Lauren Craddock:
http://laurenjc.wordpress.com/2012/05/03/dunzo/#comment-200
Yasmine Horton:
http://yasminehorton.wordpress.com/2012/05/01/can-you-balance-this/#comment-160
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8 bits make a byte.
That is the perfect way to describe this semester for me. 8 major bits of data that have come together to make a byte that has been included in my personal code.
- A Job Over Done: This may sound strange. How do you “overdo” a job? The answer may surprise you. It is possible to do a job so well, that the company you are doing the job for wants to have someone come in and do it full-time. Now you might say, “if you were doing the job right, they would have kept you.” Under normal circumstances, I would agree with you. However, when the position you were hired for did not exist until you convinced the company it was worth their investment, that is a bit different. It gets even more complicated when you are a college student and you have to divide your responsibilities between work and school. This is where my point comes in. I was so good at what I was doing, that the company liked it. They liked it so much that they wanted to have someone who was hired specifically for that position and was able to handle the job responsibilities full-time. It was an interesting situation to in really. On one hand, I was honored that they felt my efforts were seeing such results that they wanted to keep the position going. On the other hand, it was still my job. I have no hard feelings towards the company. In fact, as I mentioned, I was happy to be able to make a difference within the company and open their eyes to something they would not have considered otherwise.
- Best Break Ever: This year I took my first real Spring Break trip. I went to Orlando Florida with my girlfriend for the week. We had a flex ticket that allowed us to spend one day at each of the theme parks in Orlando (excluding Disney). It was amazing. I must say, Sea World has stepped up its game lately and was probably my favorite park. I needed that trip. It was my last Spring Break of college and it was probably the last time I will ever get to do something like that ever again.
- Self Discovery: I discovered what I want to in my career. I always knew what industry I wanted to work in, but I never knew exactly what it was I wanted to do. I want to be a Community Manager in the video game industry. It is not your traditional PR role, but that is what I love about it. It is direct interaction with fans from the community.
- Networking: Since discovering what I wanted to do, I began a quest to start networking with professionals in the industry. I now have a career path that I never would have thought possible. Side note: even though I know she will never read this, Jessica Merizan is awesome.
- Testing My Abilities: This has been the most stressful semester I have ever had. It is good to know that I do not crack under pressure, and can operate on very little sleep. I have also learned that I am a pretty decent researcher in the field of Communication Studies. This surprised me, considering how nervous I was about having to write some communication studies research papers.
- New Friends: I have met some interesting people this semester that I hope to stay in contact with. Some of which I never thought would even speak to a person like myself.
- New Future: My girlfriend and I have signed a lease on a one bedroom cottage together for next year. I feel like this is a pretty big move in our relationship. We already live together now, but we each have our own separate bedrooms should the need arise. We also have three floors and two other roommates now. Going from all that, to a one story, one bedroom cottage is going to be a big change, and we are also having to furnish the entire place.
- Change: Two things I learned from this semester involve change. The first one is to never wish for anything to change. If you want something to change badly enough, then go out and do it. Don’t just wish for it. Make it happen. The second one is to keep mind that things happen for a reason. It is how we choose to respond to them that define who we are. Even things that seem terrible at first glance, can lead to something good and unexpected happening later. Just keep your head up and stay strong!
Well, this is going to be a difficult topic for me to write about. This week I am being asked to write about baseball. I have been involved in baseball in nearly every aspect at some point in my life. I have been a VIP in a press box, a guest in the stands, and I even played the sport for a couple of years while I was in elementary school. Despite all of this, I find very little interest in the sport. There is just something about the idea of sitting waiting for that one chance moment when someone hits a small ball across a field; typically to be caught immediately by someone in the outfield, that seems very unappealing to me. Finding ways to generate interest in something that I find completely uninteresting is going to be a challenge, but with that being said, LET’S DO THIS!
In the world of baseball, there seems to be two types of people. There are the hardcore fans who will do anything and everything to support their team, then there is everyone else, with VERY few moderates.
I feel like trying to appeal to a hardcore baseball fan must be pretty easy. If you love a team enough, you will go to their games, win or lose, rain or shine, life or death. I’ve seen Braves and Yankees fans go to extremes to make sure they do not miss a game, or even find ways to involve the team in their daily lives, like decorating a room in their house in the style of the team. I have a friend who flew him and his girlfriend, at the time, all the way to Yankee Stadium just so he could propose to her on the jumbo-tron screen during a Yankee’s game. I am happy to report that they are happily married and have a son on the way, who has his room already themed after the Yankee’s. This is the audience that you do not need to worry about, in my opinion. Obviously, you want to keep them happy, but you can keep doing whatever it is you are doing with them and they seem to be ok.
If you are trying to generate new interest in the game, and expand your audience, it is the other crowd that you may want to try to appeal to. So I think the best way to try to appeal to this audience is to have a person, like myself, involved in trying to think of ways that would make them interested in coming to a baseball game, winning team or not.
- Giveaways: Everyone loves a good giveaway. People also love knowing that no matter what happens, they are going to win something, but they like the idea of a bigger prize being given out at random. I suggest giving away some type of cheap memorabilia, that can double as a promotional effort as well, to every attendee of a baseball game. It can be a key-chain, a foam finger, or even a whistle with the team insignia and logo on it. It does not matter, just as long as it is something that can make a guest happy, and is low-cost to make. The fact that it has the team logos on it means that when they take it home, they will always remember the time they had at YOUR team’s game. It will also give people something to talk about, which is good as well. Have a random winner of a “Grand Prize Giveaway”. This prize can be season tickets, a signed baseball/bat, or a private meet-and-greet with the team, just something “extra special” that people would want to have/do.
- Approachable and FUN: Right now Baseball comes across as a sport that you will only enjoy if you are a devoted fan. For the most part, this is true. Something should be done about this. I do not know what, I am not a sports expert, but something needs to change about the way the game is perceived to most audiences.
- Fan interactivity: The majority of the games I have attended involved me sitting in an uncomfortable position in an uncomfortable seat, surrounded by uncomfortable people. This contributes to one’s negative perceptions of an event. I understand that some teams have their various chants and etc, but baseball needs something more. Something to keep people interested in what is going on. Face it, unless someone finally hits the ball, fan activity and energy is pretty low. Even when the ball is hit, chances are it is just going to be caught, making it a full two seconds of excitement every thirty minutes. This is baseball’s greatest fault. They could offer trivia at the end of each game about the events of the game. At the end of the game, when people begin leaving, they could have a series of mini-stages/platforms or areas roped off at the each of the arena’s exiting areas. Prizes can include a free hot dog, some team swag, even a ticket to the next home game, or something along the lines of that. They could be staffed by the crews that would normally be staffed at the carts, or other food outlets, typically found in the stadium’s outer ring or exterior. Announce at the beginning of each game to pay close attention to the game for a chance to win prizes. Obviously, this is a very rough idea, but it is a start.
- The climate: Is it too much to ask for indoor stadiums? The GA Dome is covered! Why can’t baseball fields be covered? Perhaps I am missing something? The prospect of sitting outside for hours in intense heat and humidity does not sound appealing. Want to get people to even consider being interested in the game? Guarantee them comfortable seating and that should turn some heads. The likelihood of this happening is VERY slim, but if any of the major cities are in the market to build a new field, then perhaps a modern approach would best fit the new design.
- Secret handshakes and all that other “elite” stuff: Make people feel special at the games. They came out to support whatever team they are there for, make them feel special! If I were an eight-year-old boy with a group of friends at a baseball game, we would love the idea of learning a “secret handshake” or something. Something that we would know, and do in public, to make all the other kids jealous. For an older audience, have “meet-and-greets” at the end of the games. Have players actually talk to their fans. It would be so revolutionary, that even a non-baseball fan like myself, would think, “Wow…that is really cool! I would like to meet that guy and see what he is like.” The only way to have that happen would be for me to go to a game.
These are just some thoughts. I know if these were implemented, I would definitely consider going to baseball games more often. As I mentioned though, the likelihood of any of them happening is VERY rare. Baseball is a sport that is set in its ways, and its audiences are not supportive of changing their favorite past-time.
If money were no object and I had plenty of spare time with a job that offered plenty of vacation time, there are a few places I would like to travel.
The first place I would want to travel to is a place that I have written about in my Bucket List. I want to travel to Tokyo, Japan. This place has always been somewhat of a mystery to me.
A quick shot of a crowd in Tokyo, Japan
The people, the technology, the culture, and the lifestyles are all very interesting. The fact the people over there are so accepting of so many groups of people (at least on the surface) amazes me. I want to go to Tokyo’s technology district and see what it has to offer. If you do not know, I am a huge tech geek/junky/nerd, so naturally I would want to go to the technology capital of the world. I also want to find the gaming scene and see just how awesome those people really are. The idea that cos-players are accepted over there as equals is something that I wish to be a part of. It is the combination of technology, people, and accepting culture that make Tokyo, Japan very appealing to me.
A view of the skyline in Edmonton, Canada
The second place I would want to visit is Edmonton, Canada. Now many people may wonder why I would want to go to such a place, it is Canada after all. However; what many people do not realize is that Edmonton is a thriving city. At first glance, it resembles some of America’s larger cities, except with more greenery spread throughout. But alas, that is not the reason why I wish to visit Edmonton. Edmonton is home to one of my favorite game studios, BioWare. I have talked to some of the developers up there and even played a few games with them, via Xbox LIVE. It would be nice to make a trip up there and actually meet the people, face-to-face, that I have been talking too.
Convincing an older generation to accept new technology is like that age-old debate that never really makes any progress, unless the person/people from the older generation(s) are willing accept change. Once you begin to break these barriers, you can begin to introduce new technologies on their most basic levels. The major issue with traditional business experiences, in my opinion and experiences, is that they do now want to try to change something they believe is working for them. Perhaps it is the area I am in or the people I have been exposed to, but anytime a younger person has a suggestion about the business, it gets immediately ignored because the older generations think that the know best simply because they are older.
If asked to try to convince a business owner of another generation; who is set in their ways, to use social media; a platform they have never used, I would try my best to respectfully decline. Now if the person was open to suggestions, I would start by showing them their competitors page. Nothing stirs a business up more than seeing what their competitor is doing. From their, you can relate their success and point out improvements that would work for the person you are trying to convince. That is probably the best start when trying to convince someone to try something new.
You should also have an entire campaign pre-planned. This will help illustrate your points. Whether or not you use the campaign does not matter, just be ready with one to present to the person you are trying to convince. It will also show motivation, which should help you improve your self-image to the business.
You MUST be prepared to encounter resistance from management about social media. They will focus on the negatives, your job is to focus on the positives. If you are being asked to convince someone of anything, be ready for any question and try to quell any fears that they might have. While we are exposed to social media all the time, and can see its positives, the current generation of business owners have not. They sometimes get scared by stories that they hear on the news, internet, or other businesses.
Just be prepared to deal with the ultimate question: Why would I change, when what I am doing now is working just fine?
It is my understanding that The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers still exists. I even think they are still making new episodes in some strange or unrelated universe that is different from our own. I honestly have no idea where the Power Rangers stand right now. The possibility that they could still be on the air sounds like it would be awesome; however, viewing some of the later episodes reveals different story than what we used to see when I was kid watching Power Rangers. I understand, as you get older things change. Your perceptions change, your knowledge of the world changes, and you mature. I get it. So just to see if I was just trying to hold on to my childhood nostalgia, I watched some of the older episodes of Power Rangers. This eventually led to me watching The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie.
The Original Power Rangers
The sad fact is, the show has changed from its roots. The original show was about doing the right thing, all the time. Moral questions posed a serious dilemma for children. It made you think about what you would do in a situation. Granted, as you get older the choices are obvious, but for a six-year-old, the problems were thought-provoking enough. The costumes were not too outlandish. There was a sense of team work and good nature among the Rangers. Their leader, Zoron, was devoted to helping the Rangers the pest way he could, since he was the one that made them Rangers in the first place. The bad guys had one goal, that was to cause as much destruction on Earth as possible. They created monsters that needed to be defeated. When the Rangers showed up, the monster would undoubtedly get “supercharged” into causing more destruction. This made the Rangers call on their Zords and team up to create the “Mega Zord.”
To a young kid, this is perfect. Heck, even for a 21-year-old, this makes for a good show. Everyone is working together to stop an evil force. There are very little issues among the Rangers, until the Green Ranger shows up, but that is a whole other story that I am not going into. The costume design is simple, but effective. The effects, not spectacular, but get the job done. Everyone walks away from the show feeling good.
I remember coming home from school/daycare every day excited for the next episode of Power Rangers. They were my heroes. Every kid needs something to look up to and a person to be like. I wanted to grow up and be the next Red Ranger.
Then some time passes…and this is where we have our problems.
This is what happens when you change a show every couple of years
The current generation of Power Rangers does not resemble its predecessors in any way. They have been transformed into something nearly unrecognizable. The new Rangers bicker with each other constantly, they are overly dressed, they are in some strange universe that makes no sense, their costumes are a joke, and the villains are even more laughable than ever. There are no real moral issues for kids to think about. There is no real story for the show. It’s interesting because the overall idea is the same; there is a really bad person, they send monsters (or themselves), the Rangers must stop it. However, this is like comparing Power Rangers to Dora theExplorer. There is a challenge/obstacle, not overcome it. That does not mean that the shows are similar. The issue lies in its execution. There are no good feelings to be found in the show, rather it seems to be built off of the current trend of teenage melodrama. This is not how Power Rangers should be. They should be respected by kids everywhere, not watched to see how the new Pink Ranger is going to handle her new boyfriend and being a Ranger. What happened. Also, what is with the costumes and scene change? Where is Earth???? Heck, where is anything sensible?
So basically, I just want my Mighty Morphin Power Rangers back!
