladies, tell me about their grandchildren and great-grandchildren, this hurts bitterly, because I do not have any children or grandchildren, because I am on my own, and I have to cope without anyones help.5 Who Was Sterilized? Asylum inmates consisted of thirty to forty percent of those sterilized. The main reason for sterilization was so that the hereditary illnesses could not be passed on  in  offspring, thus contaminating the Volks gene pool. Since asylum inmates were locked away from society, most of them had a relatively small chance of reproducing. The main target of the sterilization program were those people with a slight hereditary illness and who were at an age of being able to reproduce. Since these people were among society, they were deemed the most dangerous. Since slight hereditary illness is rather ambiguous and the category feebleminded is extremely ambiguous, some people were sterilized for their  asocial  or anti-Nazi beliefs and behavior. The belief in stopping hereditary illnesses soon expanded to include all the people within the east whom Hitler  wanted eliminated. If these people were sterilized, the theory went, they could provide a temporary  workforce  as well as slowly create Lebensraum (room to live for the German Volk). Since the Nazis were now thinking of sterilizing millions of people, faster, non-surgical ways to sterilize were needed. Inhuman Nazi Experiments The usual operation for sterilizing women had a relatively long recovery period - usually between a week and fourteen days. The Nazis wanted a faster and perhaps unnoticeable way to sterilize millions. New ideas emerged and camp prisoners at Auschwitz and at Ravensbrà ¼ck were used to test the various new methods of sterilization. Drugs were given. Carbon dioxide was injected. Radiation and X-rays were administered. The Lasting Effects of Nazi Atrocity By 1945, the Nazis had sterilized an estimated 300,000 to 450,000 people. Some of these people soon after their sterilization also were victims of the Nazi euthanasia program. While many others were forced to live with this feeling of loss of rights and invasion of their persons as well as a future of knowing that they would never be able to have children. Notes 1. Robert Jay Lifton,  The Nazi Doctors: Medical Killing and the Psychology of Genocide  (New York, 1986) p. 47.2. Michael Burleigh,  Death and Deliverance: Euthanasia in Germany 1900-1945  (New York, 1995) p. 56.3. Lifton,  Nazi Doctors  p. 27.4. Burleigh,  Death  p. 56.5. Klara Nowak as cited in Burleigh,  Death  p. 58. Bibliography Annas, George J.  and  Michael A. Grodin.  The Nazi Doctors and the Nuremberg Code: Human Rights in Human Experimentation. New York, 1992. Burleigh, Michael.  Death and Deliverance: Euthanasia in Germany 1900-1945. New York, 1995. Lifton, Robert Jay.  The Nazi Doctors: Medical Killing and the Psychology of Genocide. New York, 1986.

Powerful Ways to Open a Class Presentation

Powerful Ways to Open a Class Presentation Powerful Ways to Open a Class Presentation Many academic institutions require students to submit a slideshow presentation and discuss a topic in front of a group of people. The purpose is to help students improve verbal communication skills while providing information to several people in a single setting. While grading this project depends solely on the professor, a student who is able to deliver an informative and engaging presentation to the class has a better chance of getting a good grade. First impressions are key; the speaker sets the tone of the discussion. Audience members decide in the first minute whether they want to listen. To attract and maintain listener interest, here are powerful ways to open an introduction: Tell a joke. Start things on a positive note by making a non-offensive joke and engage your listeners. Propose a problem. To get attention, start by stating a current problem that most people can relate to and tie it into your discussion. Share a quotation. Choose a quotation from an important figure that relates to your topic. Recite it in a clear, modulated tone. Ask for a response. Start a discussion by asking a question like â€Å"How often do you use the Internet?† This question provides your audience the opportunity to participate before you continue the presentation. This also encourages them to later ask questions. Catch listeners off-guard. A radical statement or command can surprise people. For instance, if you are presenting a topic about conformity, first ask everyone to stand up. Then, ask why they did so. This opens the topic in an unexpected and unique manner. Tell a story. A personal anecdote or a tale can be used to set the tone of a presentation. Keep it brief and omit unnecessary details. This, ideally, helps listeners connect to you and your topic as they listen. Use a visual aid. When you begin your slideshow, allow your audience to comment on a photo or a video in the presentation to establish participation from the beginning. Choose the technique that works best for you when introducing your topic of discussion to the class. A slideshow presentation relies on both the careful construction of the conversation and its delivery. Capturing your listeners’ attention makes the presentation more likely to be active and engaging. No matter how interesting your topic, you may lose audience interest if you don’t make an effort to captivate them at the start. in Ontario provides a variety of services for all your academic needs. We are a team of professional writers who can help with presentations, including PowerPoint. Your slideshow will meet academic standards and save you time to practice your delivery.

Financial Managerial Principles Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Financial Managerial Principles - Essay Example It shows how P&G has been performing above than the average S&P 500 index over past years and benefiting its shareholders with higher than the average index returns. The graph assumes that a $100 amount was invested, one in P&G and other in S&P 500 index. It can easily be seen that except for 3 years (1999, 2000 and 2001) during the period, P&G return has been above average which shows the soundness of its financial and operational performance which has enabled it to transfer the benefits to its shareholders in the form of valuable returns. With lowering debt to Asset ratio and increasing current ratio, the company is directed towards lowering its risk perceived by shareholders while at the same time improving its ability to pay off its operational liabilities accrued due to revenue expenditure. Net earnings are also on the rise showing that more and more part of their income will be given to shareholders. Since the dividend payout ration is something around 40 percent it means that with rising net income the shareholders’ cut will also increase. Company’s research and development expenditure are at the ever highest, showing that the company is expected to increase customer satisfaction by offering them innovative and unique solutions to their day to day needs in the form of better and improved products. This will increase customer loyalty and brand preference among customers which will result in increase in company’s value which is a primary concern for a shareholder. The last five year annual growth rate is 10.63 % (Procter & Gamble, 2007) which is good news for investors who relies on dividend payment as a source of their earnings such as retirees. Since these are the type of investors who cannot wait to realize capital gains. They use dividends from the stock investment as a source of earnings. Opportunities are