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August 2017

Hyperloop
Tech

This Is Why Elon Musk’s Hyperloop Will Change The World

written by Feras Antoon

A few years ago, everything was just a vision of Elon Musk. Many thought that the Hyperloop dream was too far-fetched, but this Los Angeles based company has proved otherwise.

The race for the Hyperloop One has begun. Among the 35 finalist teams that have been chosen for this global challenge, the team from Los Angeles made the biggest leap. Just recently, the team tested its pod for the first time. The 28 feet long aluminum and carbon fiber pod had successfully hit 192 mph in about 5 seconds. Using an an electric propulsion system, it can produce more than 3,000 horsepower. All of this was made possible using magnetic levitation, the same system used by high-speed trains in Japan.

Mag-Lev technology reduces friction and the energy needed for the trains to achieve near-supersonic speeds. The team also pumped out all the air possible out of the tube to reduce air pressure, something you’d experience at an altitude of 200,000 feet.

“This is the dawn of the age of commercialization for the hyperloop,” says Shervin Pishevar, Hyperloop One’s executive chairman and cofounder.

However, there are still momentous developments to be added before the train system can be used for transportation. The biggest challenge is to make it practical. The team is yet to unearth the ways to reduce the Hyperloop costs. The system must be cheap enough that customers would choose it over air-travel or high speed rails.

 

Changing the world in 5 years

One of the significant goals of Hyperloop is to bring three routes into production within five years. By this time, the team must learn how to transport people or cargo without affecting the near-vacuum state. The team must as well be able to connect with public agencies and players who will help them build the stations.

Hyperloop global map© inverse.com

If ever Hyperloop One successfully targets its goals over 5 years, it could spark the wick towards Mark Ovenden’s World Metro Map. The map, designed in 2003, is a theory of what a global underground system could look like. The concept proposes that cities in different parts of the world would have an operational metro system, which connects one nation to another. The global underground system must have supersonic trains with speeds of at least 750 mph. This concept says that Europe-Asia trips will be possible in a matter of hours.

Concepts of World Metro Map and Hyperloop One were once presumed as silly. Many people thought it’s impossible. However, people who believed that everything is possible, made the impossible happen. In just a couple of years, such insane dreams were proven logical and achievable. Perhaps, it’s true that people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, really are just geniuses who worked on their dreams.

August 30, 2017 0 comment
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Feras Antoon 100 Customers
Business

How To Get Your First 100 Customers

written by Feras Antoon

Many of the largest companies today started small. The uphill journey is never easy, but reaching the top is always worthwhile. Every business comes with risks. No entrepreneur had been 100 percent sure about their future revenue. Everything is just an estimation, hopes and careful planning. For startups, especially, it could be challenging to flourish in just a short time. However, success is possible if the right steps str done. So, how will you get from ‘no one knows you’ to your first 100 customers? Here is a useful guide.

First things first, you must know how to improve the odds of reaching your target. Startups get through a certain process, and they do it by exploring different channels and sources. They build up their user base, but the successful startups maintain a laser-like approach to hit their ideal client profile.

Many startups once thought that ‘mass marketing’ is the key to catch the big fish, but they are wrong. Using techniques like blogging, SEO, social media and paid advertising can be compared to huge nest. It would allow you to catch a lot of fish. However, you’d probably end up catching a lot of fish for every one big fish that you get. It isn’t good news.

Your mistake will be wasting your time and energy on these small fishes, while failing to oversee all those big fishes go back in the water. Thus, to be able to catch the huge fishes, you must learn what the clever aboriginal fishermen did – spear fishing.

These fishermen silently paddle their canoe to narrow rivers where big fishes hang out. They patiently wait, poised and focused on the fish they aim to catch, and with the right timing, they will then throw their spears. In one swift motion, lunch is served.

For startups, the way to catch the ‘big fish’ is to narrow down your audience. Hang out in small inlets where there is a higher chance of getting a huge catch. You can’t do it by using Facebook alone. This platform is clasping a large market. Too large that you will end up disappointed when your goal is to get a hundred customers using Facebook alone.

To target your audience with a laser-like focus, better go on a spear fishing expedition. In real life this would be professional associations, trade magazines, trade conferences, or unions. It may cost you money, but there’s a good reason to let go of some cash.

Striving businesses are willing to spend money to belong in such groups or attend their events because they gain benefits from it – and you will, too.

Hunting fishes in narrow rivers, might get you a list of members that you can contact personally. Perhaps you could pay for an advertising spot on the group’s emails.

In this small pool of prospective clients, you’d be able to target 1 in 6 clients that fit your brand, product or service. Now, this is good news.

Getting your first 100 customers

Now that you know how to target your specific audience, the next step is to gather customers. Like said, startups go through a process that help them become successful with their goals. Though there is no definite template for businesses to follow, the methods below will do great for your business tinkering, testing and validating:

  1. Define your customer and their problem

To make your product or service needed, it must serve as a solution to a problem of your customers. First, know your customers, then know what they need.

Emma’s story will help you get a clearer view:

It was a Monday morning when Emma hurriedly reached the gym’s changing room. She was sweating and panting as she sat down heavily on the bench. The time she unzipped her gym bag, all her things stumbled out hastily. Emma stopped for a second.

She realized she hasn’t taken out her 3-day-old sweat towel that she left over the weekend. Emma slowly sniffed the towel, and returned spraying deodorant on her feet.

Emma is a real customer with needs and wants. She is far from the fictional narratives who sell the latest fitness course, or gym membership. Emma will never be the woman on their avatar, but Emma has real problems. She’s a real customer with issues that need to be solved.

To know your customer, it is essential to know how they are doing in real life. Businesses must think where their customers are, and not where they should be. This is how you can identify your customers and their problems.

Applying the method:

  • Conduct a survey to your customers. This way you would get helpful validations of what you are doing right or wrong. You will know specific problems, and you will be able to develop appropriate solutions for it.
  • Your target audience has different segments. Pick one customer segment, the strongest one. These people are those that want your service or product.
  • This customer segment that you chose know the problem you are trying to address, and they are in your strongest channel.
  • Sieve your market, and spot the customers that need your product the most.
  • Define your customer’s reality, put your feet in their shoes, and do the job that your customers expect you to do.

  1. Create a clear message

Enough with the marketing promises. Just craft a simple, clear and relevant message about the benefits of your product or service. To do this, you can use this formula:

What your customer wants + Specific/Time/Money + Address Objection/pain = Clarity

Applying the method:

  • Focus on your customers
  • Create a clear and specific voice
  • Test the waters
  • Add modifications and write it down

  1. Expand your network through introduction requests

Ask for introductions. Though, it is easier to reach out to family and friends, you may also consider building connections with previous customers and investors. Ask people to introduce you to their network who may be interested in your business.

Chargify CEO Lance Walley agrees this is true. He mentioned in his blog post that a Twitter connection with a motorcycle rider led to his connection with Mark Cuban. Reaching out to a person he knew online resulted in his introduction to Mark Cuban, which eventually led to Mark investing in Chargify.

Applying the method:

  • In the next 24 hours, contact 10 people, and ask them to be your customer. The aim of this practice is taking action. You must develop a habit of making things happen.

  1. Reach out to influencers

The most common way to engage with influencers is to attend events and conferences, where you can break the ice and attempt to build a relationship with them. Other people choose to set meetings with influencers where they can get the chance to ask them to spread the word about their venture.

Another way is to create blogs.

The tangles of the world wide web are already packed with innumerable blogs. To be able to stand out, you must do something different.

Take for example what Buffer cofounder Leo Widrich did as a startup. Buffer was able to publish 150 guest posts in its first 9 months. This copious content resulted in the site’s 100,000 new users.

You can use your blogs to entice influencers to make a review or feedback. You can also consider allowing guest posting just like what Leo Widrich did.

Applying the method:

  • Create a blog about the problem you are solving. Define an existing issue in the marketplace and propose a solution, then write it on your blog. If it fits the market of the influencer they may share your blog, where you can get people to sign up.
  • Share your blogs on sites like Reddit where there are groups of people with similar interests.
  • Work with your About page. People who bother to click the about page exist, and they are typically the strongest segment of your market. So make sure you are able to create a clear message about who you are and what you’re looking for in your About page.
  • Write about the industry you are in. Create a blog that enlightens people about the industry, and the probable solutions to the current issues. Gather people around your blog by having a different perspective, but they can relate to. Most importantly, never forget to ask your audience to sign up for more updates.

  1. Keep a simple online presence

Online presence is essential when starting out. However, when creating your websites make sure that you keep it simple. You don’t need to waste time and energy in making complex sites.

The key is to keep your initial website uncomplicated. There is no other way to describe it, but just to keep it as simple as possible. A straightforward, and neat landing page will do, but make sure it contains the essential elements.

Applying the method:

Here are the essential elements your landing page must have:

  • A call to action: provide an opt-in form. One of your significant goals when creating sites is to turn visitors into leads. You can do this by creating a form that your audience can fill up with their name, email address, and other necessary information that will help you reach out to them.
  • Social media links: It is important to include a few relevant profiles on your blogs. Your visitors probably hang out mostly on social media platforms, thus you can optimize the exposure of your business by giving out links. However, you must not overdo it. Include just a few that your audience prefers.
  • Start a blog: A blog site adds credibility, and improves your online presence. You don’t have to be the greatest writer to create blogs. The important thing is the value of what you provide, rather than how you provide it.

 

August 28, 2017 0 comment
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Feras Antoon | How to hire a Content Marketer
Business

This Is How To Hire The Best Content Marketer For Your Company

written by Feras Antoon

Hiring a content marketer for your startup is crucial to your traffic. In today’s competitive world, it isn’t enough to just find a content marketer, but to hire the best one! However, don’t expect it to be easy. As we saw with SEO professionals, there are a bunch of self-proclaimed content marketers nowadays who isn’t truly adept in the field. Worse, you wouldn’t probably call their bluff.

In fact, according to the Content Marketing Institute’s 2016 Benchmark Report, 55% of people who involved content marketing in their work are unsure about an effective content marketing, and only 30% can say for certain that their work is effective.

These numbers matter. Your site’s content plays a major role in the growth of user acquisition. Meaning, it’s one of the leading factors behind how and why your product or service sells. The problem is, there are misconceptions about what a content marketer is, and his roles. To hire the best content marketer, the only way to do it is to learn what content marketer’s job entails, and how to pick the best person for the job — that’s the goal of this post.

Responsibilities of a content marketer

People frequently confuse content marketers with writers. Though they have similar responsibilities, these two jobs differ greatly from one another. Content marketers are typically more competitive than writers, and they wear multiple hats. Though writers create content, too, and content marketers also write, the latter mainly develops a vision for content.

Here are the responsibilities of a content marketer:

  • Content marketers are the people behind the planning, researching, execution, and result analysis of the site’s content. In other words, they drive the company’s content efforts.
  • They develop content strategies to achieve the company’s goals.
  • They plan and study the entire content strategy.
  • They work and liaise with other shareholders in the execution of content strategy.
  • They deal with writers, designers, product marketers, sales teams and external content sources in content production based on the strategy.
  • They edit all the produce content.
  • They proofread and prepare all content prior to publication.

It’s important to have a clear conception of the responsibilities of content marketers, and what they can do. This way you will know what to expect, and what to look for a person who is a content marketer candidate for your startup.

 

Qualities and characteristics of a good content marketer:

Someone who understands and uses data

Content marketers make decisions based on data. They rely on numbers, and statistics when developing strategies to deliver results based on their organization’s goals. According to a research from OMI, content marketers who can perform analytics are what 27% of companies seek for.

Someone who is a people person

The age of content marketers hiding behind their desks is done. These people who are good with their work are usually seen in front. They work and connect with people, but still devise and implement successful campaigns. Interacting with different teams and departments is part of their job. Therefore, content marketers must be a people person. They must be good at interacting with audiences, influencers and other people to be able to achieve results.

Someone who is always online

Content marketers rarely go offline. With all the work they have on their shoulders, it’s justifiable, why one statistic says ‘60% of marketers have delayed going to the bathroom to meet a work deadline,’ and ‘90% check email at night or on weekends.’

Content marketers are always facing their computer screens because they are always engaging with the community even outside office hours. They respond and comment to audience’s in other time-zones, while also creating content.

How to find the best content marketer?

Now that you know the characteristics of a good content marketer, you now have better odds of finding the best one. Successful companies are keen with hiring employees that they make sure to implement a rigorous process prior employment. This allows them to weed out poor applicants, even before they set an interview. Here’s how they do it:

Write a solid job ad

Creating a prequalifying job ad, doesn’t only inform potential employees about your job vacancy, it will also reduce the poor resumes you receive. When writing a solid job ad, you must include details about your company, your culture, and environment. You must accurately spell out an idea about how to work at your company. The job ad must reflect your expectations for the candidate, and the requirements they have to reach. When looking for a content marketer, you should at least ask to provide the following:

Resume

Looking at the candidate’s resume will allow you to learn about his dedication to work. You will be able to identify your candidate’s character and traits. Their records must reflect a strong bond with the company they worked for, and you can learn about it with the duration of their jobs. If they received awards and recognition, it would signal motivation, determination and their ability to work under pressure.

Work Sample Links

Asking for a couple of links will reveal the content marketers writing style, and other content-related activities. Notice if the content marketer can write in an engaging style, or if they have their own voice when communicating with the audience. Can they deliver thoughts in a concise, and clear way? Is the audience in favor of the candidate’s writing? Generally, looking into the work sample links will give you an idea of the content marketer’s strengths and weaknesses. You will know if his style fits what you’re looking for.

Recruiting a content marketer

After gathering a good amount of sparkling resumes, next is the recruitment process. It is highly suggested that you provide a (paid) writing exercise for this step.

Writing exercise

Pick the top candidates, and ask them to write a sample piece. When choosing the topic for your writing exercise, make sure you know a lot about it. Ask the candidates to create a draft about a subject you are knowledgeable to be able to assess the quality of their piece, and if you share the same views. This exercise will let your candidates know how to work with you, and how you give instructions. On your side as an employer, you will discover how they work on a piece with you when you ask for revisions. After the writing exercise, you will be able to shortlist candidates who will proceed to the interview.

Interview stage

As Mark Murphy, CEO of Leadership IQ explains:

“The typical job interview process fixates on ensuring that new hires are technically competent. But coachability, emotional intelligence, motivation and temperament are much more predictive of a new hires success or failure. Do technical skills really matter if the employee isn’t open to improving, alienates their coworkers, lacks emotional intelligence and has the wrong personality for the job?”

The interview is a vital part of the recruitment process as it allows you to discover the candidate’s competence, and the qualities you’re looking for. Learn more about their experience, and see if there’s a personal fit with you.

Your content marketers’ onboarding

Many companies miss out the importance of the onboarding process. This is an essential step as it reflects the candidate’s ability to smoothly integrate with the team. Furthermore, multiple companies who do nothing for their new employees’ onboarding end up losing a quarter of new hires within a year. Resulting in an additional cost of about $65000 for replacing the people they lost. To help you develop an effective process to onboard new hires, here are some ideas:

Creating their first week tasks

Once you have chosen your new content marketers, make sure you will clearly communicate what you expect with them. Assign someone who will collaborate with the new hires for a better introduction.

Arranging their workstation

Setting up the new hires’ work station will save you time, and will make them more efficient. If you can, provide them the hardware and software they use for work. You may also need to connect them to the softwares that the company uses (e.g.. Slack, Trello). Teach them how to use this software if they haven’t used it before.

Get to know the new hires

It is important that your new hires will feel welcomed and comfortable in their new work environment. You can help them by scheduling an office lunch or downtime for everyone to get to know the new hires. You may want to do it on their first day, so they could get acquainted with everyone. This helps develop strong bonds with their new teams.

Teach all the processes

Never leave all the learnings to the new employees. Help the new hires learn about your startup, the internal processes, responsibilities and workflow. Teaching them everything they need to know about their work and the company will help you save a lot of time and cost.

 

August 25, 2017 0 comment
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Feras Antoon Women in STEM
Tech

How to Improve Women Participation on Tech Jobs

written by Feras Antoon

First, we must admit the fact that sexism exists. We can’t blame the current society when for hundreds of years, in many countries women were discriminated. Though it is good news, at least for those who care about women’s rights, that there has been a noticeable change in gender equality. In fact, there are a few nations which sorted their way to manage this issue, and one of them is Norway.

Norway, just like Iceland and Finland, took the right steps to provide an even podium for men and women when it comes to rights and career opportunities. Scandinavian countries seem to have worked its ways to close the gender gap. As a matter of fact, in a World Economic Forum report where 0 is inequality and 1 is complete equality, Norway had a score of 0.84.

In addition to that, 63% of the graduates of 2015/16 in Norway were women. There is no denying, the Norwegian lands bring privilege to women in tech. However, we can still unearth significant disputes when we start to scratch the surface.

The current women leaders

An article from the Economist, made us question the real condition of gender discrimination across the board, not only in the technology field. After the major steps taken by the Nordic countries to find equality between genders, such as generous maternity leave packages and board quotas, only 6% of firms in Norway have female chief executives. We’re not even talking about only the listed companies in technology, but across the board.

Though one-third of entrepreneurial firms in Norway are founded by women, the percentage of female-founded Norwegian tech firms is extremely lesser. In fact, it is less than 1% — 0.99%, to be precise.

According to a research from the Investinor, among the 1,620 businesses, only 16 of these had a female manager, chairperson or founder. Though there has been a 26% increase in the number of women in Norweigian tech companies, there only had been a 17% growth in the number of the number of female leaders.

Are these numbers important?

As a matter of fact, yes.

In a study gathered from than 20,000 companies in 91 countries, it showed that female-led companies gained larger profits. Meaning, the more women we put in executive positions, the more companies may succeed.

Girl’s inclination to STEM subjects could also be a factor to consider behind the state of gender equality in tech. It could be due to the decline of interest of girls with their STEM subjects that sketches women’s futures in the technology world.

Based from a study gathered by Microsoft, starting the age of 15, the girls’ interest with STEM subjects begins to fade. Maria Akkuratnova, a product manager at Auka and the co-founder of Mattekrets AS, had profound observations regarding the issue:

“…going into schools, we see that the interest for STEM in elementary school kids does not differ much between the sexes – as many girls as boys want to learn about technology and are unsurprisingly equally good at it, too! The fact that girls’ interest and aptitude for STEM fades away with age was historically attributed to lower self-confidence and mathematical anxiety.

“Personally, I believe that it’s moreso affected by the fact that they are lacking female role models who teach technical subjects and encourage them to pursue a STEM career.

“When it comes to academic results across most of the world girls perform equally, if not outperform, boys in STEM-related subjects at the age of 15. We see the west dominating the conversation about feminism and yet these conversations and forward steps don’t appear to be translating to gender-equality in the Western tech workforce.

“Countries such as Russia – who sit way down the gender equality index ranking at 75 – are dominating when it comes to how many women hold tech positions. We see this too with many Asian and Eastern European countries, suggesting that in some countries with lower gender-equality, there is actually less of a gender-gap in STEM professions.

“In Russia, this might well be due to the historical heritage from the Soviet, where equality in science and mathematics was heavily promoted in the race to being the most advanced nation from a technology standpoint. Nevertheless, a culture where female engineers and computer scientists were common was created, which in turn has created positive role-models and encouraged younger generations of girls.”

What HR can do

There is a similar pattern in the behavior of women workers in technology, and people in Human Resources may be noticing the same observation. Initially, there are more women candidates in technology firms. However, the number declines after several years. Women who are hired for tech positions either stop progressing or end up leaving the company. Thus, employees who are promoted to senior positions are mostly men.

The key to resolve this conundrum lies in the culture of companies. Considering a shift in culture that encourage competitive women to stay and propel in the development field may result in big changes in favor of workers and the company as a whole.

To make it happen, leaders and HR must create an environment that is appealing to women. They must realize their role in honing a workplace that is safe, dynamic and fair to all sexes. Employees, regardless if they are men or women, must feel comfortable and energized in the environment where they are employed.

Implementation of equality in any workplace is crucial. Otherwise, a biased culture may develop in women or men dominated office.

Though, it is commonly believed that hiring like-minded people can be beneficial for the efficiency of start ups. The opposite is true when it comes to innovation and long-term growth of the company. Hiring workers with the similar background, beliefs, work process, even genders, will give limitations to development, which is vital to the company’s progress.

The goal of recruitment must have diversification. Startups, especially, must hire employees who can contribute different or even opposing ideas. This way, expansion and growth of the company will be easier to achieve.

 

August 23, 2017 0 comment
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Feras Antoon Dress to Impress
Business

How Spending $160k on Clothes Can Make You $692k

written by Feras Antoon

If you read the title, by now you think this post is absurd. Why would anyone spend that much money for clothes? How would it come to that much expense, and can you really gain financial profit with spending that much money on material things? These questions could be lingering in your mind. Let us tell you, you’re not alone. We also had rambling questions in our own baffled minds — but it isn’t absurdity, it is true. In fact, the story came from real life experiences of the entrepreneurial genius, Neil Patel.

Neil Patel is an addict – a shopping addict. As you would expect from the entrepreneurial genius, Neil didn’t do it for no reason. He has all the right reasons of a brilliant businessman why he spends thousands of cash for clothes. Neil decided to start dressing better when he noticed that it has a significant beneficial impact to his consulting business. He learned that wearing fancy, luxurious ties and coats resulted in his sturdy fortress of trust and credibility among his clients. The moment he chose to dress decently, he acquired larger business deals.

However, it is truly possible to spend $162,301.42 on clothes?

The answer is yes, and here’s how.

You may want to opt for formal, yet stylish corporate look to appear like a pro. According to Neil, he mainly shops at stores like Tom Ford, Dolce and Gabbana, and Burberry. Go for a conservative look, nothing crazy or too quirky. So, here’s why you will end up buying a $162-worth of clothes: suits, jackets, tuxedos, and briefcases don’t come cheap. These things have price tags that are more than a 1000 bucks. Yes, these things exist and people buy them.

Tuxedos and suits can range from $2,000 to $7,000. Briefcases can cost you a minimum of $3,000, and extravagant pair of shoes can be at $1,790 and up to $5,500. Belts, ties and tie clips will also cost you so cash, as well as under shirts or white dress shirts that could be around $750.

Of course, you can’t expect to be in retail stores only once. You will probably go to these shops to buy more clothes because you wouldn’t want to same the attires over and over, especially if you meet with the same clients.

Now that you have learned how would a sane person can spend a glorious amount of dollars on buying clothes, the next thing to will understand is how it would benefit your business. That comes next.

Dressing nicely and getting more money: the link between

Let’s begin by accepting the fact that people believe what they see. People judge you based on how you look – negatively or positively. Apparently, just by doing some tweaks on how you dress, people can also change the way they think about you. This also means that when you look successful, people think that you are successful.

Feras Antoon - Neil Patel Case

Neil Patel’s transformation from Geek to Chic

According to Neil, he wears any of his fancy suits or tuxedos whenever he goes out of the house. He began receiving compliments from people he met in the streets when he decided to dress decently. Many of these people ask him what he does for a living. Neil really began gathering attention simply by changing the way he dresses.

Neil Patel has a consulting business. He noticed an improvement with the number of his closed deals the time he began wearing decent clothes. His change of outfit choice benefitted his business meetings the most. He learned, wearing nice clothes is more than just receiving compliments — it’s about success.

Over the years, he had countless business meetings, but he only gets to close 1 out 4 deals in the past. The main reason why he failed in closing deals is because his clients think that he quote absurd amounts of price for his service. Neil closely monitors all his meetings, and keeps it in organized excel sheets complete with all the important details like, closing ratios, average pitch price, company name, people within the meetings, their job titles. Thus, he is sure of the improvements that took place.

The time he began dressing nicely, he noticed his number of closed deals grew significantly. It’s because his clients assume he is a successful person. Thus, they want to work with him, and become associated with him to be successful as well. There was a noticeable change in trust between Neil and the people he deals with because people thought Neil is reliable.

From 25%, his closing ratio increased to about 40%. It means in every 10 meetings, the number of his successfully closed deals became 4. It is a huge leap forward for Neil. These numbers led him to having an extra $692,500 in revenue. The most staggering part of the story is he didn’t change anything in his business strategies. He didn’t bother to create a new pitch, or quote a new price, or shift to a different niche. The only thing did change is the way he dresses.

Clothes and Building Relationships

How you dress can be a connection or a great ice-breaker between potential friends or new clients. When Neil was once in Dolce and Gabbana in Beverly Hills, a few basketball players came in.

At first, he didn’t know who those people were. But just like what he typically gets while walking the streets, a few of these people told him he got ‘swag’. Though unfamiliar with the term, Neil took it as a flattery.

One of them asked him what he does for a living. So he threw his usual spiel about the things he does on the internet. They exchanged talks, and the person said something about himself as well. Apparently, he is a financial manager of many popular sports players. This guy is a money guru who teaches professional players how to handle their finances.

Neil caught the attention of this financial manager because of how he looks. Because the guy is interested with what Neil does, he took his number and gave him his corporate code for any Starwood Hotel. Neil spends most of his time travelling (around 200 days on the road a year to be precise), so this freebie can help him save a bunch of cash.

Neil also talked with the other basketball players about this hoodie being sold at the store worth $2000. They asked them what he thinks of the ridiculously expensive hoodie. He said he thinks it is wonderful that he already bought it himself. He said he wears it with basketball shorts when runs. They all thought he’s crazy. Well, maybe he is.

In return of all these talks, he got to extend his network. Neil made friends and new relationships. He received free NBA ALL Star tickets worth around $4,000, a few free courtside tickets to some Miami Heat games, and a few new business opportunities from these people he met because of his clothes.

Are you going to change the way you dress?

Mike and Neil Patel

Mike and Neil Patel before the transformation

Neil didn’t do the experiment by himself. He actually did it with his friend, Mike Kamo. Mike was in the field of car dealership, and like Neil, he experienced marvelous changes in his life when he started dressing decently. In tech events that he attended in the past, people started approaching Mike the time he did a closet makeover. He closed huge deals, and expanded his business network. People hired Mike to help them build their sales teams and fine-tune the process. Mike didn’t experience this before when he was approaching people at events in a t-shirt and jeans. The reason is the same with Neil – people thought Mike wasn’t successful. Thus, building trust and credibility were a struggle.

Mike and Neil experienced huge shifts in their lives simply by choosing decent clothes. A simple step that granted them glorious achievements. Now, the question is: are you going to change the way you dress, too?

Though you wouldn’t have to go to the extremes like Neil Patel did, you, too, can begin wearing nice clothes while spending an acceptable amount of money. You can dress well without having to let go $100k for clothes.

There are several shops that sell good stuff with an exceptional fit. How your dress fits you is the most important factor to consider when choosing clothes. Stores like Zara or H&M sells nice yet cheap clothes. These shops can be your go-to place if you want to look better. If the clothes you buy still don’t fit well, you can always pay a tailor to adjust the fit.

The sad yet true lesson of the story is that people judge people based on the material things they see. Judgment is easy with the way we dress, or the things we possess. If judgment is a crucial part of your life or your business, it’s just wise to subtly direct people of how they think of you with what you buy with your money. Dress in fancy clothes, look good, and they can quickly change their perception of you. Besides, if you look good and you feel good about yourself, the cash spent would be worth it as well.

August 21, 2017 0 comment
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Feras Antoon Linkedin Profile Picture
Business

How Good is Your LinkedIn Profile Picture?

written by Feras Antoon

First impressions last. Whether that English proverb is true or not, we’re pretty certain your audience impression to your LinkedIn headshot is vital to your traffic, and business. On this side of the virtual world, we’re happy to inform you – yes, you need to get that headshot a revamp.

What’s good about having an online platform is you can spend most of your day in your pajamas, while people can constantly visualize you as a formal, well-groomed professional. In short, you can be a slob, a hippie, or whatever you want to be, but still land a good, businesslike character with the use of technology. Now, we are not saying you are not a professional, neither you are a poser entrepreneur. Truth is, you are a genuine expert in your niche that’s why you are polishing the impressions you could get from people. We just can’t deny the fact that people judge based on appearance, and in the field that you chose, looks are important.

Don’t fret. Maintaining a particular image is now easy. Thanks to the world wide web, just a few tweaks to your online accounts, and you’re on your way to nailing that first impression. To begin, here are 8 tricks to have the most flattering LinkedIn profile picture:

    1. Accept the fact that you need changes. There are several points to ponder on to determine if you need a new LinkedIn profile picture. First, when was your photo taken? Is it your most recent look, or is it what you looked like 5 years ago? Updated photos of yourself is important, so people could at least recognize you when they see you in the flesh. Second, are you with other people in the picture? Or did you cleverly crop them out? Believe us when we say everyone will know if the picture has been cropped or not – and cropped photos aren’t very professional. Third, are you holding a beer, getting a tan, or does your picture contain anything about your personal life that you wouldn’t want your audience to know?

Feras Antoon Bad Linkedin Photo Example

If you answered yes to any of these questions, then you need to get your LinkedIn profile picture fixed. Your photo must be simple, and professional-looking to get equally-reflecting audience impressions.

    1. Seek professional help. If you’re not confident with your ability to take decent photos, go pro. Some people are fortunate to have the eyes and the skills in capturing the best-looking selfies with minimal effort, and simple backdrop. However, it’s also true that many people are not. If you doubt your selfie-taking skills after a couple of tries that resulted in blurry shots, wrong angles or bad lightings, then better find a professional photographer. Let the pros do what they do, and help you get a flattering headshot.A good place to start is Snappr. Upload your photo, and it will analyze what could be improved. For free.

Feras Antoon Snappr Linkedin

  1. Walk away from the professionals in malls. Learn from other people’s mistakes. The mall is not the place to look for professional photographers to take your portrait. Typically, workers in malls are inexperienced teens, or people who don’t care about the outcome of your photo shoot, or both. Try it, and you’ll probably end up with laughable, cringe-y shots. If you want a help from a pro, don’t be scared or shy to reach out for photographers within your network. These people care about their work. They care enough to produce an outcome that both of you can be proud of. If you don’t know any photographers, you can casually ask your Facebook friends with great profile pictures for a photographer referral. It’ll be worth a try.
  1. Going for DIY’s mean a ton of selfies. If you choose to do-it-yourself, make sure to exert effort and allot a glorious amount of time for taking selfies. Prepare to take not one, but multiple selfies (10 shots at least), so you can choose the best LinkedIn professional-level looking photo. Get your hair and makeup done, trim your nose hair, too, and play with lighting and backgrounds. Make sure you are prepared enough for an intense solo photo shoot session. Choose a background and location with good lighting – natural lighting is preferred, if your chosen venue isn’t well-lit. Your background must be the most decent, tidiest place in your home if you’re going for an indoor shoot. However, keep in mind the first tip: your photo must not give away anything about your personal life that you wouldn’t want your audience to know — like a weird collection, maybe.
  1. Use a decent camera. Borrow from a friend if you need to, and borrow your friend. Aim for quality. Aim for elegance. Do not settle for less. To do it, you need a decent cam that creates professional-looking photos. Don’t worry, you need not to buy, just borrow from a friend. You may want to borrow your friend, too, if ever you get lost in the technicalities of the camera world. Pick the best location, pose like the expert that you are. It doesn’t matter if you get 999 bad shots in 1000. The important is, you get at least one – and you will only able to if you try for multiple times.
  1. The secret to a flattering shot: bird’s eye view. It doesn’t matter if you were hailed the prom king or queen during your juvenile days. The golden rule for selfies remain – the best angle is always slightly from above. Whether you choose to get a shot from the left, right, or upfront, always keep in mind to place the camera a little higher from your face, and there will be a higher chance for better selfies.
  1. Pick a reliable photo editing app or software. After all the photo shoots, awkward poses, and bad angles, you will eventually get one that best shot. When you are done picking the most decent photo among the rest, the next step is to play around photo editing apps. Give that picture a couple of tweaks to make it look undeniably professional. There are a couple of purchasable and free software that you can use for editing. However, if you are baffled with everything that you can do to your selfie, go for the safest trick: black and white. It will give your photo an instant layer of sophistication.
  1. Reach out to your most brutally-honest friend. This friend of yours who is totally clueless about when to step on the brakes, is rather an ally. All of us have this one friend, and for such crucial moments you’ll need her help. Present all your photos to your friend, and let her do what she does. We need brutal honesty at some points in our lives, and this picking-your-best-selfie is one of those. We bet, now feel grateful for having such a friend.

I hope you enjoyed these tips to improve your personal brand. Your company’s Linkedin page also needs a revamp? Check our tips here.

 

August 18, 2017 0 comment
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Feras Antoon Dronie
Tech

AirSelfie: The Perfect Device For Your #Dronies

written by Feras Antoon

Stretching out your hand to take a selfie has become obsolete. Aside from these selfie moments can turn into awkward situations, most of the time you end up capturing ugly angles, too. Thus, gadgets for better selfies have been invented, and yes, selfie stick included. Thankfully for us selfie lovers, the most innovative technology for capturing the most stunning selfies has come! Introducing Airselfie, a small drone with the size of your mobile phone can take photos in midair. Here, we will reveal the reasons why you must have this portable camera.

But first, let’s take a #dronie

Airselfie is a portable flying camera that comes with additional accessories for optimization of its maximum potential. One of its most impressive accessories is its phone case that acts as a phone cover and a power bank. Airselfie is extremely small that you can keep it in your pocket. It flies up to 20 meters, and can stay hovering in midair for a couple of minutes to take videos and photos. The device can capture the best shots with your smartphone via an app that is easy to use. In just a few clicks, and you can have professional-looking photos in a matter of seconds.

Airselfie can also be used to create videos, and upload pictures directly to social media sites. Airseflie has the most cutting-edge technology a flying portable camera can have that is now available in the market. Designed by an international team, this device was created to be the lightest, smallest, and the handiest drone ever made in the history of device innovation.

 

Specifications

Aluminum case

Airselfie is made with state-of-the-art materials, which can be noticed in its aluminum case. The device is equipped with the most durable case with anodized aeronautical grade aluminium. The case ensures protection of the delicate parts from wear and tear, while also keeping its weight as light as possible.

5 MP camera

With Airselfie’s sharp 5 Megapixel camera, you surely won’t miss a detail with your every shot. The camera takes high definition videos and photos, letting you tell your story clearly, and exactly how you want it to be told.

Self-generated WiFi

Airselfie generates its own 2.4 GHz wifi network. This allows the device to be connected to mobile devices, as well as upload videos and photos directly online.

Advanced sensors

For its steady movements, Airselfie is added with sophisticated sensors. The sensors improve the stability of the device to produce clear images. Additionally, its vibration-absorber system, and its in-flight stability systems promote its steady navigation.

Brushless motors

Airselfie’s four brushless motors are the smallest and the most powerful motors in the market. It enables the camera to thrust up to 20 meters in the air in a matter of seconds.

4GB memory card

The device comes with a 4GB micro SD memory card for storage of memories. The built-in memory also keeps your memories safe and protected.

Built-in Battery

Airselfie is integrated with 240mAh 7.4 LiPo battery, which allows it to hover in the air continuously for three minutes. In case you need to recharge the batteries, simply slide it back to the phone case, and it will automatically fill up the batteries. You can as well use the USB cable for recharging.

Phone cover

Airselfie comes with a phone cover that also serves as a charger. There are available phone cases for the popular smartphones like iPhone (6/6 Plus, 7/7 Plus), Samsung (Galaxy S7 Edge) and Google Pixel. The cover protects the phone and the Airselfie device, and can also fully recharge the Airselfie in just 30 minutes.

Power bank

The Airselfie power bank charges the camera up to 20 times before it runs out of battery. The power bank works in perfect integration with the camera, which allows an overall 1-hour flight.

 

Where to Get Airselfie

Airselfie is a kickstarter project by the AirSelfie Holdings Ltd London. You can contact the company through the Kickstarter site or the official site of the Airselfie camera for pre-orders.

August 16, 2017 0 comment
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spare time side project
Business

How to Launch An Online Business Using Your Spare Time

written by Feras Antoon

One of the biggest hurdles towards turning your dreams into reality is the lack of time. Many aspiring entrepreneurs wish to pursue their business goals, but they say their day jobs take a huge portion of their day. Entrepreneur Network partner Greg Rollett is hearing similar stories. Numerous individuals complain there isn’t enough time to create an online business if you have a regular job. However, what many of us do not know that we can maximize our spare time to accomplish more tasks each day. If you want to build your own online business but it seems like you don’t have enough time due to your day job, here’s how to juggle your time wisely to be an accomplished entrepreneur.

Morning Routine

You’ll be surprised how waking up earlier than usual can change your productivity. Simply by adding small tweaks on your morning routine, you’ll be able to make time for your online business. Start by waking up an hour or two earlier than the usual time. During this spare time, you can do a short exercise to boost your energy. After that, while having your breakfast you can work on your online business on the side. Use this time for writing a blog post, filming a video, or just organizing your goals for your business.

Your daily commute to work consumes a large portion of your day, too. An average commuter typically spends an hour traveling to and from their workplace. During this time, instead of making phone calls, browsing the net, or listening to music, you can have a conference call while driving. Dial the phone and reach out to your potential partners, or clients. If you commute via train or bus, you can spend the minutes on your way to work recording your modules for your online course. Use this window for productivity, and tick off the boxes in your to-do list for your internet biz.

Break Time

60 minutes is the typically allotted time for lunch breaks at work. During this spare time, you can accomplish a lot of tasks for your online business. Greg Rollett admitted he used to spend his lunch breaks eating his sandwich and chips, while completing his homeworks for his internet venture. During your lunch break, you can do it too. Instead of checking out updates on your social media, or chatting with your coworkers, you can use your 60 minutes eating while building your business. Send out emails, film a video, do a sketch of your business plans, while having your meals. Using your time wisely will result in creating the time you need towards fulfilling your entrepreneurial dreams.

After Work Routine

If have big dreams and ambitious goals, you must know that productivity does not end when the office doors close. When you get home from work, you can allot an hour or two building your online business. It is your chance to send out emails, write blogs, film videos, contact potential clients, or talk with your business partners. You can do all these chores to be able to hit your entrepreneurial aims. You can spend up to three hours completing everything that needs to be done for your online business. However, you must not forget to balance your time between your family, self, and work. Make sure to also spend time with your wife and kids after work. Be present during your family dinner. Have a nice chat with your children. Watch movies with your partner after an evening meal. When you have accomplished your duties to your family, you can then proceed to working on your business.

“It’s not about having time. It’s about making time.” Time is an illusion, they say. If we really want something to happen, we create time for it. It doesn’t matter if we are living a hectic schedule on a daily basis. What counts is our effort to give time to things that matter the most. If you look closely, you will know that you have almost 5 hours of spare time, which you can use to build your business. Be aware of the time and learn to use it productively. In no time, you will be your own boss, and you will be able to live a successful entrepreneurial life.

August 14, 2017 0 comment
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millennials
Business

The Top Benefits That Will Make Millennials Stay In Your Company

written by Feras Antoon

A study gathered by Research Now, as the fifth annual Aflac Employee Benefits Research focuses on the employees of the Generation Y, or what we call the ‘Millennials’. Experts have observed a profound behavior of Millennials when it comes to work. This particular generation quickly changes jobs in the early years of their careers. Thus, this study researched the reasons behind this fast and furious pattern, and sought potential solutions for the employers.

According to the study, individuals born in the early 80’s had an average of 6.2 jobs between the age of 18 and 26. Furthermore, only 57 percent of these jobs lasted for more than a year. A survey from PricewaterhouseCoopers reflected the reasons behind these numbers, and claimed that the Millennials do it for a couple of reasons.

First, a large portion of these people thinks they’ve had to compromise to be employed. One-third of the subjects says they have to accept jobs that offer a lower salary than what they expect. 17 percent answers, they have to work on jobs that are far from where they reside. While 17 percent also said, they have to accept jobs that offer fewer benefits. Second, Millennials say they prioritize their career growth and development. They knew the value of job opportunities where they see a potential for career growth, that have competitive wages, and offers training and development. Third, the generation Y claims they look for corporations that shares the same responsibility behavior as with their own beliefs. Lastly, these particular individuals find job opportunities more attractive if they offer chances to balance their life and work. Half of the subjects look for jobs that offer flexible hours, while 32 percent said they prefer working on flexible schedules.

Importance of benefits to Millennials

Despite all the mentioned grounds of why Millennials are drawn into job-shifts, companies who are wise enough to know the importance of keeping this new generation of employees saw a solution: benefit plans. These employers saw the Millennials’ employment patterns, and took it into consideration when carefully communicating their offered benefit plans in return for permanence. Besides, statistics show that the number of companies who offer pensions is declining. However, employers who offer benefits claim that the generation Y still opt for leaving despite being offered with benefits. In fact, 63 percent of the surveyed subjects say they still look for a new job after 12 months. The companies question the reason behind this pattern.

According to the 2015 Aflac WorkForces Report, it could be because millennials are looking for better benefit plans. The subjects of the study said inclusive benefit packages are vital because it secures their health and well-being. 58 percent said, comprehensive benefit plans give them a peace of mind. While, 38 percent of millennial workers are aware of its value.

How to make the Millennials stay?

With the current US economy, Millennials are now not afraid to be labeled as a job-hoppers. It is a fact that it is tough to land on the most ideal job. Thus, Millennial employees pursue opportunities for the mean time while they are trying to get the perfect position.

The problem is, no company wants to hire a temporary worker. Especially if they will provide training and development, and end up losing the employee to a competitor. However, 64 percent of Millennials admitted that benefit packages play a huge role on employer loyalty, and 23 percent said it is extremely important. This means that the key to making the Millennials stay is by offering benefit options.

Based on reports, only 31 percent of Millennials are being offered with benefit packages. This is the lowest percentage it has been compared to other generations. Experts say, if companies want to increase the number of their permanent employees, they may want to consider adding voluntary insurance options to their benefit packages.

Why voluntary insurance? First, because voluntary insurance is paid by employees. Meaning, it would not affect the company’s costs. Second, voluntary products will secure the employee’s health in case of sickness or injuries. A voluntary insurance will cover any health-related costs, which primary insurance may not.

Securing the health of millennial workers is crucial, as 72 percent of them may not be able to adjust their financial costs in case of injuries or sickness. Furthermore, experts said, offering voluntary insurance has a deeper importance:

  • It makes Millennials workers focus more on their work by providing financial safety nets. Offering voluntary insurance is paramount when 28 percent of Millennials who participated in the 2015 Aflac WorkForces Report said the most common non-related work issue that distracts them while working is personal financial problems.
  • Voluntary insurance comes with pay-in-cash benefits regardless if employees have other insurances in place.

The fast-phase world could also be to blame in the current fast-changing choice of careers. However, it could be true that Millennials are looking for reasons to stay, rather than reasons to leave their companies. The best solution to this conundrum perhaps if to offer options for voluntary insurance. Companies may consider offering insurance options that secures health such as, those that cover accident, disability, as well as life insurance, hospitalization, dental, and more. Millenials could be convinced to stick with their employers if they would find ways to secure their insecurities.

August 11, 2017 0 comment
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Elon Musk
Business

This Email From Elon Musk Will Make You Rethink Leadership

written by Feras Antoon

Tesla is known to be one of largest manufacturers of innovative technologies. For years, they have been creating and providing products that change the world. No doubt, they have the best team when it comes to innovation. However, it’s also true that when creating cutting-edge inventions, accidents can happen. Tesla, one of the world’s tech giants, experiences tragedies, too.

Over the past years, Tesla has been struggling with safety. The public knew about it when the non-profit worker safety advocacy group, Worksafe, reported that Tesla’s plant in Fremont, California, has a 30 percent higher injury rate than the industry average in 2014 and 2015. However, Musk said that safety is the ultimate priority at Tesla. In fact, they are performing actions to decrease the rate and probability of injuries among their workers. Musk claimed that a few of their steps involved hiring thousands of employees in the purpose of creating a third shift, thus, avoiding excessive overtime. The tesla’s CEO also said that their actions resulted in a substantial decrease in injury rate.

Musk even sent an email to all of Tesla’s employees, implying his empathy towards the issue. As reported by the news site Electrek, a part of Musk’s email said:

No words can express how much I care about your safety and wellbeing. It breaks my heart when someone is injured building cars and trying their best to make Tesla successful.

 Going forward, I’ve asked that every injury be reported directly to me, without exception. I’m meeting with the safety team every week and would like to meet every injured person as soon as they are well, so that I can understand from them exactly what we need to do to make it better. I will then go down to the production line and perform the same task that they perform.

This is what all managers at Tesla should do as a matter of course. At Tesla, we lead from the front line, not from some safe and comfortable ivory tower. Managers must always put their team’s safety above their own.

Sincerity is felt in Musk’s words. If he can prove that this email is true by fulfilling his promises, Musk truly is an exceptional example of a good leader.

Learning from an Exemplary Leader

It’s essential for every leader to be emotionally intelligent. Defined as the capacity to be aware of, control, and express one’s emotions, and to handle interpersonal relationships judiciously and empathetically, emotional intelligence plays a crucial role in people management. As an effective leader, this trait is an essential quality.

Musk had laid out his words beautifully in his email. He had precisely expressed his points, and touched many people who read his message. What’s more impressive is his willingness to take bold risks when he made a promise to his employees. Musk is clearly ready to do whatever it takes to personally meet the emotional needs of every injured worker. He even initiated to actually perform what the employees do to learn how to their tasks. Such quality can never be seen in every CEO, not all leaders are willing to face real-life dangers just to know the exact solution for a problem.

Leaders must lead, and as an effective leader, they must set an example. The best leaders practice what they preach, and are not afraid to delegate tasks. They know how and when to handle the situations in their own hands. Most importantly, effective leaders can identify serious problems and are ready to be deeply involved in finding the solutions.

What Musk offered is the best example of what a leader must do. Great managers work alongside their staff to get the same perspective, and come up with correct steps based on that view. Knowing how to put one’s self in else’s shoes is a necessary ability for leaders to build rapport, empathy, and boost worker’s motivation.

If you’re an aspiring leader, or a leader yourself, your people must know that you’ve got their backs. Unfortunately, not all managers are willing to make a similar effort. Thus, many teams fail.

Answering these questions can help you improve as a leader:

  • Where does my team experience difficulties?
  • What can I do to help them improve?
  • What can I do to make things better?

After questioning yourself these questions, and after being able to provide answers, the moment you implement your solutions, you can then prove to yourself and your team that you are a good leader – and people will then follow.

 

August 9, 2017 0 comment
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