Kindergarten is Too Late - Masaru Ibuka

“Kindergarten is Too Late” by Masaru Ibuka

Summary of main ideas

1. Every child can be good at studies. It all depends on the teaching method.
2. Bringing up a genius is not the aim of early child development.
3. A newborn baby can distinguish objects by association and listen to the music. A child under one year old can swim. A child under three years old can memorize any information.
4. The people who surround the child play a determining role his development. The genes are of secondary importance.
5. Children surrounded by bright colors and a variety of sounds develop much quicker than those who always stay at home.
6. It’s useful for your baby’s development if you often hold him in your arms, sleep together and talk to him as much as possible. Harmonious relationships between mother and father are one of the main underlying reasons for the child’s sound development. Father’s role should be as important as the mother’s.
7. Children should communicate with other children. Quarrels are pat of the first experience in a social group.
8. Upbringing principles. The most effective way to get a child to do something is to ignite his interest. By repeating the same tale many times you ensure it’s in your child's memory. Children’s fantasies develop their creativity. You should develop your child’s intuition. Telling the truth about sexual relations is very important.
9. Playing musical instruments develops the ability to concentrate. Early development helps generate leadership qualities and train the memory. You should surround your child with beauty to teach him to appreciate it. Emphasize his achievements: one success stimulates another. Creativity and skills. Give a pencil to your child as soon as soon as possible. Let him try many different materials and texture. Do not buy so many toys for your child if you want him to be exceptional: it’s better to create new games together with your child. It is wrong to avoid everything that can be dangerous for a kid: he can use a needle or a hammer under his parents’ supervision and then on his own. It’s better to buy the toys which a child can use by himself; things like modeling and origami stimulate early development; role-playing games encourage the creativity; walking is very useful. For kids, play and work are equal.
10. Things that you shouldn’t avoid. A preview of things ahead: early development is not preparation for kindergarten, and you don’t have to always use prohibitions and restrictions while bringing up your child.

What is this book about?

This book is about the principal paths of early child development. It touches upon the ideas of how to make your child ready for the modern world. You will learn about the parents’ role in child upbringing, about the amount of time you should spend with your child and the results you can achieve by spending time together.

About the author

1. The author of this book is not a specialist of child education or development, which makes him free from prejudices formed by standard theories.
2. He is the co-founder of Sony, one of those people who helped Japan rise from the ashes.
3. He is an executive director of Early Development Association and the head of an organization which trains and educates talented children.

Summary

According to Masaru Ibuka, a child can achieve anything. Adults may work very hard while studying something new, but still not get the result they anticipate. Let us look at the children under 3 years old. They develop a lot during a very short time. They learn to walk and speak and they can easily study a foreign language at the same time or learn how to play some instrument.

The author of this book established the unique Early Development Association in Japan, where he analyzes in detail all the aspects of children under 3 years old.

1. Important period
There is an opinion that the abilities and temperament are inborn features and that it’s clear since birth whether a child is smart or not. The author carefully studied the brain physiology features and child psychology, and he found out that child experience under 3 years old is the basis for a development of his mental abilities. As a rule, parents think that the best time for a child development begins after 3 years old, but according to Masaru Ibuka, it is too late.

Every child can be good at studies. It all depends on the teaching method. Usually if the child has developmental lag his parents don’t intend to develop his skills and talents. They think that learning to read and write will be enough for their kid. But the experience of Dr. Shinichi Suzuki showed that even children with a developmental lag can be well-educated.

Bringing up a genius is not the aim of early child development. The real purpose of it is to make the child feel better in the modern society. Studying foreign languages empowers children with an ability to communicate with different people and new cultures. The aim is not to bring up a professor of linguistics, but a broad-minded person. All people are born practically the same if they don’t have any developmental lag. Upbringing determines the personality.

The structure of the brain is formed by the age of 3. Most new-born nerve cells are not functioning; they are steadily connecting and forming solid bonds. Almost all the bases are formed by the age of 3. It doesn’t mean that there is no use to develop and educate the child after 3 years old, but it is necessary to begin his development under this age.

It is important to give a child as much knowledge as possible. Plenty of lessons can affect the child, but on the other hand, if you give a full freedom to your kid, as many of psychologists suggest, it also won’t lead him to any positive result. Lessons should be based on games. This method will be convenient for a child.

What can a little child do?
Little kids have a gift to distinguish the objects by associations, therefore it is necessary to teach him by means of using different images. It is difficult for a child to understand what the number «9» is, but he can easily understand, what the «giraffe» and «fox» are. They even can memorize spelling. Children also can perceive the music from the early age. The researches have shown that even five-month-old can have musical preferences. Classical music is perceived by children especially well.

Children under one year old can swim. According to the author of this book, to teach a child how to swim is the same thing as to teach him how to walk. Children under three years old can memorize any information, if he is interested in it.

2. Early experience influence
The people with whom the child is in contact play a determining role in child’s developing whereas the genes have secondary importance. If the parents are doctors it doesn’t mean that their child will be a doctor too. Parents’ occupation and abilities don’t influence directly on the future of their child.

We think that a child at an early age understands nothing and that is why we can say anything near him, but this is wrong. Children subconsciously understand everything and then when they grown up he will reproduce those words and behavior. That is why if the parents use bad language, it will not be surprising when their child begins use it too.

If you believe that your child should live in a very quite and calm atmosphere, without any bright colors or loud noises in his room then you hamper your child to develop. It is proven that children surrounded by bright colors and different noises develop much quicker than those who always stay at home.

Do you remember what was happening to you when you were one-year-old? 90% would answer they don’t. As a rule, all the memories are from a later age. But there is an amazing fact. If you had studied many languages in your childhood, and then used only one of them, you probably would remember the foreign language you had learned if you found yourself among the people who spoke it. You should give your child as many skills and knowledge as possible, because it will be very useful for him in the future.

3. What is useful for a child?
There are no general rules or recipes in upbringing. Every parent should choose his own style of a child developing according to his abilities and peculiarities.

You should take your baby in the arms often. There is a notion that if you have your kid in your arms all the time, then he begins to obtain everything he wants by means of crying. But it may be more harmful if you leave him alone with his problem. The more often you take your child in the arms the more chances that he will become a sympathetic person.

There is another prejudice that it is bad to sleep together with your child, because then it may become a problem to move him out of your bed. But on the other hand when you bring your child to the bed after the hard day and sleep together it may not only calm you and your kid, but also help to make a close emotional connection between the two of you.

You should talk with your child as much as possible. The experiment has shown that even an hour of talk a day makes your kid speak sooner. So the more you talk the more positive results in speaking your child will achieve.

Parents shouldn’t lisp with children. Even if you think that he doesn’t understand another language, you shouldn’t do that. The child understands everything, it is just his organs of articulation which can’t produce the words in a right way. Lisping will deprive your child of the right to speak properly.

One of the main rule for child development is the harmonious relationships between mother and father. You may think that your kid is too little and understands nothing. There is a true in this opinion, he doesn’t understand the words, but subconsciously he feels some negative energy, which can be very harmful for him.

Father should be on a par with mother. As a rule, mother takes a greater part in child upbringing, but still the kid needs father as well as mother. That’s why you should make an effort to provide a full interaction of all the family members.

Children should communicate with children. Socializing is a very important for kids as well as for adults. Children begin understand other people by chatting and playing with other children. Let your kid communicate and develop with other kids. That will bring him a lot of pleasure and also be very useful.

Quarrels are the first child’s experience in a social group. Often kids quarrel because of toys, swing or something else. Quarrels may teach your child to press his claims or to look for compromises. There is no quarrel without a reason. You shouldn’t criticize your child for his quarreling with somebody. This is just an experience without which he may become a closed person who doesn’t communicate with anybody.

You should be very careful with praises and punishments. As a rule, we notice only wrong actions and very often criticize our children. But if he did something wrong it means that he had some motivation. It’s much better to show him the right way of doing something instead of criticizing. Of course, there are situations when it is necessary to press your claims and punish the kid, but you shouldn’t embellish with it.

4. Upbringing principles

1. Stimulation and love of order
The most effective way to make a child doing something is to provoke his interest. You can force your kid to study, but it will just result in that he will come to hate lessons. The aim of the parents is to provoke a great interest for studying. That way it will be a pleasure for him to get knowledge.

A child at an early age doesn’t understand what is bad and what is good. Good things for him are interesting one’s and vice-versa. Good things – when he will be praised and bad thing – when he will be punished. A little child doesn’t understand the reasons he is criticized, but criticism provokes negative emotions. Adults press on children their way to distinguish good and bad things. The abilities of your kid will develop according the way you use praises and criticize.

Practice makes perfect. Curiosity provokes an aspiration for development. If you read one story many times, you will provoke an interest of your child to read it on his own, so he should learn reading and so on. Children’s fantasies develop their creativity. Let him a freedom in imagination and don’t press on him with your own ideas. This is the way to form a creative person.

It is important to develop intuition in your child. Intuition is a very important feeling, in spite of the fact that it nearly impossible to explain scientifically. As a rule, a child always acts instinctively. You shouldn’t press the intuition of your kid and so you help him to develop his six sense.

It’s very important to tell the truth about sex. If you think that sex is a discussion only for a later age, then you are wrong. This theme is very interesting to your child and if you say nothing, you will provoke even a greater interest. You should explain to your kind the differences between the men and women, tell him about how the babies appear. Your child should have firsthand information about the topic.

2. Temper upbringing in infancy. 
Playing musical instruments develops the ability to concentrate. As a rule, those children who attend some musical lessons are accurate and self-disciplined. If parents provoke an interest of their child he will attend his music classes with a great pleasure. Concentration will help him in the future to work more productively than a person who can’t concentrate. Of course, that will help him with studying as well. The development on the early stage forms leadership qualities. Many people think that such qualities should be developing in later age, but this is wrong. The earlier you begin to develop leadership qualities in your child the better results he will achieve in the future.

It is very important to train your child’s memory. Children can memorize about two hundred short poems under the age of three. But if they don’t use their ability to memorize, their potential is not realized. A kid should enjoy his actions so you should learn poems he likes with him and in this case a couple of repetitions will be enough.

It is necessary to surround your child with beauty from his birth. Let him listen only good and high-quality music see the most beautiful pictures created by mankind. By cultivating the love of art and aesthetics you give your kid an ability to know the world and to distinguish what is bad and what is good.

One success stimulates another. Let your child try different activities to make him businesslike.

3. Creativity and skills

Give a pencil to your child as soon as soon as possible. Eight-month-old can hold a pencil, but even if you give it to a baby and put a sheet of paper beside him, he won’t draw on a paper. He is most likely to tear it in pieces and begins to draw on the walls or on the table. This is his way of self-expression. You should organize the conditions for your kid to let him draw where he wants. By this means you stimulate the development of his creativity.

Standard crayon paper means typical person. By giving a standard crayon paper and grey pencil you take him away of creativity. Child’s vision differs from the vision of adult. Give a big sheet of paper to your kid and let him draw everything he wants.

You shouldn’t buy many toys for your child if you want him to be creative. Too many toys distract his attention. It is much better for him to have a couple of toys and have him invent many new games with them. Children can turn an old pan into the dragon’s cave of princess’ house. That is why you should give him freedom of imagination.

It is wrong to avoid everything which can be dangerous for a kid. You try to protect your child against all dangers, but those dangers teach him which things he can take and which can’t. It’s better to let him touch all the objects he wants, let him try many different materials and textures. This way your little explorer will learn more about the world.

By buying the toys which a child can arrange by himself you stimulate his interest and therefore he can enjoy the success.

Such things as modeling applique work and origami stimulates the child development, therefore those should be the most available ones. If you give clay to a eight-year-old he will hardly begin to model, but he will touch it and notice that it can change the form or he can notice that paper can be crumpled or torn. Those children who try different forms and textures from early childhood are more developed that those who don’t.

Role-playing games encourage the creativeness. Children adore being in the center of attention. Let your child play different roles. Attending drama classes will improve his public speaking skills, which are very important.

Walking is very useful for children. It stimulates brain activity, improve physical shape and emotional condition. Let your child walk!

Very often parents think that it all depends upon the genes. For example, if the parents are sportsmen, they believe that their kid must be a sportsman too, but he won’t if they don’t develop the aspiration for sport and motion activity. Children with less sport potential can achieve more if they were engaged in sports while growing up.

Plays and work are equal for children. Result is the most important part of work for adults whereas for children process is the most important one. You should make your child help around the house. By performing his duties at home a kid studies how to concentrate on the process and be responsible for his actions.

4. The things that you shouldn’t avoid. A preview of things ahead.

The development on the early age is not the preparation for a kindergarten. The modern educational system is not perfect; it is directed at getting marks and passing exams, but not for developing knowledge in children. The development at the early age helps kids to avoid school difficulties.

You should bring up your child in atmosphere of love and care. You are the most important teacher to your kid and you can give him more than the most advanced professor. The development on the early age depends on the attention and conscientiousness of those people who are in contact with the child.

Children are not the property of their parents. Very often parents think like that: «I want my daughter to become a musician» or «I want my son to become an engineer». But those are only parents’ dreams. Child is an independent person with his right to choose his course of life. Parents just can help their child to achieve success.

It is necessary to teach your child to trust other people and that way there will be a world peacе.

Parenting Skills: Positive Reframing

Positive reframing can shore up children’s confidence as well. Credit: iStock

Leo Kanner, author of the first textbook on child psychiatry, used to tell anecdotes about two mothers he knew.

One complained that her sons would spread the Sunday comics on the living room floor to read them.

The other, whose sons had done the same thing as children, said it was one of her fondest memories.

He used to argue that the second mother was the better parent, because she had a more positive attitude.

But what was behind that positive attitude?

Perhaps the mother was thinking about how her children were honing their reading skills. Or, how they were sharing both comics and floor space without fighting.

In other words, she was most likely engaging in what we now call positive reframing, the practice of either focusing on the positive aspects of a bothersome situation or just looking at it differently.

Positive reframing helps us see our children, and our children see themselves in a more favourable light.

If this approach is applied to how we view children, the technique can prevent us from overreacting.

Adolescents
When an adolescent does all those adolescent things, such as leaving her room a mess and spending too much time texting, we can take refuge in the knowledge that by challenging authority and connecting with friends, she is working through an important developmental stage.

Positive reframing can help us understand children from different cultures, too.

For example, Native American students often resist participating in competitive learning games such as spelling bees, causing some teachers to see them as disengaged.

However, when the students' resistance is understood as an expression of a cultural bias toward cooperation over competition, the teacher can see strength in it.

Overcoming Aversions
Applied to helping kids interpret their own behaviour, positive reframing can foster growth. It can help overcome aversions, as it did for one young boy who hated bath time.

Knowing he enjoyed war play, his mother got him to see the bath as a place to enact sea battles, bringing in toy ships and using bubble bath to simulate foamy waves.

The mother of a reluctant eater presented broccoli as "dino trees"—which her "brontosaurus" son would then devour.

Fighting Sleep
A couple with a daughter who resisted going to sleep because her room was dark and scary held a dance party in the dark, after which she associated being in the dark with having a good time.

Positive reframing can shore up children's confidence as well.

On the last play of an important ball game, the right fielder on a children's team I coached, dropped a line-drive fly ball (???), which allowed our opponents to score the winning run.

When the boy came to me distraught, I shared what the pitcher had told me, that his last pitch was too easy to hit, resulting in a hard-to-catch line drive.

I also reminded the boy that before the game, I had denied him time in the outfield to practice 'shagging fly balls.'(???)

He went from thinking he had blown the game to understanding that several factors had contributed to our team's loss.

Finally
Even some of the toughest behaviour problems often respond to positive reframing. For instance, when a first-grader made a beeline for the coloured pencils by walking on chairs and desktops, his teacher said, "That's a great idea to use coloured pencils for your journal and you got them all by yourself."

She went on to suggest that in the future, he keep his feet on the floor, which he agreed to do.

Another teacher, faced with a student, James, who suddenly jumped up from a class meeting and started to dance, turned to his classmates and said matter-of-factly, "James likes to dance." James responded by sitting down and rejoining the meeting.

The developmental psychologist Jerome Bruner praises the unflappable Head Start teacher who, while reading "Little Red Riding Hood" to her young students, was stopped short at the famous lines "All the better to eat you!" line.

At this point, one little boy leapt to his feet, furious, and began cursing the wolf, swearing like a sailor. The teacher simply reflected to herself on how much meaning the boy was finding in the story and then asked him how he would have written it differently. The question got him thinking and quieted him down.

We might try to emulate that teacher's self-possession and know-how the next time a kid's shenanigans drive us to salty language ourselves.

Remember, looking on the bright side is for anyone who wants to help children develop while preserving their own sanity.

Writing a Better CV

Creating a winning CV is a feat of strategy involving focus, wording, design, and content selection.

To achieve a career marketing document that wins interviews, all areas of the strategy must be spot-on and consciously used in the most effective manner.

One of the most common mistakes job candidates make when writing their CVs is the mistake of not paying attention to strategy and word selection.

There are actually words that are commonly used on CVs that can have a detrimental impact on the effectiveness of the CV.

When most job candidates write their own CVs, they don't consider word choice because they are primarily worried about getting down the basic information.

Verbiage is critical and the wrong word choice can sabotage your CV.

The average agent and/or hiring manager sees hundreds of CVs from qualified candidates. CVs begin to look and sound the same to them. Here are some words and phrases to avoid:

Soft-skill Descriptions
Job seekers feel they need to communicate their soft-skills to the employer because they believe they are the traits that make them unique. There is nothing further from the truth. Soft-skills are so common that hiring managers pay no attention to them.

Soft-skill phrases to avoid or severely limit:

• Excellent communication skills
• Strong work ethic
• Personable presenter
• Detail-oriented

Do not bore the reader to tears with these trite, overused and tired phrases. After all, no one will write that he/she takes long lunches, is lazy, and argues a lot with peers.

Hence, it is much more effective to write description that is action-based and demonstrates these abilities rather than just laying claim to them.

For example, rather than just stating you are an "excellent presenter," you could say "Developed and presented 50+ multi-media presentations to prospects resulting in 35 new accounts totalling £300,000 in new revenues."

Age, Health, Appearance
Many seasoned job seekers are facing that scary time warp known as pre-retirement and fear age discrimination. They feel they can counter this perceived hurdle by giving description of their age or health. Such description can be death to a CV because rather than helping, it significantly hurts.

Age, health, appearance phrases to avoid:
- Youthful
- Athletic
- Fit
- Healthy
- Mature

Additionally, unless specifically requested, there is no need to include personal information such as date of birth, marital status, children or other similar information. This information is typically used to exclude candidates from consideration in the hiring process rather than include them. Unless the employer specifically asks, keep this information confidential.

Passive Voice
Many people write in passive voice because that is how we've been taught to write "formally" in lower school composition. The problem with passive voice, however, is that it is just that -- passive! A CV needs to have punch and sparkle and communicate an active, aggressive candidate. Passive voice does not accomplish that.

Indicators of the passive voice:

- Responsible for
- Duties included
- Served as
- Actions encompassed

Rather than saying "Responsible for management of three direct reports" change it up to "Managed 3 direct reports." It is a shorter, more direct mode of writing and adds impact to the way the CV reads.

On the flip side, whilst action verbs are great, don't overdo it. I have actually seen:
- Smashed numbers through the roof
- Electrified sales team to produce
- Pushed close rate by 10 per cent

Consider your word choice in a CV
A CV is a marketing document for your career just as a brochure is a marketing document for a product or service.

Companies put careful thought and consideration into each and every word that goes into marketing copy and you should do the same in your CV.

These words stand in your place with the employer and need to showcase you in a powerful way. In a perfect world, these things would not matter, but in the reality of job search today, they matter a great deal. 

Be wise -- stop and give some thought to the words you choose.

Peculiar behaviours witnessed in job interviews

Are you on the job hunt and ready to go on your next interview?

Then you should definitely be prepared to avoid the most common interview mistakes.

Dress appropriately, turn off your cell phone, do your research about the company and prepare the most common interview questions.

Appearing disinterested is the No. 1 turnoff for employers.

Also trying too hard to make a lasting impression on a prospective employer in an interview could backfire.

The most common and most outlandish job interview mistakes to avoid, hiring managers provided real-life examples of the most peculiar behaviours they witnessed in job interviews:

• Being asked about the reasons why he quit his last position in a bank, a candidate said it was because he was always tempted to steal.
• Another jobseeker denied that he had a cell phone with him even though it could be heard ringing in the briefcase beside him.
• The next candidate emptied the employer's candy dish into her pocket.
• This applicant was quite honest about his weaknesses. He said he didn't like getting up early and didn't like to read.
• Trying to hide away from the taxman? The candidate asked to be paid "under the table."
• He must have meant it as a friendly gesture. The candidate reached over and placed a hand on the interviewer's knee.
• The candidate commented that he would do whatever it takes to get the job done, legal or not.
• This candidate's interview must have gone really well. He hugged the president of the company.
• The next jobseeker must have been very hungry. He called his wife to see what they were having for dinner.
• Another candidate asked to postpone the start date so she could still get holiday gifts from vendors at her current job.
• This job applicant called in sick to her current employer during the interview, faking an illness.
• The candidate said he didn't want the job if he had to work a lot.
• The next jobseeker wouldn't answer a question because he thought they would steal his idea and not hire him.

A job interview can be one of the most nerve-wracking experiences out there, so it's important to plan and practice.

Have a friend run through a mock interview with you, asking questions you think will come up and some curve balls you're not expecting.

Thoroughly research the company ahead of time and draft responses that incorporate your accomplishments.
The more prepared you are, the less likely you are to run into mishaps.

Interview Body Language

It takes just seconds for an interviewer to make a judgement about a candidate - often before they even speak.

'Human beings use many channels of communication to express themselves.'

'In the past, it was thought that verbal channels were the most important - i.e., what a person expresses in words and writing - but in recent years the study of non-verbal communication has made some interesting discoveries.

'We now know that humans are highly skilled at reading each other's body language to understand what a person is thinking and feeling, and that we do this subconsciously.'

In fact, experts estimate that 93 per cent of the information we receive about any situation comes non-verbally rather than verbally.

'We make our initial judgement about a person based almost entirely on their body language in as little as 20 seconds.'

In an interview situation, those seconds could have a major impact on your future.

Make eye contact
You'll want to establish rapport with the interviewer as quickly as possible - and eye contact, along with a warm smile, is one of the best ways to make a connection.

'Good eye contact tells your interviewer that you are confident enough to - literally - look them in the eye. It also creates a relationship between you, albeit temporarily, that makes them more sympathetic to you.'

While that may sound simple enough, getting it right isn't always easy. The difference between just enough and too much can be subtle.

'Hold eye contact too strongly or for too long and it can seem threatening.'

'Instead, look towards the interviewer's eyes for a while, then away - focussing on their mouth as they speak rather than staring into their eyes.'

Don't forget to smile either. If you're feeling anxious you're likely to frown, but a smile - even a nervous one - can help to get things off to a friendly start.

The hand shake
While most body language cues are interpreted subconsciously, the hand shake is a physical contact that the interview is likely to remember.

Confidence is key here - a limp handshake or a barely-there connection can be awkward, so take the offered hand confidently. While it should be firm, avoid a crushing pressure.

Few of us shake hands every day - if you're not confident, enlist the help of friends to feedback on your handshake and practice until it comes naturally.

Take a seat...
Once the introductions and small talk is over, you'll be invited to take a seat - here again, body language matters.

'When you sit down, face your interviewer directly then angle yourself ever so slightly. Sitting opposite them shows you're confident and honest, while positioning yourself at a slight angle avoids coming across as confrontational.'

'And try to avoid any positions that may seem even unconsciously sexual - crossed legs in a short skirt for her or open legs for him.'

Many candidates make the mistake of concentrating too hard on what they want to get across - rather than listening to what's being asked.

Paying attention - and demonstrating that through your body language - can help in more ways than one.

'A slight tilt of the head as the interviewer talks will let them feel listened to and taken seriously - while some (but not too many gestures) as you talk will help them focus and pay more attention to what you're saying.'

Sitting upright and leaning in slightly will also signal that you're interested in what's being said.

'While it's not a good idea to spend your interview grinning broadly, try to avoid scowling or frowning.'

'An interviewer - like all other human beings - wants to feel you are friendly, so smiling appropriately at their comments, as well as nodding when you agree, will help them warm to you,' adds Susan.

Mirror with confidence
A more advanced form of building rapport is to use the mirroring technique - where you deliberately match your body language to that of the other person.

'There's a lot been written about the importance of "mirroring" gesture and expression as a way to build rapport quickly.'

'It does work, but only when it's genuinely a sign that you are in tune with your interviewer; mirror as a deliberate strategy and any experienced interviewer will spot your intention and mark you down.'

'A better and more subtle way is to relax, soften your body language, and observe your interviewer, allowing yourself to follow their posture, gesture and expression naturally as you feel more in tune with them.

Body language beyond the interview
Improving your awareness of body language doesn't just help during the interview - it can also prove useful throughout the rest of your career.

'You can use your own body language to create rapport and cooperation in others by making sure that you are "in step" with them.

'For example, a stressful meeting can often be de-stressed by pitching your voice tone to match others - then when you've got their attention, gradually lowering the volume of what you are saying to calm the atmosphere.'

While knowledge of body language can be useful for spotting what people are thinking and feeling, Susan is keen to point out that there are no "rules".

'You can't say one signal means one thing, such as crossed arms and defensiveness - it could be that someone is crossing their arms to keep warm in a cold room.

But if you know that a colleague usually does cross his arms when he's defensive, remember that signal and - if you see it - act to defuse the situation.'

14 Ways to Acquire Knowledge - James T. Mangan

1. PRACTICE and perseverence
Consider the knowledge you already have – the things you really know you can do. They are the things you have done over and over; practiced them so often that they became second nature.

Every normal person knows how to walk and talk. But he could never have acquired this knowledge without practice and persistence. 

For the young child can't do the things that are easy for older people without first doing them over and over and over. …

Most of us quit on the first or second attempt. But the man who is really going to be educated, who intends to know, is going to stay with it until it is done. Practice and persevere!

2. ASK
Any normal child, at about the age of three or four, reaches the asking period, the time when that quickly developing brain is most eager for knowledge.

"When?" "Where?" "How?" "What?" and "Why?" begs the child – but all too often the reply is "Keep still!" "Leave me alone!" "Don't be a pest!"

Those first bitter refusals to our honest questions of childhood all too often squelch our "Asking faculty." We grow up to be men and women, still eager for knowledge, but afraid and ashamed to ask how to get it. …

Every person possessing knowledge is more than willing to communicate what he knows to any serious, sincere person who asks.

The question never makes the asker seem foolish or childish – rather, to ask is to command the respect of the other person who in the act of helping you is drawn closer to you, likes you better and will go out of his way on any future occasion to share his knowledge with you.

Ask! When you ask, you have to be humble. You have to admit you don't know! But what's so terrible about that?

Everybody knows that no man knows everything, and to ask is merely to let the other know that you are honest about things pertaining to knowledge.

3. DESIRE
You never learn much until you really want to learn. A million people have said: "Gee, I wish I were musical!" "If I only could do that!" or "How I wish I had a good education!" But they were only talking words – they didn't mean it. …

Desire is the foundation of all learning and you can only climb up the ladder of knowledge by desiring to learn. …

If you don't desire to learn you're either a numskull or a "know-it-all" and the world wants nothing to do with either type of individual. We have plenty already.

4. GET IT FROM YOURSELF
You may be surprised to hear that you already know a great deal! It's all inside you – it's all there – you couldn't live as long as you have and not be full of knowledge. …

Most of your knowledge, however – and this is the great difference between non-education and education – is not in shape to be used, you haven't it on the tip of your tongue.

It's hidden, buried away down inside of you – and because you can't see it, you think it isn't there.

Knowledge is knowledge only when it takes a shape, when it can be put into words, or reduced to a principle – and it's now up to you to go to work on your own gold mine, to refine the crude ore.

5. WALK AROUND IT
Any time you see something new or very special, if the thing is resting on the ground, as your examination and inspection proceeds, you find that you eventually walk around it.

You desire to know the thing better by looking at it from all angles. … To acquire knowledge walk around the thing studied.

The thing is not only what you touch, what you see; it has many other sides, many other conditions, many other relations which you cannot know until you study it from all angles.

The narrow mind stays rooted in one spot; the broad mind is free, inquiring, unprejudiced; it seeks to learn "both sides of the story."

Don't screen off from your own consciousness the bigger side of your work. Don't be afraid you'll harm yourself if you have to change a preconceived opinion. Have a free, broad, open mind!

Be fair to the thing studied as well as to yourself. When it comes up for your examination, walk around it! The short trip will bring long knowledge.

6. EXPERIMENT
The world honours the man who is eager to plant new seeds of study today so he may harvest a fresh crop of knowledge tomorrow.

The world is sick of the man who is always harking back to the past and thinks everything wroth knowing has already been learned. … Respect the past, take what it offers, but don't live in it.

To learn, experiment! Try something new. See what happens. Lindbergh experimented when he flew the Atlantic. Pasteur experimented with bacteria and made cow's milk safe for the human race. Franklin experimented with a kite and introduced electricity.

The greatest experiment is nearly always a solo. The individual, seeking to learn, tries something new but only tries it on himself.

If he fails, he has hurt only himself. If he succeeds he has made a discovery many people can use. Experiment only with your own time, your own money, your own labor.

That's the honest, sincere type of experiment. It's rich. The cheap experiment is to use other people's money, other people's destinies, other people's bodies as if they were guinea pigs.

7. TEACH
If you would have knowledge, knowledge sure and sound, teach. Teach your children, teach your associates, teach your friends. In the very act of teaching, you will learn far more than your best pupil. …

Knowledge is relative; you possess it in degrees. You know more about reading, writing, and arithmetic than your young child. But teach that child at every opportunity; try to pass on to him all you know, and the very attempt will produce a great deal more knowledge inside your own brain.

8. READ
From time immemorial it has been commonly understood that the best way to acquire knowledge was to read. That is not true.

Reading is only one way to knowledge, and in the writer's opinion, not the best way but you can surely learn from reading if you read in the proper manner.

What you read is important, but not all important. How you read is the main consideration. For if you know how to read, there's a world of education even in the newspapers, the magazines, on a single billboard or a stray advertising dodger.

The secret of good reading is this: read critically!

Somebody wrote that stuff you're reading. It was a definite individual, working with a pen, pencil or typewriter – the writing came from his mind and his only.

If you were face to face with him and listening instead of reading, you would be a great deal more critical than the average reader is.

Listening, you would weigh his personality, you would form some judgment about his truthfulness, his ability.

But by reading, you drop all judgment, and swallow his words whole – just as if the act of printing the thing made it true! …

If you must read to acquire knowledge, read critically. Believe nothing till it's understood, till it's clearly proven.

9. WRITE
To know it – write it! If you're writing to explain, you're explaining it to yourself! If you're writing to inspire, you're inspiring yourself! If you're writing to record, you're recording it on your own memory.

How often you have written something down to be sure you would have a record of it, only to find that you never needed the written record because you had learned it by heart! …

The men of the best memories are those who make notes, who write things down. They just don't write to remember, they write to learn and because they DO learn by writing, they seldom need to consult their notes, they have brilliant, amazing memories.

How different from the glib, slipshod individual who is too proud or too lazy to write, who trusts everything to memory, forgets so easily, and possesses so little real knowledge. …

Write! Writing, to knowledge, is a certified check. You know what you know once you have written it down!

10. LISTEN
You have a pair of ears – use them! When the other man talks, give him a chance. Pay attention. If you listen you may hear something useful to you.

If you listen you may receive a warning that is worth following. If you listen, you may earn the respect of those whose respect you prize.

Pay attention to the person speaking. Contemplate the meaning of his words, the nature of his thoughts. Grasp and retain the truth.

Of all the ways to acquire knowledge, this way requires least effort on your part. You hardly have to do any work. You are bound to pick up information. It's easy, it's surefire.

11. OBSERVE
Keep your eyes open. There are things happening, all around you, all the time. The scene of events is interesting, illuminating, full of news and meaning.

It's a great show – an impressive parade of things worth knowing. Admission is free – keep your eyes open. …

There are only two kinds of experience: the experience of ourselves and the experience of others. Our own experience is slow, laboured, costly, and often hard to bear.

The experience of others is a ready-made set of directions on knowledge and life. Their experience is free; we need suffer none of their hardships; we may collect on all their good deeds. All we have to do is observe!

Observe! Especially the good man, the valorous deed. Observe the winner that you yourself may strive to follow that winning example and learn the scores of different means and devices that make success possible.

Observe! Observe the loser that you may escape his mistakes, avoid the pitfalls that dragged him down.

Observe the listless, indifferent, neutral people who do nothing, know nothing, are nothing. Observe them and then differ from them.

12. PUT IN ORDER
Order is Heaven's first law and the only good knowledge is orderly knowledge! You must put your information and your thoughts in order before you can effectively handle your own knowledge.

Otherwise you will jump around in conversation like a grasshopper, your arguments will be confused and distributed, your brain will be in a dizzy whirl all the time.

13. DEFINE
A definition is a statement about a thing which includes everything the thing is and excludes everything it is not.

A definition of a chair must include every chair, whether it be kitchen chair, a high chair, a dentist's chair, or the electric chair, It must exclude everything which isn't a chair, even those things which come close, such as a stool, a bench, a sofa. …

I am sorry to state that until you can so define a chair or a door (or a thousand other everyday familiar objects) you don't really know what these things are.

You may have the ability to recognize them and describe them but you can't tell what their nature is. Your knowledge is not exact.

14. REASON
Animals have knowledge but only men can reason. The better you can reason the farther you separate yourself from animals.

The process by which you reason is known as logic. Logic teaches you how to derive a previously unknown truth from the facts already at hand. Logic teaches you how to be sure whether what you think is true is really true. …

Logic is the supreme avenue to intellectual truth. Don't ever despair of possessing a logical mind. You don't have to study it for years, read books and digest a mountain of data. All you have to remember is one word – compare.

Compare all points in a proposition. Note the similarity – that tells you something new. Note the difference – that tells you something new. Then take the new things you've found and check them against established laws or principles.

This is logic. This is reason. This is knowledge in its highest form.

James T. Mangan

The Writer's Technique in Thirteen Theses

THE WRITER'S TECHNIQUE IN THIRTEEN THESES

1. Anyone intending to embark on a major work should be lenient with himself and, having completed a stint, deny himself nothing that will not prejudice the next.
2. Talk about what you have written, by all means, but do not read from it while the work is in progress. Every gratification procured in this way will slacken your tempo. If this regime is followed, the growing desire to communicate will become in the end a motor for completion.
3. In your working conditions avoid everyday mediocrity. Semi-relaxation, to a background of insipid sounds, is degrading. On the other hand, accompaniment by an etude or a cacophony of voices can become as significant for work as the perceptible silence of the night. If the latter sharpens the inner ear, the former acts as a touchstone for a diction ample enough to bury even the most wayward sounds.
4. Avoid haphazard writing materials. A pedantic adherence to certain papers, pens, inks is beneficial. No luxury, but an abundance of these utensils is indispensable.
5. Let no thought pass incognito, and keep your notebook as strictly as the authorities keep their register of aliens.
6. Keep your pen aloof from inspiration, which it will then attract with magnetic power. The more circumspectly you delay writing down an idea, the more maturely developed it will be on surrendering itself. Speech conquers thought, but writing commands it.
7. Never stop writing because you have run out of ideas. Literary honour requires that one break off only at an appointed moment (a mealtime, a meeting) or at the end of the work.
8. Fill the lacunae of inspiration by tidily copying out what is already written. Intuition will awaken in the process.
9. Nulla dies sine linea ['No day without a line'] – but there may well be weeks.
10. Consider no work perfect over which you have not once sat from evening to broad daylight.
11. Do not write the conclusion of a work in your familiar study. You would not find the necessary courage there.
12. Stages of composition: idea – style – writing. The value of the fair copy is that in producing it you confine attention to calligraphy. The idea kills inspiration, style fetters the idea, writing pays off style.
13. The work is the death mask of its conception.

How to Write with Style for the US Market - Vonnegut

Kurt Vonnegut outlines eight rules for great writing:

Find a Subject You Care About
Find a subject you care about and which you in your heart feel others should care about.

It is this genuine caring, and not your games with language, which will be the most compelling and seductive element in your style.

I am not urging you to write a novel, by the way — although I would not be sorry if you wrote one, provided you genuinely cared about something.

A petition to the mayor about a pothole in front of your hose or a love letter to the girl next door will do.

Do Not Ramble, Though I won’t ramble on about that.

Keep It Simple
As for your use of language: Remember that two great masters of language, William shakespeare and James Joyce, wrote sentences which were almost childlike when their subjects were most profound. ‘To be or not to be?’ asks Shakespeare’s Hamlet.

The longest word is three letters long. Joyce, when he was frisky, could put together a sentence as intricate and as glittering as a necklace for Cleopatra, but my favorite sentence in his short story ‘Eveline’ is just this one: ‘She was tired.’ At that point in the story, no other words could break the heart of a reader as those three words do.

Simplicity of language is not only reputable, but perhaps even sacred. The Bible opens with a sentence well within the writing skills of a lively fourteen-year-old: ‘In the beginning God created the heaven and earth.’

Have the Guts to Cut
It may be that you, too, are capable of making necklaces for Cleopatra, so to speak, but your eloquence should be the servant of the ideas in your head. Your rule might be this: If a sentence, no matter how excellent, does not illuminate your subject in some new and useful way, scratch it out.

Sound like Yourself
The writing style which is most natural for you is bound to echo the speech you heard when a child. English was the novelist Joseph Conrad’s third language, and much that seems piquant in his use of English was no doubt coloured by his first language, which was Polish.

Lucky indeed is the writer who has grown up in Ireland, for the English spoken there is so amusing and musical. I myself grew up in Indianapolis, where common speech sounds like a band saw cutting galvanized tin, and employs a vocabulary as un-ornamental as a monkey wrench.

I find that I trust my own writing most when I sound most like a person from Indianapolis, which is what I am. Others seem to trust it most, too.

What alternatives do I have? The one most vehemently recommended by teachers has no doubt been pressed on you, as well: to write like a cultivated Englishmen of a century or more ago.

Say What You Mean to Say
I used to be exasperated by such teachers, but no more. I understand now that all those antique essays and stories, against which I was to compare my own work, were not magnificent for their dated-ness or foreign-ness, but for saying precisely what their authors meant them to say.

My teachers wished me to write accurately, always selecting the most effective words, and relating the words to one another unambiguously, rigidly, like parts of a machine.

The teachers did not want to turn me into an Englishman after all. They hoped that I would become understandable — and therefore understood.

Consequently, there strated my dream of doing with words what Pablo Picasso did with paint or what any number of jazz idols did with music.

If I broke all the rules of punctuation, had words mean whatever I wanted them to mean, and strung them together higgledly-piggledy, I would simply not be understood.

So you, too, had better avoid Picasso-style or jazz-style writing if you have something worth saying and wish to be understood.

Readers want our pages to look very much like pages they have seen before. Why? This is because they themselves have a tough job to do, and they need all the help they can get from us.

Pity the Readers
Readers have to identify thousands of little marks on paper, and make sense of them immediately. They have to read, an art so difficult that most people don’t really master it even after having studied it all through grade school and high school — twelve long years.

So this discussion must finally acknowledge that our stylistic options as writers are neither numerous nor glamorous, since our readers are bound to be such imperfect artists.

Our audience requires us to be sympathetic and patient teachers, ever willing to simplify and clarify, whereas we would rather soar high above the crowd, singing like nightingales.

That is the bad news. The good news is that we Americans are governed under a unique constitution, which allows us to write whatever we please without fear of punishment.

So, the most meaningful aspect of our styles, which is what we choose to write about, is utterly unlimited.

For Really Detailed Advice
For a discussion of literary style in a narrower sense, a more technical sense, I commend to your attention The Elements of Style, by Strunk, Jr., and E. B. White.

Arguably, E.B. White is, one of the most admirable literary stylists this country (US) has so far produced.

You should realize, too, that no one would care how well or badly Mr. White expressed himself if he did not have perfectly enchanting things to say.

Further Reading
For more timeless wisdom on writing;

• H. P. Lovecraft’s advice to aspiring writers, 
• F. Scott Fitzgerald’s letter to his daughter, 
• Zadie Smith’s 10 rules of writing, 
• Kurt Vonnegut’s 8 guidelines for a great story, 
• David Ogilvy’s 10 no-bullshit tips, 
• Henry Miller’s 11 commandments, 
• Jack Kerouac’s 30 beliefs and techniques, 
• John Steinbeck’s 6 pointers, 
• Neil Gaiman’s 8 rules, 
• Margaret Atwood’s 10 practical tips, and 
• Susan Sontag’s synthesized learnings.

Producing Better Podcast

Imagination. It is the wonderful result of recorded audio. When you listen to the radio, podcasts, audiobooks or other recorded audio, the imagination is in full motion. Your imagination belongs to you and you alone. You have full control. Your imagination is unlike any other.

Your imagination is used for your sole benefit. The characters and scenes created in your “Theater of the Mind” are exactly how you want them to look. The images are created in your mind in a way that gives you the greatest pleasure. It is all to benefit you.

The wonderful details in a story can stir the imagination in magical ways.

Video typically doesn’t stimulate the imagination the way audio does. When you see a car in a video, you know exactly what it looks like. If you and I both see a car in a video, we would both describe it in very similar ways. There is not much left to interpretation.

There are ways to include recorded production elements within your show that will enhance your listener’s imagination and experience.

When you add recorded elements, the imagination of your listener will be further stimulated. You will help create elements within your listener’s “Theater of the Mind.”

Here are a few recorded elements you could easily add to your podcast to spice up the listening experience.

1. Intro/Outro

This is show biz. You produce your show to entertain just as much as inform. Your podcast is just as much “show” as it is “business.” Add some sizzle to your show.
A produced “intro” and “outro” for your podcast is an easy first step. The “intro” opens the show, as in “introduction.” The “outro” closes the show, similar to a conclusion. At a minimum, find a great piece of music that will open and close your show. You can find many sites on the internet that sell music clips for less than a few dollars.

2. Interviews

Guest interviews are a great way to add depth to your audio. A second voice on the show will stir the imagination. Listeners will wonder what your guest looks like. The stories told during the interview will create visions in the mind of your listener.
Listeners enjoy eavesdropping on other conversations more than listening to a lecture. By adding interviews to your show, you allow your listener this pleasure. Sure, you could provide the information yourself rather than going through all the work to secure, arrange and conduct the interview. If you are hoping to develop a relationship with your listener using content that will be engaging, go the extra step by including interviews within your podcast.

3. Listeners

Adding listener audio to your show is another way to juice up your podcast. When you simply read a listener e-mail, the question typically lacks the passion that would come from the listener. The inflection is a little different than the caller would use. The question is also asked in the same cadence, style and voice that you ask every other question.
When you add listener audio, a second dimension is added to the show. Though the caller isn’t actually there, the second voice almost creates a conversation. Your audience is now listening to a conversation rather than a monologue. The question will also be asked in a way unique to the caller.
Similar to the way interviews stimulate the listener’s imagination, callers can add to the “Theater of the Mind.”
You don’t need to include the entire phone call. It is show biz. Use the part of the call that will most add to your show. If the call includes a bunch of details not relevant to the question or the show, feel free to edit those parts out of the call. As long as you are not changing the intention of the caller, or making it sound like they are saying something they didn’t say, editing the call is perfectly acceptable.

4. Audio Examples

When you make reference to a piece of audio, play a sample. If you are talking about an interview that Jimmy Johnson gave after a race, play a clip of that interview. Your listeners will be further engaged by the additional voice. Audio examples are just another way to add that additional level of production to your show.
Additional audio will take your listener to another place. An interview clip will transport your listener to the interview location. An old television clip with create memories of seeing the show. A sample of a classic speech may elicit visions of the orator. Use audio to enhance the listening experience.

5. Celebrity Endorsements

People like to have their decisions validated. That is why many companies hire celebrities to endorse their products. If Michael Jordan wears Hanes, it should be alright for me to wear Hanes as well. I don’t feel like I’m the only one doing it when I see Michael Jordan doing it.
You can use this concept to benefit your podcast. If you can get a well-known name in your area of expertise to record a quick endorsement for your show, that piece of audio will add an element of credibility to your podcast. Your listeners will feel like they are not alone in liking your show. They will be validated.

6. Sound Effects

Sound effects can easily enhance the imagination. You need to be careful that you don’t overuse sound effects. Too many effects can make your show sound amateur. However, a well-placed effect here and there can add to the delight of listening.
Adam Carolla has a producer who is responsible for adding sound effects to the show. If you haven’t spent time with Adam’s podcast, listen to one episode simply for the production elements. His content may not be your cup of tea. However, the production of the show must be admired.

The magic of recorded audio comes from the imagination. When you stir wonderful visions in the “Theater of the Mind” of your listener, you will truly begin to engage your audience. You can then begin to build meaningful relationships with your listeners and keep them coming back again and again. Use these ideas to add a little “show biz” to your podcast today.

Dark Side of Moon

Simple Ways to Expand Your Blog Through Social Media

How are you sharing your blog? How are you making sure your content is found and then shared?
Are you promoting yourself via social networks, or are you leaving that to your readers? Do you make sure potential clients know about your blog, if you’re using it as a business platform?
Are you simply using the standard sharing options - Twitter, Facebook, Google+, etc – or are you thinking of ways you can be a little creative when it comes to sharing your blog socially?
Let’s face it, if you’re using your blog as a business platform then the more eyeballs it gets, the better for finding potential new clients or customers. Even a personal blog can benefit from extra visitors.
So here are a few ways you can get outside the normal views of retweets and shares, and promote your blog to a bigger crowd that may miss it otherwise.

Social Sharing Groups

The most oft-used method of sharing a blog post is via social sharing buttons on the post itself.
These are either located at the top and/or bottom of the post, or to the side. But why not take this a little further, and create a social sharing group?
For example, one of the best resources for traffic to this blog is Stumbleupon. This is a great social sharing platform that lets you “stumble” the web, and allows you to give either a thumbs up or down to the site you’re currently on (you can also leave a review if you like).

What happens then is that the site is put into the Stumbleupon library, so anyone else using the stumble option could land on your blog. If they then like it, they give you a thumbs up and your currency increases on Stumbleupon. It’s easier than it sounds, and it’s a great passive traffic generator.
So create a Stumble group.
Grab about 10 of your online friends, and help promote each other’s blogs. Anytime a new post is published, have one of the group stumble it, then you can give it a thumbs up.
You can then take this idea to other social bookmarks - Reddit, Digg, etc. Just make sure you also highlight a lot of other great sites too – don’t create the group just to promote your work, that’s just spammy.
Side note: While traffic from Stumbleupon can be great, bounce rates can be affected (the amount of time someone stays on your site), so keep an eye on that in your analytics.

Turn Posts into Ebooks

You blog. You write. A lot. Depending on whether you’re a niche blogger or not, you might have a lot of posts on similar topics, or even run a blog series of interconnected posts.
So why not turn them into an ebook?
The market for ebooks is huge, and offers a great way for you to either give back to your blog community for reading you, or sell them as part of your business offerings.
Write a crafts blog? Put together some of your favourite tips and publish as an ebook. Chef? Collate some of your favourite recipes and sell them via your blog. And so on – the possibilities for what’s in your ebook are endless.
I put together a bunch of my short form posts on Posterous as a free ebook with some simple marketing ideas, and so far it’s been downloaded just over 3,000 times. So ebooks are definitely a great way to both give back and get back.

Turn Your Blog into a Slide

One of the best platforms around at the moment is Slideshare. Essentially taking PowerPoint presentations to the next level, Slideshare also allows uploads of PDF’s, documents and other presentations.

It then turns these into slideshows that you can either grab the embed code for or download to your hard drive, as well as the normal sharing options on Twitter and Facebook, etc.
You can even add audio or talk tracks, or turn your slides into mini-movies.
So working from your ebook idea, collate some of your best posts on a topic and create a presentation. Edit the posts accordingly to make the best use of Slideshare’s capabilities (perhaps a connecting image, statistic or similar), and then upload and choose your sharing settings.
If folks like it and decide to embed on their own blog, you instantly have a new audience. That could go one step further, and businesses could pick up your kick-ass presentation and use it as a training resource.
The next potential step from that is to bring you on board to expand on your initial ideas – so now your original blog post has become both a training resource and a client lead.

Just Getting Started

These are just three ways that you could take the normal social sharing option, and add a little extra to help promote your blog.
You could also use the WordPress application on LinkedIn, or Networked Blogs for Facebook as another couple of alternatives. Or you could re-purpose old posts for publication elsewhere.
The thing is, just because you already have sharing options in place doesn’t mean you need to stop there. The great thing with blogs is that they can be essentially timeless, given the right post and topic. Why not use that?
How about you – what are you doing to extend the reach of your blog? Feel free to share your tips on what works for you in the comments.

Website Optimization Basics - Search Engines

As search engine optimizers we hear the term "optimization" all the time. We optimize our content, websites, pages, forms, click paths, designs, strategies, links, and so on.

Do we ever ask ourselves what it means to be a search engine optimizer? And just how do we optimize in the world of Pandas and Penguins? In the end how does this change what we do as SEOs?

Optimization is such a common term and used so generally, it is almost without meaning. Take a moment to think about it. What does it mean to optimize?

A Lesson in Real World Optimization

I recently traveled to Seattle. If you haven’t been there, in Seattle you have a few ways to make your way from the airport to the hotels, but none as touted as the Seattle Light Rail. For a mere few dollars, you can ride all the way from the airport to your hotel downtown.

Since the taxi and hire cars were running $40+, this seemed like the best way to make my way to my hotel.

This seemed like a great idea – seemed being the operative word.

Before I even got past the train station exit, I was presented with what seemed to be some odd choices for a train station: a Nordstrom’s, a Macy’s, and a Nordstrom’s Rack. See, Seattle was ready for me. They had “optimized” the path from the train door to the exit and had strategically placed three stores in my route.

Mind you. I hadn’t left the station yet when I ran across these three stores that reminded me that it might have been 105 degrees when I left Las Vegas, but it was 52 degrees now and me without a jacket. Oh a jacket, I must get a jacket. Just as I am sure many other travelers are left with the thought of “I must get (insert item) soon!”

Of course I left with a bit more than a jacket (and now need to hit returns at the Vegas Nordstrom Rack).

But I must say – brilliant! Seattle optimized the light rail station and I left a few dollars lighter.

Three stores, three price points, all there ready for the traveler, like me who was unprepared or perhaps forgot something. Not outside the station, not in a hard to get to spot in a corner, down a hallway, but literally while you walked to the train station exit. BOOM! Now that is real world optimization.

Imagine if your website was so well optimized for your users. In, Out, Purchase complete! Everyone should design their site as well as the Seattle Light Rail Train Station.

Never Dine With SEOs – Or More Real World Optimization.

I once went to dinner with a group of fellow SEOs and the conversation was lagging. OK, it was dead as a doornail.

We were set to embark on one of those awkward uncomfortable evenings where you can’t eat your food or slurp your drink fast enough.

Just in time one of the SEOs said, “You know what, we need to optimize this table”.

“What?” “Optimize the table?” We all looked at him like he lost his mind, but he was right. The people who knew each other weren’t sitting next to each other, the conservators weren’t next to the quiet ones, the flow of the table was broken.

Once we moved some people around the table to create conversational flow – once we “optimized” our table – the conversation was easy and fun. To this day most everyone is still friends.

This is the same was what we do as search engine optimizers. Our job is to make it easy for someone or some thing (say a search engine spider) to flow through our sites, to read our content, to understand our message, to interact, to buy, to convert, to achieve whatever goal we have set forth.

We make it easy not only to find our sites, but also to do what it is they came to do. We are site optimizers now, not just SEOs.

So What is Optimization?

Optimization is about making the simplest path to the most desirable goals.

For example, during my train station experience, I was never taken out of the station path, never walked down a long hallway, or moved to the outside. The process was very simple. Exit train, see store logos, enter store, buy, sent back to train station hallway, exit station. Beautiful!

What if you applied these examples to your websites?

When working with optimization, ask yourself, are your site tasks simple? Is your content easy to read? Are your forms this easy to work with? Does your design guide me to a goal?

Important Optimization Reminder

Google’s Penguin Update wasn’t about penalizing sites because of optimization. It wasn’t even about over optimization. It was about bad SEO practices, like keyword stuffing links and titles, link buying, link selling – the gamut.

Google wants good product. Make good websites. Create good content. You will be OK.

There is so much to know post-Panda, post-Penguin. It’s impossible to cover it all in one article, so here’s a basic guide to get you started on your new journey as a site optimizer.

Basic Site Optimization Tips

What follows are general tips that can apply to any website. These are intended as guides to help better the SEO of a site, and are for once you have implemented basic SEO.

Design

Make sure your design:

• Doesn’t create a negative user interaction Experience
• Site quality issues
• Is NOT in Flash
• Yes Google reads some Flash
• Flash still isn't good for SEO
• Flash is definitely bad for mobile
• Follows the 80/20 rule
• 80 percent of user activity is above the fold, so keep important items there
• Loads in 3 seconds or less
• 40 percent of users abandon sites that take longer
• Follows Matt Cutts rules for advertising
• These are specific amounts of space a site can use

Code

Make your code:

• Clean
• Separate Presentation (CSS) from Structure (HTML)
• Don’t rely on Google being able to read AJAX
• Put all inline CSS & JS in external files
• Fast
• Check it using the Page Speed plug-in
• 85 percent is a good number
• 90 percent is an awesome number
• Yes Google says it affects only 1 percent of sites
• But from my client sites, I don’t believe it; make your sites faster for better results.
• W3C compliant
• Validate your code
• NOTE Schema Tags will not validate this is OK
• Accessible
• Mobile Ready
• Smartphones receive the desktop Google index now
• Use Responsive Design if possible
• If you can’t Google will still crawl your site, but make efforts to move towards RD

Content

Make your content:

• 500+ words per page.
• Don’t appear thin.
• Scannable
• Website users scan text, they don’t read
• NOTE users read small text, scan large
• Clear
• Concise
• Original & Unique
• Keyword as part of Natural Language
• Simple Sentence Constructs
• If using more than one conjunction in sentence (and, but etc.) probably need to rewrite.

Structure

Make sure your structure contains:

• Canonical tags
• Breadcrumbs for listings with site links
• Topic focus
• Pages should be specific, not general
• Exception topic level pages
• Clear Site Architecture
• Clear Navigation
• Schema tagging, do not pass go, add schemas NOW!

Links

Make sure your links

• Are natural
• Use diversification strategies
• Limit Keyword Rich Anchor Text to 20-30 percent or less
• And vary the text
• Watch your C Class, IP Blocks and Domains of links coming into your site for negative SEO
• AND FINALLY
• Be very careful if you purchase links
• Very, very careful
• Like escaping from Supermax prison careful

Skate to Where the Puck is Going

Panda and Penguin and whatever update comes next will continue to change the SERPs and how we do what we do – sometimes, radically. Traditional SEO just isn’t enough any more.
The time has come! If you haven’t learned how to be a site optimizer, now is the time. Don’t let the next Google update leave you in the cold.
Google has made a clear statement where it’s going. As retired NHL great Wayne Gretzky once said of his success, "I skate where the puck is going." As a site optimizer, you should do the same!

The Information Diet - Book and Tools for going on an Information Diet

Tools
Information dieting requires an arsenal of tools and tricks – and while we can constantly peruse sites like LifeHacker to give us an hour by hour dose of productivity porn, sometimes we just need to get straight to brass tacks.

This page attempts to collect everything you need in order to set up your system, presuming that you’ve read The Information Diet. It also catalogs other software tools that may be necessary. For many, just installing the software in the QuickStart section will be useful.

Keep in mind that installing these applications and setting things up like this will not put you on an information diet. Just like cleaning the junk-food out of your kitchen won’t make you lose weight if you simply choose to eat out all the time, an information diet is less about installing tools and more about making conscious decisions about the information you consume. First build good habits, then rely on software.

QuickStart

The quickstart section is a selection of tools to install and start using right away if you just want to get started on your information diet, and don’t want to shop for different kinds of tools. Simply grab the tools you need and get started.

AdBlock

AdBlock Plus is available for both the Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox web browsers, as well as Safari. It’s a simple browser extension that blocks advertisements on major websites. If you so desire, you can always turn the back on – but at least you’re opting in to view advertisements, rather than having them thrown at you all the time. If you’re an Internet Explorer user by choice, I strongly suggest you switch to Chrome or Firefox. If you’re not an Internet Explorer user by choice, and are instead compelled to use Internet Explorer, then it’s highly unlikely you’ll be able to install IE Plugins – but here’s an ad blocker for IE.

AwayFind

AwayFind helps you spend less time in your inbox while staying responsive to the people who are most important to you. It does this by letting you “follow” important people and topics, then notifying you (SMS, iPhone/Android push, etc) when you get matching emails. Another handy feature is Calendar Alerts: it can notify you if someone you’re meeting with emails you just before. Free and paid versions are available.

BlockPlus

The Red Notification on all Google pages, if you’re a Google+ user, is a recipe for disaster. Every web search becomes an opportunity to get sucked in to Google’s social network. While Google gives you the ability to control what notifications get sent to you via email, the ability to control what’s in that red box is not BlockPlus is a Google Chrome extension to simply remove that Red Box.

RescueTime

Mentioned in the book, RescueTime helps track what you’re working on, keeping a diligent count of what’s happening on your computer. While it cannot track and account for your every moment, for those that are spending most of their time in front of a computer, RescueTime is the best tool. There’s a free version available, and if you want to “go pro” it costs between $6-$9/mo. Be warned – what you’ll be doing is sending every “Window Title” (the words in the titles of the windows for every application you use) to the RescueTime servers – while the data is secure, for those that are very concerned about their privacy, you may want to seek other options (see the Time Tracking Tools below for other options). RescueTime is cross platform – available for both Windows and OS X.

SaneBox*

Sanebox is like Google’s Priority Inbox on steroids. Sanebox filters your emails and learns from your reading habits to make sure that only the emails you need to see right now make it to your inbox. It takes the emails that don’t need your immediate attention and puts them into a folder called “SaneLater” – and close to the end of every day, it’ll email you a digest of those email messages so that you can give them your attention. It’s compatible with GMail, Yahoo, AOL, Outlook and IMAP email providers.

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Application Settings

Facebook Settings

Let’s take Facebook out of our email inboxes. While SaneBox should filter much of that stuff out, Facebook still makes your inbox a distraction trap. Visit Facebook’s Notification Settings and uncheck the box next to “Send me important updates and summary emails instead of individual notification email.” Then, visit each section of notifications on Facebook, and uncheck every box.

Twitter Settings

Same with Twitter. Uncheck every box on this page. Make Twitter something you have to check, not something that’s pushed at you.

Desktop Notification Settings

Turn off all desktop notifications on your computer. If you’re an Outlook user, turn its desktop alerts off. If you’re an OS X User, and have somehow ended up with Growl installed on your computer, turn off all notifications.

Browser Settings

Whichever browser you use, set your homepage URL to “about:blank.” This will make it so that whenever your browser starts, it starts with a blank page, not a lure to your most visited sites. I also add about:blank to my bookmarks bar in my browser so that I can quickly “turn off” the web from my screen while keeping the web open.

Gmail Settings

If you’re a Gmail user, go ahead and hide your unread counts. It might take you a while to get used to not seeing these numbers beckon for you, but they’re hurting your productivity more than helping it. Enable the Hide Unread Counts setting in Gmail’s Settings. It’s in the Labs section about halfway down the page.

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Other Applications

OS X: Think helps you focus on one particular application at a time on the Mac – it’s like the Full Screen setting in OS X Lion, but more versatile.
OS X: Concentrate is a compelling application that allows you to launch and quit apps by activity. When you want to work at a particular thing, Concentrate will launch the applications needed for that activity, quit the applications that are not needed for it, and start a timer to measure how long you’re working.
OS X, Windows: Freedom locks the Internet down on your Mac or Windows computer for up to 8 hours. You turn it on, and you cannot get the Internet back until the timer is finished unless you reboot your computer.
OS X: SelfControl lets you lock down parts of the internet while leaving the rest open for useful work. Cannot be stopped by killing the app, deleting it, or even rebooting. You actually have to wait for the timer to end.
OS X: Time Sink is a an application that tracks how you use applications on your Mac. Like RescueTime, it stores window titles and the time spent with them, but it does it locally. Might be an option for people who don’t want their data on someone else’s server.
Python, PHP: Get Shit Done - For the command-line types out there, Get Shit Done is a small command line program that blocks websites known to distract us from our work. Configurable by an easy to edit text file.

10 Steps to Becoming a Better Writer

Tono Stano White Shadow - YouTube

What's the best way to visit Naples and Puglia?

I would recommend staying in Naples itself for three nights, and picking up a hire car on the morning you’re due to drive down to Puglia.

Naples is a fascinating city, but not one I’d ever risk driving in (and I’ve been in Italy for almost 30 years), as the traffic is chaotic to say the least.

The Chiaia area, along the bay west of the centre, is a good base as it’s close to the sights but a little more relaxed and upmarket than the ramshackle old town further east.

Micalo (micalo.it), a cool, contemporary b & b owned and run by an English art collector, is worth looking into; for something a little more luxurious, book into one of Naples’s most effortlessly elegant hotels, the Vesuvio (vesuvio.it).

Both Pompeii and Mount Vesuvius are reached easily by public transport. For Pompeii, take the Circumvesuviana (vesuviana.it) line from Napoli Centrale (journey time around 42 minutes).

For Vesuvius, it makes sense to start from Pompeii as you have more choice: 11 daily buses run between Pompeii’s station and the car park and visitor centre just below the volcano’s peak, while only two run direct from Naples.

For both services, see eavbus.it. Staying in Naples also gives you the chance to hop on a hydrofoil in the port and visit Capri or Ischia for the day.