Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Google are seen to pervade modern life - The Four Horsemen by Steve Galloway (with handy career tips)

The Four by Steve Galloway, most people have interacted with the big four within the past 24 hours.  The summary of the book shows how The Four have dominated the world.

Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Google are seen to pervade modern life.  Humans have needs and the four horsemen (referred to by the author) seek to satisfy these needs.

Google - provider of endless information

Facebook - love and networking

Apple - sex appeal and luxury

Amazon - fiction, food and books.

Ubiquity has changed the world people live in.  Amazon is the top choice for online purchases in the USA and this trend is moving in the same direction abroad. Amazon is the most profitable company ever.  1/6 of the world population is on FB and Google owns knowledge and responses.

The Big Four have changed and improved the world people live in.  They have created thousands of jobs and successfully fulfilled peoples needs.

Amazon appeals to stuff gathering instincts and consumption.  Amazon Prime memberships are on the rise, 56% of USA households owned a Prime Account.  Humans like to buy and hoard things and have consumerist instincts.  Amazon has capitalised on this and anything can be bought within a day.  Scale is the secret to the success of Amazon and their customers are in the millions.  Amazon are in the race to become the first trillion dollar company.

Apple appeals to the desire to be special.  Steve Jobs has become a tech icon, the MAC is cool.  Apple's profits set it apart.  Apple's luxury items allows people to feel stylish.  In line with Porche and Prada, Apple sells its products at premium prices.

Facebook fulfils social desire, it has 1.2 billion users and has more devotees than world religions.  Facebook fosters deep human desire and the need for social relationships allowing people to reconnect and nourish connections.  People attain the satisfaction of sociality.  Facebook uses personal data and provides personalised advertising solutions.  It connects the data and uses the data by advertisers.  Advertisers can deploy customised ads which can be targeted to specific audiences.  Facebook has low costs as content is created by users and it isn't a media outlet which would be expensive to create.  FB knows more about political views than any other company.  FB uses algorithms and can polarise society.

Google is said to be the modern day god - omniscient and omnipotent.  A digital god with an answer.  Google is all knowing, trust worthy and powerful.  We live in a world full of facts and Google has all the answers.  Users confide more in Google than any other company.  There are on average 3.5 billion search queries everyday and  Google raked in $36 billion dollars in 2016.  Google gathers all the information it can and provides key information.

The author talks about the concept of the brain, heart and loins.  Google and Amazon utilise the brain - providing costs and benefits of online purchases.  FB speaks the language of the heart due to peoples desire for rich social connections and Apple sells luxury and sexy products such as the iPhone.

The author further explore the factors needed to create the first trillion dollar company and explains there are 8 factors.  He also questions whether there could be a 5th horseman? Below are the factors a new 5th horseman would require:

T algorithm - 'Trillion'

1. Product differentiation - Apple iphone, Amazon can deliver in hours

2. Compelling vision - FB connects everyone one earth, Google organises all the information in the world

3. Global reach - partially digital product with positive image is needed to reach anyone, anywhere

4. Likeability - positive image

5. Vertical integration - a company must control different stages in the production process

6. Artificial intelligence, - data expertise is crucial and the four are data experts

7. Accelerant - attract top talent and accelerate a person's career

8. Geography - the four are near prestigious universities, for example, Stanford and Berkeley.  The 5th horseman would need to recruit the best and brightest.

Could Ali Baba, Uber or Microsoft become the 5th horsemen?

Ali Baba is a Chinese e-commerce company, it is the world's largest retailer with 1/2 billion active users.  However, Ali Baba does not have any global reach apart from in China. 

UBER has a fleet of 2 million strong drivers in 80 countries where this is the main mode of transportation.  UBER has successfully attracted investors and has data skills.  

Microsoft and Walmart - Walmart has 12,000 stores but this could be a destructive force.  Microsoft has huge assets in LinkedIn.

The author provides career advice and writes to succeed it is important to develop your personality, move to a city and pimp your career.

There are three personal qualities - 

1. Emotional maturity - workers are expected to handle a lot of information

2. Curiosity - constantly learn about new tools and qualities

3. Ownership - achieve personal tasks

It is important people seek to further their education and get certified as credential is what will set them apart.  Additionally, move to a city to find success, information, wealth and power as this is where the power is and where 90% of new jobs are.

Galloway writes 'find a platform and pimp your career' explaining The Four have shaped the world we live in, now that we know how the Four work make it work for you by learning how to thrive in the world they have created.

Follow your talent, what are you good at?  Commit to becoming great at it.  Go from good to great and love what you do.

You can also enjoy a video by the author here - 

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n1xjdRRIzYw

Buy The Four by Scott Galloway here - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Four-Hidden-Amazon-Facebook-Google/dp/059307789X

The Happiness Advantage - Push Yourself Up

The Happiness Advantage by Shawn Achor conveys Happiness doesn't come from success, your success depends on your happiness. Adjust your perspective and notice the positive things that are already there.

Shawn Achor spent twelve years at Harvard University and is a world renowned expert in the connection between happiness and success. He has researched mindset which made the cover of Harvard Business Review.  Shawn has presented a TED talk which achieved over 13 million views.

The key concept of the book is that the happiness advantage will give you a performance edge.  It's not a coincedence your best work is done when you are happy.  A person's competitive advantage is their positivity, it includes showing appreciation and gratitude. 

Positivity exercises can include meditation, for example, monks were studied and their pre frontal cortex showed growth.  This indicated an increase in the monks happiness.  

Credit source: https://andreacollo.wordpress.com/2014/10/17/gonna-feel-happy-in-3-2-1/

There are a number of ways to achieve happiness.  Think about something you are looking forward to or think about your next holiday - these thoughts can increase your endorphin levels.

Enhance your performance by enhancing the mindset.  The words we use can alter the experience of pain and suffering.  We can change the way that we process the world and we can use the brain to experience hope, positivity and joy.  

Happiness and a positive mindset leads to true happiness and performance.  The more you believe in your ability to succeed the more you will.  It is important to train your brain to look for the positive as opposed to the negatives.  Understand the mind adopts patterns of the world.  

The Tetris effect or Tetris syndrome occurs when people devote a lot of time and attention to an activity that begins to pattern their thoughts, mental images and dreams. It takes its name from the video game Tetris. The negative Tetris effect verse the positive Tetris effect can impact an individuals mindset.  Individuals should actively seek positive experiences.  One way to direct focus is to write 3 good things that happened the day before (a joke, accomplishment, a connection.)  However, for long term effectiveness, consistency is needed.  Positive experiences improve the quality of your day and quality in performance.

The author advises individuals to change negative momentum to positive momentum - particularly after a crisis and adversity.  There are three potential outcomes.  Firstly, your mind produces no change, secondly your mind produces further negativity and thirdly you use adversity and failure to find a better path.  Our mind creates alternative scenarios of what just occurred.  You have the options of the ones you want to choose.

Success is about pushing yourself up, not falling down but falling up.  Gaining control and focussing on little changes helps make greatest improvements.  Those who believe they have power over their outcomes have higher achievement, outcomes and success at work.  This feeling of control can crumble as we focus on things we can't control.  Put your negativite emotions into words as this will help to diminish their power.  

Make an effort of the situations you can control and the things you can't.  Don't stress about the things you can't control.  Focus on what you can control.  Think of small successes which add up to major achievements.

Will power alone can not effect change, form good habits such as exercising refer to Steven Covey's 7 Habits of Highly Effective People blog post.  Will power is a limited resource and it can be depleted with over use.  

Successful people know their social interactions are valuable investments and results in social unity.  Social support and happiness are twice as highly correlated than the base line (Harvard Research.)

Leaders should invest in social atmospheres, research from MIT shows employees with strong bonds with managers perform better than weak bonds.  Its important to show gratitude by being personal and in front of others.

Into the future - you have the power to share the happiness with the world.  Take for example the 'yawning phenomenan' which is contagious. The happiness advantage benefits and spreads throughout our lives.  There is a ripple effect because mirror neurons in the brain help you to experience what others are experiencing, thus, the same applies to your mindset.  

These ripple effects can be so large and could cause a butterfly effect.  By focussing on small changes, you have the power to trigger and positively change the dynamics of a group and the world.

Watch Shawn Achor's video below - Happiness leads to success and in turn this increases business performance.  Shawn jokes he can't offer everyone a payrise, but he can show people how to be happy and successful.

You can buy the book here on Amazon 

The Happiness Advantage: The Seven Principles of Positive Psychology that Fuel Success and Performance

Research resources: https://www.shawnachor.com/

'The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People' - Here is a quick summary

Highly effective people are all around us, they are people who we can learn from and we can adopt some of their principles and practices.  Just take a look at the sector you work in, from media, education, marketing, finance and sales.  Most likely, these highly effective people have read 'The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People,' by Steven Covey published in 1989 but this book is still very relevant today.  

It is important to change yourself first and this can be done by developing better habits, thus allowing a way to achieve lasting and personal change.  There are 7 key habits Covey outlines resulting in personal and professional effectiveness.  Some of you may already be doing some of these, so it's important to recognise what you're doing well and reflect on what you could start to do.  Covey writes, 'we are creatures of habit.'  How we act as well as who we are is defined by our habits.  Below is a summary of the principles to explore:

The first habit: Be proactive and take control of your own fate - I recently attended a workshop by NABS  which looked at the circle of concern vs. circle of control.  Proactive people take responsibility of their own lives and behaviour and try to find a solution to a problem.    Below are two centric circles, the dark blue is the circle of concern and the light blue is the circle of influence.  The light blue circle represents things which can actually be done.  Which do you fall into?  People have the power to decide what happens between stimulus and response.  A 30 day proactivity challenge may helps to find solutions.  Focus on the internal rather than the external to help proactivity flourish.

Research Credit: https://davidrynick.com/circle-of-influence-and-circle-of-concern/

The second habit: Begin with the end in mind.  Covey's recommendation is to visualize the end in mind.  This could be in relation to a project and key goals but also larger life goals.

The third habit: Put first things first by rigourously prioritizing.  When I started out in media, a boss took the time to draw out the below quadrant which was a 2x2 matrix.  It helped me to understand how to prioritize tasks, he was using the Covey strategy.  This has proved important and effective and it's a strategy I have used and in turn shared with people to help manage workload.

Credit Source: https://www.visionstoexcellence.com/stephen-covey-4-quadrants/

The most important quadrant is number two as the actions will positively impact your life.  By working in quadrant 2 you should experience fewer crises.

The fourth habit: Think 'Win Win' - this strategy develops a long-term positive relationship to be created.  Each action will strengthen a relationship rather than eroding it.  Look for similarities and mutually satisfactory deals.  Covey talks about the 'emotional bank account,' thus putting time, effort and good will into it.  By doing this, trust grows and both parties can be flexible and sort out any miscommunication.  Recommendations include, keeping promises, be explicit about what is expected, be courteous and sensitive.

The fifth habit: Seek first to understand, then to be understood.  It is important to listen to what people say and understand their situation through empathic listening.  By understanding the other person's frame of reference you can intellectually and emotionally understand them.

The sixth habit: Synergize and treat people with openness and respect.  True synergy means people listen to each other and address a shared challenge and see this as an adventure.  Synergy requires self-confidence and convinction.  It is the belief that each party can lead to something great, even during a chaotic journey.

The seventh habit: Sharpen the saw to keep sawing - this means it is important to pause and take care of yourself.  This is essential for long and lasting effectiveness.  Covey writes there are four ways in which this can be achieved:

1) Physical fitness - regular exercise, healthy eating and to avoid undue stress

2) Spiritual health - praying and meditating, or regularly reflecting on your own values and what's normal for you

3) Mental health - read plenty of good books and organize and plan things to keep your mind sharp and fresh

4) Social and emotional health - seek to understand others, build positive long lasting relationships and work on projects that help improve lives.

In conclusion, I have learnt some of these habits through exemplary behaviour and observing the most effective people in media and education.  I wanted to share my learnings and the Covey strategy to help with your career and life goals as we all face uncertain times.

Available on Amazon here: The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People

Research sources: 

 https://davidrynick.com/circle-of-influence-and-circle-of-concern/

https://www.visionstoexcellence.com/stephen-covey-4-quadrants/

https://nabs.org.uk/events/

https://www.blinkist.com/

Instagram Reels Introduced on August 5th 2020 to take on Tik Tok

I always wondered why Instagram wasn't bidding for Tik Tok and now I understand why.  On August 5th 2020 Instagram announced Instragram Reels which is deemed a new way to create and discover short and entertaining videos.

Users are invited to create fun videos to share with friends and anyone on Instagram.  Users can record and edit 15-second multi-clip videos with audio,effects and new creative tools.  These reels can be shared with followers on Feed and if the account is public can make them accessible to their Instagram community through a new space in Explore.  Reels in Explore allows anyone the change to become a creator on Instagram and reach a new audience globally.

Below is what it would look like and I'll explore how it works.

Credit Source: https://about.instagram.com/blog/announcements/introducing-instagram-reels-announcement

Creating Reels

On Instagram camera select Reels.  There are creative editing tools which include audio (search for a song from the Insta music library or use your own original), AR Effects (you can select a range and record multiple clips with effects), Timer and Countdown (use a count down for hands-free clips), Align and speed are also functionalities.  The reels are recorded in a series of clips.

The Reels can be shared in Explore if the account is public or in your feed if the Reel is private.  Reels can also be shared to your story and will disappear after 24 hours.

The advantages of Reels via the Explore is that this feature shows trending culture on Instagram.  Users can discover entertainment and if a user has a vertical feed it can be customized.  Reels can be loved by liking, commenting and sharing with friends.

Some Reels will have a 'Featured label' and if featured in Explore the user will be notified.  The advantage of featured reels are that they are a selection of public reels selected by Instagram to help users discover original content, entertain and inspire.

The aim of Reels it to empower users and allow them new ways to express and discover what they love on Instagram and help anyone become a creator.

Credit Research Source: https://about.instagram.com/blog/announcements/introducing-instagram-reels-announcement

Twitch in 2020, an Amazon Owned Live Streaming Video Gaming Platform

Twitch is an Amazon owned company bought in 2014 for an eye-watering $970 million. The company is a live online streaming video gaming platform originally created for gamers. The gaming industy has grown from decade to decade. Sign up to Twitch is online or via an Amazon Prime subscription which gives access to Prime Gaming on Twitch. Twitch Prime is a source of free in-game content, PC games and a Twitch channel subscription every month which has been open to Amazon's 150million+ Prime subscribers.

Historically, people have always watched others play video games, whether this be at the arcades, on television or on the computer. Twitch has successfully brought the pastime to the 21st century by allowing gamers to live stream to anyone watching them. They have become content creators where viewers can interact with the streamers and help direct them to content. Some players can play with broadcasters, the platform has grown into a community that is thriving. There are several categories that allow people around the world to produce content. Twitch content creators can fund their channel in several ways. Find out more here

1. Tips and Donations - most live-streaming platforms and websites allow you to make money streaming by letting viewers send you donations or tips. They usually have integrated services, or even their own “virtual goods” or “currencies” viewers can use for the transaction.  Twitch allows viewers to “cheer” using Bits, the platform’s virtual good. If you’re a Twitch affiliate or a partner, you get around a cent for every Bit viewers use when cheering. The viewers get to write a message that appears together with a special kind of emote, a Cheemote

2. Regular viewer payments on the streaming platform, Twitch has a paid subscription program that lets you earn from paid subscriptions if you’re an Affiliate or Partner. Your viewers get one subscription for free through Twitch Prime, or they can pay for them using PayPal, Amazon Pay, or credit cards.

3. Tips and regular payments via third-party platforms - this allows donations and subscriptions.  Popular options include: Streamlabs for one-time donations. It integrates easily with Twitch, YouTube, Mixer, Facebook, Periscope, and Picarto, and it offers six different payment options.

4. Revenue from adverts - Twitch offers in-stream ads, as well as display and native ad opportunities. In comparison, YouTube offers pre-roll and mid-roll ads, as well as display and overlay ads. Facebook Live offers mid-roll ads if you meet the viewership number criteria.

5. Brand deals and Sponsorship - watch this video below. Brands can work with a Twitch content creator or influencer as follows:  A. Sponsorships, the whole stream is sponsored by a brand. B. Banners and other types of advertisements these are displayed during the streams or on the channel or profile page on the platform. C. Sponsored content, for example, a game developer pays for the influencer to play their game.

6. Affiliate sales - influencers can become members of affiliate programmes. A simple code or link can be placed in the stream. This allows the influencer to make a commission everytime a shopper clicks on the link.

7. Pay Per View Content - Influencers can createFirst, you need to be able to create content people will want to pay to watch. That usually means some level of exclusivity or at least something that will make it different from anything that’s already available for free. You need a platform that lets you sell tickets to streams, or a service like StreamTick that lets you do it on YouTube, Facebook, or Twitter. With that, you have everything you need to put your content behind a paywall.

For Advertisers considering Twitch, below are the Key Twitch Statistics Even More Twitch User Statistics Here

• 3.8 million unique broadcasters over February 2020
• Average monthly Twitch broadcasters 3.64 million over 2019
• 56,000 concurrent Twitch broadcasters on average, as of March 2020
• 1.44 million concurrent viewers on average, as of March 2020
• 41,100 Twitch Partners, as of March 2020
• Highest peak concurrent Twitch views in 2020 (as of March) 533,000, for The Gregf
• Tfue most followed active Twitch account, with 7.8 million
• Ninja had 14.7 million followers before defecting to Microsoft Mixer
• League of Legends all-time most-viewed game on Twitch, with 29 billion views (as of April 2020)
• Twitch claimed 65% share of hours viewed (3.1 billion), and 72% hours (121.4 million) streamed against game streaming rivals in Q1 2020
• 2.3 billion hours watched on Twitch in Q4 2019 (compared to 0.9 billion on YouTube Gaming and 0.1 million on Mixer)
• As of 2017, 124 million clips were stored on Twitch, with 1.7 billion views collectively
• Twitch users watch 95 minutes per day on average
• Twitch acquired by Amazon for $1 billion in August 2014
• Twitch ranked 33 in the world in Alexa’s web ranking in April 2020
• 65% of the Twitch userbase is male
• Around 23% of Twitch desktop traffic comes from the US
• Record for single channel concurrent Twitch views 1.1 million for a Counter-Strike: Global Offensive tournament hosted by ELEAGUE in January 2018
• Overall record for concurrent Twitch views 1.7 million for League of Legends Worlds hosted by Riot Games in November 2019
• Ninja holds the non-tournament record for single channel concurrent viewers on Twitch, at 635,000 (playing Fortnite alongside Drake, Travis Scott, and Juju Smith-Schuster)
• Twitch 2019 revenue estimated at $1.54 billion, $300 million of which was generated through advertising

Research sources : https://restream.io/blog/ways-you-can-make-money-live-streaming/

https://www.ironsrc.com/blog/mobile-gaming-industry-trends-in-2020/

https://www.businessofapps.com/data/twitch-statistics/#:~:text=generated%20through%20advertising-,Twitch%20User%20Statistics,monthly%20users%20at%20140%20million.

Becoming Mrs Patel - Teacher of Business, Geography and ICT. The Role Teachers Play in Shaping the Next Generation - Department for Education

In 2018, I fulfilled a life long ambition and I became Mrs Patel, Teacher of Business, ICT and Geography. I volunteered in a school, spoke to a head teacher, passed the Maths and English skills test and applied to teach.  I started unqualified teaching positions whilst I waited to start my course.  An Advertising Practitioner by profession, I was inspired by The Department for Education's TV, Social Media and Radio campaign which featured a real teacher making a difference in students' lives.  Hence, my #getintoteaching journey had started and I didn't even realise the influence the campaign had on me until my journey was completed in 2020. 

I researched the routes into teaching, there are 3 main routes suitable for people at different stages in their life.  I chose a PGCE University route via a SCITT leader which involved being placed in a main school for the duration of the year and working in a second contrasting placement.  The route was on the job and I had the opportunity to attend inspiring professional tutor lectures and subject lectures at Roehampton University.  I met other like minded professionals and a supportive cohort of excellent teachers and schools.

The campaign aimed to inspire people to consider teaching as a career, thus highlighting the role teachers play in shaping the lives of the students they teach and to present teaching as a creative and vibrant career.

Throughout the awareness, consideration and final application I was encouraged by the "Get into teaching" campaign.  I was reminded at home whilst cooking; driving in the car; browsing social media or watching tv, the vital role teachers play in a child's life.  The TV, radio, social campaigns worked and I am grateful to everyone who has been part of my journey and provided references for me from colleagues in the media industry, to head teachers who encouraged my route and teachers who supported me.  If you have the ambition, build your network, ask questions and support one another.  Teaching is one of the most challenging yet rewarding careers because children deserve the highest quality of education.

I qualified in July 2020 with a PGCE in Secondary School from Roehampton University and Thamesmead SCITT.  I was placed in an excellent teaching school, Bishop Wand Church of England and Thamesmead.  I have become a confident, reflective and passionate practitioner who knows I can make a difference for years to come.  I am able to pursue my passion for advertising, media, business and education as I have now diversified my skillset; challenged by a new sector and will continously develop and have the ability to shape lives.  When I completed my placement, the children wrote me the sweetest messages which were given to me by my Deputy Head and Mentor.  This was the sweetest and most meaningful reward.  I know I shaped lives for hundreds of children and becoming a qualified teacher has become my proudest achievement to date.

"Tuesday" created by Havas London and Pulse

Created by Sam Turk and Paul Robbins, and directed by 32 through Pulse.

Department for Education: ad shows teaching as a vibrant career

Credit: https://www.campaignlive.co.uk/article/department-education-shows-role-teachers-shaping-next-generation/1669670

"'Every lesson shapes a life' continues to resonate well with both current and aspiring teachers and our new film builds on this," Chloe Saklow, deputy director for teaching, customer and brand at the Department for Education, said.

"There are thousands of brilliant teachers helping to shape the next generation – and we want to encourage more people to join this unique and dynamic profession by reflecting one dedicated and inspiring individual whose enjoyment of what he does is as clear as it is infectious."

Source: https://www.campaignlive.co.uk/article/department-education-shows-role-teachers-shaping-next-generation/1669670

Zara’s augmented reality app launches April 12th

Zara, the fashion chain is introducing augmented reality displays on April 18th.  This is already being promoted on Instagram with the app being available from 12th April.

Clothing retailers are investing in product demonstrations and store-specific content to attract customers in their twenties and early thirties, whose increasing use of online players has ravaged bricks-and-mortar retail chains in recent years. 

Zara's Instagram ad shows models wearing selected looks from its ranges when a mobile phone is held up to a sensor within the store or designated shop windows, with customers able to click through to buy the clothes.

"It is now very rare in the physical stores-based part of the retail sector to find companies not disrupted by online," Anne Critchlow, of Societe Generale, said in a recent note. 

 H&M is also investing in technology for enhanced customer engagement, it said during an  investors' day in February.  Zara's augmented reality displays will be introduced in 120 stores worldwide from April.

The technology will also enable models to pop up on packages of online purchases delivered to customers, showing alternative outfits.

Will the augmented reality app increase store visitations and excite the users to engage with packages delivered to them?  I'm looking forward to testing the experience out myself once it launches.

Sources: Reuters and Instagram