Getting Ahead of My Head Injury

This Past week at ONU feels strange. After a concussion on Tuesday, things are slowly catching back up with me. It’s crazy to think that one week could be busy at the same time everything grinds to a halt. Thank goodness for the professors and friends that are helping me along the way. I learned a couple valuable lessons from this experience that I’d like to share.

1.      Always wear a helmet: I was traveling a distance less than a football field on my bike when this accident happened. I couldn’t predict that my front wheel would fall off. I could have taken better precautions to protect my head before I left. My helmet is on campus and I passed by it on my way out the door, thinking that nothing would happen is such a short amount of time or space. Make the choice to look goofy if it keeps you safe.

2.      Choose your friends wisely: When bad stuff happens, know who will be around you when the time comes. Since I live over two hours away from the family, I had great friends fill in for them. I got a ride home from the ER plus a milkshake courtesy of my pal, Joey and my other friend Elliot checked on me throughout the night to make sure I was stable. I hope that everyone out there has people to count on like this. I know how much it means to me.

3.      Talk to Professors: Injuries are no fun. Neither is missing class when you have assignments piling up. All of my professors understood my issue and some generously offered extra time to recuperate before tests. While every person is different, communication is key in making sure that the people around you can work with you instead of being in the dark.

What fun injury stories do you have from college? I hope you recovered well! I know these points I make are obvious, but sometimes it’s the easiest things that can help the most.

Facebook Interactions

When using Facebook, It’s important to understand why some posts gain more traction than others and then continue to grow in interactions. According to Jason McDonald, the primary factors at work here are likes and EdgeRank. The idea is accounts with more interactions will have a more active role in future posts, so an algorithm makes that content more accessible through a timeline.

McDonald and I agree: involvement and interactivity are key. Yesterday I discussed a few different ways to define the account you want to operate and a few steps to go private or professional. We share the goal of “opening avenues for additional feedback,” which includes creating polls, Q&As, and a dialogue between a page/profile (McDonald, 66). Doing this requires an understanding of EdgeRank. Know what to post if you want to benefit from it.

It’s one thing to talk about EdgeRank like I fully understand it, not now that it's mostly removed from Facebook, things get more complex. The only person who might know what each algorithm truly wants would be Mark Zuckerberg. In order to play the system, you need to attract a baseline of dedicated followers and build that group through posts that carry a degree of emotion.

Emotion is a broad range of reactions. Jokes and adorable pictures of cats would generate a less controversial post, whereas talking about politics may divide the pot (so to speak). Controversy isn’t always a bad thing though. McDonald touches on outrage briefly, but outrage marketing includes a number of different strategies. Generating a story that could be picked up and passed around could increase the chances of a more unified following, but it is risky business if managed improperly. 

Engagement in Social Media

How do you quantify your engagement on social media? Some may say the length of time you spend on a site correlates to the amount of involvement. Anyone who has taken a base level stats class knows that correlation is not causation though. While it is true that you can accomplish more given the opportunity to work longer, how often do you go to media to complete a goal?

My guess is that unless you’re working in a professional capacity, most people would choose to entertain themselves rather than produce content. This isn’t true in all cases, but I would say that the vast majority of users don’t put the effort into building up a profile or scheduling post. I don’t think that focusing on one over the other is better or worse, but it depends on intent.

Ask yourself, “What do I want to accomplish with my [social media platform] account?” If you want to gain followers or engage with more commenters, then there are steps to reach those goals. It’s important to keep a focus on creating quality content that can attract an audience. Open avenues for additional feedback. Polls are a great way to connect with the people and individualized responses increase the likelihood of more interactions.

Beyond the business of social media is the wealth of opportunities to entertain or inspire. Even if you decide to post irregularly or increase privacy settings, that broadens the scope of  “watching” that you can do. Attention isn’t something everyone on these platforms desire and that’s okay. Personally, I like seeing creative things other people can do. It helps motivate me to do more interesting and diverse projects. What do you think? Do you use media as a tool or as a show? Whatever your thoughts are, I’d like to hear from you.

Active Campus

Fall is upon us. Students are already panicking about deadlines and clubs are in full swing. Greek life on campus is in crunch time as many fraternities close on new members for pledge classes. The campus is alive. Have you made an effort to stay involved? Whether you want something to occupy an afternoon or boost a résumé, there are plenty of ways to connect with other students when studies allow.

Window shop: Any organization you plan to join will want some form of time commitment. It’s important to take a look at a number of different groups and weigh the responsibilities that each includes. For example: if you want to discover new things, why not search for something like Astronomy Club which is one night a week for an hour instead of pledging a fraternity. Time is a precious commodity so spend it wisely.

Quality over quantity:

We all know those people who overextend themselves by joining more groups than they can effectively be a part of. When it comes to campus organizations, less is more. That doesn’t mean that getting involved is bad, but it has to balance with everything else on your plate. I found the magic number is two or three groups. If you like the overall mission of those organizations, there are executive positions to fill that will increase the value of your role.

I already hear the hypothetical question, “But Luke, what if I’m already active on campus?” Awesome! Keep up the good work. Now that you know what to expect from classes, it should be easy to decide whether the commitments you already have will overlap with the most important aspect of your time on campus: the schooling. Best of luck juggling responsibilities this fall!

Celebrities in Social Media

Do you follow any famous people on social media? If so, please weigh into this discussion. I was thinking about the appeal of celebrities in social media today. Maybe you enjoy the type of content they create or the lifestyle they live. I presume that some people tune in to some profiles as a form of “reality” TV of sorts. How many people actually like people like Kim Kardashian for example. How many others are following just to see what happens? Of course, this isn’t the case of every famous profile.

Entertainment has its place on platforms for sure, but what about other types of content? Elon Musk uses his twitter for mostly business promotions and project updates. I could see a great many people monitoring a company instead of seeing what Kylie Jenner had for breakfast on Snapchat. It makes sense to follow a page to keep informed on new ventures or investment opportunities.

Personally, I only follow a hand full of celebrity accounts. Casey Niestat is a fantastic creator, film producer, and life coach. He continues to release quality entertainment in addition to advocating real change. Another example is Philip Defranco, who covers top news stories in a more casual way. That’s generally how I stay informed.

What are some of the accounts you follow? How much of the media you consume is entertainment or news? I enjoy a good mix of losing my faith in humanity and then silly dog videos to balance out the negativity. If you do follow Kylie Jenner or Kim Kardashian, no shade intended.

Comedy in Communication

Ohio Northern University came to life this Family Weekend. Major events include the Harvest and Herb festival in addition to two major SPC (Student Planning Committee) events. Friday night, the “Incredibles 2” came to the Tundra. It was awesome to see students of course, but there were parents and siblings who filled the space. One benefit for members of SPC is the event remains low maintenance, allowing other tasks to fill time. We decided to provide some snacks and then let members enjoy the film. What movie is complete without popcorn?

Incredibles 2 was great, but my favorite part of the weekend was hosting the wildly funny Eric O’Shea. Have you ever sat through a comic that kept a smile on your face throughout the entire show? By the time his set was wrapping up, my face hurt from an hour of constant laughter. Apart from the show, Eric made an effort to connect with the audience. Toward the end of the show, he shifted to a more serious note, pushing the crowd to follow their passions regardless of what other people may think.

After the performance, O’Shea stuck around for pictures. My interactions with him made me think about how effective comedy can be. Motivation is difficult to instill in others. If you’ve ever stayed in bed after an alarm goes off, you know what I mean. With comedy, it’s different. By diffusing the tension in a room, you lower the guards of the people around you and that can lead to real growth or just a good time. I’m sure not everyone came out with the same takeaway, but that’s okay. I’d like to know what you think anyways.

Takeaways from Guy Kawasaki

Optimization of profiles on any social media platform can be difficult. There are enough differences in how each site operates that one design for a post can’t always translate between them. At the end of “The Art of Social Media.” Guy Kawasaki takes a deeper dive into how individual accounts can overcome obstacles and benefit more from different sites.

I tend to use Instagram when it comes to my interactions on social media. Kawasaki seems to understand that most people want to view a picture, a snapshot but not much more. I wish some people on Facebook could adopt this strategy. I don’t know if it bothers you, but I can get overwhelmed by the volume of rants from distant relatives or friends. One of the major draws to Instagram is how quick it can be to scroll through a thread. Twitter is the text equivalent of this format. Each caters to different formats for media.

Platforms have a formula to be successful in posts, but users don’t always know how to use it. Take Facebook. An entire section in chapter 11 boils down to this: the only person who knows what Facebook wants is Mark Zuckerberg (Kawasaki, 141). That means that everyone is constantly experimenting with different types of deliveries of their message. I think it’s actually a positive. What better why is there to innovate a platform than to engage the users and allow them opportunities to test different content formats?

After reflecting on the book as a whole, my biggest take away is we as a community of communicators may use media, but that doesn’t mean that it is always effective in generating a stronger following. Media takes work. There are ways to use systems to benefit both individuals and companies if we take the time to explore what each platform can offer beyond posting pictures of cats.

Sick at School

How do you make the most out of a terrible situation?  Good question. Hi, my name is Luke. If you’re reading my blog you probably know that. I plan to answer that first question, but let me ask another first; have you ever been sick? It’s not a fun time. Between trips to the bathroom and the nagging feeling in your stomach, it can be hard to think about productive things to do. In those moments though, we decide to either feel sorry for ourselves or take as much action as we can to get well.

I got sick after my morning class today. I’ll spare you the details of that if you agree to hear the rest of the story. I knew I had a few hours and a choice to make before my next class. I could rest and have the potential to feel better, or I could study for an exam that was worth ten percent of the grade. I chose the latter.

Once I managed to settle in for final reviews, I started to feel better. It was a “calm before the storm” moment that I found equal parts thrilling and terrifying. After a bit of cramming and a cup of tea, I was ready to face the test. I wonder how much the extra time added to my confidence when I started flipping through pages of Spanish.

Using time wisely might have been awful at the moment when I didn’t want to move, but it certainly feels better knowing that a bit of drive has the potential to change a day. Watch out for those fall bugs that tend to hang around campus! If you are bogged down with illness or homework, I hope the two don’t meet. In the case that they do, remember to stay healthy in spirit.

Talking Cars

I had a conversation with an old friend this past week about cars. Click here to listen to our podcast. Below is the framework of the podcast. I wanted to start off talking about my experience with Elliot. A few years ago we took a trip that we reference in the audio. We drove 13 hours to get a car and we talk about why that was the case.

Here are the questions I had prepared:

Tell me a bit about your experience with cars. Why did you choose to go to UNOH (a car school in Lima, OH)?

What have you done to your car and why is it special to you?

What makes a car good?

Do you have advice to people looking into the profession?

You may wonder why I didn't have that many questions to ask. A lot of that comes from the fact that I know that each point will have a response that will lead down the rabbit hole. Elliot and I have been friends for going on 10 years. I had a feeling that we would come up with a lot more to talk about that would be more interesting. I hope you enjoy!

Wendy's and Guy Kawasaki

Even if you’re representing yourself, you still have to make posts interesting or entertaining if you want to build a following. Think about the companies that have successful social media, it almost makes sense to build a brand of conflict if the stakes are low. For example, Wendy’s constantly participates in dialogue on Twitter that pokes fun at not only other companies but also potential customers. The key factor in their success has been the careful wit of the employee(s) responsible for the tweets.

Guy Kawasaki has a much different view of social media than I do. A point that he repeats throughout the book is “if you’re not pissing people off, you’re not using social media aggressively enough.” In the context of chapter 4, his point seems to be people who don’t like an active account will complain or leave. He also mentions giving commentary on things like political issues when they pertain to a business. I’ve never thought of media as a marketing tool, but I guess at its core, that is the functionality of sites like Instagram or Twitter.

Wendy’s also benefits for people @messaging them. Instead of using scheduled posts, Wendy’s let customers initiate a dialogue in hopes of being roasted. This is a departure from what Kawasaki recommends, but it seems to work. If this strategy were unsuccessful, the company would have developed another way to interact. Instead, there are now entire articles about the best responses from this twitter account, which in turn increases the chances of gaining followers. Maybe this account is an exception. It takes a lot of faith in a marketing/ PR / media department to sign off on comedy, especially for a fast food restaurant.

I don’t think that what Wendy’s does reflects all the opinions represented in “The Art of Social Media.” It is hard to argue with the results. Kawasaki’s points about conflict were in the context of content frequency. I wonder what he thinks of the growing personalities of company profiles.

High Expectations

Have you ever watched a movie or played a game where you go in expecting to be utterly blown away and instead leave feeling let down? I think this is a growing phenomenon as media evolves. As a collective judge of entertainment, we are often quick to be critical of things like the creative decisions of directors. This amplifies when we are holding a high expectation for specific content. A great example is the new star wars trilogy.

It’s hard enough to make people care about new characters and even more difficult to simultaneously transition out cultural icons like Luke Skywalker, Han Solo or Princess Leia. Now consider that these new films take place 30 years after the original trilogy. The cultural significance of these characters was almost legendary by the time Disney bought the right to Lucas film and began to build a new franchise. If that pressure wasn’t enough, fans and filmmakers alike have entirely different visions for the direction of star wars. Directors hired and fired so rapidly destroy a unified vision across three movies. Still, I wonder what could have been.

Other films in the star wars universe are thriving. For example, I have yet to hear anywhere near the number of complaints about Rouge One. It is almost as if the real crowd pleasers have been afterthoughts of Disney. Allowing decent filmmakers to express a vision in conversation with the established norms of Lucas film should be at the forefront of Disney as the stories they build continue to emerge. That’s the kind of forward thinking that should stretch across entertainment for shows and games to truly thrive. Creativity and passion for a project should make up more of a business model than trying to market all of the toys and t-shirts that could follow a franchise. Maybe you disagree. What are your thoughts on the future of media or Lucas film?

Settling In

The first few weeks of classes are a test for most students. There is the re-acclimation to classes of course, but there is also a clear cultural distinction between home life and living on your own again. This Labor Day weekend, I have the opportunity to reflect on all the school and social events I have worked with so far.

Rally in the Alley is a live music event hosted by Theta Chi. There were three groups that came out to play. What was wild was the timing. Two days before the event, the headliner canceled and we (Theta Chi) we very fortunate to have some talented volunteers come forward. Attendance was the higher than past years and it was cool to see all sorts of Greek life sitting on the porches as the music projected to all of the Affinity Complex.

SPC hosts a number of events for students. Last week, we provided tacos from Jalapenos to anyone who came to the Tundra. It is incredible how fast the food disappeared. It only took an hour for a few hundred students to clean out our entire supply! I didn’t end up eating there but judging by the turnout, I’d say things were rather successful.

After Tacos on the Tundra, I went back to the Theta Chi hut and took on one of the hottest peppers in the world. I ate a ghost pepper. It's an experience I don't recommend unless you enjoy being ill for a few days. The initial heat was so intense that it was instantly difficult to breathe. Milk helps for a moment, but the real pain came after the heat disappeared. I had an upset stomach for about 36 hours.

Of the three experiences this week, I’d say that Rally was my favorite. I love tacos, but I was working the event so I didn’t get to enjoy it as much. I think it’s pretty obvious why the pepper wasn’t fun! What have you been up to these first few weeks? I hope the start of your school year was full of new experiences!