Free Essays on African American Rights

This tune truly befuddled me and larger part of it got me upset. I felt it to be an inconsistency to what I’ve been educated about Jesus for as far back as fifteen years. The verses introduced Jesus as if he didn’t need to pass on for us and that he simply needed to pull out of God’s plan. It additionally explicitly states in the refrain, â€Å"Why then am I terrified to complete what I began, What you began I didn’t start it† that he didn't have anything to do with it and is frightened to go on. It caused me to feel that he didn’t need to surrender his life for us and questioned that we were even justified, despite all the trouble. I’ve been encouraged that Jesus surrendered his life enthusiastically for us and acknowledged the destiny God had made arrangements for him. The lyricist depicted Jesus’ humanness by demonstrating his uncertainty and dread of what was to come. That Jesus at one point was in such a condition of pain, that he would to walk out on his destiny and on God. To me he is appeared as being childish and even indicated mistrust in what God, his dad, had set out for him to do. Jesus goes to his dad in his season of sadness and requests him to remove the torment as found in the refrain, â€Å"If there is a way, remove this cup from me for I don’t need to taste it’s poison.† Here Jesus clarifies that he doesn’t need to experience any more anguish and enduring and if there were at any rate workable for God to take this weight off his shoulders. Jesus is addressing God and feels as if his passing may very well go futile, which is apparent in the stanza, â€Å"Why would it be a good idea for me to bite the dust? Would you be able to give me since I would not be executed in vain?† He’s now r equesting reasons, for consolation. He is need of solace and knows not where to discover it. All through his petition in the nursery he is hesitant and grumbles of his life and that he wouldn't like to experience what God has made arrangements for him, yet toward the end he appears to yield. He acknowledges what his future holds and despite the fact that he doesn’t need to, acknowledges what must be do... Free Essays on African American Rights Free Essays on African American Rights This tune truly confounded me and lion's share of it got me upset. I felt it to be an inconsistency to what I’ve been educated about Jesus for as far back as fifteen years. The verses introduced Jesus as if he didn’t need to bite the dust for us and that he simply needed to pull out of God’s plan. It likewise explicitly states in the refrain, â€Å"Why then am I terrified to complete what I began, What you began I didn’t start it† that he didn't have anything to do with it and is frightened to go on. It caused me to feel that he didn’t need to surrender his life for us and questioned that we were even justified, despite all the trouble. I’ve been trained that Jesus surrendered his life enthusiastically for us and acknowledged the destiny God had anticipated him. The lyricist depicted Jesus’ humanness by demonstrating his uncertainty and dread of what was to come. That Jesus at one point was in such a condition of pain, that he would to walk out on his destiny and on God. To me he is appeared as being narrow minded and even demonstrated doubt in what God, his dad, had set out for him to do. Jesus goes to his dad in his season of hopelessness and requests him to remove the torment as found in the refrain, â€Å"If there is a way, remove this cup from me for I don’t need to taste it’s poison.† Here Jesus clarifies that he doesn’t need to experience any more distress and enduring and if there were at any rate workable for God to take this weight off his shoulders. Jesus is addressing God and feels as if his passing may very well go futile, which is apparent in the section, â€Å"Why would it be a good idea for me to kick the bucket? Would you be able to give me since I would not be slaughtered in vain?† He’s now requesting reasons, for consolation. He is need of solace and knows not where to discover it. All through his petition in the nursery he is hesitant and grumbles of his life and that he wouldn't like to experience what God has gotten ready for him, however toward the end he appears to surrender. He acknowledges what his future holds and despite the fact that he doesn’t need to, acknowledges what must be do...

Christian and Islamic Narratives Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Christian and Islamic Narratives - Essay Example It is recognized that he makes them comprehend of his destiny, and perceives the importance and the need of his penance. Prove in the Last Supper when Jesus clarifies, One of you which eateth with me will deceive me (Mark 14:18). As far as the story this is most unmistakably found in the scene of the enthusiasm where Christ is brought before Pontius Pilate. Pilate gives him various chances to absolve himself, while the devout clerics of the Sanhedrin fling allegations, And Pilate asked him once more, saying, Answerest thou nothing view what number of things they observer against thee (Mark 15:4). To which Jesus doesn't react, inciting Pilate to wonder. At the point when Pilate professes to have to the ability to discharge or kill Pilate, Jesus reacts, Thou couldest have no force at all against me, with the exception of it were given thee from above: along these lines he that conveyed me unto thee hath the more noteworthy sin (John 19:11). Perceiving that his destiny doesn't lie in th e hands of humans, Jesus is mindful somewhat of the more prominent arrangement coming up for humankind. This comprehension is in no way, shape or form unequivocal or univocal all through the Gospels, or even inside the Gospels themselves. On the cross, Jesus is said to have expressed seven things including, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani that is, My God, My God, why have You neglected Me The philosophical clarification here is changed, proposing that there is something of the human Jesus battling to endure the aggregate of the discipline of the considerable number of sins on the planet offered by Hell. In the wake of passing the sanctuary shakes, the shade is lease, and the dead ascent, affirming the status of Jesus as the Christ, as indicated by the different accounts. The Islamic record is drastically unique. Huge numbers of the starkest contrasts start from the especially extraordinary expressive and auxiliary methods of introduction between the Quran and the Bible. The Gospels like the vast majority of the Bible is an exposition account, offering a dialogic method of introduction, that is, various voices cooperating in a straight story. The Quran is for the most part written in what most intently looks like beautiful refrain, and its style is epigrammatic and monologic, or then again, one voice depicting occasions and the expressions of others. In this manner huge numbers of the character portrayals and story subtleties that the Gospel incorporates are perceptibly missing in the Quran in the delineation of the demise of Jesus. Likewise, significant is the central religious distinction as respects the philosophy of Jesus, for example in Islam, Jesus or Isa as he brought in Quran, is a completely human figure. Philosophically is this a fundamental element of Islam, as it stated all through the Quran and the relating Hadith, that God is a remarkable and solitary figure, who has no partners or correlations. This thought of the solidarity of God remains as a basic mainstay of Islam. Also, any pomposity to address or hedge on this issue is a grave sin, known as avoid. Therefore Jesus must be child of Mary by means of virginal origination, And (recall) her who monitored her virtue: We inhaled into her of Our soul, and We made her and her child a sign for all people groups (Quran 21:19). The Quran doesn't deny he is Messiah, nor does it deny that toward the final days that he will come back to do fight with detestable in a surprisingly comparable eschatology to

CP13 Podcast with Mike Smalls from Hoopla Software about Boosting Team Performance

CP13 Podcast with Mike Smalls from Hoopla Software about Boosting Team Performance INTRODUCTIONMartin: Hi folks! Do you have a sales team and are really interested in pushing up your motivation while achieving more results? Today we have an entrepreneur who knows all about this. Hi, Mike, who are you and what do you do?Mike: Hello, Mike Smalls, Im the founder and CEO of Hoopla. So I lead the strategy and direction of the company.Martin: What is Hoopla?Mike: Hoopla is a sales motivation and communication platform that allows companies to take          normally hidden data from backend systems like CRM systems and other areas, and bring that data to light. In order to drive the right kind of behaviors and actions from the sales teams and other people within the company by highlighting successes, creating competitions and recognizing performance as it happens through big screen TVs or mobile devices around the company. Its like an ESPN network for the entire company.Martin: Mike, can you elaborate a little bit on your background and at what point in time did you come up with this idea? Was there some kind of moment where you thought: Ah! Thats a super cool idea?Mike: So my background is in building and running sales teams, sales and marketing teams for a variety of companies, big companies like Symantec as well as a bunch of start-ups. I just kept seeing the same kind of patterns and challenges. I wanted to solve problems that I had, which was getting folks to do the right kind of actions and behaviors in advance to produce results as opposed to reporting on information after the fact.So getting them to do the right kind of calls, meetings, and create opportunities we needed to tap into their natural psychology. And the Ah-ha moment really was sitting in front of my TV on a Sunday watching a football game. When I watched one of these athletes do a flip into the endzone just to get on the Sunday highlight reel and the next weeks review show. I realized that the wiring of an athlete and a sales person are very similar. They love to be on stage an d they love to get the recognition and they love to compete and win. So there is a lot of similarities between athletes and sales people. That was the Ah-ha moment.Martin: Cool, so after this football match what did you do next?Mike: I was actually working for a company. I actually had a special clause in my contract that allowed me to work on my start-up in kind of my spare time without worry of them owning the idea. I had this idea where I hired a developer that came and worked out of my house. I paid him with my own money to build a prototype of an early sketch that I kind of thought through. It was very different from what Hoopla is today, but it was the beginnings of that. Essentially it was taking that data that was buried and was putting it out in an application, which then I was able to show some early investors, some seed investors the concept. Once that prototype was done it allowed me to raise a little bit of money to get the whole thing launched.Martin: Cool, so you got investors before you approached potential clients?Mike: Well, actually there is a sidebar to this story. One of the things I did to try and get prepared for launching this company was that we created a free application. It was just a simple little countdown clock that counted down the number of selling days left in a week, month, quarter, year, or what have you, subtracted out the weekends. That worked inside of sales force and it displayed the remaining selling days right at the sidebar. It was a component of Hoopla, but I figured we would get that out there on the market first to see if we could get some early adoption for free and build our marketing database.That actually was a really great start because what it did was allow us to get into communication and conversations with potential customers before we launched the real product. To date, we have had over 2,000 companies download that free little countdown clock that is forming the basis for our marketing efforts.Martin: Cool , Lets talk about the first three or six months after you successfully raised the money and you developed the MVP version and put it out to the sales force. What was it really like when you got the money to your bank account and started to build a team?Mike: Well, first of all, it was a little leap even though I had a little money it wasnt a lot. It wasnt enough to live off of. I ended up taking a serious haircut in salary, pay, compensation, and all that. I knew the clock was ticking from day one, but it was invigorating in that we got our very first customer. That moment when you sign that contract and they give you a check it is really invigorating. What happened from there was the word of mouth started to spread. Things started to build and to grow. Once we had the investment dollars we still had a six months of development to go before we could actually get out there and sell it full force.Martin: Understood.BUSINESS MODEL OF HOOPLA SOFTWAREMartin: Lets talk about the business model. So who are your major customers? Is it only the sales department or others functions? Are you focusing on a specific industry or region? What are your target customers?Mike: That is a good question. We started out built completely on the sales force platform and so our customers were the only customer who was used sale force at the beginning. Sales teams were the subset within that. Our customers were all sort of mid-size and larger companies that had inside sales teams that did transactions and had a lot of activity that they wanted to track and measure.One of the main components of our system is our TV experience where the individual reps are being highlighted on the screen and they are being recognized. Having people inside an organization to be able to view that was a key element for that first success. We have since expanded out that customers can use us with other data sources as well as other departments. That core first audience of that inside sales team that within t hese organizations is still our primary foot in the door. We do sell in the US, Europe, Australia, and Canada. Those are our four main geographies.Martin: Cool, I want to understand a little bit more how the product works. Is it really that a customer is building the dashboard for himself and needs to plug in the TV in order to show this to the sales people? Or is it that you are automatically building some great dashboards and distribute them to the TV?Mike: Yes, good question. We have a bunch of template elements that can be displaced. So leaderboards, top performers, countdowns, and team versus team kind of elements. We have all these kind of templates that are fed by the data that the customer will link into our system. That linking in can come from a sales force report or it can come from a CSV file, Excel file, and soon a Google sheet spreadsheet. All that information can be fed in automatically.The customer doesnt have to be an expert in design or all that. Essentially it is like building a PowerPoint slide show if you will. Put these different components together that play in a loop and they are dynamically being updated as the data is changing. One of the key things that people love is the automated alerts or news flashes that occur whenever data changes that it significant. A deal gets closed, a goal gets met, somebody achieves something, there is fan fair, there is a song that plays, a video that plays and each individual rep can put their own walk-up song, their own custom soundtrack to their face and their image, or show a GIF image. It gets real fun and they have a lot of fun doing that.Martin: Okay, I understand. So this is the unique selling point, I guess.Mike: Part of it, yes.Martin: Imagine Im a sales guy. I have at least two options when I want to understand my metrics. I can either use Hoopla software or I can use some other dashboard provider which delivers me some real time analytics? Why should I use Hoopla?Mike: Hoopla makes everything come to life and it is pushing that information out, it is broadcasting that information out as opposed to you having to log into some system to do your own analysis and to remember to do that, right. So to what is happening is as things are occurring in your organization information is being pushed out. People are being celebrated. Wins are being recognized. People can even challenge each other live on a given metric. So I might challenge you to a three-day competition that you have to accept and its all public information through a broadcast. The big difference is that its relevant, interesting, and engaging, but its being pushed out to you and being broadcast to you as opposed to you going I need to go check my dashboard.Martin: So you are trying to use gamification and pushing the message out there?Mike: Yes, thats right. Game mechanics play a role here because its recognition, competition, and you can see progress against goals. It is very relevant as opposed to static informa tion.Martin: Can you put some light on how the competitive situation in a sales team changes once the Hoopla system is in place? For example, what is the average uplift in productivity, sales, per sales person, whatsoever? And what is the effect of the people selling the lowest? Are they team motivated?Mike: Those are good questions and they come up a lot. First of all from an uplift perspective, are customers report to us all kinds of uplift activities that they see happening. Anywhere from 30% on up and it is pretty amazing the kind of changes that can happen. Sort of to highlight that we have, one customer they bought Hoopla and they had this problem where they had to field in a sales force that wasnt being updated. It was like a lead source field and they wanted to get that done. What they did was created a little highlight and then focused on that. A competition around who could get those fields updated. The first day they broadcasted that information out there people started t o question what field do we have to fill up and etc. By day three, 100% had been changed and been filled out. So by this quick and simple little highlighting gamification techniques, it actually causes the behavior change.Your question about top performers versus bottom: I think one of the things that are interesting is people have control over these metrics. This is not something happening to them. So if for example you are measuring people on the number of calls being made and they are at the bottom of the list. They have control over how to change that. They can see that and see that as a fair system versus the manager giving favoritism for somebody over another and they dont know if its fair or not. This is an objective system. Its clear how you can win. That makes it much more motivational.Martin: How is your pricing model working and how did you come up with this price point?Mike: Our pricing model is we charge per user, per month. Its around $15 a user, per month. It actually goes down depending on your connections. But that price point was built on some research that we did by talking to existing customers. We actually hired a firm to help us with that to help us  understand the optimal point where customers really saw the value and wanted to have a price point that mapped to the value proposition. We did a lot of analysis on that and that has really been paying off for us. It helps to give us an optimal curve in terms of price point and value gained by the customer.Martin: Mike, I understand how your business model is working right now. But did it change significantly over the years?Mike: Not significantly, but definitely we have made tweaks. We have made changes things as we have learned by talking to customers and by seeing what happens on a given quarter or month basis. But nothing really has been significantly different. Its just minor changes to packages and pricing over time.Martin: How are you now a days acquiring customers and what did you do in terms of customer development?Mike: So we started off very direct sales, inside sales, where we were using that marketing tool of a free application to kind of generate leads to then contact those folks to create our first customers. We built up a sales organization that did that over time. What we have been doing in the last six months is steering more and more toward making the self-service experience much more possible with the product. You can now go up to Hoopla.net today. You can sign up for a free trial. You get 14 days. You can set up your whole system. At the end of that time, you can just put your credit card in and you buy the product without even talking to anyone if you want or we are here to help. We have live chat. We have people on call. People that can help with the demo of it. The goal is to reduce all the friction to let people buy on their own and add users as they need.Martin: Mike, when you are looking into the future for the next two or three years, what t hings of the following do you want to focus on? Is it:An internationalization because you said that youre only active in only four countries?Do you want to focus down on the sales department meaning extending the value propositions you are offering the sales department? OrExtending the current value proposition you have that means active metrics and motivation gamification and extending this to other departments like for example marketing, customer support, product, and so on?Mike: I would say that it is the latter. Our vision is that Hoopla is applicable and valuable to every employee in every company. We think every company in the world should be using the product because it makes the employees perform better. It makes them more engaged. It gives them visibility into where they are against their goals, progress, and against each other. So we think that multiple departments are the right answer going forward.Martin: When you started out what had been your expectations? So lets say this is what I wanted to have achieved after four years and now you are here and what is the delta between what you have expected and what you actually achieved?Mike: Good question. You know that everybody always assumes a perfectly linear growth path that keeps going up and to the right. When the day you start till you advance four years and everything goes perfectly and smoothly. I think the difference in reality versus expectation is that is a very herky-jerky path to success. It is not a smooth road. You have got to expect a lot of bumps along the way and be able to react to those changes. Nothing ever goes as planned. Things take twice or three times as long as you expect, but you just got to stay the course otherwise you will get derailed. So it is definitely different than I expected, but very rewarding.Martin: What have been the biggest bumps and how did you circumvent or manage them?Mike: I would say categories of bumps, right. It is people, hiring the right kind of people and putting them on the team. Its making the right kinds technology and product decisions. Where do you put your investment? How fast do you spend your money? Do you optimize for growth or different areas?I think there is learnings along the way. You know the CEOs job is to make sure we have the right strategy, make sure we have the right people, and that we have money in the bank. I have made mistakes in each one of those areas, but I think we are settling down it that.Martin: Good stuff.ENTREPRENEURIAL ADVICE FROM MICHAEL SMALLSMartin: Great, I assume you have a lot over the years. So if your child comes up to you and says: Daddy, I would like to start a company and imagine your child is a little bit older like 15 or 16 or so. What type of advice would you give your child?Mike: Well, I would say first of all the company is going to be more successful if youre attempting to solve a problem you are intimately aware of, something you are passionate about. Just starting a company for starting a companys sake I would not recommend it. I would recommend you first identify an area of expertise and a problem to solve that you are passionate about solving because you have to be able to stick with it. I would also give him advice or her advice that you need to be prepared for a long grueling effort and you have got to be prepared for that. Its not a get rich quick scheme at all. I would recommend that as well.Martin: Any other things that you have learned?Mike: I would say go with your gut because you are going to get a lot of advice from a lot of people, investors, other folks, and if you get tossed and turned a little bit you are going to get off course. If you follow your gut you know exactly what and your gut can usually be trust on that. I think that is a key piece of advice.I would say dont spend the money too quickly, be careful, be conservative about it. It goes fast. So you have to make sure you are managing your finances very well because its a long road an d you want to be equipped for that.Martin: So when I talk to start-ups most of them, especially in the early days have problems with generating sales. Either because they dont understand the customer, they dont know how to reach them, close a deal, etc. You have lots of experience in terms of sales. What is your advice on really closing a deal and getting to the customers fast and cheap?Mike: You know its back to the old crossing the chasm model, but you have to find the early adopters that are going to have influence with other customers. One of the most important things you can do is build sort of band equity and word of mouth within a particular area. If you have got a product and you want to find those customers that want to be your advocates and you want to really leverage those advocates to help spread the word to other customers.We had the wonderful experience of having some early influential customers that they would tell other people about it or people would come to their o ffices with our product on the walls, being used and they wanted to know more about it. I think its that and making sure that you create really good equity with your customers so you dont burn any of those bridges. You treat everybody fairly. Its better to start off with a good group of customers than to have bad word of mouth to be spread out there.Getting to them the challenges are always breaking through the noise. That is why we did the countdown clock. It allowed us to get in the door. But finding those customers and asking them for referrals, asking people to spread the word for you are really key elements.Martin: Mike, thank you so much for sharing your knowledge and walking us through how you business model and your model works. Thank you so much.Mike: My pleasure. Thank you.Martin: Have a great day.THANKS FOR LISTENING! Welcome to the 13th episode of our podcast!You can download the podcast to your computer or listen to it here on the blog. Click here to subscribe in iTunes. INTRODUCTIONMartin: Hi folks! Do you have a sales team and are really interested in pushing up your motivation while achieving more results? Today we have an entrepreneur who knows all about this. Hi, Mike, who are you and what do you do?Mike: Hello, Mike Smalls, Im the founder and CEO of Hoopla. So I lead the strategy and direction of the company.Martin: What is Hoopla?Mike: Hoopla is a sales motivation and communication platform that allows companies to take          normally hidden data from backend systems like CRM systems and other areas, and bring that data to light. In order to drive the right kind of behaviors and actions from the sales teams and other people within the company by highlighting successes, creating competitions and recognizing performance as it happens through big screen TVs or mobile devices around the company. Its like an ESPN network for the entire company.Martin: Mike, can you elaborate a little bit on your background and at what point in time did you come up with this idea? Was there some kind of moment where you thought: Ah! Thats a super cool idea?Mike: So my background is in building and running sales teams, sales and marketing teams for a variety of companies, big companies like Symantec as well as a bunch of start-ups. I just kept seeing the same kind of patterns and challenges. I wanted to solve problems that I had, which was getting folks to do the right kind of actions and behaviors in advance to produce results as opposed to reporting on information after the fact.So getting them to do the right kind of calls, meetings, and create opportunities we needed to tap into their natural psychology. And the Ah-ha moment really was sitting in front of my TV on a Sunday watching a football game. When I watched one of these athletes do a flip into the endzone just to get on the Sunday highlight reel and the next weeks review show. I realized that the wiring of an athlete and a sales person are very similar. They love to be on stage an d they love to get the recognition and they love to compete and win. So there is a lot of similarities between athletes and sales people. That was the Ah-ha moment.Martin: Cool, so after this football match what did you do next?Mike: I was actually working for a company. I actually had a special clause in my contract that allowed me to work on my start-up in kind of my spare time without worry of them owning the idea. I had this idea where I hired a developer that came and worked out of my house. I paid him with my own money to build a prototype of an early sketch that I kind of thought through. It was very different from what Hoopla is today, but it was the beginnings of that. Essentially it was taking that data that was buried and was putting it out in an application, which then I was able to show some early investors, some seed investors the concept. Once that prototype was done it allowed me to raise a little bit of money to get the whole thing launched.Martin: Cool, so you got investors before you approached potential clients?Mike: Well, actually there is a sidebar to this story. One of the things I did to try and get prepared for launching this company was that we created a free application. It was just a simple little countdown clock that counted down the number of selling days left in a week, month, quarter, year, or what have you, subtracted out the weekends. That worked inside of sales force and it displayed the remaining selling days right at the sidebar. It was a component of Hoopla, but I figured we would get that out there on the market first to see if we could get some early adoption for free and build our marketing database.That actually was a really great start because what it did was allow us to get into communication and conversations with potential customers before we launched the real product. To date, we have had over 2,000 companies download that free little countdown clock that is forming the basis for our marketing efforts.Martin: Cool , Lets talk about the first three or six months after you successfully raised the money and you developed the MVP version and put it out to the sales force. What was it really like when you got the money to your bank account and started to build a team?Mike: Well, first of all, it was a little leap even though I had a little money it wasnt a lot. It wasnt enough to live off of. I ended up taking a serious haircut in salary, pay, compensation, and all that. I knew the clock was ticking from day one, but it was invigorating in that we got our very first customer. That moment when you sign that contract and they give you a check it is really invigorating. What happened from there was the word of mouth started to spread. Things started to build and to grow. Once we had the investment dollars we still had a six months of development to go before we could actually get out there and sell it full force.Martin: Understood.BUSINESS MODEL OF HOOPLA SOFTWAREMartin: Lets talk about the business model. So who are your major customers? Is it only the sales department or others functions? Are you focusing on a specific industry or region? What are your target customers?Mike: That is a good question. We started out built completely on the sales force platform and so our customers were the only customer who was used sale force at the beginning. Sales teams were the subset within that. Our customers were all sort of mid-size and larger companies that had inside sales teams that did transactions and had a lot of activity that they wanted to track and measure.One of the main components of our system is our TV experience where the individual reps are being highlighted on the screen and they are being recognized. Having people inside an organization to be able to view that was a key element for that first success. We have since expanded out that customers can use us with other data sources as well as other departments. That core first audience of that inside sales team that within t hese organizations is still our primary foot in the door. We do sell in the US, Europe, Australia, and Canada. Those are our four main geographies.Martin: Cool, I want to understand a little bit more how the product works. Is it really that a customer is building the dashboard for himself and needs to plug in the TV in order to show this to the sales people? Or is it that you are automatically building some great dashboards and distribute them to the TV?Mike: Yes, good question. We have a bunch of template elements that can be displaced. So leaderboards, top performers, countdowns, and team versus team kind of elements. We have all these kind of templates that are fed by the data that the customer will link into our system. That linking in can come from a sales force report or it can come from a CSV file, Excel file, and soon a Google sheet spreadsheet. All that information can be fed in automatically.The customer doesnt have to be an expert in design or all that. Essentially it is like building a PowerPoint slide show if you will. Put these different components together that play in a loop and they are dynamically being updated as the data is changing. One of the key things that people love is the automated alerts or news flashes that occur whenever data changes that it significant. A deal gets closed, a goal gets met, somebody achieves something, there is fan fair, there is a song that plays, a video that plays and each individual rep can put their own walk-up song, their own custom soundtrack to their face and their image, or show a GIF image. It gets real fun and they have a lot of fun doing that.Martin: Okay, I understand. So this is the unique selling point, I guess.Mike: Part of it, yes.Martin: Imagine Im a sales guy. I have at least two options when I want to understand my metrics. I can either use Hoopla software or I can use some other dashboard provider which delivers me some real time analytics? Why should I use Hoopla?Mike: Hoopla makes everything come to life and it is pushing that information out, it is broadcasting that information out as opposed to you having to log into some system to do your own analysis and to remember to do that, right. So to what is happening is as things are occurring in your organization information is being pushed out. People are being celebrated. Wins are being recognized. People can even challenge each other live on a given metric. So I might challenge you to a three-day competition that you have to accept and its all public information through a broadcast. The big difference is that its relevant, interesting, and engaging, but its being pushed out to you and being broadcast to you as opposed to you going I need to go check my dashboard.Martin: So you are trying to use gamification and pushing the message out there?Mike: Yes, thats right. Game mechanics play a role here because its recognition, competition, and you can see progress against goals. It is very relevant as opposed to static informa tion.Martin: Can you put some light on how the competitive situation in a sales team changes once the Hoopla system is in place? For example, what is the average uplift in productivity, sales, per sales person, whatsoever? And what is the effect of the people selling the lowest? Are they team motivated?Mike: Those are good questions and they come up a lot. First of all from an uplift perspective, are customers report to us all kinds of uplift activities that they see happening. Anywhere from 30% on up and it is pretty amazing the kind of changes that can happen. Sort of to highlight that we have, one customer they bought Hoopla and they had this problem where they had to field in a sales force that wasnt being updated. It was like a lead source field and they wanted to get that done. What they did was created a little highlight and then focused on that. A competition around who could get those fields updated. The first day they broadcasted that information out there people started t o question what field do we have to fill up and etc. By day three, 100% had been changed and been filled out. So by this quick and simple little highlighting gamification techniques, it actually causes the behavior change.Your question about top performers versus bottom: I think one of the things that are interesting is people have control over these metrics. This is not something happening to them. So if for example you are measuring people on the number of calls being made and they are at the bottom of the list. They have control over how to change that. They can see that and see that as a fair system versus the manager giving favoritism for somebody over another and they dont know if its fair or not. This is an objective system. Its clear how you can win. That makes it much more motivational.Martin: How is your pricing model working and how did you come up with this price point?Mike: Our pricing model is we charge per user, per month. Its around $15 a user, per month. It actually goes down depending on your connections. But that price point was built on some research that we did by talking to existing customers. We actually hired a firm to help us with that to help us  understand the optimal point where customers really saw the value and wanted to have a price point that mapped to the value proposition. We did a lot of analysis on that and that has really been paying off for us. It helps to give us an optimal curve in terms of price point and value gained by the customer.Martin: Mike, I understand how your business model is working right now. But did it change significantly over the years?Mike: Not significantly, but definitely we have made tweaks. We have made changes things as we have learned by talking to customers and by seeing what happens on a given quarter or month basis. But nothing really has been significantly different. Its just minor changes to packages and pricing over time.Martin: How are you now a days acquiring customers and what did you do in terms of customer development?Mike: So we started off very direct sales, inside sales, where we were using that marketing tool of a free application to kind of generate leads to then contact those folks to create our first customers. We built up a sales organization that did that over time. What we have been doing in the last six months is steering more and more toward making the self-service experience much more possible with the product. You can now go up to Hoopla.net today. You can sign up for a free trial. You get 14 days. You can set up your whole system. At the end of that time, you can just put your credit card in and you buy the product without even talking to anyone if you want or we are here to help. We have live chat. We have people on call. People that can help with the demo of it. The goal is to reduce all the friction to let people buy on their own and add users as they need.Martin: Mike, when you are looking into the future for the next two or three years, what t hings of the following do you want to focus on? Is it:An internationalization because you said that youre only active in only four countries?Do you want to focus down on the sales department meaning extending the value propositions you are offering the sales department? OrExtending the current value proposition you have that means active metrics and motivation gamification and extending this to other departments like for example marketing, customer support, product, and so on?Mike: I would say that it is the latter. Our vision is that Hoopla is applicable and valuable to every employee in every company. We think every company in the world should be using the product because it makes the employees perform better. It makes them more engaged. It gives them visibility into where they are against their goals, progress, and against each other. So we think that multiple departments are the right answer going forward.Martin: When you started out what had been your expectations? So lets say this is what I wanted to have achieved after four years and now you are here and what is the delta between what you have expected and what you actually achieved?Mike: Good question. You know that everybody always assumes a perfectly linear growth path that keeps going up and to the right. When the day you start till you advance four years and everything goes perfectly and smoothly. I think the difference in reality versus expectation is that is a very herky-jerky path to success. It is not a smooth road. You have got to expect a lot of bumps along the way and be able to react to those changes. Nothing ever goes as planned. Things take twice or three times as long as you expect, but you just got to stay the course otherwise you will get derailed. So it is definitely different than I expected, but very rewarding.Martin: What have been the biggest bumps and how did you circumvent or manage them?Mike: I would say categories of bumps, right. It is people, hiring the right kind of people and putting them on the team. Its making the right kinds technology and product decisions. Where do you put your investment? How fast do you spend your money? Do you optimize for growth or different areas?I think there is learnings along the way. You know the CEOs job is to make sure we have the right strategy, make sure we have the right people, and that we have money in the bank. I have made mistakes in each one of those areas, but I think we are settling down it that.Martin: Good stuff.ENTREPRENEURIAL ADVICE FROM MICHAEL SMALLSMartin: Great, I assume you have a lot over the years. So if your child comes up to you and says: Daddy, I would like to start a company and imagine your child is a little bit older like 15 or 16 or so. What type of advice would you give your child?Mike: Well, I would say first of all the company is going to be more successful if youre attempting to solve a problem you are intimately aware of, something you are passionate about. Just starting a company for starting a companys sake I would not recommend it. I would recommend you first identify an area of expertise and a problem to solve that you are passionate about solving because you have to be able to stick with it. I would also give him advice or her advice that you need to be prepared for a long grueling effort and you have got to be prepared for that. Its not a get rich quick scheme at all. I would recommend that as well.Martin: Any other things that you have learned?Mike: I would say go with your gut because you are going to get a lot of advice from a lot of people, investors, other folks, and if you get tossed and turned a little bit you are going to get off course. If you follow your gut you know exactly what and your gut can usually be trust on that. I think that is a key piece of advice.I would say dont spend the money too quickly, be careful, be conservative about it. It goes fast. So you have to make sure you are managing your finances very well because its a long road an d you want to be equipped for that.Martin: So when I talk to start-ups most of them, especially in the early days have problems with generating sales. Either because they dont understand the customer, they dont know how to reach them, close a deal, etc. You have lots of experience in terms of sales. What is your advice on really closing a deal and getting to the customers fast and cheap?Mike: You know its back to the old crossing the chasm model, but you have to find the early adopters that are going to have influence with other customers. One of the most important things you can do is build sort of band equity and word of mouth within a particular area. If you have got a product and you want to find those customers that want to be your advocates and you want to really leverage those advocates to help spread the word to other customers.We had the wonderful experience of having some early influential customers that they would tell other people about it or people would come to their o ffices with our product on the walls, being used and they wanted to know more about it. I think its that and making sure that you create really good equity with your customers so you dont burn any of those bridges. You treat everybody fairly. Its better to start off with a good group of customers than to have bad word of mouth to be spread out there.Getting to them the challenges are always breaking through the noise. That is why we did the countdown clock. It allowed us to get in the door. But finding those customers and asking them for referrals, asking people to spread the word for you are really key elements.Martin: Mike, thank you so much for sharing your knowledge and walking us through how you business model and your model works. Thank you so much.Mike: My pleasure. Thank you.Martin: Have a great day.THANKS FOR LISTENING!Thanks so much for joining our 13th podcast episode!Have some feedback you’d like to share?  Leave  a note in the comment section below! If you enjoyed thi s episode, please  share  it using the social media buttons you see at the bottom of the post.Also,  please leave an honest review for The Cleverism Podcast on iTunes or on SoundCloud. Ratings and reviews  are  extremely  helpful  and greatly appreciated! They do matter in the rankings of the show, and we read each and every one of them.Special thanks  to Mike for joining me this week. Until  next time!

Impact Of Social Networking On Society - 950 Words

Almost everybody is aware of some impact social networking sites have had on their life. Whether one comes from the generation before the advances in technology, the generation during the technological advances, or the generation born into the world full of technology, it is all the same; technology has impacted their life. The impact, however, may either be positive or negative. With the way today’s social networking sites (SNS) are working, there seems to be more negatives around than the positives. Some of the negatives within SNS include cyber bullying, lack of privacy, and the adverse effects of screen time. Nearly everyone can say that one of the biggest negatives with social networking sites is cyber bullying. Cyber bullying is any sort of aggression towards a person or group over SNS. A study by Allison Morrow and Christina Downey, from the Department of Psychology at Indiana University Kokomo, had shown that in 2007 approximately 9% of young respondents indicated that they had been cyberbullied and by 2010, the number increased to 11% (536). In another study, by Rienke Bannik et al., it was shown that there was an association with not only cyber bullying and health problems, but also, cyber bullying and suicide (1). With these studies, there are obvious downfalls with SNS in the community; no adolescent should ever consider suicide because of harmful things being said over social media. Another downfall of SNS on society is the lack of privacy. Everyone hasShow MoreRelatedSocial Networking And Its Impact On Society1327 Words   |  6 Pagesthe person his origin or religion. Culture had become the identity of our communities through our behaviors. It has many factors contribute to the formation of each individual’s cultural . Social networking between people contributed to the development of the individual culture and in the development of society. Own personal culture According to Zion and Kozleski â€Å" Given that culture is a combination of beliefs, values, attitudes, and behavior patterns, and that for many, religion isRead MoreSocial Networking And Its Impact On Society1350 Words   |  6 Pagesusers of social networking, increase the amount of social networking being used each and every day. From January 2008 to January 2014 â€Å"the use of online social networking sites such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Pinterest went up from twenty six percent to seventy four percent† (â€Å"Social Networking ProCon.org†). Spending too much time on social networking, causes some of the people to become distracted from their school, work, and their everyday lives. Social networking is a distractionRead MoreSocial Networking And Its Impact On Our Society1503 Words   |  7 PagesSocial Networking and Communication Social networking has destroyed and helped how our society communicates. Everybody is on their phones one way or another just wondering what’s going on. When you figure stuff out, the first place you’ll find it is on social media. Everything you find out would already be on social media basically is what I’m saying. I know I always look to my IPhone 6 to tell me what’s going on in the world. Instead of looking in my phone at the news app to see what’s happeningRead MoreThe Negative Impact of Social Media/Networking on Today’s Society2211 Words   |  9 Pagesto have lost â€Å"that thing† that made it extraordinary at first. I just think the longer it’s around, or the more advanced it gets, the more it has a negative influence on society and individuals. To me, social media has created a new form of bullying, stereotyping, and racism. Along with the overuse of the internet, giving social media more authority, where it is able to expand in form. And last but not least, the way people have taken something that started out constructive, and mutated it into somethingRead MoreDiscuss the Influence That Social Networking Plays in Society Today? How, and to What Extent, Has It Re-Defined Social Relationships and Is This Generationally Specific?1144 Words   |  5 PagesDiscuss the influence that Social Networking plays in society today? How, and to what extent, has it re-defined social relationships and is this generationally specific? Social Networking plays an important role in society today; it will be argued that social networking has redefined social relationships and that this effect is generationally specific (Salman,2009) Social Networking sites such as Facebook have had a profound effect on personal relationships. The twenty first century is an imprisonedRead MoreThe Impact of Social Media on Youth and Adults1646 Words   |  7 Pagesdiscussed Social networks like Facebook, Myspace and Twitter allow individuals to connect with anyone from coworkers to former classmates. The accessibility of these connections allow for individuals to feel easily connected to a larger community, but they have downsides. From false senses of connection, to data pervasiveness ,social networking is something that effects all groups within our culture to the point where we will have to decide if it is benefical or harful to the indivudal. Impacts of SocialRead MoreSocial Networks988 Words   |  4 PagesSocial Networking Sites The Internet and technology are growing bigger and bigger every day and before we know it technology is going to pass us by. With the invention of the Internet and Social Networks, the possibilities are endless. Social networking sites provide us the opportunity to explore the whole world, make friends, and share moments with the rest of the world through the Internet. Everyday more and more people become part of the different social networking sites available now, likeRead MoreSocial Media And Social Networking921 Words   |  4 PagesSocial media is the communication between individuals and groups to share and exchange their ideas through internet. The social networking is part of social media which plays the important role in today’s life. The biggest impact of the social networking is on children, youngs, and adults. Nowaday children are growing up surrounded by technology. They like to use technology such as mobile, tablets, and computers because they can connect easily to social network. We all know how important social networkingRead MoreSociological Perspectives On Social Networking Sites916 Words   |  4 Pages Applying Sociological Perspectives Social networking sites - such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, and, Pinterest, just to name a few - provide individuals with an online web of global networking that allows maintaining social ties with one another. Sociologists often ponder, How do these social websites impact society? Above all, this is the question that is the central focus shared by all three of the primary sociologicalRead MoreImpact Of Social Media On Society Essay917 Words   |  4 PagesHave you thought about the impact that social media has on society? Today I would like to address the impact of social media on society for those of you that are social media users and this includes the advantages or disadvantages that as associated with it. In this speech, I want to relate to you how social media is being used by social media users. Social media has forever changed the way society works, whether it’s the sharing of an idea, the communication of news, or the availability of products

Market Control Boeing Free Essays

Boeing is no doubt a market leader in the aircraft manufacturing industry with heavy presence in virtually all continents.   This places Boeing in a better place in the market control due to its ability and potential to influence aircraft prices.   Although market control for Boeing has not been that easy considering the stiff competition from competitors such as Airbus, mostly it is Boeing which evidently exerts a great deal of influence on the price of aircrafts. We will write a custom essay sample on Market Control: Boeing or any similar topic only for you Order Now As a result, Boeing has been able to combine cutting edge technology with its market position to its advantage. Although aircraft-manufacturing industry has considerably many players, few have a global presence and can significantly have an input in the market control.   Boeing happens to be among the few players who influence prices. The fact that there are relatively more buyers of aircrafts than there are sellers especially of heavy and fighter airplanes means that the sellers can easily exert market control.   Considering this imbalance between strength of buyers and the control of the manufacturers, Boeing has come up as a market power.   The ability of Boeing in market control is not only evident in price control, but in innovation of new and modern products such as; custom made accommodation in the aircrafts especially targeting the business and tourist segment of market. Evidence of market control of Boeing is seen in the positively sloped supply curve which has characterized the market prices for Boeing’s products in the past decade.   Market control has had an effect on Boeing especially considering that, all of the functions of management such as planning; organizing, coordinating and controlling are pegged on market performance.   Market control has seen profits for Boeing stabilize which means the management of Boeing can strategically plan for expansion programs and other programs with certainty. With market control, it is easier to estimate sales volume with certainty, and therefore planning for staff needs becomes easy for Boeing as well as the organization of Boeing’s organizational structures.   It becomes easier for the management of Boeing to control its internal processes as well as its external process due to its market control ability.   Market control has made it possible for Boeing to source and maintain highly motivated staff due to the fact that Boeing has been able to maximize profits. The market control especially on aircraft prices by Boeing portents the danger of pushing small competitors out of business. As a result of market control by Boeing, there lacks perfect control as Boeing together with a few other industry big players continue to drive small firms out of business and therefore denying the buyers the freedom of choice as well as the satisfaction that comes with the freedom of choice.   Market control has resulted into a near monopoly situation in the aircraft manufacturing industry although in actual sense, Boeing’s environment is oligopoly. Market control by Boeing has resulted into a situation whereby, due to lack of many potential substitutes, Boeing continues to exert influence in pricing, making its prices some of the most exorbitant in the market.   On the other hand, market control has seen Boeing grow into a very profitable organization therefore creating benefits to the society by providing job opportunities as well as by engaging in sponsorship programs in the society. As a result of the market control mechanism employed by Boeing, decision-making process has become easy, as delegation is possible.   Market control mechanisms at Boeing has made it possible for the management at Boeing to execute its organizing, planning, coordinating and controlling functions easily as the market is friendly, less turbulent and predictable.   Despite the sustained competition from Airbus, Boeing still commands market control and it should be able to regain some of the market share it has lost to Airbus in the past few years. Reference http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/01/13/aribus_ed3._.php Accessed on 8/4/2007. www.tau.ac.il/~razin/Airbus%20versus%20Boeing%20revisited.doc Accessed on 8/4/2007.       How to cite Market Control: Boeing, Essay examples

Is Thomistic Philosophy Relevant in Seminary Formation Essay Example

Is Thomistic Philosophy Relevant in Seminary Formation? Essay A Thomasian Accountant Viewpoint Reaction on the Article â€Å"Is Thomistic Philosophy Relevant in Seminary Formation? † Cl. Marc Will R. Lim, SDB It gives me hard time to react on an article written by someone whom I perceived belongs to the rule makers, standard bearers and theory setters. Having graduated from a Pontifical University run by Dominicans and with a degree afar from the course which subjects everything to critical reflection, I found myself on the verge of completely adhering. But, now after obtaining a clear purpose, to provide a clearer understanding and appreciation, I am now led to construe and not to merely concur but, to subject it with proper scrutinizing, at least to the point of providing stronger supports to the claim or to totally pose arguments that could attest its inappropriateness. The question â€Å"Is Thomistic Philosophy relevant in Seminary Formation† does not pose simple query but rather more so it entails a deeper search for significance, the suitability in terms of the relationship between two subject matters, namely the Thomistic Philosophy and the Seminary Formation notwithstanding, of course its timeliness. These two factors are main objectives from which I am seeking to be answered so as I will remain or deviate to the conclusion of the respectable black friar. Relevance, in accounting parlance finds its implication primarily in decision-making. Alone affects greatly a financial decision. We will write a custom essay sample on Is Thomistic Philosophy Relevant in Seminary Formation? specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Is Thomistic Philosophy Relevant in Seminary Formation? specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Is Thomistic Philosophy Relevant in Seminary Formation? specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer In addition, together with timeliness it finds its fullness to give a substantial aid. However, taking them both can make precision and reliability suffer. Relevance signifies suitability considering all other factors affecting. For example, in the decision to replace equipment that has been used for the past six years, the original cost of the equipment does not have relevance. In other words, the original cost is irrelevant or is not relevant in the decision to replace the equipment. What will have relevance are the future amounts, such as the cost of the new equipment, and the savings that will occur when the old equipment is replaced. But actually, relevance regardless of any field purports pertinence to the matter at hand, for it connotes to significance. In itself it proves much the point of appropriateness since it indicates the connection of prevailing subjects. This same word is being used to strike the suitability of the Thomistic Philosophy in seminary formation. This is a big question that could seriously affect as with regards to its continuous existence. However, if answered fittingly, appreciation and comprehension will follow suit. So, to make the term relevance clear allow me to cite how the esteemed Fr. Gonzales pointed it on his article. And it goes â€Å"To my mind, to be relevant is to be rooted in the fundamentals, in the basics. † And now, since we are speaking here of the formation in the seminary it is noteworthy to quote the clear stand of the Holy Mother Church regarding philosophy education. The philosophical disciplines are to be taught in such a way that the students are first of all led to acquire a solid and coherent knowledge of man, the world, and of God, relying on a philosophical patrimony which is perennially valid and taking into account the philosophical investigations of later ages. This is especially true of those investigations which exercise a greater influence in their own nations. Account should also be taken of the more recent progress of the sciences. The net result should be that the students, correctly understanding the characteristics of the contemporary mind, will be duly prepared for dialogue with men of their time. The history of philosophy should be so taught that the students, while reaching the ultimate principles of the various systems, will hold on to what is proven to be true therein and will be able to detect the roots of errors and to refute them. In the very manner of teaching there should be stirred up in the students a love of rigorously searching for the truth and of maintaining and demonstrating it, together with an honest recognition of the limits of human knowledge. Attention must be carefully drawn to the necessary connection between philosophy and the true problems of life, as well as the questions which preoccupy the minds of the students. Likewise students should be helped to perceive the links between the subject-matter of philosophy and the mysteries of salvation which are considered in theology under the higher light of faith. Well, without being prejudice, my accounting inclination dictates to me that this stand where the Church resolve as Her own provides a clear mandate on how philosophy is vital and will remain vital handmaid of Theology, which is the climax of the decade long preparatory of priesthood. Moreover, Philosophy is the arm’s length support needed to give a deeper understanding of the wide-range formation, since it prepares at least to have a strong framework in the art of reasoning. In line with this, the Church in its quest to equip at least its own battalion of soldiers made a clear distinction on the particular and necessary field of Philosophy by hailing in particular the school of thought of the great Angelic Doctor, St. Thomas Aquinas. Pope Leo XIII on his encyclical, Aeterni Patris, states that; â€Å"And we know how in those great homes of human wisdom, as in his own kingdom, Thomas reigned supreme; and that the minds of all, of teachers as well as of taught, rested in wonderful harmony under the shield and authority of the Angelic Doctor. Even before the Second Vatican Council, St. Thomas’ way was hailed which on this encyclical summed up all other praises. Yet, this contention alone will not suffice, the question remains clear particularly on its relevance Nevertheless, on a hindsight we can never neglect for a fact that Thomistic Philosophy alone suffices the needs priestly seminary formation entails, aside from a fact that it provides and nourished on the strong and robust food of doctrine, that so, mighty in strength and armed at all points, they may become habituated to advance the cause of religion with force and udgment. Pope Leo XII even added â€Å"Now, We think that, apart from the supernatural help of God, nothing is better calculated to heal those minds and to bring them into favor with the Catholic faith than the solid doctrine of the Fathers and the Scholastics, who so clearly and forcibly demonstrate the firm foundations of the faith, its divine origin, its certain truth, the arguments that sust ain it, the benefits it has conferred on the human race, and its perfect accord with reason, in a manner to satisfy completely minds open to persuasion, however unwilling and repugnant. But then it can never be disregarded that the Magisterium during Vatican II almost spelled the end of the Thomistic Revival. Yet still in 1998, John Paul II issued an encyclical called Fides et Ratio which may be regarded as the charter of the Thomism of the third millennium. Although the research might be too limited, with sources too few and time so constraint, I suppose that as long as the Thomistic Philosophy provides the ultimate purpose needed to answer the requirements of the formation it will remain perennial and as long as it continuously aids in strengthening the faith, perhaps there will be no other else relevant enough. Then and then Thomism Philosophy will continue to enjoy it supremacy. [ 1 ]. http://blog. accountingcoach. com/accounting-relevance/#ixzz0LUgKksRD [ 2 ]. Is Thomistic Philosophy Relevant in Seminary Formation? , Fr. Enrico Gonzales, O. P. , Ph. D [ 3 ]. Optatam Totius, 15 [ 4 ]. Aeterni Patris, 20 [ 5 ]. Cf. Aeterni Patris, 27 [ 6 ]. Aeterni Patris, 27

Discover 5 Essential Qualities of a Good Teacher

Discover 5 Essential Qualities of a Good Teacher Educational studies suggest that the essential qualities of good teachers include the ability to be self-aware of ones biases; to perceive, understand and accept differences in others; to analyze and diagnose student understanding and adapt as required; to negotiate and take risks in their teaching; and to have a strong conceptual understanding of their subject matter. Measurable and Measuring Most teachers are paid according to their experience and educational attainment, but as educator Thomas Luschei has demonstrated, there is little evidence that more than 3-5 years of experience boost teachers ability to increase student test scores or grades. Other measurable attributes such as how well the teachers did on their qualifying examinations, or what level of education a teacher has attained also do not significantly impact the students performance in classrooms. So although there is little consensus in the education profession about which measurable features make a good teacher, several studies have identified inherent traits and practices which assist teachers in reaching their students. To Be Self-Aware American teacher-educator Stephanie Kay Sachs believes that an effective teacher needs to have a basic sociocultural awareness of and acceptance of their own and others cultural identity. Teachers need to be able to facilitate the development of a positive self-ethnic identity and be aware their own personal biases and prejudices. They should use self-inquiry to examine the relationship between their fundamental values, attitudes, and beliefs, particularly with regard to their teaching. This inner bias affects all interactions with students but does not prohibit teachers from learning from their students or vice versa. Educator Catherine Carter adds that an effective way for teachers to understand their processes and motivation is to define an apt metaphor for the role they perform. For example, she says, some teachers think of themselves as gardeners, potters shaping clay, mechanics working on engines, business managers, or workshop artists, supervising other artists in their growth. To Perceive, Understand and Value Differences Teachers who understand their own biases says Sachs, are in a better position to view their students experiences as valuable and meaningful and integrate the realities of the students lives, experiences, and cultures into the classroom and subject matter. The effective teacher builds perceptions of her own personal influence and power over factors that contribute to student learning. In addition, she must build conceptual interpersonal skills to respond to the complexities of the school environment. The experiences of both teachers and students with individuals of differing social, ethnic, cultural, and geographic backgrounds can serve as a lens through which future interactions can be viewed. To Analyze and Diagnose Student Learning Teacher Richard S. Prawat suggests that teachers must be able to pay close attention to students learning processes, to analyze how students are learning and diagnose issues that prevent understanding. Assessments must be undertaken not on tests per se, but rather as the teachers engage students in active learning, allowing debate, discussion, research, writing, evaluation, and experimentation. Compiling results from a report of the Committee on Teacher Education for the National Academy of Education, Linda Darling-Hammond and Joan Baratz-Snowden suggest teachers must make their expectations for high-quality work known, and provide constant feedback as they revise their work towards these standards. In the end, the goal is to create a well-functioning, respectful classroom that allows students to work productively. To Negotiate and Take Risks in Teaching Sachs suggests that building on the ability to perceive where students are failing to fully understand, an effective teacher must not be afraid to seek out tasks for herself and the students that are optimal for their skills and abilities, recognizing that those efforts may not be successful. These teachers are the pioneers and trailblazers, she says, individuals who are challenge-oriented. Negotiation involves moving students in a certain direction, towards a view of reality which is shared by those in the disciplinary community. At the same time, teachers must recognize when some obstacles to such learning are misconceptions or faulty reasoning which need to be highlighted, or when a child is simply using her own informal ways of knowing which should be encouraged. This, says Prawat, is the essential paradox of teaching: to challenge the child with new ways of thinking, but negotiate a way for that student to not dismiss alternate ideas. Overcoming these obstacles must be a collaborative enterprise between student and teacher, where uncertainty and conflict are important, growth-producing commodities. To Have a Depth of Subject Matter Knowledge Particularly in the maths and sciences, educator Prawat stresses that teachers need to have rich networks of knowledge in their subject matter, organized around key ideas that could provide a conceptual basis for understanding. Teachers obtain that by bringing focus and coherence to the subject matter and allowing themselves to be more conceptual in their approach to learning. In this manner, they transform it into something meaningful for students. Sources Carter, Catherine. Priest, Prostitute, Plumber? The Construction of Teachers as Saints. English Education 42.1 (2009): 61–90. Print.Darling-Hammond, Linda, and Joan Baratz-Snowden. A Good Teacher in Every Classroom: Preparing the Highly Qualified Teachers Our Children Deserve. Educational Horizons 85.2 (2007): 111–32. Print.Goldhaber, Dan. The Mystery of Good Teaching. Education Next Spring 2002 (2002): 1–5. Print.Luschei, Thomas F. In Search of Good Teachers: Patterns of Teacher Quality in Two Mexican States. Comparative Education Review 56.1 (2012): 69–97. Print.Prawat, Richard S. Teaching for Understanding: Three Key Attributes. Teaching and Teacher Education 5.4 (1989): 315–28. Print.Robinson, Richard, et al. The Effective Teacher Revisited. The Reading Teacher 45.6 (1992): 448–48. Print.Sachs, Stephanie Kay. Evaluation of Teacher Attributes as Predictors of Success in Urban Schools. Journal of Teacher Education 55.2 (2004): 177–87 . Print.