A Life Pulling Strings

Life at the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business is, at best, oxymoronic. The hoops, strings, and dances required to progress lay the groundwork for a dramatic comedy. These requirements put business students in a catch 22 situation—do we laugh at the predicament some person on the 7th floor has put us in or do we form a line all the way down the stairwell waiting to talk to some person on the 7th floor?

Personally, I have taken the dramatic side side of the situation. The fees and requirements placed upon the backs of students is almost unbearable. Differential tuition prices going to an unknown expenditure is no laughing matter. Who makes those decisions is determined by the Dean of a department and approved by a committee consisting of student council members as well as people chosen by the governor of Utah. How could a college student and a governor’s buddy (neither of which have any prerequisite or relations to the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business) know how to effectively disperse funds? This matter is laughable.

Writing a formal complaint about the whimsical spending of student funds yields even scarier results. Executive Dean Ken Snyder responded to an inquiry I made to the School of Business in a frustrating and tactless manner. His email expressed no sympathy for personal financial struggles. His advice consisted of recommending a different college to attend because “Utah State University is a ‘research’ institution” (K. Snyder. Personal communication, August 19, 2011) and needs to charge students more money for research performed by professors out of class. This matter is frustrating.

The Strokes Aren’t an Issue, They're The Issue

There has been so much talk concerning this generation’s music and how it influences the entire music industry; it is boring, too simple, or soulless. Discussed briefly in one of my economic classes, a fascinating argument took place about how one band, The Strokes, and the music produced by them (with the exception of their first album) was dull, daft, and non derived. I was the odd duck proudly defending the belief that The Strokes are, without a doubt, the most influential band of the past decade.

Few bands had more hype before hitting the music scene back in 2001; everyone knew who they were and assumed they were going to enjoy Is This It months before they knew what genre The Strokes would fall under in their iTunes library. When their first album hit the shelves, their sound instantly bore the “iconic” badge. Quick paced guitar riffs and melancholic vocals sprinkled with complimenting drum solos, this band knew how to influence a generation wanting something different. Music changed, assumptions changed, and generations changed and all because one band was simply playing music. Virtually all bands that sprung up in the past nine years have The Strokes near their music pedigree’s beginning. A band like that is not group of individuals getting together to rock, they are revolutionaries.

While noting their recent two albums haven’t been as groundbreaking as their first, no band, besides The Beatles, has ever put out back-to-back-to-back albums that changed music (but having their band compared to The Beatles is a huge statement in itself). Also noted was how The Strokes seemed to strip everything but the basic rock and roll sound out of their music. “The music of the future uses futuristic technology,” one student was quoted saying. But that is the reason why this band has been so influential/ They stripped the genre down to the bones and played, letting everything great about the indie scene be exposed for what it really is — real music from real people for everyone. The Strokes are the most influential band the world has seen in the past decade.

Two Tips to Help Effectively Present in a Classroom Situation

Classrooms, at any given point in time, are always filled with large amounts of feelings and emotions. Student interactions with teachers can range from extremely strict to lackadaisical. However, almost every student has a certain way of effectively letting information enter their brain. Whether the presenter is a teacher or student, CEO or intern, it is important to plan intriguing presentations that invoke thinking and to prepare a presentation that can adapt to the needs of the group.

Boring presentations do more than bore the individual — it discredits the presenter and draws everyone’s attention to anything besides the material being presented. Taking away validity hinders company growth and encourages mistakes caused by individuals due to wasted time and overexertion. Distracting the group with boredom can lead to tension with superiors and an absence of trust. Thought provoking presentations help the class ponder what was presented hours and days after the presentation finished, which help workers incorporate new lessons into their daily work routine.

Because every group is unique and comfortable about how to work, changing their daily routine can seem daunting. But when presentations can adapt to meet the specific needs and interests of a group, real understanding occurs and individuals are willing to give up their habits for new and exciting ideas. If specific needs are taught to specific people, real concerns can be addressed yielding needed changes.

Carefully selecting topics to keep the interest of the group and adapting to specific needs will prove effective when exposing new information to a class.

Discussing the use of current collaboration technology and its application in classroom group work

While greatness is known to exist on an individual level, modern times require almost everyone to provide more knowledge than they as individuals can offer. Collaboration with other individuals is the key to success. The amount of strategies allowing for a group to succeed varies greatly but technology increases group work as well as productivity. Technological breakthroughs are most beneficial in classroom group work. Some of the most useful and innovative resources are online workstations as well as wireless communications.

Online workstations like Google Docs or Microsoft Office Online offer areas where groups can read and review documents from almost anywhere. These virtual workstations allow for groups to work together when they aren’t together. Efficiency increases due to less wasted time due from traveling as well as keeping all versions of group work up to date. This helps all group members stay on task and continue to contribute useful information throughout the entire collaboration process rather than just during the initial stages of planning.

Along with internet resources, wireless communications such as cell phones and portable computers offer countless applications in group work that help individuals work more efficiently. These technologies help save time with projects varying in size while being affordable and available for everyone. All group members benefit from saved time and information can be distributed to large groups of people quickly. Allowing more time to collaborate and less time preparing to collaborate leads to breakthroughs and innovation by all groups.

What Can Professional Blogs Do For Businesses?

Blogs are one of the internet's fastest growing sensations. Along with almost any other quickly growing internet sensation, businesses aren't forced to join the crowd, but rather they would be foolish not to. With an estimated 20,000 blogs appearing every day and more than one third of all internet users reading blogs, the numbers speak for themselves. Only companies not wanting more online traffic discovering a business would choose to not have a blog.

Blogs for businesses will bring customers to your place of work and increase sales. Traffic on any business website is obviously wanted, and blogs easily allow a casual way for customers to "stumble upon" websites. Because a blog can be viewed by anyone and can increase in popularity every day, it is a non intrusive way for businesses to advertise themselves and attract an even greater number of people inside their doors, whether those doors are real of virtual.

Aside from offering products to customers via blogs, blogs can also be a support line for existing customers. Because of the simplicity and ease of blog layouts, lists and categories can be assigned in order to allow for customers to solve problems they have regarding their purchased items. Contacting customer service, reading online user manuals, and basic contact information can all be posted and accessed online providing quick and efficient options for customers to solve problems they may encounter.